Alicia Caldwell and her daughter Maggie Boren, both originally from Newtown, Conn., during the community dedication of a grove of trees at the Salt Lake City cemetery in remembrance of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary shootings, Thursday.(Photo: AP Photo/Ben Brewer, The Deseret News)
NEWTOWN, Conn. -- Religious leaders from different faiths
gathered Friday on a wind-swept, snowy soccer field to mark two weeks
since the Connecticut elementary school massacre and pray for healing.
A
few dozen residents joined representatives from Roman Catholic,
Episcopal, Methodist, Congregational, Buddhist, Muslim and other places
of worship.
"Your faith leaders want you to know that we continue
to stand with you as we all continue to deal with this great tragedy
that has befallen our beloved community of Newtown," said the Rev. Jack
Tanner, of Newtown Christian Church. "It is only the beginning of a long
healing process that we will all go through."
A gunman shot his
way into Sandy Hook Elementary School on Dec. 14 and killed 20
first-grade students and six adult staff members. He also killed his
mother before going on the school rampage and then committing suicide.
"We
are your children, your hurting children from many faiths, many
traditions, many cultures, from many parts of the Earth," said the Rev.
Leo McIlrath, of the Lutheran Home of Southbury. "We cry out to you. We
are in pain and we ask for your healing."
Vicky Truitt, who works at Newtown Congregational Church, said she had been feeling worn down before the service.
"Today
it was helpful, the prayers that they gave, to hear all the different
denominations all together as one," Truitt said. "Even the ones where
you didn't understand the words, you could understand the feeling that
was behind them."
The outpouring of grief from around the country
is evident in Sandy Hook, a section of Newtown where memorials are
filled with stuffed animals, flowers, candles and crosses. Tiny
Christmas stockings with the names and ages of the victims hang from one
memorial, and signs from South Carolina and Florida offer love and
prayers.
Patti Raddock, of Fairfield, Conn., was among many
out-of-towners in Newtown to pay their respects. She said the tragedy
made her feel ill.
"It's still unfathomable," she said. "I don't know how we could have stopped this kind of craziness."
Associated Press