‘God Not Guns’ rally set Sept. 29

PAOIL » A prayer service and rally titled “God Not Guns — Let the Children Pray” is set for 1 p.m. Sept. 29 at The Church of the Good Samaritan, 212 West Lancaster Avenue, in Paoli.

The leader of the rally is Church of the Good Samaritan lay parishioner Eddie Wells. Wells named the rally “God Not Guns” because, in his words, “I think the idea of arming teachers with guns as a way of keeping schoolchildren safe is not the way to go. We need to change the culture and seek God’s protection for our children, and there’s no better way to do this than to use the power of prayer.

“There was a time when the Lord’s Prayer and Bible readings were regular occurrences in our schools,” Wells continued. “In today’s world, we may need metal detectors as one element in a plan to keep our schoolchildren safe, but we also need prayer. I’m not suggesting any particular type of prayer, just a simple time of officially sanctioned silent prayer for children to acknowledge God and seek his protection. Nonbelievers can just pause and think of ways they can also help.”

The rally will include testimonies, music, scripture reading and, of course, prayer. The rector of The Church of the Good Samaritan, Rev. Richard Morgan, will be one of the speakers. There will also be a time of recognition for those who have died as a result of gun violence in Chester County in the past 10 years. The number of gun violence deaths in the county over that time is believed to be 54, and there will be T-shirts representing each victim in a display at the rally.

“It will take a miracle to get prayer back in our schools, and that’s exactly what we’re praying for: a miracle,” Wells added. “Several other area churches have already said that they will support the rally, and more are expected as the word gets around. So I say to all Philadelphia- and suburban-area churches, please join us!”