Russia (MNN) — Early this week, a school shooting in the Russian city of Kazan killed seven children and two adults, including one teacher. A 19-year-old former student has been detained as a suspect.
Eric Mock of the Slavic Gospel Association says, “The pastor of the central church in Kazan knows one lady in the church who has a son that attends that school. And the son’s best friend relayed to him that he stood there and watched as the shooter killed another one of their best friends. And so the child is caught up in remorse and grieving and confusion over the things that he has seen.”
Kazan is part of a largely Muslim region east of Moscow. Mock says, “Interestingly enough, this friend who witnessed the shooting is also the son of a well-known imam in Kazan.”
Christian response
Mock says local Christians are already mobilizing to help. “They are already reaching out to the families, trying to provide counsel, as well as resources. And in the same light, SGA is responding immediately. We’ve already committed resources to help these churches [provide] physical aid to the families during this time, but also with the resources for the churches to counsel families.”
Want to support the work SGA is doing with churches in Kazan and other places around the former Soviet Union? Click here.
Most of all, pray the love of the local churches in Kazan would point many to Jesus after his tragedy.
The header photo shows a military vehicle outside the school after the shooting. (Photo courtesy of the press service of the President of Tatarstan. CC BY 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)
