Religious Leaders Call for Peace After Baltimore Riots

Religious leaders are calling on protesters in Baltimore, Maryland to express their grievances peacefully as the city was forced to call in the National Guard to halt looting and fires in the town.

Protesters took to the streets Monday and early Tuesday to oppose the recent death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old who died of a spinal cord injury while in police custody.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan was forced to call a state of emergency and call in the National Guard to combat protesters who were reportedly throwing rocks at police, looting local businesses and setting fire to cars and buildings.

Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, released a statement calling on peace and justice in light of the riots.

"The witness of the church models for us that what we are told is normal isn't normal at all; violence and hatred are satanic, parasitic on a universe that God created for shalom. When our consciences are formed, together, around the Lord's Table, serving one another, worshipping with one another, we are transformed to see the sort of universe God has in mind. We then work for justice and for peace, together," Moore said in a statement, as reported by The Christian Post.

The Baltimore pastor who delivered the eulogy for Gray, Rev. Jamal Bryant, told "Today" that local church members have reportedly been meeting with Baltimore-area gangs to discuss ways to achieve peace in the coming weeks following Gray's death.

"Last night, pastors met with gang leaders so that we could start rebuilding with our community and give some safe haven," he told the media outlet. "To burn down a CVS and burn down a senior community center does not reflect with legacy of Freddie Gray or the movement that we've been a part of the last week."