Singing, praying, crying, hugging

Tonight we shared our sadness over the death of Ben Larson and our hope of the world to come. We lit small candles in the darkness, and reminded each other of the light that binds us together. We struggled with our fear, our horror, and our helplessness over the travails of Haiti and its people, and we prayed for mercy and for peace.

I desperately needed to be with people tonight: to sing, to hug, to cry. Trinity Lutheran created a space for me -- and hundreds of others -- to do just that. I am deeply grateful for Trinity and for the community of Ben's friends who recognized the need to gather, and made it possible for people to find each other.

Tonight is what church is all about.

UPDATE: The blog PrettyGoodLutherans has compiled a rich list of videos in which Ben sings, as well as tributes by his friends.