Mare

I, as a pastor, and as a committed follower of Jesus Christ who laid down his life for me and you and in doing so set us an example of the greatest act of love, do not agree that Kevin nor anyone who might share his point of view are a “best example of someone who has been indoctrinated by society to believe that weapons are evil.” Rather, I would assert that we might be an example, not the best, of someone who believes that there is an alternative way to protect our families than to carry a concealed weapon, and that is to place our total trust and faith in God, and to pray unceasingly for his protection and even mercy on those who might wish to do us harm. In a previous post, Mark quotes Jesus instructing the disciples to buy swords. Yet if we look at the context of that one verse, we read it right after Jesus tells Peter that he will deny him three times, that his faith will be lacking. Then Jesus reminds the disciples that when he already sent them out previously, they lacked absolutely nothing even though they carried nothing, even means to protect themselves. Yet, in these few verses leading up to Jesus’ trial and death, it seems that Jesus might have known that when the going gets tough, self-preservation would be the natural instinct for even those who called themselves his followers, thus his instruction for buying the swords. (Kind of a, “I know you’re going to do it, so go ahead.”)

Yet, throughout the gospels, I read many more instances of Jesus calling his disciples and the crowds of onlookers not to self-preservation, but to self-denial, to acts of sacrificial love. Particularly the passage most relevant to me is in the section at the very center of the gospel of Mark, where he says, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.”

Naturally, I want to protect myself and my family. This means, of course, that I will lock all our doors, maybe even install an alarm system, and remain as vigilant as I can, especially in the part of town in which we live. However, just as with a sign on a church door, I don’t even think these things will stop someone who truly might wish to harm me and mine. Would I engage an attacker in hand to hand combat or by some other means in order to disarm them to prevent them from doing harm? Absolutely. But for me, especially as I interpret scripture, the greatest act of love that I can give my family is not to take someone out with a bullet, but for me to take a bullet intended for them. This is something I would do for my congregation as well.

Here’s the point to my post. Jesus gives us a high calling… the path of non-violence, paths that lead to life as God intended it to be, where everyone is sacred, even our enemies. This calling and commandment from Christ to deny ourselves and lay down our lives for others goes against everything in our human nature, and especially against everything we seem to believe as Americans today. I thank God to live in this country where we can have this discussion in an open format such as this, and you have your right to disagree with me and to carry a weapon legally. But instead of society indoctrinating Kevin and myself that weapons are evil, might we allow that society has indoctrinated all of us that protecting ourselves, our loved ones, and our property, above all else, truncates the path of discipleship that leads to life for all? I think this goes beyond carrying a gun. It happens when we place more faith in our bank accounts than we do God. It happens when we place more faith in technology. It happens when we consume more food than we really need. It happens all too often.

Anyone is welcome to worship in the church that I pastor, even if you carry a gun legally. But if there is one place in this whole entire world where you could lay aside your means of self-preservation and completely and totally rely on God’s grace and protection, or to stand for your faith in him to the point of death, shouldn’t it be in a sanctuary?

Mare

To the point of this discussion, which approach do you believe best provides a means to protect the congregation and why do you think so–the “No Concealed Carry” signs or permitting concealed carry license holders to carry their handguns concealed? I’m interested to know your thoughts. Thanks.

One point that I have heard from others before about carrying concealed in church is that they view the church as a sanctuary and a place of peace, and that carrying concealed there just goes against that. In a very quick (it took maybe two minutes) “Google” search, I found these examples—just a small handful of what actually are an alarmingly high number—of shootings in churches.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/03/14/national/main679823.shtml

http://www.religionnewsblog.com/11980/church-shooting-a-mystery

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/law/july-dec99/shooting_9-16.html

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-08-13-church-shooting_N.htm

Add to this the tragedy that occurred in Colorado, and it is readily apparent that you are NOT safe from attack in church, despite its intended purpose as a sanctuary. In fact, as in the Colorado incident, you may be targeted in your place of worship precisely BECAUSE it is a church.

This is why I do my best to always be prepared to defend my family and other innocents from the depraved actions of some lunatic—even in church. And the only way to be effectively prepared to mount such a defense is to be sufficiently armed to stop that threat should it arise. Therefore, I carry concealed. I pray that I never will have to employ my weapon, and that is will turn to rust before it is ever used to shoot somebody. But in the event it is needed, it will be there. And in that event, I pray that God will steady my hand and make me his tool to protect other innocents from evil.

Can I ask why? How is my sitting next to you in church anything to worry about? Do you feel uncomfortable in the presence of a police officer with his/her weapon? What are the assumptions underlying your concern? What if that police officer happens to be off-duty and is carrying concealed in plain clothes? Would that make a difference? And would your theological position apply to him/her intervening in the event that a criminal attacked the people in the church, as happened in Colorado? Thanks for your input.

I respect your point of view, but I also respectfully–and very strongly–disagree with it. Do you really believe that Jesus would have us standby, powerless, while an evil-doer kills an innocent person? Do you really believe it would have been better in the Colorado incident if the armed security guard had not intervened? Do you really believe it was a good thing that none of the professors or students at Virginia Tech were armed a capable of defending themselves against the madman that killed 30+ of them?

What kind of theology says that we should keep ourselves vulnerable to evil-doers and not resist them as best we can? Moreover, your analogy to Jesus limps–Jesus came to earth for the very purpose of dying at the hands of evil for our sins. But that in no way suggests that we should just lay down and allow ourselves to be killed by some crazed criminal without defending ourselves–our blood is not a required sacrifice.

Indeed, to suggest that Jesus wants us to not be armed and prepared to defend ourselves is counter-scriptural. In Luke 22:36, Jesus instructed his disciples: “[I]f you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one.” If Jesus wanted his disciples to be defenseless sheep, why would he have instructed them to arm themselves in this way?

Finally, I credit Mr. Ron Rhodes for the following, from “The Complete Book of Bible Answers”. It is eminently reasonable and states my morality on the issue better than I can:

“Theologians J. P. Moreland and Norman Geisler say that ‘to permit murder when one could have prevented it is morally wrong. To allow a rape when one could have hindered it is an evil. To watch an act of cruelty to children without trying to intervene is morally inexcusable. In brief, not resisting evil is an evil of omission, and an evil of omission can be just as evil as an evil of commission. Any man who refuses to protect his wife and children against a violent intruder fails them morally.’