In Lawrence and across the nation Sunday, Americans gathered in their houses of worship to pray not only for the seven members of the space shuttle Columbia but also for the nation, grappling with yet another tragedy so soon after Sept. 11.

Ministers who had planned to address the prospect of war with Iraq, the economy and other topics dominating public discussion instead spoke of the sacrifice the astronauts made to further science.

“There have always been those people who had the courage and the faith to move through frontiers. They do that at great risk sometimes, and we are the beneficiaries of their great spirit and bravery,” said the Rev. Victor Nixon of Pulaski Heights United Methodist Church in Little Rock, Ark.

In Lawrence, Kan., seven candles burned for the seven shuttle astronauts on brass stands in front of the altar at St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church. The Rev. Charles Polifka said the additional candles were lit in honor of those who died in the tragedy. He said it was appropriate to light the candles as Catholics celebrated the Feast of Candles, marking the day that Jesus was presented at the temple.

About 2,000 people filled Grace Community Church, close to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, where Columbia commander Rick Husband and astronaut Michael Anderson had worshipped. Many of the mourners wore NASA identification badges on lanyards around their necks.

Many cried as they watched an interview taped shortly before the mission, in which Husband said being an astronaut was not as important as “trying to live my life the way God intended to. To be a good husband … a good father.”

President Bush, attending services at St. John’s Church near the White House, bowed his head as a minister prayed for the crew.

“God’s heart is more heartbroken than our own, and I believe they’re already resting,” said the Rev. Luis Leon, who spoke at the service.

A 9-year-old girl stood on her toes to light seven memorial candles on the altar of the First United Methodist Church of Titusville, Fla., where many Kennedy Space Center workers live.

The pastor, the Rev. David Waller, called the trail of smoke from the shattered spacecraft a “glistening tear across the face of the heavens.”

Members of the Grace Community Church in Clear Lake City, Texas, watch a recorded interview with Rick Husband, commander of space shuttle Columbia, during a church service. Husband was a member of Grace Community Church.

Members of Temple Israel of Greater Miami recited the Mourner’s Kaddish, or traditional prayer for the dead, for Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon and the six other crew members. The tragedy happened on the Jewish Sabbath, when mourning is prohibited, so many congregations held special services Sunday.

“It is like something has broken,” said Karina Zilberman, who helped lead the Temple Israel service. “The purpose was for them to come back and share their experiences.”

Rabbi Zvi Konikov of the Chabad Jewish Community Center in Satellite Beach, Fla., near the Kennedy Space Center, said mourners brought a “trail of flowers” to his congregation in honor of the crew. He led a memorial service Sunday morning.

“Everyone was in tears,” said Konikov, who spoke of befriending Ramon during the Jewish astronaut’s training.

At St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in New Orleans, worshippers honored the crew with a variation of the Navy Hymn.

“Save all who dare the eagle’s flight, and keep them by thy watchful care, from every peril in the air,” churchgoers sang.