Littleton mourns

Christian Century, May 5, 1999

Religious leaders around the world reacted to the April 20 shooting spree at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, that left 15 dead--including the two students suspected of being the shooters--and 23 wounded. But responses also came from churchpeople close to the scene.

The killings were "a horrific tragedy," said United Methodist Bishop Marshall L. (Jack) Meadors, who heads a task force guiding the United Methodist Church's Initiative on Children and Poverty. "It would remind us [that] when the role models of our youth are the Mafia and Adolf Hitler, the result is going to be racism and violence," the bishop said. "A society that sows violence will reap violence. Our hearts go out to the victims and their families, and to the families of the young men who were responsible."

The teenage gunmen in Littleton--a fast-growing suburb southwest of Denver--were members of a high school clique called the "Trench Coat Mafia," whose members reportedly held grudges against African-Americans, Hispanics and Jews, as well as athletes and other popular students. The two assailants--Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold--opened fire on schoolmates and faculty members at 11:30 A.M. local time, beginning a bloodbath that lasted four hours. The two, ages 17 and 18, were heavily armed with handguns, shotguns and explosives (more than 30 bombs). They later shot themselves in the head.

Steve Poos-Benson is pastor of Littleton's Columbine United Church, a shared ministry of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the United Methodist Church and the United Church of Christ. It is located near Columbine High School. Just as Poos-Benson closed a morning staff meeting at the church, a parent called, reporting that she was at a store near the school and heard shots fired. The pastor, youth pastor Holly Freeman and other staff members drove directly to the school, where shots could still be heard.

As Poos-Benson moved from an open area, he saw Freeman embracing a student who had just run from the building. Shortly afterward, Freeman helped move students to safety behind fences in the adjacent residential neighborhood. One of the students said she had heard shots go by within arm's reach.

Because of its proximity to the school, Columbine United Church quickly became a gathering place for families and various response agencies. By 8 P.M. a prayer service was under way in the sanctuary. UMC District Superintendent Terry Benedett-Farmer, whose area includes Columbine High School, attended the evening service, and began contacting pastors in the area to be available to provide counseling.

At nearby Phillips United Methodist Church, Marvin Essing was also leading a prayer service, joined by Mike Hubbard, pastor to neighboring Heritage United Methodist Church. Rocky Mountain Annual Conference Treasurer Dan O'Neil, active in conference youth ministries and a youth sponsor at Phillips, also lent a hand, in addition to setting up an account to receive contributions to assist families. Five United Methodist congregations have families with students enrolled at the Littleton school.

Littleton's five Presbyterian churches also ministered to families affected by the shooting spree. Janet Schlenker, chief officer of the regional body (presbytery) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), said that one of the students shot and wounded in the attack was a member of Columbine United and was in critical condition. She indicated that though presbytery officials were not aware of any other victims who belonged to Presbyterian congregations, information was sketchy. "We have not even been able to make contact with the pastors of our churches," Schlenker said. "They have been on the scene, out in the community."

Bob Barnes, a representative of the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance program with extensive experience in critical-incident stress debriefing and other trauma work, was on the scene soon after the shootings. Barnes's assignment was to "assess the situation and see what needs to be done," according to Stanley Hankins, the PCUSA'S Worldwide Ministries Division's associate for disaster assistance in the U.S. Hankins said that the church stands ready to use its resources to address both the short- and long-term needs of the people of Littleton.

The day after the tragedy, hundreds of students from the Denver area came to the site to join arms, pray and place flowers or notes. Blood banks were crowded by those wanting to help the victims who had survived. Churches continued to conduct memorial services.

According to Bishop Meadors, the UMC's Initiative on Children and Poverty recognizes that violence "grows out of spiritual poverty as well as material and economic poverty. The goal of our initiative is the proclamation in word and deed of God's love for all people and especially for children and the poor--and that does include [people in] spiritual poverty, which sounds like the case [in the Littleton shootings]."

Added the bishop: "The seeds of poverty include lax gun laws and racism and white supremacy. The incidents of children declaring war on society and on their friends is escalating, like the violence in the world. These kinds of incidents are symptoms of a deeper problem [which] the church is called [upon] to deal with."