Area Christian leaders condemn mass shooting, call for 'sensible gun laws'

A dozen area Christian ministers and leaders publicly condemned the Orlando, Florida, mass shooting this week and “any act of violence and rhetoric of hate.”

In a letter to the Cape Girardeau community, they criticized violence toward “any fellow human” and stated the shooter’s actions did not represent Islam.

They also called for “reasonable and sensible gun laws to curb violence happening in our streets.”

The letter sent to the Southeast Missourian was signed by ministers of Baptist, Presbyterian, Episcopal, Methodist, Catholic and African Methodist Episcopal churches in Cape Girardeau and the surrounding area and by the leader of a Christian charity.

Also Wednesday, a candlelight vigil was held at Capaha Park for victims of the Orlando mass shooting.

The Rev. Michael Davis delivers remarks during a candlelight vigil Wednesday at Capaha Park remembering those killed and injured in the Orlando shooting.Glenn Landberg

Balloons also were released with the victims’ names on them.

About 200 people attended the event.

The Rev. Kim Nelson, pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Cape Girardeau, helped draft the Christian leaders’ letter. Nelson said Sunday’s mass shooting at an Orlando gay nightclub that killed 49 people left him with a “heavy heart.”

Nelson said he has family and friends who live in the Orlando area, including some who are gay.

He said he wants people from all walks of life and all faiths to feel safe.

“Gun laws need to be revisited,” Nelson said, adding his brother, who coaches a high-school rifle team, believes assault weapons should be regulated.

Nelson said there is “no reasonable reason” for civilians to have assault weapons.

“They are only meant to kill,” he said.

In the letter, the ministers wrote, “We are sick and tired of seeing stories in the news of unnecessary gun violence.”

Over the past several months, Nelson and other ministers have reached out to the Islamic Center of Cape Girardeau.

“They are good people,” he said of those who worship there.

The ministers said in the letter shooter Omar Mateen’s actions “do not represent Islam: the Islam that prays, that is concerned for those in need, that desires peace. His actions were not legitimate expressions of faith, but were instead fueled by his demented ideology.”

The ministers acknowledged “there is diversity among us in our interpretations of certain biblical passages” as it relates to the gay and transgender community but decried violence and hate against anyone.

The Rev. Tyler Tankersley, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Cape Girardeau, said, “We completely condemn any kind of violence.”

He said Christians need to be compassionate toward shooting victims and their friends and families, regardless of whether they are gay or straight.

“Since when does acceptance have to be the prerequisite for compassion?” Tankersley said.

He added, “I just don’t think compassion should be controversial.”

The shooter, who stated allegiance to Islamic terrorist groups during his killing spree, didn’t reflect Islam, Tankersley said.

“Islam is a religion of peace,” he said.

Tankersley’s church held a prayer vigil this week for the victims and their families.

“My starting place is the Gospel, and the Gospel is a place of peace and love,” he said.

Conservatives and liberals may differ over gun-control issues, but both need to come together and “find a way to be purveyors of peace.”

People, he said, need to speak up.

“Silence is not going to solve anything,” he said.

The Rev. David Hulshof, pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Roman Catholic Church in Cape Girardeau, signed the letter.

He said the Orlando tragedy is only the latest act of “terrorism and hate” the nation has faced.

He lamented statements made by “extremist churches” against gays.

He said Christians should “value every human.”

While the nation’s focus has been on terrorist acts, Hulshof said the “culture of violence” in America, which includes Cape Girardeau neighborhoods, is a growing problem.

“We ministers are not making a political statement to the Cape Girardeau community. We are making a moral statement,” he said.

Besides Nelson, Tankersley and Hulshof, those who signed the letter are the Revs. Edith Bird, Stan Hargis, Tammy Hargis, Renita Marie Lamkin Green, Dave Conley, Michael Davis, Bryan Schaefer and Joel Kidwell, and Love in the Name of Christ executive director Breita Church.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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