A community prayer vigil is planned in Suffolk in the wake of the June 17 mass shooting in Charleston, S.C.

Bishop Carlton R. Upton Sr., residential prelate at Tabernacle Christian Church, said he and an interdenominational and interracial group of pastors had been discussing issues of race and class in Suffolk even before the shooting.

“We’ve been getting a coalition together to talk about some of the issues in our city along racial lines and sociological lines,” he said.

But after the shooting, where a 21-year-old white man sat in a Bible study group of a historic black church before opening fire and killing nine people, Upton said the vigil seemed necessary.

“We are trying to bring the community together for a prayer vigil to try to bring healing and understanding to people that are hurting, to a nation that is hurting, because of this devastating event that took place in South Carolina,” Upton said.

The vigil is planned for Tuesday, July 7, at 7 p.m. at Westminster Reformed Presbyterian Church, 3488 Godwin Blvd.

Upton also noted several black churches across the South have been burned since the shooting.

“It’s hate-related issues,” he said. “We need to bridge that gap. The thing that’s going to be able to do it is the church, not talking about black and white but being the body of Christ.”

Upton said the service will not include a formal sermon but will be mostly a prayer vigil.

“Our whole community should come and support this effort and help us break down the wall that has separated us for so long,” Upton said. “We made a point of not having it at a black church. We wanted to go to a white church to show them we can all come together. It doesn’t matter if it’s a black issue or a white issue. As Christians, we should all come together.”

Upton said choir members from all churches are invited to come to sing in the mass choir at the service.

The efforts of the group of pastors aren’t going to stop here, Upton said. They are planning other community efforts, but the details are still in the works.

In addition, a 55-passenger bus whose services have been donated by Councilmen Mike Duman and Lue Ward is set aside for pastors who want to visit Charleston’s Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, where the shooting took place.

The trip is tentatively anticipated in the third or fourth week of this month, Upton said. Pastors who want to go are asked to call him at 539-3533 or email him at crupton@tabernaclechristian.net.