1, 400 Gather at Bridge Collapse Memorial
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
August 6, 2007
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Across the Twin Cities, in Spanish, Greek and English, the prayers rose up Sunday. Prayers of peace for grieving families. Prayers of strength for those still searching the Mississippi River. And prayers of gratitude from those who were spared.
At St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral, an estimated 1,400 people gathered Sunday night for an interfaith service that included responsive readings and singing by the church choir.
''We're here to begin the process of restoration,'' said Gov. Tim Pawlenty. ''We are also here to begin the rebuilding process.''
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'Despite the sadness ... there's a new hope'
By Pamela Miller and Mary Hudetz
Minneapolis (MN) Star Tribune
August 05, 2007
Four days after the bridge fell, the grief came tumbling down. Emotions were raw Sunday night as hundreds of people from a host of faith traditions gathered at St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral in Minneapolis, a mere couple of miles from the wreckage, to mourn the dead, honor the rescuers, comfort the grieving and simply be with others in the face of collective catastrophe.
Among the more than 1,400 somber people who packed the interfaith service were family members and friends of the dead and missing and uniformed rescue personnel.
Those gathered, from Pentecostal Christians to Buddhist monks, sang "O God Our Help in Ages Past" with solemn fervor and bowed their heads to prayers voiced by Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and American Indian clergy. Their faces reflected both the gravity of the occasion and the diversity of their city -- and of the victims.
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Bridge collapse memorial service: Together to reflect
Faith leaders urge unity, compassion and patience as more than 1,000 people gathered Sunday evening to memorialize the victims of the I-35W bridge collapse and start the community's healing.
BY MARA H. GOTTFRIED
St. Paul (MN) Pioneer Press
08/06/2007
Some were grievers, some were survivors, but most of the more than 1,000 people at Sunday night's service of healing were everyday people trying to make sense of the collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge.
"Help us to heal from the wound inflicted on our city," said Temple Israel Rabbi Sim Glaser at the interfaith service in Minneapolis. " ... We seek to make sense of the senseless, but we are left wanting."
The pews of St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral were filled as the crowd joined in prayer and song. Organizers said between 1,100 and 1,400 attended the service, which lasted about 90 minutes. Gov. Tim Pawlenty and Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak spoke, as did leaders from a variety of religious groups.
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Hope fades in Minneapolis
By Judy Keen and Marisol Bello
USA TODAY
MINNEAPOLIS — In his sermon Sunday about Christine Sacorafas, one of eight people still missing in the collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge, pastor Paul Paris refused to talk about his parishioner in the past tense.
"We are holding out hope," Paris said at St. Mary's Greek Orthodox Church. "She was and is a vibrant member of this community."
Other family members and friends of those believed to have died when the eight-lane bridge plummeted into the Mississippi River during Wednesday's evening rush hour said Sunday that they have given up hope.
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Several family members of victims were at a service Sunday night at St.
Mark's Episcopal Cathedral. Hundreds of people attended, some crying to
the words of spiritual leaders, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and
Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak.
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Minnesota mourners in prayer, together
People of all faiths gather to remember the victims of the fallen bridge and the eight still missing.
By Erika Hayasaki and Garrett Therolf
Los Angeles Times
August 6, 2007
MINNEAPOLIS — The mourners came from all faiths and backgrounds, gathering Sunday night against the backdrop of stained glass as they bowed their heads to pay tribute to the victims of the bridge that fell from the sky.
Standing before the congregation of Muslims, Christians, Hindus and Jews, the Rev. Peg Chemberlin, executive director of the Minnesota Council of Churches, said: "It's important that we stand together and say, 'Minnesota, your heart is full of courage and compassion.' "
It was a time of sorrow and hope in the Twin Cities, four days after the Interstate 35W bridge fell, killing five and injuring nearly 100. By Sunday morning, hundreds had gathered at church services across the region seeking community prayer, comfort and hope.
As the sun went down, about 1,400 people — including relatives of the dead, public officials and members of the disaster response — gathered at St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral for an interfaith service.
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Pain, prayer unite Minnesotans
Investigation of disaster takes a back seat as a community gathers to confront its raw grief
By James Janega
Chicago Tribune
August 6, 2007
MINNEAPOLIS - As Minnesotans confronted the human cost of last week's interstate bridge collapse, two crowds gathered Sunday to bear witness to the Twin Cities' grief.
One filled the Romanesque pile of St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral, where members of the Minnesota Orchestra and other ensembles performed mournful and uplifting works, where religious leaders led interfaith prayers, and where dozens of volunteers parked hundreds of cars as evening shadows crept across the streets of Minneapolis.
The other climbed a grassy hilltop near the collapse site, slowly and quietly crowning it with floral bouquets. Neighbors came to see the wreckage in tribute to the victims and rescuers, wrestling with pride or sadness -- but always expressing their feelings respectfully, quickly and politely before moving on.
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