The irony involved in the attack on prayer by those who wish to make prayer my only line of defense is astounding. The lack of class is befuddling, to put it mildly. The condescension is unprecedented, and the cold attacks give “heartless” new meaning; “How dare you care and not agree with me!”

The New York Daily News rarely fails to deliver classless headlines and front page photos, and their tragedy profiteering is rather obvious, but I believe they may have hit a new low.

The New York Daily News was blasted online for a provocative cover set to hit newsstands one day after a shooting in San Bernardino, California, claimed 14 lives.

“GOD ISN’T FIXING THIS,” read bold letters on the newspaper’s front page, seemingly implying stricter gun-control should be implemented.

The headline was affixed in the middle of tweets from Republican politicians who offered prayers for victims and their families.

An early look at tomorrow’s front page…
GOD ISN’T FIXING THIS: https://t.co/eKUg5f03ec pic.twitter.com/j4gEFg9YtJ

— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) December 3, 2015

That’s not agenda driven at all… Surely they said “GOD ISN’T FIXING THIS” after Paris, as well, right?

#PrayForParis – 8.1M tweets shared sent since terror attacks rocked the City of Light. https://t.co/M38EUns3OI pic.twitter.com/L2fjjFMvAl

— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) November 14, 2015

“Cowards who could truly end gun scourge continue to hide behind meaningless platitudes.”

Did anyone inform them that no one involved in the Paris attack, including victims and shooters, were allowed to have the weapons used to destroy hundreds of lives? And what do they think we’re praying for, exactly? We’re not praying for a time machine, we’re praying that the families are comforted in this time of immense pain and sadness, we’re praying for those injured and the witnesses who will be haunted by this day.

Emma Green with The Atlantic made a superb point:

There are many assumptions packed into these attacks on prayer: that all religious people, and specifically Christians, are gun supporters, and vice versa. That people who care about gun control can’t be religious, and if they are, they should keep quiet in the aftermath of yet another heart-wrenching act of violence. At one time in American history, liberals and conservatives shared a language of God, but that’s clearly no longer the case; any invocation of faith is taken as implicit advocacy of right-wing political beliefs.

Some liberals have tried to articulate the meaning behind the prayer shaming, to no avail.

Yo, fellow libs: prayer-shaming did happen yesterday. It was stupid.

But praying for victims of gun violence and not acting is way worse.

— Jack Jenkins (@jackmjenkins) December 3, 2015

At least the Senior Religion Reporter for Think Progress recognized how ridiculous prayer shaming is, but what exactly does he suggest we do to “act.” Why weren’t they demanding action after Paris? In Paris, the right to privately own a gun does not exist. In order to have a hunting rifle, one that holds no more than three rounds, you have to go through a psychological evaluation and contend with nearly impossible laws. Handguns, semi-auto rifles, etc., are illegal.

For the second time in a year, Islamic radicals armed with high-powered military grade weapons slaughtered civilians in the heart of Paris. Witnesses said that the gunmen who attacked the Bataclan theatre and bars and restaurants in the 10th and 11th arrondisements of Paris on Friday, 13 November, were armed with Kalashnikov assault rifles.

Many have now estimated that there are now twice as many illegal guns in France as legal guns. So they attack us for prayer while they are busy trying to make us into Paris in regards to gun control? Then when the NRA wishes to increase our ability to protect ourselves, they blame them more than the psychopaths who perpetrate such crimes? What action should we take, and what action can be taken in Paris to prevent the defenseless slaughtering taking place all too often? I’m all ears.

Let’s also note that California is the gun control utopia liberals are always preaching on. They register all gun sales and gun owner fingerprints, even private sales have to go through a CA licensed dealer, and there’s a 10-day waiting period. Felons and the mentally disabled have lifetime bans, and magazine capacities are restricted. What other “acts” should we take? The fact remains, this type of evil will always happen, as it did in Paris and California where gun laws are stringent.

Back to the point of this post – This is apparently the new narrative:

At least 14 dead and 14 injured. But lucky for them, the GOP is offering up loads of thoughts and prayers!

— Markos Moulitsas (@markos) December 2, 2015

You mean like this guy?

JUST IN: Pres. Obama sends thoughts, prayers to those killed in San Bernardino, says spoke w/ mayor, thanked him for managing situation

— CNBC Now (@CNBCnow) December 3, 2015

I was originally just going to rant over the careless comments made by the liberal media, such as the one above, as many have already done. However, let me explain this nicely to those busy prayer shaming and asking questions about our God. I’m a Christian, and I don’t speak on behalf of all Christians, nor all Victory Girls, but I’ll do my best to clear this up.

“Where is your God?”

The truth, in all its unshakable reality, is that this world is random in its suffering, and it is cruel; because of who we are, not because of who He is. Whether it is pain brought on from ourselves, pain from disease, or pain from the horrid acts that are unjustly brought upon us by the free will of others, it is not His to own. Imagine the emptiness in a world truly abandoned by God. Imagine a world where we look upon evil and find no fault, no wrong.

Christians believe that the fall of man welcomed pain and suffering. But STILL in our sin He found a way to offer us willing love that conquers the darkest acts, the beauty is in the choice. The type of love that danced through the gates of heaven hand in hand with the children once riddled with bullets by the hatred of Hitler’s men – Because Love deemed them worthy, Love refused to let that be their end. The victims of evil are not defeated by monsters who spend their time and energy orchestrating pain and suffering; God may not have stopped the bullets, but He stopped that from being their end.

So the question is never “where is He,” but “where is He not?” He could have left us to our own demise, but He didn’t. He could force us to love Him or hate Him, but He doesn’t. He could be a puppeteer, but that would remove the free will that makes relationship possible. He could have left us in a world where evil is all we know, where there is no absence of hope because there is no hope to be found – But He didn’t. We recognize evil because we know there is good, and we pray for those hurting because we know only He can bring the peace and comfort we can’t possibly extend. It’s not about praying for an end to evil, because evil will always flourish; our prayers are for the strength of those who have had an abrupt introduction with the darkest side of that evil. At least our “meaningless platitudes” don’t have an agenda, they are not partisan, but instead a surrender to those hurting; we can’t comfort you in the way you so desperately need, but we know who can.

Our prayers, in their deepest sincerity, are indeed action.