Saturday, February 9, 2013
The president of the Kirkwood-based Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod asked for an apology from a pastor who participated in an interfaith vigil after the shootings.
A few days after the shooting in Newtown, CT, that killed 20 children and six adults, the community gathered with a variety of clergy leaders representing a number of faiths for a prayer service and vigil. That didn't sit well with the president of the conservative, Kirkwood-based Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. A pastor from Christ the King Lutheran Church, a Missouri Synod church in Newtown, was among those who participated. And the president of the synod, The Rev. Matthew Harrison, asked that pastor to apologize, as reported in an article by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Saturday. The Post's coverage summarizes the issue thusly: The synod forbids "worship services that blend the beliefs and practices of Lutherans with those of other …
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Following the tragic school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, CT, should we expect to see stricter laws regarding gun purchases in the United States?
The question reemerges after every mass shooting in America: are more stringent gun control laws necessary to prevent future shootings? It's a question that was posed after the shooting at a movie theater in Aurora, CO in July. And as the national conversation continues to focus on the tragic school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, CT, it's a question being asked again. So far, lawmakers in Missouri have been divided on how to respond. As KMOX reported on Thursday, Rep. Stacey Newman (D-Richmond Heights) is calling for the implementation of required background checks for people who buy firearms at gun shows. Meanwhile, other Missouri lawmakers are supporting a bill that would allow school officials with concealed carry …
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
The organization, which held its annual convention in St. Louis this year, plans a "major" news conference Friday in Washington, D.C.
The national conversation taking place in the wake of the Newtown, CT school shootings Friday has thus far not included the advocacy group for gun rights, the National Rifle Association. That changed Tuesday afternoon with a statement sent to reporters around the country: "The National Rifle Association of America is made up of four million moms and dads, sons and daughters – and we were shocked, saddened and heartbroken by the news of the horrific and senseless murders in Newtown. Out of respect for the families, and as a matter of common decency, we have given time for mourning, prayer and a full investigation of the facts before commenting. The NRA is prepared to offer meaningful contributions to help make sure this never happens again…
Monday, December 17, 2012
In the wake of the Newtown, CT school massacre, St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch will visit schools this week to discuss increasing security, including putting guns in elementary schools.
St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch and police officers will begin visiting St. Louis County schools Monday morning, according to KMOV. Fitch said he's received numerous calls from area schools concerned about security since Friday's mass shooting in a Newtown, CT elementary school. Fitch acknowledges that most high schools and some middle schools, including those in West County, have armed school resource officers. However, elementary schools are not normally protected by officers. Fitch wants to see armed resource officers or armed school officials in those schools, according to KSDK. He points out that Sandy Hook Elementary School conducted threat drills and locked its doors once class started, but that did not stop suspected …
Friday, December 14, 2012
Children "need to be reminded that this is an unusual situation and they should not fear going to school or other familiar activities.”
A St. Louis-based crime victims' advocacy group alerted parents to remind their children that such vicious violence is rare and that they should not be afraid to go about their daily lives and familiar routines. “Children should be taught to always be aware of their surroundings," said Julie Lawson, President and CEO of the Crime Victim Advocacy Center in St. Louis, in a statement. "But they also need to be reminded that this is an unusual situation and they should not fear going to school or other familiar activities.” She was responding to news of the multiple deaths in Newtown, CT, on Friday, when a shooter killed at least 27 people, including himself, at an elementary school. "An incident like this reminds us that we are vulnerable to…
The move comes in the wake of a deadly shooting rampage in Newtown, Connecticut which has left dozens dead at Sandy Hook Elementary School, many of them young children.
St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch announced via Twitter Friday afternoon that officers will provide extra patrols at elementary schools until further notice. "We hope our presence will calm fears," he tweeted. Those fears come in the wake of a deadly school shooting in Newtown, CT, friday where authorities say a man went to an elementary school and killed at least 26 people, including his mother, according to Newtown Patch. At least 18 children have been killed in the Newtown shooting, according to authorities. Update: 3:45 p.m. Friday: County Police spokesman Randy Vaughn told Patch Friday afternoon that the move makes elementary schools "a first priority" for patrols, and applies only to the areas in unincorporated St. Louis County…
Amy E.
3:37 pm on Sunday, February 17, 2013
I also watched it on television, and I agree that I saw nothing in that memorial gathering that indicated that any of the clergy present were endorsing the faiths of any of the others. They were all simply trying to offer comfort to the grieving. I felt the same way some 11 years earlier when the LCMS pastor David Benke participated in an interfaith memorial gathering at Yankee Stadium following … more ›