On Sunday April 27, the pastors and members dedicated the t-shirt Memorial to the Lost displayed on our lower lawn with members of Heeding God’s Call, an organization whose mission is to raise awareness toward action to end gun violence. 176 t-shirts represent 176 victims of gun violence in our local area, aged 1 to 83. The colors represent the three jurisdictions located in Greater Washington. The white shirts represent the 82 lives lost in Washington, D.C. The yellow are for the 31 lives lost in Northern Virginian. The blue shirts memorialize the 63 Maryland gun deaths in 2013. This public witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ is one way Saint Mark is proclaiming the new way of life in Jesus Christ that does not tolerate gun violence, that always grieves with those who are grieving and seeks the way of peace with all people whenever possible. Too many people have died and continue to die from senseless gun violence in our nation and in our neighborhoods. We are called to challenge this reality and pray for how we can support change.
Heeding God’s Call is made up of a wide variety of faith communities that band together to curb illegal gun trafficking through demonstrations at the gun shops where straw purchase happen. Straw purchasing is when someone buys a guns – or many guns- for resale to people who cannot legally buy weapons for themselves. Straw purchasing is the main way that handguns flood onto the streets and end up illegally in the hands of this who use them to destroy countless lives. Heeding God’s Call also works to educate the public, raise awareness and pushes for legislative change.
To support Heeding God’s Call and get involved visit www.heedinggodscall.org
