Bronzeville church parishioners gather at 31st Street Beach after recent violence

CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Hundreds of people attended a prayer event Friday morning at the 31st Street Beach.

Members of the Apostolic Faith Church in Bronzeville gathered on the beach, with some facing the lake and the sun as it rose through the clouds, their arms outstretched. They’ve been doing this for years.

Bishop Horace Smith is the pastor. He said they believe families will be the key to stemming violence in Chicago, and he called out what he sees as a lack of connection at the society and family level.

“The three top best-selling … books on the market right now are about the disconnection with the children growing up in this society that are more connected with their technology,” Smith said. “From very early on, their screens [are] their childhood, not interacting with people. We’ve lost the people skill. We’ve lost the sense of one another being together. We want to change that.”

When he’s not serving as a pastor, Smith is Dr. Horace Smith, a pediatric oncologist at Northwestern’s Lurie Children’s Hospital.

The beach where the group gathered has been the scene of recent violence, including three murders.

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