Worshipers pray to make sense of Dallas tragedy
DALLAS — Worshipers across this shocked city struggled Sunday to make sense of the deaths of five police officers by a black gunman who said he deliberately targeted them for being white.
“It’s a surreal moment,” said Edward Washington, a former sheriff’s deputy and now a chaplain as he left a worship service. “I’m former law enforcement and I’m African American. I know the reality of worrying about my daughters leaving the house, of me leaving the house. It’s a very conflicted moment.”
This was the first Sunday since Thursday night's attack, when Army veteran Micah Xavier Johnson, 25, gunned down the officers during an otherwise peaceful protest march to mark the deaths of young black men at the hands of police in Minnesota and Louisiana.
One pastor reminded his congregation that vengeance is reserved for God, pointing out that members of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C., forgave the man who killed nine people inside their church last year.
“The shooter took the wrong option to deal with injustice,” said Robert Jeffress, pastor of First Baptist Church in downtown Dallas. “Every one of us is going to face evil at some time in our lives. When we forgive, we set the prisoner free. And the prisoner is us.”
Similar scenes played out across the city as worshipers sought refuge and understanding in their churches with prayer and song. At least one church turned the background of its auditorium blue in honor of the police, and many worshipers wore blue ribbons. Outside, people hugged or shook hands with police officers routinely hired to provide security and traffic management.
Watermark Community Church held a special worship service Saturday night to honor Michael Smith, a slain Dallas police officer who also had worked security at the church.
Religion plays an integral role for many Texans, and church leaders stepped forward to support Dallas police, calling upon congregations to offer prayers and direct help to anyone who needs it.
“It’s a sense of numbing and disbelief,” said state Rep. Linda Kopp after the Watermark prayer service. “It will take a long time to understand it.”