Publication Date: October 25, 2006
Lancaster New Era Staff
The movement is being organized by the Pastor Elbert Mondaine, the senior pastor of congregations in Portland, Ore., and St. Louis, Mo.
When Mondaine heard about the shootings, in which five girls were killed and five were wounded, he said, “I thought, ‘What is God trying to say to us through this tragedy?’ ”
Suddenly, an answer came to Mondaine, and he decided to start a national campaign to unite churches across denominational lines to take a stand against school violence.
From Thursday to Saturday, he plans to bring 50 to 100 members of his congregations to Lancaster, where they’ll be joined by representatives of religious organizations from around the country.
At noon Thursday, a group of church leaders will gather for a lunch at the Leola Restaurant. At 6 p.m. Thursday and Friday, rehearsals will be held for a 1,000 Angels Choir at the Lancaster Church of the Nazarene, 2150 New Holland Pike.
The 1,000 Angels Gathering will take place at 6 p.m. Saturday at Bright Side Baptist Church, 515 Hershey Ave.
“The campaign will unite church leaders who want to take responsibility for our children and take a stand against violence in schools,” said Mondaine’s associate, Don Elliot.
“This campaign was put together only two weeks ago, and already we’ve heard from almost 200 churches across the country,” Elliot said. “We’re hoping to come together and figure out a way to educate our people and look at the mental-health and violence issues in our communities.”
After church and community leaders meet, participants will convene by candlelight near the village of Nickel Mines, singing hymns and praising God.
But Elliot stresses that the group will not in any way disturb the residents of the Bart Township community. Mondaine said the group’s attire and conduct will be within the codes adhered to by the Amish people.
“We visited Lancaster last week to get a better view of the area,” he said. “We met with some churches in Lancaster and began speaking with an Amish spokesperson, Herman Bontrager.”
More information about “Voices of a Thousand Angels” can be found at www.friendsoftheamish.org.
The Nickel Mines community also has inspired an event called “Prayer at Binns Park,” to be led by Lancaster City pastors.
The prayer rally will take place Tuesday. Lancaster County church leaders and members plan to walk from North to South Queen Street, then to East and West King Street before ending at Binns Park.
People will gather at 9 p.m. at East King and Broad streets; Lancaster Regional Medical Center at College Avenue; the former Rebman’s store on South Queen Street; and at the YMCA or Clipper Stadium on North Queen Street.
There also will be a time of prayer at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the Mennonite School auditorium on Lincoln Highway East.
