Yesterday there was another school shooting. This time right in my backyard. In fact I had been at Seattle Pacific University walking across the area where the shooting occurred, just a couple of hours before. One person died, three others injured, one still critical. It is probable that more would have been killed if were not for a student, John Meis, volunteer security guard sprayed the gunman with pepper spray and tackled him, with other students then jumping on top.
The horror of the senseless loss of life, the pain and agony of family, the trauma to those around hits my heart with great heaviness. When will this gun violence stop I wonder? When will we realize that there need to be restrictions on sales of guns?
Guns do not make a nation or a family safer. Quite the contrary according to this article published in the American Journal of Medicine last year. The U.S. has more guns and more gun deaths than any other country in the world.
One of my biggest struggles with living in the U.S. has been the acceptance of violence as a way of life – even amongst Christians. And maybe we will not see a change in the gun laws here until Christians change their attitudes. We are not called to violence we are called to peace. The images of God’s kingdom are of a peaceable kingdom in which there will be no death or violence or war.
I think it is time that we not only embraced this imagery but practiced it. Can you imagine how different our world would look today if followers of Jesus all laid down their guns and looked for peaceful ways to resolve conflict and violence. Until we are willing to do that I don’t think that we will see any change in the violence of our society or in the attitude towards guns.
What do you think?
16 comments
This is a mental health and evil issue, not a gun issue. No more than doing away with cars because of drunk drivers. Thank God for the provision of your protection. I was involved in 9-11 and watched the Pentagon burn and our president just compromised our protection. Get real! I didn’t see you mention that. And we have had all these freedoms till now, and speak English, because of D-Day.
I’m not sure what you mean by “…our president just compromised our protection.” Can you explain further?
Donna are you saying then that the U.S. has more mental health issues than any other country and that is why there are more deaths from gun violence? Yes God protects us but that protection is often by the following of God’s laws for peace as I suggested not by divine intervention.
It’s almost as if many in this country have been brainwashed to think it’s OK to own a gun for “protection” or to think it’s an invasion of privacy if there are stricter laws regarding the purchase of guns. Sometimes I feel hopeless about all this, but then I think of other huge cultural shifts in thinking such as the civil rights laws that have happened in my lifetime. If those changes can be made, then so can our attitude toward gun ownership and violence in general.
Thanks for this response Karin. I agree and hopefully that is what I imply in my article. responding in love and a spirit of peace not of violence will I think make more difference than anything and isn’t that the way of Jesus?
We do have a second amendment. The colonists would not approve the constitution still the first 10 amendments were added, thus know as “the Bill of Rights”. Our ancestors fought, bled and died for this right.
A centurion in the Bible, a leader of an 100 the Army.
The bottom-line question: does owning and wielding a gun against another human being honor God? The Biblical answer is no. Just no. That’s all. Christian gun-owners can argue and squeal all they want and the answer is still no. I wish people would just take ownership of that. I mean, go ahead and own one, pray and go to church. Just own up. A gun that is not functional to kill something that lives is a broken gun. You own one, you take upon yourself the option for murder.
I agree with you. Images and actions that lead to peace not war are close to the heart of Christianity. Early Christians did not join the army
I don’t think that we have fewer mental health issues here in the United Kingdom than there are in the USA. We do have far fewer gun related deaths because getting hold of a gun and especially getting hold of the ammunition for that gun is really really difficult.
Yes it is the same in Australia. Though I think it is deeper than that. I commented to someone today that in U.S. films one sees explicit violence all the time. In British films it is more likely to be the results of violence that one sees and that definitely has a different impact on one’s psyche
Every tragedy we have had in mass shootings was by an ill person.
I am surprisedrelease of the Taliban
This would not let me finish my reply…the release of the Taliban Cabinet by our president compromises all of our freedoms.
Donna, I don’t think that the issue of guns in the U.S. has much to do with the Taliban. I must confess I have trouble following your reasoning here
I was a part of 9-11 as I said in my first post. Your blog would not let me complete the thought as I came back and said. I am very concerned about the release of these top Taliban because of the US security. What is so hard about that. As a person born in America, and an old government and U.S. History teacher. I bleed red, white and blue.
Donna I understand your feelings. I was just puzzled because your response seemed unrelated to my post
You can’t have a complete thought here in you reply. Undoubtedly your # of letters are numbered.