When You Know a Victim, Everything Changes

By Bishop Edward Weisenburger

Tragedies move the hearts of decent people every day. But when you know a victim, everything changes. 

It was only a few days ago that an angry patient went into a Catholic medical facility in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and opened fire, killing four people before taking his own life. One of those killed was Dr. Stephanie Husen and I knew her well. 

Stephanie was born in Ponca City, Oklahoma, and her mother was the volunteer Director of Youth Ministry at St. Mary’s Church—my first assignment as a newly ordained priest. The Husen family was among the best and Stephanie, along with her brothers, were raised in the shadow of St. Mary’s Church. We were all proud of her as she went on to graduate from college and became a physical therapist, later continuing her education to become a medical doctor specializing in orthopedic medicine. I presided at her wedding and saw only a bright future for her. But at age 48 her life in this world is now at an end, leaving her family, friends, and co-workers bewildered, grieving, and angry. It seems that for each of us – knowing the victim changes everything. When you know a victim of gun violence, the issue is no longer abstract or theoretical. It touches you in a profound and painful way. When you actually know a victim, the issues come into clearer focus and the result is a painful but more accurate understanding.   

For many years, I have advocated publicly for an end to abortion and greater service to pregnant women and mothers. Over and above the loss of innocent life, as a parish priest for almost 25 years I met with too many victims of abortion. Our culture had assured them that the unplanned pregnancy they were facing had a simple solution but the culture lied. The same culture today commits an idolatry of handguns and rifles made for no purpose other than assassinations. The Pew Research Institute notes that in 2020 over 45,000 people died from handgun injuries in the U.S. As of this year, 2022, if we count any event where at least three people are killed by gun violence, then we have already had eighteen mass shootings in our nation. Employing different standards to define “mass shooting” the number actually increases exponentially. The recent high-profile deaths in Buffalo, Uvalde, and Tulsa linger on our minds, leaving many to ask if this is the “new normal” but I refuse to accept that conclusion. Rather, I believe it is time that we become increasingly prophetic about a topic which is no less about life than abortion or the death penalty. If we do, then surely we will be as unpopular with many as we are with our stance on abortion, the death penalty, and other life issues. But if our faith is to be prophetic and true – especially to the young people of our day – then increasingly we must speak out against the evil of a world saturated with handguns and assault rifles.

The innocent must be protected and laws related to the firearms industry and our mental healthcare system must change in substantial ways.We must name the evil in our midst. Because in the end, if you’re like me, you don’t want to know any more victims.   

+Bishop Edward J. Weisenburger