The firearm's safety lock was apparently disengaged and the unidentified man's pants evidently activated the gun when the man stood up after the final hymn.

"Many people understandably have questions about what would prompt an individual to carry a gun into the Cathedral," said Bishop Bartchak in a statement released on Monday by the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown. Continue reading

One involved his being mugged by a hitchhiker to whom he had offered a ride. I think my mom related this tale as a warning against good-natured but borderline foolish benevolence.

The second dealt with him calling my mother his favorite granddaughter named Sheila.

The third was that he converted to Catholicism. I cannot remember the religion from which he shifted.

For some reason, I always saw stories one and two as byproducts of story three, as though his changing religions somehow informed the way he went about all other activities in life.

My mom liked to say her grandfather had the faith of a convert.

She also used this expression to describe my paternal grandfather, who converted from the Baptist faith to the Lutheran church.

The implication was that there was something richer, even holier, about a convert's spirituality, whatever that spirituality may be.

I was always intrigued by this idea of a convert's religious ideology being definably distinct from someone else's. Continue reading.

Brian Harper is a writer, musician and community outreach coordinator for a small business. He has lived and worked in Peru, South Africa, Italy, and the United States.

Source: National Catholic Reporter

Image: Brian Harper Music