The reverend who for years has held Mass outside the Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood clinic where said the community needs time to mourn without politicizing the tragedy.
“I’m truly heartbroken,” said the Rev. Bill Carmody, pastor at St. Dominic parish in Colorado Springs. “Out of respect for the family of the victims … let’s just spend this time mourning and grieving. We will politicize it later.”
Carmody and a handful of others who are opposed to abortion prayed outside the clinic Friday morning, departing about 90 minutes before the shooting started. The weekly Mass typically includes 15 to 20 people, but the gathering was smaller Friday because of the Thanksgiving holiday and frigid temperatures.
Carmody said he has never seen the suspected shooter at one of his prayer sessions.
“The goal is to pray for the people, pray for the moms, pray for the dads, pray for the clinic workers, pray for the babies,” he said. “We are not there to protest.”
Jennifer Brown: 303-954-1593, jenbrown@denverpost.com or @jbrowndpost
