Pastors wear many hats in the course of their church duties, but recently it seems that Pastors are wearing the hats of the police officer and security guard by stopping crimes, confronting offenders, and in some cases getting engaged physically.

Take a look at some recent incidents:

HARRISON TOWNSHIP, OH -- A pastor said he found a burglary suspect hiding in his church and then got into a fight with him
http://www.whiotv.com/news/21203280/detail.html

SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY, CA - Two men were arrested Saturday after the pastor of a San Joaquin County church arrived to find crooks looting his parish
http://www.news10.net/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=68135&provider=top

JACKSONVILLE, FL - The pastor of Heritage Christian Center is recovering after being hit on the head with a crowbar by a thief trying to steal air conditioning parts
http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/topstories/news-article.aspx?storyid=146064&catid=3

DETROIT, MI - A retired police officer-turned-pastor shot and wounded a man who broke into his Detroit church
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hveMT4l4JPbtQty06Ad25E5T5sgAD9B0IQ3G0

ANTELOPE, CA - Pastor Counsels Would-Be Burglar at Antelope Church
http://www.fox40.com/news/headlines/ktxl-news-churchrobbery0928,0,868429.story

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - Police say a minister at a north Minneapolis church helped stop a crime in progress Wednesday night
http://kstp.com/news/stories/S1144859.shtml?cat=1

There are actually several other ones that we did not list that have also been in the news where Pastors confronted criminals in their churches or on their property. Some didn't turn out as well as some of the above with Pastors getting hurt and luckily none killed.

Each of these incidents is a learning experience.

In some of the cases Pastors should have called 911 and let the police handle the situation.

In one case not listed above a Pastor went into a church after the alarm had been set off and was confronted by a burglar. This is an example of getting lax with good security protocol; don't assume alarms are false and wait for the police to walk in with you.

In some of these situations the Pastors were probably as surprised as the criminal. As you can see in some, the Pastor had to physically fight the offender and in one case the Pastor shot the offender.

You can imagine we don't recommend anyone who is not trained, armed, or has legal authority to confront a criminal. We also understand that sometimes you have no choice but to defend yourself and property.

But these incidents underscore the need to "harden the target" to stop criminals from getting into or on top of the church in the first place. We view these incidents after the criminal has already gained entry, but you also have to look at these incidents and ask what could have been done prior to the incident to deter or deny it from ever happening.

Lighting, locks, alarms, window film, better partnerships with law enforcement, security guards, etc. - all are parts of a good overall security program and do have an effect on reducing crime.

Nothing is 100%, but the goal is to take as many measures possible before something happens so there will not be a need to confront any criminal.

As we saw a couple weeks ago in a church in Anna, Illinois when an intruder entered into the church through an unlocked door...this time there wasn't a Pastor to stop the offender, instead two elderly woman alone suffered tragic consequences of poor security practices.

Sometimes it is as easy as just locking the door.

In Christ,
Jeff Hawkins
Executive Director