UMC Bishop on Boston Marathon Bombing

The follow letter appeared in the New England UMC website.

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Greetings in the precious name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, ” I know many of you by have heard or are now watching the events unfold in Watertown, Cambridge, Boston, and other surrounding towns as law enforcement officials continue to search for one of the suspects of the Marathon bombing. This is an anxious time for all in the shelter-in areas, and I urge everyone to comply fully with the orders of law enforcement to stay indoors.””

The string of mayhem and violence which has been happening overnight, coming so shortly on the heels of Monday”s events, is once again shocking and distressing. With one of the suspects already reported dead, an MIT police officer killed, and another transit officer critically injured, please may we pray together right now: ”

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer. We pray deeply for the family of the officer who has died and for the one injured and for their family. We pray now for you to protect the protectors, for the safety and wisdom of the public servants ” the police, FBI and SWAT teams, and other officials ” who are out in strong force on the streets and putting their lives on the line each minute to protect our citizens. We pray for our brothers and sisters in these cities which are in lock-down and are no doubt experiencing the anxiety and fear of these events. Give them your peace and assurance, Lord. ”

And Lord, we pray for your mercy on all involved and responding, for the suspect and for those seeking to take him into custody, that there will be no more killing on this day. We pray for the swift resolution to this situation without further bloodshed. We pray for the restoration of order in our streets, in our cities, and in our commonwealth. Indeed, precious Lord, we pray for the peace and reconciliation of the world. In your mercy, we pray in the power and in the precious name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.“

Let us continue to pray my friends. And again, I implore everyone to comply with all of the orders of law enforcement today, for your safety and for the safety of others. Let us continue to be in deep prayer for God”s grace, peace, justice and love to prevail, everywhere in our neighborhoods, towns and villages, cities, nations, and the world. ”

In Christ”s love,

Bishop Sudarshana Devadhar