Issue: May 2014: Guns

The plague of gun violence in our country, highlighted by tragic mass shootings at schools and in other places, has sparked renewed attention on the presence of the approximately 270 to 310 million privately owned legal and illegal guns and their use in the United States. As the debate proceeds on current and future public […]

The statistics about gun violence in the United States are staggering–especially when compared to other countries. Day examines the role of American culture in the gun control debate and how Christianity is often invoked to support gun ownership. She also notes the potential within Chrisitian theology and the Christian community to work to end violence.

The Second Amendment was not created in a vacuum. The Framers were responding to an already existing mindset about the natural right to bear arms. Klingfuss then moves forward through time, tracing the history of how this right has been interpreted in the American court system in the present.

We know that guns are prevalent in many homes throughout in the United States, and we know that Americans have the right to own firearms. However, as Christians, should we? Based on Paul’s message to the Corinthians about eating meat, and Luther’s concept of Christian freedom, Jacobs argues that Christians should choose to not own guns in order to set an example for the community and to keep it safe.

Jenkins, Willis, The Future of Ethics: Sustainability, Social Justice, and Religious Creativity. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2013. Paper, viii + 340 pages. $34.95.

Peters, Rebecca Todd. Solidarity Ethics: Transformation in a Globalized World. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2014.