Public prayer meeting to be held Thursday at Macon-Bibb Government Center in wake of recent shootings

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Two clergies are hosting a public prayer meeting this week in response to violence and shootings across the country.

The meeting, which will take place in downtown Macon, is not a protest but a gathering to mourn.

“We need to mourn whose lives have been lost senselessly,” said Dr. John Dunaway, a professor emeritus at Mercer University. “Both the policemen’s lives that have been taken, and those especially young black men whose deaths were not justified.”

Dunaway, who is also a moderator of the Beloved Community Paired Clergy, hopes the prayer meeting will be able to bring people of various backgrounds closer to one another.

“We want to confess our own corporate guilt that’s brought about this situation,” Dunaway continued. “And we want to prostrate ourselves before God and ask him to inspire us to a more just situation and a more peaceful situation so people can thrive in this community.”

The Meeting for Reconciliation, Justice, and Healing will take place at the Macon-Bibb Government Center this Thursday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

During the meeting, prayers will be offered for both the local and national communities by members of different faiths.

The meeting is open to the public. If you would like more information, you can visit https://community.mercer.edu/beloved.