On March 22, people were doing their shopping at a Boulder, CO, grocery store when shots rang out. Terrified, people began to run and a panic set in. The gunman, now in custody, claimed the lives of ten people, including one police officer.

The grocery store massacre has left the country in shock. Why do these senseless killings keep happening? What can we do to stop them? Rev. Francis J. Hoffman “Fr. Rocky”, Executive Director/CEO of Relevant Radio, offered some thoughts on Morning Air the morning after the attack.

“This continues a long pattern of violence and disregard for human life in our country,” Fr. Rocky said. He explained that his first action as a priest is to pray for the repose of the victims, their families, and their community. But, he acknowledged, we must do more than that. Here are his full remarks:

“Today on TV, radio, social media, people will be expressing their outrage and frustration and sadness over these events. Many will be looking for answers: what’s the cause, what’s the solution? An increasing number of people will choose to avoid the subject because it is too horrible and too frustrating.

“So, what’s the cause? What are the causes? Violence has been with us since Cain and Able, and can always be traced back to the Devil stirring things up. Some will blame guns or assault rifles, others will place the blame on the guns in the hands of people who are angry, others will blame Colorado for the legalization of marijuana, others will say that it would not have happened if some or all of the customers in the grocery store had their own loaded guns on them when the gunman started shooting, others may claim this is some sort of hate crime, and over time we might learn more about the gunman and his troubled past.

“But few will see the correlation between this act of violence and the daily act of violence which is legal in our country of the slaughter of the innocents, the terrible sin of abortion. It was Saint Mother Teresa who said, ‘If a mother or father can take the life of their own child, what’s to prevent us from killing each other?’

“We live in a violent world, and Relevant Radio is here to help inspire people and help them make sense of their own sufferings and injustices by pointing them to the Cross of Christ. Only Jesus can save us from our sins and our violence.”

Our Lady of Peace, pray for us! Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us!