Rev. Rob Schenck, an evangelical pastor known for his extreme anti-abortion activism, has recently had a change of heart on the topic of gun ownership. He is speaking out about the rise of gun ownership among his white male evangelical peers in the United States. His piece “Should Christians Own Guns?” is the cover story in the May issue of Sojourners magazine. He writes:
I’m deeply concerned about American evangelicals. I believe the increased presence of firearms among American evangelicals, including pastors that are now armed in the pulpit and ready to shoot into the congregation if necessary, signals a serious moral crisis in the church. Those who should be all about the good news of God’s saving love for humanity are instead being led astray by a popular gun culture that contradicts the teaching and model of Jesus and the apostles. – See more at: https://sojo.net/magazine/may-2016/white-evangelicals-have-one-highest-rates-gun-ownership-us#sthash.nJqrjmuw.dpuf
I appreciate Schenck’s admonition of our fear-based culture that causes us to suspect those we encounter. When our knee-jerk reaction is to perceive the stranger in our midst as a potential threat rather than as a child of God, we have lost our focus on Jesus who modeled radical love and hospitality. This is, indeed, a moral crisis.
Read the rest of my response on the Huffington Post Religion Blog.
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