Who Will Be First?
It has not been a good week for the dignity of life.
On Saturday our nation experienced another attempt at mass violence. A man attempted to enter the White House press dinner with a shotgun and handgun. Fortunately, his attempt at mass violence was stopped by security. Many members of the press and government officials, including the President and Vice-President, could have been shot.
There were other shootings this weekend. In Chicago a police officer was killed and another injured (suspect in custody). I have not heard a motive in this shooting.
Five women were injured in a mass shooting near Indiana University. This shooting is reported to have started with a fight between individuals.
These are the shootings I heard of this weekend. Unfortunately, I would not be surprised to learn of others.
Returning to the White House press dinner shooting, the shooter wrote a manifesto showing his intent to assassinate the President and any other government officials he could. So far, we have not heard why.
To this point, I have identified him as “a man” or “shooter.” He has a name, Cole Allen, and whether he knows it or not, he is a child of God. He appears to be a smart man with an engineering degree, a master’s degree in computer science, and winning an award as an excellent tutor. On the other hand, he made it his responsibility to take matters into his own hands to address concerns he saw in our nation’s government. What he was trying to do was a crime and a sin. Before we rush to judgment, we need to ask God to help us see into Cole Allen’s heart.
What made him think he could unilaterally act in this shooting on his own? Was he following the example of someone else? Did he have mental health issues? He has described by some as seeming normal and friendly (CBS News, “What we know about the suspect in shooting at White House Correspondents’ Dinner.” Last updated 4/27/26).
You can find the Catholic perspective on this shooting in a Catholic News Agency article, “U.S. bishops say violence ‘never the answer’ after shooting at White House press dinner” (4/26/26).
Archbishop Coakley, President of the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops (USCCB) issued a statement in response to the attempted shooting stating, “We are grateful the lives of the President, those who protect him, and everyone in attendance last night were spared from serious harm. Let us all pray for our elected leaders and public officials that they may receive God’s blessings. Because human life is a precious gift, there is no room for violence of any kind in our society” (my emphasis). Let us also pray that no one tries to take similar action in the future. Will you be the first?
The above-mentioned Catholic News Agency article also refers to a statement issued by Bishop Bonnar of Youngstown, OH, who reminds us that violence is not the answer. Bishop Bonnar offers a much better response than more violence when he states, “We all must look deeper into the human heart to build each other up rather than tear each other down.” Are you willing to be the first?
Meanwhile, another article by Catholic News Agency, “White House to bring back firing squads as Pope Leo XIV calls for U.S. death penalty to be abolished” (Daniel Payne, 4/24/26), tells us that the White House is calling for more violence as punishment for crimes. They want to increase the use of the death penalty and bring back firing squads. If asked, I suspect they would call it a deterrent to future murders. I would then ask for hard evidence to show that the death penalty is an effective deterrent to the death penalty. I think that using the death penalty can actually appear to say murder is justified in retaliation for a crime.
In his article about the White House bringing back firing squads, Payne also mentions recent comments by Pope Leo XIV calling for the abolishment of the death penalty. (You can find a few articles I have written on the death penalty on my blog at https://renewaloffaith.org/category/pro-life-death-penalty/).
Another article from Catholic News Agency, “Former Attorney General Bill Barr: U.S military action against Iran meets criteria for ‘just war’” by Madalaine Elhabbal (4/24/26), tells us how Barr thinks the war with Iran is a just war because it seeks to keep Iran from having nuclear weapons. I do not know of anyone who thinks Iran should be allowed to have nuclear weapons. The question is what are appropriate means to make sure they do not. Diplomacy has kept Iran from having nuclear weapons for years. Why is war necessary now? (see my article, “The Morality of the War with Iran”)
As I have said many times before, if we want to end the violence (hate), we need to respond with love. Violence has been increasing for years. The end of violence will not come easily. It begins with prayer. It continues with love. Are you praying for the “enemy” to experience a conversion away from violence towards peace and Jesus? Are you seeking to love your enemy as Jesus calls us to?
Will you be the first?
Peace,
Fr. Jeff