From Jake Owensby-No words adequately express the horror of the shootings in Las Vegas. News stories report body count and hospitalizations in an attempt to convey the incomprehensible magnitude of the violence.
The number of the dead and wounded could describe a pitched battle in Afghanistan or, long ago, in Vietnam. Nearly sixty dead. Over five hundred in need of medical treatment.
But of course, this wasn’t a battle fought on foreign soil. This was a country music concert. On American soil. And the attacker was an unremarkable American citizen who possessed a personal arsenal. Of automatic weapons. As he so dreadfully demonstrated, weapons designed to kill human beings in large numbers very efficiently.
We don’t yet know why the killer opened fire from his 32nd floor hotel room. But we are reeling from the savagery of his actions and the random senselessness of the deaths. He indiscriminately maimed and murdered scores of complete strangers who were out on the town for nothing more than a rowdy good time.
One of Ann Lamott’s favorite prayers seems most appropriate to me right now: Help, help, help! Help us O God in our grief and our fear and our utter confusion. Help us to find a better way to live in community. Help us to find tranquility in our hearts, peace on our streets, and love of our neighbor. Give repose to the dead, healing to the wounded, and comfort to the sorrowful.
More here-
https://jakeowensby.com/2017/10/03/the-las-vegas-shootings-and-the-american-soul/
No comments:
Post a Comment