Archbishop Lori emphasizes importance of faith community during gun violence panel discussion

Archbishop William E. Lori, joining a discussion on rampant gun violence in Maryland, said the state’s residents and leaders should not discount “the importance of places of worship” when seeking solutions.

The Maryland Catholic Conference organized a Feb. 13 virtual town hall, “Curbing Gun Violence in Maryland.” MCC is the legislative advocacy arm of the three Catholic dioceses in the state – the archdioceses of Baltimore and Washington, and the Diocese of Wilmington, Del. 

The panel included State Sen. Jill P. Carter (D-41); Del. Luke Clippinger (D-46); Dr. Thomas M. Scalea, physician-in-chief at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center at the University of Maryland Medical Center; and Myles Hicks, Gov. Wes Moore’s deputy legislative officer. 

Archbishop Lori emphasized the need for a collaborative approach to stem the violence. He noted the many resources the archdiocese has available to assist with that work, including its involvement in health care, mental health care, grief ministry and Safe Streets initiatives. 

He also pointed out that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, for which he serves as vice president, has been at the forefront of pushing national legislation to limit the use of assault weapons and advocating for other sensible gun control measures.

“It goes to our values,” Archbishop Lori said. “It’s part of cherishing human life at every stage. This panel exemplifies the approach we need to take.”

Scalea, who called himself the busiest surgeon at the UMMC, in part because of gun violence, agreed that the state needs to work together to solve the issue.

“It’s a public health problem that needs a public health solution,” Scalea said. 

He said that through a grant from the Sherman Foundation, University of Maryland Baltimore recently launched the Center for Violence Prevention, which will name an executive director in the coming weeks. He hopes the center can unite several like-minded groups while serving as an organizational umbrella.

“We need to come out of the ivory tower and go to the people,” he said.

Clippinger, who is also an assistant state’s attorney with Anne Arundel County, said gun violence is a “scourge imposed on society” and gun control solutions have been made more challenging by a ruling by the Supreme Court that struck down some of Maryland’s regulations. He said it was vital for Maryland to keep firearms out of the hands of children and to stem the flow of illegal guns from other parts of the country.

“It’s a vast issue. It’s a challenging issue,” Clippinger said.

Carter would like to see the state invest in anti-violence and intervention, particularly with those under 18.

“We have acquiesced to a culture of violence all over this world,” she said, adding that policies of “over-policing” and “over-penalizing” need to be abandoned. “We have to attack it from every angle.”

Hicks, representing the new Democratic governor’s legislative office, said it was important to the overall health of the state to find solutions.

Sheilah Kast of WYPR-FM moderated the discussion, and Monsignor Richard Bozzelli, pastor of St. Bernardine Parish in West Baltimore, led the opening and closing prayers.  The town hall was streamed live on Facebook and on MCC’s YouTube channel.

As of Feb. 10, there had been 29 homicides in Baltimore City alone, most the result of gunshots. In 2022, 333 people were murdered in Baltimore City.

“I hope we can continue to collaborate to offer hope for residents,” Archbishop Lori said. “Interrupting violence is highly important, and so is understanding the causes of it.”

The discussion is available to view at https://www.mdcatholic.org/stopviolence/

Email Gerry Jackson at gjackson@CatholicReview.org

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