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LucasMcCain wrote: ↑Tue Nov 26, 2019 2:16 pm

Texas_Blaze wrote: ↑Mon Nov 25, 2019 6:20 pm

LucasMcCain wrote: ↑Mon Nov 25, 2019 3:28 pm Our church is posted 30.07, and that doesn't particularly annoy me. We do have dedicated security, but they are not identified in any way; I just know what to look for. I carry every Sunday, just like I do every other day.

I would not attend or be a member of a church that posted 30.06 signs. Even if I could get some kind of exception letter from leadership. I'm not going to be part of a church family that has adopted anti-gun policies in violation of Biblical principles. It's not just a personal preference or safety issue; it's a theological issue. A church is supposed to be a group of like minded believers. If they don't believe in letting my brothers and sisters in the faith defend themselves, then we are not like minded.

Self-defense and firearms are independent of one another. A theological discussion rests purely on self-defense, independent of any specific type of weapon. An organization may consider all risks associated with allowing / disallowing firearms independently from support of self-defense. Thus, firearms aren’t a matter of theology or scripture.

I disagree. The apostles were specifically instructed by Christ himself to carry swords, even if it meant selling their most valuable possessions in order to afford them. The type of swords in question would be roughly analogous to handguns; short swords carried commonly for self defense. You can't argue that the Bible supports self defense, but restricts the means of said self defense. I don't believe there is any case to be made scripturally for restricting carry in church. There is a strong case to be made for allowing it. Saying that self defense is okay, as long as you leave the most effective self defense tool you own in your car? Is that really your argument?

The Bible is absolutely filled with violence, both offensive and defensive. It is only condemned when it is unwarranted or unjustified. That is not the case when defending your church family against unwarranted violence with the most effective means at your disposal.

As much as I wish to engage in a more detailed theological discussion, this isn’t the forum. But I’d ask that you reconsider the way that He spoke, sometimes literally, sometimes figuratively.

LucasMcCain wrote: ↑Mon Nov 25, 2019 3:28 pm Our church is posted 30.07, and that doesn't particularly annoy me. We do have dedicated security, but they are not identified in any way; I just know what to look for. I carry every Sunday, just like I do every other day.

I would not attend or be a member of a church that posted 30.06 signs. Even if I could get some kind of exception letter from leadership. I'm not going to be part of a church family that has adopted anti-gun policies in violation of Biblical principles. It's not just a personal preference or safety issue; it's a theological issue. A church is supposed to be a group of like minded believers. If they don't believe in letting my brothers and sisters in the faith defend themselves, then we are not like minded.

Self-defense and firearms are independent of one another. A theological discussion rests purely on self-defense, independent of any specific type of weapon. An organization may consider all risks associated with allowing / disallowing firearms independently from support of self-defense. Thus, firearms aren’t a matter of theology or scripture.

I Love My Church and You would too because safety & awareness is an important part of what we do on Sundays & special events (conferences etc). We have volunteers, some armed, some not. We have attorneys, doctors, welders, all sorts of folks on the safety team. We carry walkies w/ ear pieces. We also hire a local officer & park his cruiser up front. We have strategic placement of safety team members during services. We lock select doors after service starts, funneling late comers to the front entry of the church. We reserve the last few rows of seats for late comers so they don’t have a reason to go up front seats. Ushers enforce this. We have cameras. We keep safety team members in the lobby throughout all of service. We walk the grounds and check the parking lot and doors of building. We have flashbang & bean bag shotguns placed strategically.

The above is all true. It was born out of one man that recognized our deficiencies in safety and now leads the team.

My point is that being armed is only a part of safety. Awareness & alertness along with impediments and deterants are not to be undervalued. Safety is the most important issue and should be the focus.