Church killer was failed missionary [New Life / YWAM shootings in Colorado]

Times Online ^ | 12/10/2007

[Alex Murphy]

COLORADO SPRINGS A gunman believed to have killed four people at a Colorado church and a missionary training school on Sunday had been thrown out of the school three years ago and had been sending hate mail to the programme and its director, police said last night.

Matthew Murray, 24, who was home-schooled and raised in what a friend said was a deeply religious Christian household, was identified as the gunman. His father is a neurologist and a multiple-sclerosis researcher.

Five people — including a gunman — were killed, and five others wounded in the two eruptions of violence 12 hours and 70 miles apart.

The first attack took place at Youth With A Mission, a training centre for missionaries in a Denver suburb; the other at the New Life Church in Colorado Springs, where the gunman was shot and killed by a security guard. The missionary training centre had an office at the 10,000-member church.

“Through both investigations it has been determined that most likely the suspect in both shootings are one and the same,” police said. (AP)

[yorkie]

I have my own opinions on this - but I don’t think now is the time to post them.

Regardless, you can’t go back - what is done is done. There are no excuses for what Matthew Murray did. None.

But, the LSM will no doubt come out with reports about how cruel, mean and hateful the “Youth With A Mission” group was to this ‘poor’ young man.

[weegee]

Al Gore Junior, former Senator, former VP, former PMRC bigwig, modern day rain man is also a failed missionary.

[Terriergal]

So any word on why he was thrown out?

[Ann Archy]

So nice to see you post something besides anti-Catholic stuff.

[Lee N. Field]

Youth With A Mission

Everything above board with them? Something tugs at my memory about "issues" WRT this org.

[Ramius]

I know what you mean and I’m reserving a portion of comment as well.

But I’ve got no problem saying that the woman that “ran toward the sound of guns” and took down the shooter, along with the man that ran toward the shooter and got his attention and a bullet, are heroes in my book.

With all the adulation being heaped on this woman I would add something that I haven’t heard said much yet: pray for her. If you know her, seek her out and make sure she has people to talk to.

Taking a life is a harder thing to actually do than it is to talk about in the abstract. Even when it was the right thing to do. Maybe especially then. All this “hero” stuff is going to weigh heavy on her. All the attention and media is very hard to deal with. Especially for someone not accustomed to it.

Then there are all her friends and family. When people, even those you love, see you kill— you are forever going to be different in their eyes. Justified or not.

It is a lot to deal with.

[Lee N. Field]

With all the adulation being heaped on this woman I would add something that I haven’t heard said much yet: pray for her. If you know her, seek her out and make sure she has people to talk to.

Yup. Post shooting trauma. Read Mas Ayoob on that, or Charl van Wyk's Shooting Back for how that works.

[Calm_Cool_and_Elected]

How can one fail as a missionary? We are all charged with The Great Commision...

CC&E

[napscoordinator]

Matthew Murray, 24, who was home-schooled

Uh Oh. This is not good for FREEPERS.

[Between the Lines]

The gunman may have known these girls from the missionary training school.

Slain Springs sisters were active in Arvada missionary group

[AnAmericanMother]

You are so right.

Never had to shoot anybody, but a close friend who is a retired police officer had to kill an armed robber, and it weighed on him for the rest of his life.

I don't think ALL family and friends will look at somebody who's had to kill in a bad way - different, sure, but at least traditionally that is viewed as a heroic sacrifice. Nobody thought the worse of my dad or my dad-in-law because they had to kill Germans and Japanese respectively. And my friend seemed to take comfort from our assurances that he did what he had to do, that he saved lives, and that it was an honorable burden to bear.

A burden nonetheless. Most heartfelt prayers for this young lady. She will need them, and good friends to protect her from the media.

I notice already they are on her about a couple of disciplinary matters in her personnel record. She's got a rough ride ahead of her until the newsies go running off after some other story.