It is the 10 year anniversary of the Wedgewood Church shootings. On September 15th, Larry Gene Ashbrook walked into Wedgwood Baptist Church in Texas and opened fire on the youth group gathered for a weeknight event. He killed 7 and wounded 7 more. It was a random tragedy that made international news on the heals of the April 20th Columbine shooting.
I remember the tragedy distinctly because I was living in France at the time and could find nothing but news about the shooting on the English speaking channels for three or four days. The Europeans like to use these incidents as proof of our barbarism. And they do go on…
I would eventually read Night of Tragedy; Dawning of Light by Dan R. Crawford. Even though the book was written for a Christian audience, it tells a heartfelt story of a community coming together to help the victims of the shooting. I actually felt better for reading it.
I remember reading the phrase, Satan, you picked on the wrong church! in another article recently. I found the phrase a telling example of the fortitude expressed by the victims of the shooting. There is something about the event that give me hope. I can’t put my finger on it, but it has something to do with the people involved not acting like victims.
