A Week After Michigan Shooting, Indy Church Elder Urges Compassion
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Indiana are turning to prayer in the wake of a tragic mass shooting in Michigan.
Sunday marks one week since the attack in Grand Blanc, Michigan, when a gunman drove through a Mormon chapel, started shooting, then lit the building on fire.
Four were killed, eight others were hurt. The suspected shooter, Thomas Jacob Sanford, also died at the scene after being shot by police.
David Kinard, an elder of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Indiana, says they are turning to prayer to show their support.
“We’re working with members of our faith here in support of members of the faith there in Michigan, and demonstrating our support through prayers and helping them through this journey,” Kinard said. “When something of this magnitude happens, all members of our faith turn to prayer and our faith in Jesus Christ.”
Kinard says that includes prayers for the victims, their families, as well as the family of the shooter.
“We know those who hold on to feelings of resentment and revenge. It ruins their lives. It’s a canker to their soul,” Kinard said. “Holding back on forgiveness actually can be passed on generation after generation like a virus.”
In the immediate aftermath, New Direction Church in Indianapolis told News 8 it would re-evaluate security plans and had an active shooter training scheduled. But Kinard doesn’t expect any heightened security measures at Mormon churches in Indiana.
“Our buildings are open. There’s awareness of this risk. And while we don’t do active training in this way, we recognize that this is the world we live in.”
A Week After Michigan Shooting, Indy Church Elder Urges Compassion was originally published on wibc.com
