There was a large turnout Monday evening, June 13, to mourn the 49 people murdered at the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando on Sunday, June 12. Religious and political leaders from across New Orleans gathered at St. Anna’s Episcopal Church for the candlelight vigil to stand with the LGBT community. The service was held in partnership with Forum for Equality and Human Rights Campaign.
Description of the service from the St. Anna’s Episcopal Church Facebook page: “This night Muslim, Roman, Lutheran, MCC, Sufi and Sikh prayed for peace, prayed for dignity, prayed for hope, decried hatred and violence. As the evening ended pledges were made to face violence with love, to face hatred with charity, to face dehumanization with humanity. Our collective God beyond all understanding was manifested and present. The beyond capacity crowd was a powerful witness to the possibilities of the future in light of our God’s saving grace. As I looked around many from the Episcopal Church came to share in the healing and prayers. It was a good evening to be with Christ.”