Bishop Madden Sends Prayers, Support To U.S. Sikh Community, Decries Violence Fueled By Religious Intolerance

WASHINGTON—The chairman of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs expressed the bishops' prayerful solidarity with the Sikh community in the United States following the August 5 shooting at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin.

"In this time of grief, we Catholics mourn with our Sikh brothers and sisters," said Bishop Denis Madden, auxiliary bishop of Baltimore. "We share a warm and fruitful friendship, as well as a love of God and a belief in the community of all people, making yesterday's tragedy all the more painful and difficult to comprehend."

A gunman killed six people and critically wounded three others after opening fire during a worship service at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in Oak Creek, Wisconsin.

Bishop Madden added, "The U.S. bishops stand with the Sikh community and reject all violence, particularly violence inflicted out of religious intolerance. We are especially saddened that this horrendous act was carried out in a house of worship against people joined together as a family to worship God. Our prayers are with everyone touched by this, especially those who've lost family members and loved ones."

The Secretariat for Interreligious and Ecumenical Affairs of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has been in dialogue with the U.S. Sikh Community since 2006. For more information, visit: www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/dialogue-with-others/interreligious/sikhism/

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Keywords: USCCB, bishops, Bishop Denis Madden, Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, Sikh community, dialogue, violence, intolerance, religion, mourning, prayers, solidarity, worship

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