Keeping Safe Places Safe: The Church and Gun Policies

Keeping Safe Places Safe: The Church and Gun Policies

by | Jul 12, 2022

Keeping Safe Places Safe: The Church and Gun Policies

Keeping safe places safe is of growing concern as the number of mass shootings continues to rise. I believe the church has a role to play in creating effective gun policies. While churches are meant to be havens of safety, even they are no longer immune to gun violence. It’s time for the church to take a more hands on approach to reducing gun violence. I’m going to name four ways you can do that. I’ll also share additional resources you can use to spark greater discussion.

First, let’s address one myth.

 

The Myth that Mental Health is a Clear Indicator of Gun Violence

By now, we’re all far too familiar with the aftermath of gun violence. We delve into the shooter’s background, finding every detail we can about their mental health, and analyze it deeply. While this is necessary for us to be able to learn from these events, I think it’s important to distinguish that not everyone who is dealing with poor mental health is dangerous. Clearly people who perpetrate this sort of gun violence are not well, but that is not necessarily the same as being mentally ill. The truth is that people with mental health issues are more likely to have violence perpetrated against them, than for them to perpetrate against others.

As the church, we can benefit our communities by advocating for increased access to mental health services. But will that solve the problem of proliferating gun violence?

 

Coupling

In the book Talking to Strangers, Malcolm Gladwell writes about coupling theory. Coupling is the notion that certain behaviors are linked or coupled to specific contexts. For instance, suicide is positively correlated with the existence of the Golden Gate Bridge. In other words, people jump because the bridge is there. This is contrary to the assumption that if people want to kill themselves, they will find a way to do it, even if jumping from the Golden Gate Bridge is made much less accessible.

Similarly, access to handguns is shown to increase the incidence of suicide.

Might the same be true of AR-57s, AK-47s, and other military-grade weapons that are often used in mass shootings?

Just as suicide rates decline as certain environmental factors are made inaccessible, it’s reasonable to hypothesize that gun-related homicide rates could also decline if access to military-grade weapons was more regulated. This needs to be studied and discussed calmly and carefully.

But there is more that the church can do to keep safe places safe.

 

The Church and Gun Policies

Just as churches offer seminars on lifestyle topics such as parenting, finances, and end of life decisions, why not add safe gun ownership to the list? Consider offering a seminar, led by local gun safety specialists, that is open to the public. Here are some of the potential issues that could be addressed.

 

Gun Policies in the Home

Cover best practices for firearm owners including safe storage. Best practices include storing guns unloaded and using separate safes to store guns and ammunition. In homes with children or other high-risk individuals, it’s sometimes best to store guns and ammunition at a location away from the home. Educating the gun-owning public is a way that churches can reinforce the idea of keeping safe places safe.

 

Gun Policies in the Community

Churches can educate their people about how to create safer neighborhoods. Organizations such as Project Safe Neighborhoods “identify the most pressing violent crime problems in a community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.” Partnering with organizations like this that care about the common good help to keep safe places safe. And to help turn unsafe places into safer places.

 

Gun Policies in the Nation

Churches have the right and the responsibility to help educate their community in ethical matters of peace and justice. And to do it in a way that is both civil and respectful. Churches can offer nonpartisan seminars on the issues that impact the community and beyond and how to address them. When churches lead the way in addressing ethical issues for the common good, it encourages others to do so as well. Stay engaged with what is happening at the state and national levels. Speak up when you do or do not agree with what you’re seeing. What you say and do matters. Lastly, thank your legislators for passing this recent bipartisan bill aimed at reducing gun violence, which is a step in the right direction.

 

Gun Policies in the Church

Finally, turn your attention to your own congregation. Discuss the pros and cons of having a designated safety team in your congregation. Appointing clearly defined individuals who know what to do in a chaotic situation can help keep everyone safer.

 

Next Steps

I give thanks for my friend and colleague, James–Pastor in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where a recent mass shooting took place–who said: “Prayers are appreciated, but the best thing we can do is to put pressure on politicians to get real about addressing the root problems. Mental health, common sense gun policies, the pervasive culture of hate and violence, and the deflection of responsibility. As a clergy leader, I am preaching, leading, and encouraging members of my community to take action.” James and I spoke at length about this when he joined me for a livestreamed session of Leadership Mojo.

Listening to James, I introduced this series on the role of the church in gun violence, I have addressed the deflection of responsibility, disarming the culture of hate and violence, and the role of the church in creating solutions to gun violence. Now is the time to begin creating a culture of safety and responsibility by using your voice to promote peace and safety.

Let’s do our part, and draw strength from the scriptures: “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” -Galatians 6:9

 

Copyright © 2022 rebekahsimonpeter.com, All Rights Reserved.

Disarming the Culture of Hate and Violence

Disarming the Culture of Hate and Violence

by | Jul 5, 2022

Add parades to the list of once safe spaces that gun violence has now punctured. As July 4 celebrations took place across the nation, a shooter killed six people and injured at least thirty more in a wealthy suburb outside Chicago at a holiday parade. Why so much gun violence in our nation? Many factors contribute to gun violence including the deflection of personal responsibility, untreated mental health issues, lax gun policies, and easy access to firearms. Add to the list one more critical factor that requires disarming: the culture of hate and violence. In this blog, I am going to share with you specific ways that the church in particular is overcoming this toxic culture, and what positive things you can do in your particular setting.

 

Our Culture of Hate and Violence

I do believe that the church can play a positive role in reducing gun violence. Yet we have to understand the problem that we are up against. As I write in Forging a New Path: Moving the Church Forward in a Post-Pandemic World:

We are living in a time of deep political, economic, religious, social, racial, and generational polarization. This polarization is undergirded by what Arthur Brooks calls the “culture of contempt.” In the culture of contempt, differences are framed as fatal which deepens distrust of the other and encourages a gleeful sense of superiority over others. Most of all, this culture of contempt fuels an ever-ready sense of outrage, draining us before we even get to the issues that ought to cause real outrage: human trafficking, homelessness, hunger, poverty, and hierarchies based on color, money, or privilege.

This culture is pervasive.

The Myth that the Church is Immune to Hate and Violence

While it’s easy to see polarization “out there” in society, please don’t fall prey to the myth that it’s only “out there.” Whatever is going on in the echo chambers of social media, or toxic pseudo-news casts, or video games makes its way into the church. So we have to deal with the imported culture of contempt. But churches also need to look to see if they are responsible in some way for fanning the flames of contempt. If we use the Bible or the love of God as a  weapon against each other then we are contributing to the problem. If we sow mistrust of each other we are part of the problem. It’s important to preach in a way that builds up others, rather than tears them down.

 

Disarming the Culture of Hate and Violence

It is possible for people to get along even when they disagree greatly? Recently, the Dallas/Fort Worth Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church demonstrated that they could disagree on faith and ethics yet still work together. They voted on an amicable separation plan for their conference. It lacked the usual winners and losers and had a notable sense of humility and unity even as they sought to separate from one another. Similarly, the Mountain Sky Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church highlighted a plan for supporting churches who would be hurt by disaffiliation. This initiative, “A Table for All” was likened to a Thanksgiving table. Whenever family gathers, like at a holiday table, you don’t need to agree to share in fellowship, love and civility. With this as a model, a positive future is possible.

 

The Pervasive Culture of Hate and Violence

The American culture of hate and violence is undergirded by everything from violent video games and movies to conspiracy theories such as QAnon, to a stolen election, to toxic distrust of the other. Exacerbated by the stresses of the pandemic, this culture has stealthily taken root in some congregations.

I am grateful for the work of colleague Rev. Derek Kubilus. He has successfully used motivational interviewing to bring people aligned with conspiracy theories such as QAnon that disrupt the life of the church back into community. He cautions people to stay away from debate or ridicule as that only exacerbates differences. Instead, he suggests these three questions:

  • Why do you believe what you believe?
  • What led you to these ideas?
  • What makes these ideas so convincing for you?

While Derek suggests this process for de-escalating and re-integrating conspiracy theorists into the life of the church, I think motivational interviewing can work for any kind of polarization. Because it does not dehumanize the other, rather, it deepens a sense of belonging by creating curiosity and connection.

 

Next Steps

None of this is easy. It requires time and intentionality and practice. But there is no more pertinent time than now, and as the church, we can make an impressionable difference. If you’re willing to give it a try, here are a few places you can start:

  1. Practice motivational interviewing with your people. Engage them in discussion about the things you disagree with instead of avoiding them.
  2. Check out my books Forging a New Path or Dream Like Jesus. I go into great detail about the Platinum Rule in these books and how you can apply it in your setting.
  3. Join me for Leadership Mojo Wednesday, July 6 at 5pm MT/7pm ET for a live discussion with Derek Kubilus. We’ll talk about the culture of hate and violence and how we can disarm it to make way for productive and compassionate conversation.

One last thing you can do is join in a cohort of Creating a Culture of Renewal® starting this fall. This life-giving experience supports you in making sustainable shifts in your congregational culture while growing in your own leadership smarts. 

 

Copyright © 2022 rebekahsimonpeter.com, All Rights Reserved.

The Role of the Church in Creating Solutions to Gun Violence

The Role of the Church in Creating Solutions to Gun Violence

by | Jun 29, 2022

Gun violence has increasingly impacted once safe spaces such as homes, churches, synagogues, mosques, schools, medical clinics, and stores. What is the answer? Historically, religious leaders have often served as the conscience of the nation in other wrenching national issues. Can we have an impact in this conversation as well? I do believe the church can play an important role in creating solutions to gun violence. But not without rethinking how we talk about it. I’ll make two suggestions about what needs rethinking.

 

Rethinking Either/Or

Gun violence is on the rise in the US. However, even when we all experience the anger and outrage that a gut-wrenching, senseless tragedy such as a mass shooting elicits, we can’t seem to agree on what should be done to prevent it from happening again. Then we get stuck in an endless cycle of do-nothing.

We need to step out of the trap that there is just one solution to gun violence. Researchers noted in a report published by the American Psychological Association, that “Reducing the incidence of gun violence will require interventions through multiple systems, including legal, public health, public safety, community, and health.” But first, in order for the solutions to be activated, the church needs to exercise its authority in a positive way.

 

Rethinking Gun Violence Conversations

Churches best operate in the realm of ethics, not politics. We are about morals, not power. Yet, the issue of gun violence has been firmly stuck in the political process—with one side claiming second amendment rights, and the other side claiming the need for regulation. All of this bolstered by significant lobbying. Although a recent bipartisan bill has made significant headway, for which we are grateful, generally an either/or approach creates a no-win situation.

In order for churches to shape conversations about gun violence, without being beholden to political parties, let’s reframe the conversation from one of politics into one of ethics. As people who care deeply about moral issues, gun violence must first be dealt with as an ethical question before it can be shepherded effectively through a political process. Churches, take thou authority to restore ethics into conversations about gun violence.

By rethinking gun policies as an ethical issue, and not a political issue, we open the door to a whole new realm of resolution. Expanding this conversation into the sacred space of the church allows not only for new perspectives to emerge, but for new action shaped by love to take place.

 

Join the conversation

Creating solutions to gun violence requires a multi-faceted approach. It requires broad thinking that involves community stakeholders and resources. It also requires an ethical approach over a political approach. The church can have a positive influence in this conversation. Tune in to Leadership Mojo to join the conversation about what your church can do.

Next week in this space, I will address the pervasive culture of hate and violence, which has even impacted the church. Learning how to bring respect back will empower your church in having ethics-based conversations about gun violence.

 

Copyright © 2022 rebekahsimonpeter.com, All Rights Reserved.

The Deflection of Responsibility

The Deflection of Responsibility

by | Jun 22, 2022

Why haven’t we solved the issue of mass shootings and gun violence? We have been living with escalating gun violence at least since Columbine, if not earlier. Yet, it’s not an intractable problem. Other countries like Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, and the United Kingdom—once faced with mass shootings—have greatly reduced gun violence.  Why not us? The answer comes down to a deflection of responsibility.

 

The Myth Behind the “They” Mentality

When it comes to gun violence, many individuals see themselves as helpless bystanders who can’t make any meaningful difference on their own. Instead, “they” have to come up with a solution. “They” need to change the policies. Or “they” need to adopt stricter regulations for background checks. Or “they” need to determine how to make sure schools are secure. Or “they” need to deal with mental health issues.

What happens when “they” don’t or won’t act?

 

The Deflection of Responsibility

In my leadership development program, Creating a Culture of Renewal®, we have an answer for that. We teach that renewal begins within. When a leader takes responsibility for beginning the process of change, that change ripples out to positively impact people and situations all around them. We call this tapping into your agency.

This is the same agency that our baptismal vows call us to:  to resist evil, injustice, and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves. Let’s tell the truth: gun violence is evil. It’s evil to shoot people. It’s evil to turn once safe spaces like schools, churches, homes, and medical clinics into suspect environments. It’s evil to let this violence fester and not take action. Especially when we are called to be a witness for the gospel of good, a witness for peace, and a witness for love.

So what would it look like for you and your church to begin to assume responsibility for gun violence? To understand that the responsibility for peace and safety begins within? What might you do differently?

 

Next Steps

I encourage you to join me in my commitment to take an active stance. I have four recommendations for how you can make a difference.

  • Reach out to your elected officials. I did. I told them my colleagues and I were tired of burying community members due to senseless violence. I got a call back and an offer to meet with my Senator and her staffers. I’m going to gather some colleagues to meet with them. If you’re not sure who to contact, the League of Women Voters website allows you to enter your address and get contact information for all of the elected officials in your local and state government.  You may also visit the United States Senate website, which allows you to choose your state and find contact information for the senators representing your state in Washington, DC.
  • Download and read this Gun Violence Cheat Sheet from Rev. Lindsey Long Joyce. It’s a great resource that considers the different views that congregations can have when it comes to common sense gun safety. Similarly, Discipleship Ministries published an outline on how to have a  Courageous Conversation on Gun Control. It’s a helpful starting point that can be adapted to fit your needs.
  • If you are able, donate your time or money to organizations whose purpose is to help end gun violence, such as March for Our Lives and Everytown for Gun Safety.
  • If you are a member of the NRA, call them and petition for common sense gun policies.

    While you may have given up on national leadership to make a change, remember that we are the ones that have voted these folks in. Eventually, politicians will have to follow us if we lead. If we don’t change, nothing will change.

    However you choose to participate, know that we do have a choice in what happens and that what you say and do matters. Comment below and share with me how you are or can take an active stand against gun violence.

     

    Copyright © 2022 rebekahsimonpeter.com, All Rights Reserved.

    Is it Possible to Love One Another as Jesus Loves Us?

    Is it Possible to Love One Another as Jesus Loves Us?

    by | Jan 26, 2022

    Lenten Practices

     

    During Lent, we remember Jesus’ command: “Love one another as I have loved you.” My question is: is it still possible to love one another as Jesus loved us? We live in a world of us versus them, a culture of contempt. We are broken into camps around politics, theology, and understandings of race. Don’t forget human sexuality, biblical authority, and denominational structures. Did I mention the pandemic? Frankly, some of us are too tired to even be patient, let alone loving. Even with all that said, I promise you we don’t have to give up on love. In this article, I want to share the top four ways to practice love this Lent.

     

    Does Love Equal Approval?

    First, I want to share one common concern. That’s the concern that love means approval. If I am called to love you, but we disagree about fundamental understandings of the world, am I compromising my faith? Am I sending the signal that I approve of what I believe is sinful or unjust behavior?

    Here’s what I have found. Loving as Jesus loved does not mean acceptance of behaviors or beliefs. It does however equal acceptance of the other person’s humanity, and their inner divinity. No matter how misguided you think their beliefs and behaviors are. In the end, judgement is God’s domain, not ours.

    Now, on to the problem and the solutions: the four ways to practice love this Lent.

     

    Why Loving as Christ Loved is Hard

    Polarization tends to beget polarization and it takes us farther and farther from Jesus’ command. Polarization is built on fear and judgement. “I am right, and you are wrong. In fact, you are so wrong that I can’t trust you, talk with you, or even be me when you are here.”

    These victim stances have no place in the consciousness of Christ. He ate with sinners. He interacted with Pilate. He did not try to winnow out the “other.” He allowed Judas to remain. He set personal differences aside and, in their place, created community amongst his people.

     

    Four Ways to Practice Love This Lent

    1) Practice Looking for Common Value Polarizing constructs are only given life when we act on them. By letting go of “us versus them,” you take the first steps toward loving as Jesus loved, and to creating community. Instead, let polarization dissolve by embracing the opposites, or by finding, identifying, and focusing on common underlying values.

    2) Practice Listening When you are with someone you don’t love, listen for their humanity. Put yourself in their shoes. Ask: how has your personal journey brought you to this place? How has it shaped your perspectives?

    3) Practice Extending Grace The person you can’t stand to love may look at you the same way you look at them. Surprise them by extending grace. Give them grace to make a mistake, to be on a different journey, to grow in their own timeline, and to be recipients of God’s love, and yours.

    4) Practice Praying If you can’t find love within you, ask God to show you how, to teach you how to love them. If that doesn’t work, keep praying.

     

    It’s Possible to Love One Another as Jesus Loves Us

    The pandemic has shown us that there is no us versus them. There is only us. People from every walk of life and every country on earth have been impacted by the pandemic. If we hope to come through it with any sense of unity, we have to practice loving one another as Jesus loved us. It’s not automatic; it takes intention. I invite you to take on these four practices this Lent: looking for common values, listening, extending grace, and praying.

    We don’t know everything the post-pandemic future holds, but the more we trust God in our approach, the more that we can live by Jesus’ command. Then, the more confident we’ll be knowing that we can survive and even thrive once again.

    Excerpted and adapted from Rebekah Simon-Peter’s upcoming book (Market Square Publishers, 2022)

    Copyright © 2022 rebekahsimonpeter.com, All Rights Reserved.

    Walk the Path of Healing through Lent

    Walk the Path of Healing through Lent

    by | Jan 19, 2022

    The Covid-19 pandemic has brought about a world of change. Many congregations have been weighed down with grief, resentment, and fear, unable to move forward. This year, I want to show you how to walk the path of healing through Lent. In this article, I’ll share how to move through the stages of repentance, remembrance, acceptance, forgiveness, gratitude, and embracing on each of the six Sundays of Lent.

     

    A Day of Repentance

    Repentance means to turn back to God. Recognize how you may have played a part in harming another. Did you push people away with acts of injustice or ignore a neighbor? Did you contribute to acts of polarization or lose the way of hope? Congregational acts of repentance include sending out the prayer of confession and pardon from the United Methodist service of Holy Communion, asking your congregation to read and reflect on it, and bring their contemplations to worship. Read the prayer slowly and deliberately to truly grasp the depth of each line.

     

    A Day of Remembrance

    Spend time as a congregation in active remembrance. Remember those who have passed and the gifts that they brought. Remember the ones you could not visit and their seat in the sanctuary. Remember your family members, neighbors, and loved ones who have died because of Covid or other causes. Acknowledge human loss, offer thanksgiving for their legacy, and joy that death is not the end of life. Celebrate Holy Communion as a congregational act of remembering, that at this sacred table we gather together with those on the journey of life and with those who are in our great cloud of witnesses.

     

    A Day of Acceptance

    Acceptance tends to be a touchy subject.  We saw this on the national stage as the country debated the existence of Covid and the legitimacy of the election process. In the church, acceptance is deeply connected with faith. Degrees of faith tend to be used as a measuring stick for whom we accept and whom we do not. The truth is, acceptance does not mean approval. Acceptance is simply the willingness to recognize what is so, whether you personally believe it is good or not. It is an act of surrender, a way to release control over what we never had control of in the first place. Congregational acts of acceptance include creating a personal or communal “bulletin” board that represents all the changes that have taken place during the pandemic: what has been gained and what has been lost. This “bulletin” board can then become a point for reflective prayer.

     

    A Day of Forgiveness

    Forgiveness is necessary when harm has been done. The pandemic has evoked many strong opinions and reactions among us. Whether it is the issue of vaccines and masks, politics and the presidential election, or social distancing and working from home, it feels like a thousand different harms pulled us further away from each other. I’ve spoken to many friends, family members, and colleagues whose sorrow has led to resentment, blame, and judgement. While blame and judgement seem understandable in extreme circumstances, the rancor that lives within is poisonous to your body, mind, and spirit. Forgiveness opens the way for healing to begin.  Forgiveness doesn’t mean that you condone someone else’s behavior. It means that you are willing to stop carrying the harm within yourself. Congregational acts of forgiveness include prayer for oneself, friends, and enemies, and the surrender of resentment and rancor to God’s loving care.

     

    A Day of Gratitude

    Gratitude is the heart’s response to the gifts of God. Although much has been lost during the pandemic, much has also been gained. Amplify the feelings of gratitude within your heart by counting your blessings. Take time to reflect on and recognize all that you can be thankful for, and what you have learned from the changes that have taken place. Congregational acts of gratitude include hymn sings, sharing of testimonies, and acts of service for others.

     

    A Day of Embracing

    Embracing is a positive, proactive act that allows one to move forward into a new future. It’s an open heart that can both pray “thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” and “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” This kind of embracing embodies the unconditional love of God that flows outward to all, no strings attached. Congregational acts of embracing include reciting affirmations of faith, anointing, and speaking new visions into life.

    As we approach Lent, which of these congregational acts will prepare your people to receive the gifts of resurrection? Which will bring healing, wholeness, and a renewed awe on this gift we call life? Even though the pandemic is not over, it’s time to look ahead for what new plans God is unfolding. We won’t be ready to receive them unless we repent, remember, accept, forgive, express gratitude, and embrace.

    While we can’t rush the process, once we walk the path through these six stages, we can be ready once again to co-create miracles with God.

    If you’re ready to take the next step, please join me for Jesus-Sized Dreams for Small-Sized Churches, a three-session workshop where you’ll learn how to Dream Like Jesus and bring renewal to your congregation and community.

     

    Copyright © 2021 rebekahsimonpeter.com, All Rights Reserved.