This Sunday is the Feast of St. Francis. Famous for preaching to the birds and blessings all living things, Francis is often celebrated in congregations with a Blessing of the Animals rite. We at Salem Lutheran Church will attempt this for the first time.
But squawking parakeets and barking dogs will not be the most scandalizing aspect of St. Francis’s feast day. Examining his teachings and taking his witness seriously involves much more than blessing cute pets. The truly contrarian voice of Francis of Assissi rang out loudly to me this week in preparation for his celebration on Sunday.
Just as I had sent a lengthy quotation about Francis’s life to our office administrator over e-mail, I received another message in my inbox. (FYI, the life and times of a pastor’s mailbox, e- and snail, is an exciting topic unto itself…) U. S. Attorney Michael Ormsby e-mailed what seemed to be every church, temple and mosque in Eastern Washington with the subject heading, “Security Challenges for Houses of Worship.” Darn that this message was two months too late for the FaVS Coffee Talk!
The e-mail featured two attachments. First, a position paper bearing the same title as Ormsby’s e-mail, written by Brian M. Harrell, CPP, of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC). Second, a flier listing church security tips from a community in Mesa, Ariz. Ormsby writes, “Because religious facilities are open buildings which welcome members of the community, they present unique security challenges.” He also cited the massacre at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston as a reminder that violence is on the rise in places of worship.
Having such documents arrive in my lap only moments after reading the biography of a saint who espoused radical non-violence and sacrificial love for all creation led me to further consider the jarring, scandalous nature of the Gospel of Jesus. In the position paper, Mr. Harrell proposes that “the challenge for worship staff is preventing the potential victimization of worship members and visitors while asserting ones self as a ‘hard target’ and maintaining the peaceful and welcoming milieu one expects at a house of worship.” He notes several incidents of gun violence and arson occurring on church property and even during public worship in which lives were lost. He also lifts up an example of a church he considers well-prepared for such threats:
“In 2007 a black-clad gunman walked into New Life Church, in Colorado Springs, Colo. on a typical Sunday and started shooting. Fortunately, he was met with the church’s first line of defense: a congregant with a concealed-weapons permit and a law enforcement background (Gorski, 2007). The armed volunteer shot the gunman. New Life’s pastor credited the church attendee with saving dozens more lives due to quick action.”
Though the citation doesn’t make it clear if the shooter was killed, it praises the use of deadly force in response to a violent threat in a sanctuary.
If you haven’t guessed it yet, I side with Francis on this one. It sickens me to read praise for a congregation that prepared to shoot, and indeed shot, a human being. I just can’t get on board with concealed weapons—or weapons at all—being present in church. At least not at church that worships Jesus as Lord.
This collision of ideas—the U. S. Attorney & Co. vs. St. Francis—became a topic during our church staff meeting as well. I was encouraged to learn that my staff is unified in our affirmation of the albeit radical stance of Francis, that we will never take up arms to defend our “safety.” Here are a few reasons why we make this choice:
- While we are secure in God’s grace, we cannot be safe in this life. There is no way to lock out evil. There is no way to make a space—a home, a school, a church, an airport—totally free of potential violence.
- Attempts to create so-called safety often further exaggerates barriers that may already exist between human beings, ie. insiders/outsiders.
- Because God has blessed us with imagination and creativity, there are a whole host of practices that do not involve weapons that can respond to those who wish us harm.
- The real work of creating more safe communities happens in relationships. Knowing and caring about our neighbors, being known by them and being vulnerable with them is the preventative work we are called to do. As one of my members put it, “Maybe church is like a family reunion. Maybe not everyone recognizes everyone else, but everyone is known somehow. And that’s how the thing is ‘policed’. There are always people who come to a church the first time, but generally speaking almost everyone who darkens the door of a church is known in some way.”
- Jesus, when faced with his own violent death, chose not to retaliate or avenge. He died.
Yet even as our staff declared unity around these ideas, another e-mail came this week. This time a private security contractor was seeking our business, calling himself the Church Security Answer Man. My question is: Do any of us wish to actually follow Jesus?
I believe the utterly scandalous message of St. Francis, and of the crucified and risen Messiah that he followed, is especially needful in an era of religiously themed violence. The church, by which I mean all Christians on earth, must not valorize or baptize violence for any reason, even protection. Francis preached this at a time when Europeans were launching Crusades and persecuting religious minorities with pogroms. Francis lived this at a time when crosses adorned military garb and nations fought “for the sake of the gospel.” Just because it is the dominant understanding that it’s okay for Christians to be violent does not mean that is the way of Jesus. Francis of Assissi called the faithful to a better way. His voice continues to call and challenge me.
From the entry on St. Francis in All Saints, by Robert Ellsberg:
“To the friars gathered around his at the time of his death he gave each his final blessing is turn. ‘I have done my part. May Christ teach you to do yours.’ He died on October 3, 1226. His feast is observed October 4.”
On this Feast of St. Francis, may Christ teach us the better way of peace and may we all do our part to live it.
FWIW, I sent this off to our fine editor about twenty minutes before learning about Umpqua CC. I stand by my writing, and I feel all the more committed to getting guns out of our daily lives.