Last weekend in Baltimore (June 20), a coalition of evangelical churches and police united in a prayer rally for peace. Baltimore has seen a surge in violent crime since rioting swept parts of the city in late April. Bishop Harry Jackson said racially-charged events in Charleston, Baltimore, and elsewhere have drawn national concern to the issues facing black communities:

Bishop Harry Jackson (The Reconciled Church): “I think the outpouring of grace, forgiveness in South Carolina shows that the whole American family cares about what’s going on in troubled urban areas.”