Power of prayer: Bluffton students, faculty hold vigil in wake of shootings

BLUFFTON — Desperate times call for desperate measures.

In light of recent events, Bluffton University event complex assistant director Brent Schroeder feels like we are experiencing one of those times.

“There is a lot of brokenness in the world,” Schroeder said. “There is unrest in the world and it is growing.”

In response to two mass shootings occurring Wednesday, Schroeder decided it was time to have a prayer vigil. He contacted campus pastor Stephen Intagliata and the event was quickly put together. Despite the short notice, the event turned out nearly 30 campus staff and students for about 45 minutes of prayer.

The shooting San Bernandino, California, grabbed the headlines, leaving 14 people dead. It was the second mass shooting Wednesday and the 355th this year, according to a Mass Shooting Tracker on the Guns Are Cool reddit.com site. A lesser known event also occurred in Savannah, Ga., when a gunman shot four people early Wednesday, killing a woman and injuring three men. The incidents follow a mass shooting in Colorado Springs last week.

“I think there is no simple, single solution to the problem,” Schroeder said. “I think what everyone needs to do is take a look at themselves and see what they have to offer. We thought that corporate prayer was a way we could help.”

The group formed a circle in the prayer labyrinth near the Sauder Visual Arts Center, and each student issued their own individual prayer for peace. The group closed the 45-minute vigil by singing the hymn “O Healing River” and a group prayer. Intagliata felt the event was worthwhile because of the season.

“We have to keep our focus on the real meaning of the season,” Intagliata said. “We found it meaningful with all of the violence. We have to remember Christ came with a kingdom of peace.”

Intagliata said it is a time for people to live out their beliefs as much as they can “to be a shining example.”

Schroeder said it is important to keep up the fight.

“Never stop praying,” Schroeder said. “You do not want to become complacent.”

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Students and faculty members at Bluffton University sang and said prayers during a vigil for peace at the prayer labyrinth on Thursday. The vigil was held in light of the number of mass shootings in the U.S., punctuated by the most recent in California.
Lance Mihm photo

http://www.limaohio.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/54/2015/12/News.jpgStudents and faculty members at Bluffton University sang and said prayers during a vigil for peace at the prayer labyrinth on Thursday. The vigil was held in light of the number of mass shootings in the U.S., punctuated by the most recent in California.
Lance Mihm photo