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Ministry blesses murder scenes to reclaim spaces from violence

 


Ministry blesses murder scenes to reclaim spaces from violence
 

LINK: Click to open full size version of image
A UMNS photo courtesy of Associated Ministries

A crowd prays at a site in the Tacoma, Wash., area, where several members of a family died in a domestic violence incident.
March 10, 2005         

By Kim Riemland*

TACOMA, Wash. (UMNS)—The yellow crime tape had been removed, but a disturbing sense of sadness, loss and tragedy hovered over the tidy, white house on a quiet street.

The man who lived here with his wife and son was accused of stabbing them both last December. The 8-year-old boy survived and called for help, but his mother died. While the man was arrested for the crime, the neighborhood struggled to deal with the aftermath.

That is why pastors of Associated Ministries stood in front of the home one chilly evening several weeks later for a powerfully symbolic act. Joined by neighbors who knew the family, a police officer who didn’t and anyone who was touched by the tragedy, the pastors officiated over a ceremony designed to help heal wounds left by violent crime and reclaim spaces tainted by fear, anger and pain.

“We come together this day to reclaim this space of death as a place of life,” declared the Rev. Julia Price, pastor of the United Methodist Church at Lakewood, a Tacoma suburb.

Associated Ministries launched its “Moments of Blessing” ministry in 1999, based on similar ministries in Indianapolis and Rochester, N.Y. The idea has since spread to Seattle and Olympia, Wash.

“Moments of Blessing is about going into spaces in the community that are seen as dark and alienating, and bringing them back and reclaiming them as places of life and hope,” said the Rev. David Alger, executive director of Associated Ministries. The program represents more than 200 congregations, religious groups and interfaith partners in the Tacoma area. “The community has taken a great deal of interest in it.”

Although acknowledging each homicide victim with a red ribbon and with words, the ceremony focuses on blessing the place. The service is generally brief. Prayers are recited, scripture read, water sprinkled and people invited to express their thoughts about the victim, the crime and how their lives were impacted.

“It’s a wonderful and powerful experience for those who take part,” said Price, who has led several Moments of Blessing in the Lakewood area. “I think it’s meaningful to people to know that the community remembers their loss and grieves with them—that it is willing to pause and offer a moment to heal and bless this spot.”

Bettye Clark says the service provided some closure for her family in the wake of the murder of her 22-year-old nephew, Ranique Mosely, in November 2003. Authorities said Mosely was just in the wrong place at the wrong time when he was shot by a stranger at a bowling alley.

“We had pretty much avoided that whole area. I didn’t even like to drive by there,” Clark said. “This was a chance for us to come together with his friends and the people he hung out with and remember him. It was very personal. My sister (Mosely’s mother) was so grateful. And one thing that really touched me is how even strangers came to be with us.”

Attendance at such services has ranged from about 350 to just two. The murder sites have included houses, apartments, open streets, restaurants, motels and parking lots.

“We once gathered in a railroad tunnel where a homeless man was beaten to death,” Alger recalled. “It was a difficult spot to get to, and a number of people from the homeless community joined us.”

Another memorable spot was a motel room where a woman had been killed. “The motel hadn’t been able to use the room since the homicide because the people who worked there refused to go into the room,” Alger said. “But once they were there for the blessing, they felt better about it.”

Pastors generally emphasize the ritualistic aspects of the service and wear robes and stoles. The liturgy includes a responsive reading of the Beatitudes in Matthew 5.

“The cleansing of space is really important to a lot of people,” Alger said. “It’s a community saying, ‘We are about life and hope, and we reclaim this space in the name of Christ and in the name of hope.’ That really does speak to people.

“It’s also a way of literally taking the church to the street so that people see the church. People often comment that it’s so good to see the church here.”

News media contact: Fran Coode Walsh, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.

 

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