Amid the celebration and revelry surrounding graduation this weekend, our community has been shaken by an on-campus stabbing this past weekend.

A 22-year-old white UMD student, Sean Christopher Urbanski, has been charged for the deadly knife attack on and is being investigated for a hate crime against Richard W. Collins III, a 23-year-old black Bowie State University student.

Our prayers are with the family and friends of Collins. Additionally, however, our prayers go out for racial justice. This has not been the only recent racially charged incident at UMD, and students are understandably devastated.

We at United Campus Ministry offer up our hearts and lives, O God, to your powerful Spirit so that we can live and serve for justice and righteousness.

As the investigation continues, we will continue to remain here for students. We will also think critically about how to remain hopeful in such terrifying times. Though we remember that “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and are safe” (Proverbs 18:10), we understandably ask questions about how to maintain faith in that idea in times such as this.

Nonetheless, Romans 10:17 reminds us that “faith comes from hearing the message,” so United Campus Ministry will continue to emphasize our hopeful message about the Grace of God in the days to come.