St. Louis area prays and waits as grand jury mulls Michael Brown case

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Police take people into custody in Ferguson, Mo., on Nov. 25. (Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)

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A police vehicle burns after protesters set it on fire in front of Ferguson City Hall on Nov. 25 in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Police arrest a protester outside the Ferguson, Mo., police station on Nov. 25. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters turn over a police vehicle in front of Ferguson City Hall on Nov. 25. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters raise their hands outside the Ferguson police station on Nov. 25. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Police officers take a protester into custody in Ferguson, Mo., on Nov. 25. (Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)

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A protester sits in the back of a car outside the Ferguson, Mo., police station on Nov. 25. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters gather in front of the police station in Ferguson, Mo., on Nov. 25. (David Goldman / Associated Press)

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Protesters chant outside the Ferguson Police Department on Nov. 25. (David Goldman / Associated Press)

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National Guard troops are deployed at the police station in Ferguson, Mo., as night falls on Tuesday. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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President Obama speaks in Chicago about the protests in Ferguson, Mo., after meeting with community leaders about the executive actions he is taking to fix the immigration system. (Charles Rex Arbogast / Associated Press)

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National Guard troops secure the police station in Ferguson, Mo. (Jewel Samad / AFP/Getty Images)

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In an aerial photo, people look at a row of charred cars at a used car dealership in Dellwood, Mo., after they were burned in overnight protests. (Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)

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In this aerial photo, a worker surveys the scene at a charred building in Ferguson, Mo. (Charlie Riedel / AP)

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Fires smolder along a closed stretch of street in Ferguson, Mo., in an aerial photo. (Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)

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National Guard troops secure the police station in Ferguson, Mo., a day after violent protests and looting following the grand jury decision. (Jewel Samad / AFP/Getty Images)

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Volunteers clean up debris from a fire at a strip mall a day after rioting on Chambers Road and West Florissant Avenue in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Police investigators meet in front of a burned strip mall at Chambers Road and West Florissant Avenue in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A man looks through a window Tuesday of a laundry that was damaged during a demonstration in Dellwood, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A pedestrian stops to look at damage in front of Beauty World after protestors broke windows and set fires Monday night in Ferguson, Missouri. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Michael Brown Sr. tries to restore order after an altercation broke out during a news conference at Greater St. Mark Church. (Jeff Roberson / Associated Press)

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A police officer guards a closed street along the West Florissant Avenue, where protesters and looters rampaged businesses after the grand jury decision in the fatal shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown, in Ferguson, Mo. (Jewel Samad / AFP/Getty Images)

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A volunteer cleans up Snappy’s Bar and Grill on Florissant in Ferguson Tuesday morning. (Matt Pearce / Los Angeles Times)

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Cars, set on fire when rioting erupted after the grand jury announcement in the Michael Brown case, sit on a lot in Dellword, Mo. (Scott Olson / Getty Images)

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A St. Louis county police officer applies police tape Tuesday to a building that burned during a demonstration in Dellwood, Mo. (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)

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A sign sits amid the rubble of a building damaged during a demonstration in Dellwood, Mo. (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)

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A worker sweeps up broken glass at a building that was damaged during a demonstration in Dellwood, Mo. (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)

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A building that was damaged during a demonstration on Tuesday in Dellwood, Mo. (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)

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Protesters celebrate as the Auto Zone building burns on West Florissant Avenue after a grand jury decision in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Police officers wrestle a looting suspect to the ground at a Mobil gas station along West Florissant Avenue after a grand jury decision in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A firefighter walks by a burned strip mall at Chambers Road and West Florissant Avenue after a grand jury decision in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Businesses burn along West Florissant Avenue after a grand jury decision in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Looters grab merchandise from a Mobil gas station along West Florissant Avenue after a grand jury decision in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Police officers block West Florissant Avenue as a building burns in the background after a grand jury decision in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Police are engulfed in tear gas during clashes with protesters after the grand jury decision not to indict the police officer who killed 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. (Jewel Samad / AFP/Getty Images)

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A man runs away from a burning storage facility in Ferguson, Mo., after the announcement of the grand jury decision. (David Goldman / Associated Press)

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Police officers face protesters in Ferguson, Mo., after the grand jury decision. (Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)

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A man steps out of a vandalized McDonald’s restaurant in Ferguson, Mo., after the grand jury decision was announced. (Jeff Roberson / Associated Press)

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A protester walks by a St. Louis County police car that was set on fire along South Florissant Road in Ferguson, Mo., after the grand jury decision. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Police officers line up on South Florissant Road during Ferguson, Mo., protests in response to the grand jury decision. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A protestor is arrested as police escort him by a burning police car . (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A St. Louis County police car burns during demonstrations in Ferguson, Mo., after the grand jury’s decision was announced. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A journalist who was injured when rocks were thrown by protesters after the grand jury decision in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Michael Brown’s mother, Lesley McSpadden, center, reacts to the grand jury decision outside the police station in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A protester in Ferguson, Mo., is arrested after the grand jury decision was announced. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Police officers stand guard in Ferguson, Mo., as protesters react to the announcement that a grand jury decided not to indict Police Officer Darren Wilson in the fatal shooting of Michael Brown. (David Goldman / Associated Press)

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Protesters shove a police car in Ferguson, Mo., after the grand jury announcement. (David Goldman / Associated Press)

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President Obama speaks to the media in the briefing room of the White House after the grand jury decided not to indict Ferguson, Mo., Police Officer Darren Wilson. Obama called for calm. (Jacquelyn Martin / Associated Press)

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Demonstrators listen to a radio as a grand jury’s decision is delivered in front of the Ferguson Police Department. (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)

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Demonstrators listen to a car radio as a grand jury’s decision is delivered in front of the Ferguson Police Department. (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)

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Protesters gather in front of the Ferguson Police Department before the announcement of the grand jury decision about whether to indict a Ferguson police officer in the shooting death of Michael Brown. (Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)

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A protester wipes a tear outside the Ferguson Police Department shortly before a grand jury announcement on the Michael Brown shooting. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters stand outside the Ferguson Police Department shortly before a grand jury decision in the Michael Brown shooting case. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters in Ferguson, Mo., before a grand jury announcement on whether police Officer Darren Wilson will face trial in the Aug. 9 shooting of Michael Brown. (Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)

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Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon speaks during a news conference as St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay looks on at the University of Missouri, St. Louis. Nixon asked for calm in the community amid the news that a grand jury has reached a decision on whether to charge Ferguson Officer Darren Wilson. (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)

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National Guardsmen take up positions in a shopping center in Ferguson, Mo., on Nov. 24 before the announcement that a grand jury had declined to charge police Officer Darren Wilson in the killing of Michael Brown. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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As the city awaits the announcement of the grand jury decision, a resident walks next to a memorial where Michael Brown was shot in Ferguson, Mo. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Dellena Jones looks out from her boarded-up beauty salon in the neighborhood where there was much unrest after the August shooting of Michael Brown, 18, by a police officer in Ferguson, Mo. (Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)

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Locks are seen on mailboxes across from the Buzz Westfall Justice Center where the grand jury convened in Clayton, Mo. (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)

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Ribbons fly from a fence on a cold windy morning in Ferguson, Mo., on Sunday. The message on the ribbons asks for peace and prayers for shooting victim Michael Brown. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Police officers stand their ground as a protester waves the American flag along West Florissant Avenue during a demonstration in Ferguson, Mo., on Nov. 22. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters join hands in solidarity during a demonstration in St. Louis, Mo., on Nov. 23. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters march down Kingshighway Boulevard during a demonstration in St. Louis, Mo., on Nov. 23. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A protester holds her hands up in front of a police car during a demonstration in St. Louis, Mo., on Nov. 23. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Demonstrators shout slogans during a march Nov. 23 in St. Louis, Mo., to protest the police shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown in nearby Ferguson. (Jewel Samad / AFP/Getty Images)

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Demonstrators take to the streets Nov. 23 to protest in the Shaw neighborhood of St. Louis, Mo. (Michael B. Thomas / AFP / Getty Images)

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Visitors view a memorial in Ferguson, Mo., at the site where Michael Brown, 18, was shot and killed Aug. 9 by a police officer. (Scott Olson / Getty Images)

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A protester is arrested by St. Louis County police officers after blocking traffic along South Florissant Road in Ferguson, Mo., on Nov. 22. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A protester flashes a peace sign as police officers approach along South Florissant Road in Ferguson, Mo., on Nov. 22. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A protester walks along West Florissant Avenue during a demonstration in Ferguson on Nov. 22. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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The “I love Ferguson” store is boarded with plywood against the unrest that has plagued the city since August. But volunteer workers have covered the store to look like a Christmas present instead. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters block two women in a vehicle from passing outside the Ferguson police station during a demonstration in Missouri on Nov. 21. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Police officers stand guard outside the Ferguson police station during a demonstration in Missouri Nov. 20. About 30 demonstrators blocked streets while protesting the death of Michael Brown. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A protester prevents a female driver from driving along South Florissant Road outside the Ferguson police station during a demonstration in Missouri on Nov. 20. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A police officer shouts at demonstrators outside the Ferguson police station on Nov. 20. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters shout at police officers outside the Ferguson police station on Nov. 20. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A protester is arrested and taken away by officers outside the Ferguson police station on Nov. 20. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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A protester yells at officers outside the Ferguson police station on Nov. 20. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Police officers block the entrance to the Ferguson police station in Missouri on Nov. 19. About 40 demonstrators blocked streets while protesting the death of Michael Brown. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters block South Florissant Road during a demonstration outside the Ferguson police station in Missouri on Nov. 19. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters run as police officers approach during a demonstration outside the Ferguson police station in Missouri on Nov. 19. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Protesters square off with police officers during a demonstration outside the Ferguson police station in Missouri Nov. 19. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

By Matt PearceStaff Writer

Nov. 23, 2014 6:43 PM PT

Reporting from Florissant, Mo. — First, the pastor asked congregants to pray for the parents of Michael Brown, who was fatally shot over the summer about three miles away. They murmured yes.

Then she asked the several dozen mostly black parishioners at Christ the King United Church of Christ on Sunday to pray for the families of the other black men in the region who had been shot by police officers. Some of them murmured yes.

Next, the Rev. Traci Blackmon asked her congregation a question not often heard on the turbulent streets of neighboring Ferguson, which remains tense with fear, anger and uncertainty as the conclusion of a grand jury investigation into Brown’s Aug. 9 death looms ever closer -- perhaps as soon as Monday.

“Will you pray for Officer Darren Wilson?” Blackmon asked.

Hearing the name of Brown’s shooter, the congregants remained silent.

Blackmon, who on the previous night had led a prayer vigil for those calling for Wilson’s arrest, implored her flock again:

“Will you pray for his family? Because their lives will never be the same.”

Finally, one woman answered: “Yes.”

As St. Louis swirled with uncertainty, Christ the King United Church of Christ was an oasis of warmth and calm, albeit one not far removed from the pressures that have gripped the region.

Blackmon said she had been asked whether she planned to cancel church if unrest breaks out. “I’m going to worship — and I’m going to work,” she said, telling her listeners to do the same.

The 12-member grand jury investigating the killing of Brown, who was 18 and unarmed, was expected to reconvene Monday to resume its secret deliberations.

The St. Louis County prosecutor’s office has promised to make the evidence and testimony public if Wilson is not indicted. But on Sunday, circuit court officials clarified that a judge would have to approve the release first to ensure that confidentiality rules were not broken.

Such an approval would entail a review of the evidence, thought to be voluminous -- suggesting that the information probably would not be released immediately after the grand jury’s decision.

Also Sunday, CNN reported that Wilson had been meeting in secret with TV anchors from several networks to negotiate a potential interview, which would be his first since the shooting. CNN’s Anderson Cooper and Don Lemon said on Twitter that they had met with Wilson but had not reached an agreement with him.

“Darren Wilson chose not to do an interview with me,” Cooper tweeted. “I continue to hope to interview anyone with information about this tragedy.”

Lemon said, also on Twitter, “We’ve interviewed the Brown family, Dorian Johnson & all witnesses. Of course we’d want to interview Wilson.”

Lemon added, “FYI #CNN does not pay for interviews.”

On the streets of Ferguson, Wilson’s freedom has continued to drive demonstrations, resulting in several arrests on charges of unlawful assembly over the weekend.

But inside Christ the King United Church of Christ, Wilson’s status was theologically irrelevant. The grand jury will decide only whether Wilson will face a criminal trial, Blackmon reminded her congregation.

“Other than that, everything is basically the same,” Blackmon said. “Michael Brown will still be dead after this decision.”

There will still be underfunded schools, economic deprivation, racial profiling and high rates of imprisonment for black men, she said. “The grand jury decision is not our pivot point, church!”

As with other social-justice movements, clergy have played an active role in Ferguson, sometimes counseling young demonstrators or occasionally facing arrest. The Rev. Osagyefo Sekou, of Jamaica Plain, Mass., traveled to Ferguson to join the protests, calling it “the same role Martin Luther King Jr. played ... To put our bodies on the line the way Jesus did.”

Mia Henderson, 29, of the St. Louis suburb of University City, said she joined Christ the King United Church of Christ a year and a half ago because Blackmon was committed to social causes.

After the Ferguson unrest, Henderson said, “I found a lot of comfort in God, knowing the God I serve is a God of justice and social justice. I really believe Jesus was the ultimate social-justice advocate.”

Henderson called Blackmon’s call for prayers for Wilson “the right message. What’s right is not always the easy thing. I’m glad we have people like her who remind us that frustration can’t be what leads us.”

Rosetta James of Florissant — who, at 76, is old enough to remember when most of the white congregants left the church when its first black pastor arrived — said she was praying for the protesters to pursue change, but “we also pray for the police.”

“We all pray to the same God,” James said, adding: “Police are praying too.”

Blackmon asked congregants to pray for the police, for Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, and for themselves. “Because none of us will ever be the same.”

Twitter: @mattdpearce