I did not expect this debate over guns in the church to go away, any more than I expected the entire gun debate in the U.S. to go away.

But it continues to be a point of contention in the church with no easy answers.

The recent Supreme Court decision to uphold gun-owner rights over any state or city's restrictions and the signing of the gun law in Louisiana by Governor Bobby Jindal has sparked vigorous debate, as to how guns relate to churches and security, all over again.

However, there are still misconceptions on both sides of this issue.

In the article about Louisiana's new law in the Digital Journal (http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/294375), New Orleans Arch Bishop Gregory Aymond is quoted as saying "It's just very surprising to me that this was passed because even if you talk about the more challenging neighborhoods, they don't have problems inside the church. They've had problems in the neighborhood, outside the church, near the church in a park but not in the church. Theologically we have always seen our churches, synagogues and mosques as a place of refuge and sanctuary. Not a place where firearms would be used."

Huh, doesn't this guy read the newspapers or watch TV (or get the CSN Newsletter!)?

This may have been the case decades ago, but not today.

Just in recent years there have been dozens of people hurt and killed in houses of worship in the United States, and hardly any area of the country has been untouched.

I am the first one to say that someone is more likely to die of a heart attack in your church than a gunshot, but I know the risk is always there and there has to be a plan for a violent incident or active shooter, whether it involves armed personnel or not.

But to be completely ignorant of this issue is not helping churches.

Then you have the other side of the issue where pastors are encouraging everyone to bring their guns to church only to find their insurance being dropped leaving them very liable and exposed to lawsuits.

Recently a woman in Brookfield, Wisconsin (where a tragic church shooting took place in 2005 and 7 people were killed by an active shooter) decided that she would make a point about Wisconsin's "open carry" law and wore her gun to church on her waist plainly exposed. The news report in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (http://www.jsonline.com/news/waukesha/98082044.html) stated the woman wanted to "bring attention to the gun rights debate".

She did, because the church called the police and they stopped her in her vehicle after the service and arrested her. She wasn't arrested because of the open carrying of the weapon in church, which she was allowed to do in Wisconsin, but for having the gun in the car with her, which I guess in Wisconsin, you can't?

Either way, walking into any church with a gun openly on your waist is a cause for concern, unless you are wearing a police uniform.

As we have stated before, the Christian Security Network respects everyone's Second Amendment right to own a firearm and carry it on your person according to your state's regulations, BUT we don't believe an 8-hour course to carry a concealed weapon makes you a good candidate to act in a security capacity, in a church or anywhere for that matter.

Handling a weapon in a stressful situation requires a lot of training, skill, and practice.

It is ironic that as I was writing this I saw an incident on the news in Cincinnati where an Iraq war-vet was the object of an armed robbery on a city street (http://www.wcpo.com/dpp/news/region_central_cincinnati/mount_auburn/three-injured-in-mount-auburn-attempted-robbery-%26-gunfight).

It appears this war-vet and a passenger were sitting in a car, looking for directions, when one or two armed gunman attempted to rob or car-jack him. The robber fired his weapon and war-vet pulled his gun too and shot the robber 3 times, who remains in critical condition; the vet and his passenger are fine.

This vet would probably make a good security staff member in a church.

Training, skill, and experience. Put the gun in the right hands and it will do the job. That is why we arm police officers, military, and security officers.

The debate will continue, but hopefully through it we will develop reasonable and prudent policies and procedures that address this highly controversial issue and ultimately make the church safer and more secure.

In Christ,
Jeff Hawkins
Executive Director