Church prayer service held for victims of gun violence

Sharon Mitchell and her 20 fellow members of the Peace and Justice Ministry of the Our Lady of the Angels Catholic Church had been discussing gun violence in Florida and the nation for years.

They were waiting for someone to take the lead on a project to show legislators that their constituents were not pleased with the lack of gun control support at the state and local level.

But no one did.

"Somebody had to do something," Mitchell said. "And we realized it had to be us."

On Nov. 5, the Peace and Justice Ministry hosted a "Prayer Service for Victims of Gun Violence" at the church.

It wasn't just Our Lady of the Angels parishioners. The ministry contacted churches of all denominations and invited anyone who wanted to attend the service.

The ministry prepared for the event since June by doing research on gun violence in America. That information was shared with those who attended the service and is available to anyone interested. For example, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. there were 48,830 gun-related deaths in the U.S. in 2021.

According to BradyUnited.org, every day in the U.S., an average of 327 people are shot of which 117 die. 

The Peace and Justice Ministry also passed out letters to those in attendance that they could sign and forward to their legislators in support of stricter gun control.

"This is not just us talking about it," Mitchell said.

Members of the group said they are not against citizens owning guns. They want stricter controls on guns such as automatic weapons.

"My husband is a disabled Vietnam veteran," said Ruth Harenchar, who is on the Peace and Justice Ministry. "We are not here to say that guns are not part of our society."

"I am concerned with the scope of assault weapons in our society," said ministry member Theresa Phillips. "There is no place for them."

Phillips said one of the reasons the ministry decided to invite the community to a prayer service was to share information.

"There are a lot of people who don't know what to do," Phillips said of organizing to make a collective voice heard. "And while we want to raise awareness, even if people don't attend, hopefully they will pray for us."

Harenchar said the Peace and Justice Ministry, which was founded 20 years ago, meets once a month to focus on a particular charity and also to discuss social issues. However, she said this is the first time the ministry has included people outside the parish.

She said the lack of control on assault weapons has been allowed to go on far too long. She said the statistics on gun violence "break our hearts."

She said the prayer service only will be the first step.

'We are going to continue to interact with people," she said. "We are hoping other people will pick up the baton."

Lt. Robert Andrews of the Manatee County Sheriff's Office was a guest speaker at the prayer service.

Mike Mitchell, Sharon Mitchell's husband, said all Christians should join the cause.

"If we don't stand up as Christians, we are complicit," Mike Mitchell said. "We want to influence the people in Congress who are stopping gun control with legislation. We have it within our power to change our legislators' opinions."