Minnesota Bishop Robert Barron sharply criticized Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey for dismissing calls for prayer following Wednesday’s deadly Catholic school shooting, calling the mayor’s remarks ‘completely asinine.’ The incident, which killed two children and injured 18 others during a morning Mass, is being investigated by the FBI as a possible act of domestic terrorism and a hate crime targeting Catholics.
Barron, an influential Catholic leader who leads the Diocese of Winona-Rochester, argued that critics misunderstand the role of prayer. ‘Catholics don’t think that prayer magically protects them from all suffering. After all, Jesus prayed fervently from the cross on which he was dying,’ Barron told Fox News Digital. He defended the importance of prayer in times of grief, asserting that it complements rather than replaces action. ‘Prayer is the raising of the mind and heart to God, which strikes me as altogether appropriate precisely at times of great pain,’ he said.
Frey, however, maintained that the mayor must focus on tangible solutions and not merely on spiritual gestures. ‘Don’t say this is about “thoughts and prayers” right now — these kids were literally praying,’ he said during a press conference. ‘It was the first week of school – they were in a church.’ His remarks echoed those of some Democratic officials and liberal media figures who have disparaged faith-based responses to tragedies, suggesting that prayer is insufficient or even inappropriate in the face of violence.
Barron also highlighted the increasing hostility toward religious institutions in the U.S., citing a recent report by the Family Research Council that documented a rise in attacks against churches. ‘In the past seven years in our country, there has been a 7,000% increase in violent acts against Christians and Christian churches,’ he said. ‘Worldwide, Christianity is by far the most persecuted religion.’ He emphasized that the incident in Minneapolis should be recognized as a deliberate act of anti-Catholic violence, drawing parallels to similar attacks on synagogues and mosques.
Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic, also defended prayer in a post directed at MSNBC host Jen Psaki. ‘We pray because our hearts are broken. We pray because we know God listens. We pray because we know that God works in mysterious ways, and can inspire us to further action,’ Vance wrote. ‘Why do you feel the need to attack other people for praying when kids were just killed praying?’ This sentiment reflects a broader conservative push to legitimize spiritual responses to tragedy, particularly in the wake of targeted attacks on religious institutions.
The FBI confirmed that the suspect, Robin Westman, left anti-religious writings in his manifesto and scrawled similar messages on his firearms. His motive remains under investigation, but the context of the attack suggests a deep-seated hatred for Christianity. The tragedy underscores the complex tensions between religious expression, political discourse, and gun violence in American society. As the investigation unfolds, the debate over the role of prayer in addressing such tragedies is likely to continue, with both conservative and progressive voices offering starkly different perspectives on how to respond to violence and suffering.