I write these lines with a profound sense of sorrow. As you may already know, on the morning of August 27 an unthinkable tragedy struck at Annunciation Catholic School during its opening-of-year Mass in Minneapolis. A gunman opened fire through the church windows, killing two young children ages 8 and 10, and injuring 17 others, including 14 children and 3 elderly adults. The shooter died by suicide at the scene. Authorities, including the FBI, are investigating the incident as a possible domestic terrorism and hate crime targeting Catholics.
Archbishop Bernard Hebda of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, speaking with profound emotion, stated, “My heart is broken as I think about students, teachers, clergy and parishioners and the horror they witnessed in a church, a place where we should feel safe.” He called us all to sustained prayer, emphasizing that healing that only God can bring must be poured out upon those present, particularly the affected families, and urging us to remember we serve a God of peace and of love.
In solidarity with Archbishop Hebda’s plea, I invite you to join in heartfelt, continuous prayer for the victims, survivors, their families, first responders, and all who are tending to their wounds, physical, emotional, and spiritual.
Let Us Pray Together
- For the souls of the two children who lost their lives, that they be entrusted to the loving arms of Our Lady, Queen of Peace, and rest in God’s eternal embrace.
- For healing and consolation for the injured, especially the fourteen children and three elderly parishioners, and for the families carrying immeasurable grief.
- For our sisters and brothers in Minneapolis, that the Archdiocese, clergy, educators, and parents be upheld in grace and supported in their trauma.
- For an end to gun violence, a prayer echoing Archbishop Hebda’s call, a cry for collective responsibility to build safer, more compassionate communities.
- For strength and unity within our TLI family, as we lift one another and all those affected, trusting in God to guide us from despair to hope.
Dear friends, though darkness has descended over Annunciation Catholic School and indeed over Minneapolis and the Church, our strength lies in turning to our God of Peace. Archbishop Hebda reminds us, “We have to be men and women of hope … a bell in the Catholic Church is always a call to prayer … that has to be the source of our hope.”
May we answer that call generously and faithfully. May our prayers, united across every corner of the TLI family, be a channel of God’s mercy for those most in need at this time.
Let us cling to the promise of Christ, who assures us that even in the valley of tears, He remains with us. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
In Christ’s peace and hope,
