God and Guns

What does God think about guns?

            As a Christian, I am trying to sort through the passions that people have in this country about the “right to bear arms.”  I said that, as a Christian I am thinking about and praying through the matter—not as an American.  I am a disciple of Christ who happens to be an American.  I have no problem with guns per se.  Weapons are neutral goods.  The Bible says a lot about them, and they are used quite often for good and for ill.  Spears, arrows, even a little stone in a sling have been used by God’s people for good ends and for selfish desires, for blessing and for power.

How do I grapple with this issue?  I have the Bible in one hand, and the American Constitution in the other.  I am also mindful of people who treat them equally.  As a faithful person, I have to look at the Constitution through biblical lenses, just as our ancestors did who wrote the Constitution.

What does the Second Amendment say?  “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”  We can become legal experts here and slice through each word or phrase to try to define meaning to suit our own opinion.  It strikes me, for example, that “a well-regulated militia” is quite different than an individual, but a group.  Being “well-regulated” means that there is an authority responsible for the discipline and oversight of that group.  There are commanders and divisions.  If the authors of the Constitution had meant that individuals have the right to bear arms, they would have used that language.

In 21^st century America, the arguments for or against gun control do not reveal what really is at stake from a Christian perspective.  Guns in our culture reveal more than anything else the need for power and control over one’s life—a “right” that is quite different than what our ancestors understood.  With rights come responsibility and accountability to the larger community.  Spiritually speaking, we are in a dilemma.  We do not possess guns.  Guns possess their owners.  Guns have become gods.

Until we can have a spiritual discussion about what guns mean, then any other discussion or agenda will make no sense.  And Christ will not be in the discussion.