The Devil's Work in Newtown, Conn.

Once again, the devil is at work, the mark of the evil one is all over the tragedy in Newtown, Conn. Those beautiful children and their educators struck down too young in a horrific mass murder, through gun violence. Advent joy has been stolen from Newtown and from compassionate people everywhere.  Too many families will never be the same. So many caring people have been saddened by this tragedy. As President Obama said yesterday at the Interfaith Prayer Service, something has to change. "Can we honestly say we are doing enough to keep our children, all of us, safe from harm?....If we are honest with ourselves, the answer is no...we are not doing enough and we have to change."
Nancy Lanzer the mother of the shooter, was shot by her own son, even though she stood by him his entire life. Though we will never know, what made him snap, I'm sure that he was hearing voices telling him to do what he did or at least suggestions. Why else would he kill the only person who stood by him, as he struggled through life being different and alienated? Why else would he pick on the innocent young children, who he didn't even know.  Demons are cunning and for someone with a mental illness or mental challenges, I'm sure devils are able to influence a weak and disturbed mind, in my opinion. (Though people smarter than me, believe the same thing.)  Evil is real, evil must be defeated and overcome but for someone who struggled their entire life with a mental disability, unfortunately, horrifically, the demons won this time. Mental illness needs to be studied more, researched more and more money has to be put into programs that help those who suffer from it.
One reporter called St. Rose of Lima Church in Newtown, the bedrock of the community. People filled the Church the night of the killings and afterwards seeking comfort and solace in prayer and within the sacred, peaceful space.  There are no answers, these were senseless killings, but let's pray that changes are made in society that stop this from happening again.
Children need quiet time, prayer time and quality family time. In the modern world, everything is happening too fast. Children watch too much violence on TV and in movies, there is too much violence in video games, there is too much rushing around. Children need to relax, to build a relationship with God through prayer and they need to eat dinner with their family, as often as possible and build meaningful communication with family members and friends.  Children need to attend religious services or Mass. Prayer is healing and helpful for human beings, at every stage in life. It is essential for children or people with mental illness.
We can do better as President Obama remarked. We must do better. There is so much at stake. I am certain that God weeps too.
NJA