Texas Governor Greg Abbott said officers allegedly killed the shooter, an 18-year-old identified as Salvador Ramos.
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Catholic bishops said Tuesday the country faces an “epidemic of evil and violence” after a gunman killed 19 children and two adults at a Texas elementary school.
In a statement released on May 24, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) urged citizens to “ask our elected officials to help us take action.”
The USCCB released the statement after a gunman opened fire at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, southwest Texas, killing 21 people.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott said officers allegedly killed the shooter, an 18-year-old identified as Salvador Ramos.
The statement from USCCB Director of Public Affairs, Chieko Noguchi, said: “There have been too many school shootings, too many killings of innocent people. Our Catholic faith calls us to pray for those who have died and to heal the wounds of others, and we join in our prayers with the community of Uvalde and Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller.
“In doing so, each of us must also search our souls for ways to do more to understand this epidemic of evil and violence and implore our elected officials to help us take action.”
Reacting to the May 24 shooting, Archbishop of San Antonio Gustavo Garcia-Siller tweeted“May God have mercy on our children, their families, their communities. The darkness is dense with one more shooting in our country.
“Let us help each other to bring forth light and warmth. May we keep each other company. Prayers are necessary.
The US bishops lamented the mass shootings in New York state and California earlier this month.
In a May 16 statement, the USSCB said it continues to “advocate for an end to violence,” citing the Church‘s consistent calls for “rational yet effective forms of regulation of dangerous weapons.”
The USCCB spoke out after a gunman killed 10 people and injured three others on May 14 at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, and a gunman killed one person and injured five others on May 15 at a church in Laguna Woods, California.
