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Praise the lord, don't pass the ammunition

Wisconsin’s bishops have urged Catholics not to take weapons to church even though a new state law went into effect on 1 November allowing those with permits to carry concealed weapons.

In a statement issued to the US state’s Catholics, bishops said they were not mandating that parishes prohibit concealed weapons but advised parishioners to “seriously consider not carrying them into church buildings as a sign of reverence for these sacred spaces.”

The state’s five bishops wrote that natural law and constitutional tradition upheld individual freedom as an intrinsic human right.

“True freedom, however, is not a licence to do whatever we choose. Rather, it is the ability to do what we morally ought to do, to build a just society and to glorify God, who is the author of all liberty and the source of human dignity,” they said.

The right to bear arms, protected under the US Constitution, should be “exercised responsibly and in accordance with applicable laws”.

“We are obligated to use this particular freedom with due respect for others and for the desires of those who welcome us into their homes, places of business, and other public spaces, such as churches and religious institutions,” they added.

The bishops also urged Catholics to reflect on Catholic teaching, which is committed to nonviolence.

“While the Church has always upheld the right to self-defence, peaceful means of reconciling conflicts and differences, both as individuals and nations, is the preferred method,” they said.

The bishops asked Catholics to remember that churches and parish facilities are “sacred spaces” where all come to find peace.
Catholic Mutual Group, the insurance provider for more than 100 US dioceses, recommends that parishes and church facilities bar weapons from their premises.

With Wisconsin now having a concealed-carry law, Illinois is the only state where it is illegal to carry a concealed weapon in public.

In Georgia, gun rights advocates have filed a lawsuit against the state saying they should be allowed to carry firearms in churches, synagogues, mosques and other places of worship.

Currently, that state’s law bans firearms in places of worship as a violation of constitutionally protected religious freedoms. Other states with similar restrictions, according to The Associated Press, include Arkansas, Mississippi and North Dakota. - CNS

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