WASHINGTON — Catholic leaders across the United States reacted
with sorrow and "heavy hearts" to a mass shooting in west Texas Aug.
31 that authorities said claimed seven lives and wounded 25 others.
Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, president of the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said in a statement Sept. 1 that he was
"deeply saddened to witness yet again scenes of violence and contempt for
human life being repeated in our nation's streets."
He said Catholics attending Sunday Mass Sept. 1 "do so with
heavy hearts" thinking of these victims and victims of recent "gun
violence in California, Texas and Ohio."
He said the Aug. 31 shooting, which occurred as the gunman sped
along highways in Odessa and Midland, Texas, "demonstrates unequivocally
the undeniable existence of evil in our society."
Cardinal DiNardo also called on "people of goodwill,"
including Catholic leaders and the faithful, "to work tirelessly to root
out the causes of such crimes."
"As people of faith, we must continue to pray for all
victims, and for healing in all these shattered communities that now extend
across the length and breadth of our land," he added.
Law enforcement authorities said Seth Ator, 36, carried out the
shooting as he drove along 10 miles of highways in the two communities,
spreading panic in a normally calm Saturday afternoon.
The shooting was the second in west Texas in a month. The first
occurred in El Paso Aug. 3 when a gunman shot and killed 22 people and injured
24 others.
Police killed the gunman in the Aug. 31 shooting as he fired at
them from a postal van he had hijacked after shooting and killing its driver.
Odessa Police Chief Michael Gerke said the gunman was fired from his trucking
job the morning of the shooting, called the FBI tipline and was on the phone
with emergency dispatchers as the attack continued.
Bishop Michael J. Sis of San Angelo, Texas, where Odessa and
Midland are located, announced that three Masses had been scheduled at diocesan
churches in upcoming days to pray for peace and healing from the tragedy,
including a Mass Sept. 8 at Sacred Heart Cathedral in San Angelo.
Bishop Sis offered prayers for those who died and were injured in
the incident in a statement following the shooting.
"My prayers are also for the great people of those
communities directly impacted by this senseless act of violence, especially the
courageous first responder and the local medical teams," he said.
"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted, he saves those
whose spirit is crushed," the statement said, quoting Psalm 34.
Bishop Sis committed diocesan parishes to assisting the community
in its healing.
"There are no easy answers as to how to end this epidemic of
gun violence in our state and in our country. I ask the Lord to enlighten all
of our hearts and minds, especially our government leaders, so that we can have
the insight and the courage to move from a culture of death to a culture of
life," the bishop said.
Bishops also took to social media to voice concerns after this
shooting.
Cardinal Blase J. Cupich of Chicago said in a Sept. 1 tweet:
"Prayers alone are not the answer."
"I join my brother bishops in condemning such horrific
crimes against humanity and I encourage all people of goodwill to demand action
now by our elected leaders," he said.
"May the victims of the Odessa shooting rest in peace, may
the injured recover and find comfort in the Lord, and may their families and
friends find the strength to support their surviving loved ones," he
added.
Bishop Frank J. Dewane of Venice, Fla., chairman of the U.S.
bishops' Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, also offered
prayers for the victims in a Sept. 1 tweet for those who lost their lives
"and the many injured during another violent act."