Posted on 09/29/2003 10:45:56 AM PDT by wallcrawlr
COLD SPRING, MINN. -- Admitting the depth of his own anger, the Rev. Cletus Connors lashed out in his Sunday sermon at handguns in the aftermath of shootings at Rocori High School.
Four days after one student was killed and another critically wounded, Connors -- citing the steps of grief popularized more than 30 years ago by Dr. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross -- said he has arrived at anger.
"I am angry that we allow handguns all over the place and that we make them available to people who don't (ordinarily) have them," Connors said in an urgent but even voice during his 15-minute homily at St. Boniface Catholic Church, where he is pastor.
"What is the point of handguns? I know it's (waterfowl) hunting season, and deer-hunting season is going to start, and people insist on rifles. But handguns: Why do we need those?"
Rocori freshman Jason McLaughlin, 15, has been charged in Stearns County Juvenile Court with second-degree murder in the death of Aaron Rollins, a 17-year-old senior. The second victim, freshman Seth Bartell, 14, remained in critical condition Sunday at St. Cloud Hospital.
McLaughlin allegedly fired a small-caliber handgun before a teacher subdued him. It's not known where he got the gun.
Between masses, Connors said that he "wasn't a bandwagon jumper for political causes," but that the shootings had changed that.
Of course, not everyone in the pews agreed with his view on handguns.
"If a person wants to commit a crime, he'll find a gun, regardless," said Lloyd Kiess of Cold Spring, arriving early to sing tenor in the choir.
Norb Poepping of Cold Spring said that he didn't hunt, but "I know people like to have handguns for target practice." He thought a moment. "But I don't see any real need for them."
About 700 people attended each of Sunday's two masses at St. Boniface, about an average turnout, Connors said. Many parishioners spoke of Wednesday, the day of the shootings, as an important marker in their lives.
In a moment, their peaceful community of 3,000 had been changed -- and so had they.
"I shook just like this," said Lila Klein, from nearby Richmond, fluttering her arms and hands in front of her. "I didn't stop until I'd gone to the school and was holding my son again."
Rosemary Kaufman of Richmond talked of her phone constantly ringing when the media got hold of the story.
"I've got eight kids, and they all went to Rocori, and they all were wondering what happened," she said.
Poepping, a truck driver, had pulled to the road side.
"I saw four or five helicopters in the air, and I thought, it can't happen here," he said. "But it can happen here."
Brittany Drontle, a 15-year-old Rocori freshman who knew Bartell and McLaughlin as classmates, attended the 8:30 a.m. mass.
Religion, she said, "is something I can kind of lay back on when everything else is gone."
For Poepping, the second mass represented a chance to join the flow of community sorrow.
"I couldn't make it to the high school when it happened, or to the football game Friday night," said Poepping, 48, a 1974 Rocori graduate.
"I needed to be here today. I needed to see everyone together and have a chance to share things with them.
"I've felt more a part of this parish than I ever have."
Connors said he expected a capacity crowd of 1,000 to attend Rollins' funeral at 11:30 a.m. today at the church.
"I don't pretend to have (Wednesday's events) figured out intellectually," the priest said. "I think you just have to trust in God."
(Excerpt) Read more at startribune.com ...
In 1782, in the wilderness of Kentucky, a frontier cabin was attacked by Indians while the father was not at home. The Indians killed the father and kidnapped the youngest child, 3 years old at the time. The oldest boy, then 12, grabbed his rifle, and gave chase to the Indian who had taken his brother. He shot the Indian and retrieved his brother.
It was a good thing, too, for that child that was retrieved was Abraham Lincoln's father. Had the 12 year old boy hidden under the bed instead of shot dead his enemy, we would be talking about how better to get along with our neighbor to the south, the Confederacy. God does work in mysterious ways.
Anyway, the problem is not children with guns. Children used to carry their rifles to school with them. The problem is children are not raised to respect God, their parents, and other people. Don't blame the guns.
Oops, meant to say while the mother was not at home. I think she was out in the fields.
He's preaching "solutions" from the pulpit, yet he hasn't got anything figured out intellectually? Hmmm...that right there is quite revealing. First, Mr. Priest, we think about things, then we ask ourselves if our solutions might or might not work, based on other similar cases. For instance, people who want to smoke marijuana can buy the stuff continually whenever they want it, even though it's outlawed. So how would outlawing handguns, which need be purchased only once, make them all magically go away?
The really comical part is that he's not trusting in God, he's trusting in the left wing's propaganda.
But, I guess that's another thing that's a little beyond his intellectual abilities.
While we're at it, why not get rid of priests, too? I mean, if we can suspend one little tiny line from the Constitution, why can't we take out the preceding sentence too?
That's OK. I'm angry that we allow teenagers.
It all depends on what he sees. Not on what somebody else sees. He will never see a reason to have any of a large number of tools and equipment around because he doesn't use those tools. Someone else does see a need and will have those tools around.
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