Church Security question

[gunerd]

Remember Jack Wilson? He put his POS down with an Sig P229 in 357 Sig. Be like Jack.

Meet the man who 'took out' the active shooter at a Texas church

Jack Wilson said he was one of the congregants who shot and killed a man Sunday as the man opened fire in a church near Fort Worth, Texas.

www.wfaa.com

What a hero would say in an interview: "I did what I was trained to do..." - Thanks for the post.

 

[92FSTech]

I'm kind of the defacto security guy for our church. We're a small congregation of under 100, and it just kind of fell to me because of what I do for a living

Just like policing, guns aren't the answer to 99.9% of the problems you're going to encounter in a church environment. Having good observation skills, being able to talk to people and manage conflict is way more important.

We had a situation a few months ago involving a custody dispute with a particular family, and there was a concern that a guy might try to show up and do something about it at church. I literally had a dude calling me wanting to bring body armor and a rifle to church. I put the kibosh on that, as I was way more worried about what he was going to do than the guy who was potentially going to show up. I've known the guy for years, have a good rapport with him, and I figured if he showed it probably wasn't going to go any further than taking him aside and having a conversation. He didn't come, and nothing happened.

Lately we've had some people that I'm familiar with from my day job (never a good thing) showing up on Sunday mornings trying to get handouts. I keep an eye on them, make sure they aren't wandering the halls or out where the kids are, but if they are going to sit in the service and listen to the message, they are more than welcome. That's the whole reason we exist as a church.

I do carry a gun to church, just the same as I do anywhere else. My pastor was actually kind of surprised when he found out, and I told him "every time you've ever seen me in the past 15 years I've been carrying a gun. You never knew, and it was never an issue." I think he just never thought about it because I don't flaunt it or show it off, and it kind of changed his perspective a bit on the whole idea of carrying a gun.

I know of a couple of others at church who carry as well. If the worst case scenario ever does happen, I'll deal with it or get killed trying. But I'm not going to live in constant fear of some extremely low probability attack, or let our church turn into a place where we're too concerned about our own safety to fulfill our mission and minister to the lost.

 

[Brad69]

So training is much more important than the firearm better to have a S&W M10 and good training than a super weapon and no formal education.

Look into this class it will serve you and your flock well.

Intro to Defensive Pistol – One Day (Seelyville, IN) | Revere's Riders

#1-day Intro to Defensive Pistol at Lost Creek Conservation Club near Seelyville, IN.

www.reveresriders.org

 

[Super Bee]

I was at our old church even though they had a uniformed Allen County Deputy standing in the hall at all times.

We are back at our old church and they have zero security there. Not going to bother about starting up anything as we are not sticking around. Besides, it is a Catholic Church and they have become so liberal, my guess is they would not appreciate me carrying a firearm in their building anyway. I usually carry my PPK/S. It is so comfortable to carry and hides easily under my sweatshirt.

 

[DRob]

Not weapon specific but an excellent resource.

 

[STEEL CORE]

We are at a new church in Fishers, maybe they do, maybe they don’t, but I am my and my wife’s security, and in church I am aware of my surroundings, and a Glock-43, is my church security pistol so far.

 

[Quiet Observer]

I was at our old church even though they had a uniformed Allen County Deputy standing in the hall at all times.

We are back at our old church and they have zero security there. Not going to bother about starting up anything as we are not sticking around. Besides, it is a Catholic Church and they have become so liberal, my guess is they would not appreciate me carrying a firearm in their building anyway. I usually carry my PPK/S. It is so comfortable to carry and hides easily under my sweatshirt.

I think that there is a lot of variation on how different Catholic churches view concealed carry.
I lived in DuPage County, Illinois, just east of Cook County, until a couple of years ago. I saw few parishes that posted. I suspect that the farther one would be from Chicago, the less likely that it would be posted.

I went to weekday Mass one morning. I did a poor job of concealing. While I was in the sacristy talking with the priest, he noticed part of my holster and asked if I was carrying. I said yes. He replied that he was very happy to know it. He was a young priest, only a few months out of seminary.

 

[firecadet613]

I think that there is a lot of variation on how different Catholic churches view concealed carry.
I lived in DuPage County, Illinois, just east of Cook County, until a couple of years ago. I saw few parishes that posted. I suspect that the farther one would be from Chicago, the less likely that it would be posted.

I went to weekday Mass one morning. I did a poor job of concealing. While I was in the sacristy talking with the priest, he noticed part of my holster and asked if I was carrying. I said yes. He replied that he was very happy to know it. He was a young priest, only a few months out of seminary.

As most know, a lot is dictated from Rome and/or their local Archbishop. I know many priests and my best advice is concealed is concealed. Few want to do anything outside of what the hierarchy will allow...

 

[Quiet Observer]

As most know, a lot is dictated from Rome and/or their local Archbishop. I know many priests and my best advice is concealed is concealed. Few want to do anything outside of what the hierarchy will allow...

The Catholic has no unified stance on gun control. Archbishop Cupich of has all church property under his control to be posted. A bishop is essentially the owner all Catholic property in a diocese. There are exceptions. This has not been widely repeated in the other 196 dioceses in the US.

There is no unity on the issue among Catholic bishops.

What Does the Church Say About Gun Control?

What does the Catholic Church teach about gun control? What a Catholic should think concerning the subject? Learn more about Catholics and gun control.

www.catholic.com

I image if one were to survey the leaders of all the religions in the U.S. they would find a lot of variation in each denomination.

 

[foszoe]

One parish I attended, I was told by the priest the more guns the merrier I open carried in that parish because it was VERY rural and I viewed it more as an opportunity to encourage discussion and remove fear.

Currently I carry concealed. More of an urban area and no need to stir up anything.

 

[firecadet613]

The Catholic has no unified stance on gun control. Archbishop Cupich of has all church property under his control to be posted. A bishop is essentially the owner all Catholic property in a diocese. There are exceptions. This has not been widely repeated in the other 196 dioceses in the US.

There is no unity on the issue among Catholic bishops.

What Does the Church Say About Gun Control?

What does the Catholic Church teach about gun control? What a Catholic should think concerning the subject? Learn more about Catholics and gun control.

www.catholic.com

I image if one were to survey the leaders of all the religions in the U.S. they would find a lot of variation in each denomination.

I'll repeat what I said. Few priests want to go outside the norm of what's allowed and being said by their Bishop or Rome. There are exceptions, as with anything and those that will let their opinions be known. Their take on Francis, for instance.

In essence - a security team, being pro-gun, etc.

YMMV, but you're more apt to find a security team, things like that at one of the "mega-churches" or a Christian church than you are at a Catholic Church...

 

[Ziggidy]

I think that there is a lot of variation on how different Catholic churches view concealed carry.
I lived in DuPage County, Illinois, just east of Cook County, until a couple of years ago. I saw few parishes that posted. I suspect that the farther one would be from Chicago, the less likely that it would be posted.

I went to weekday Mass one morning. I did a poor job of concealing. While I was in the sacristy talking with the priest, he noticed part of my holster and asked if I was carrying. I said yes. He replied that he was very happy to know it. He was a young priest, only a few months out of seminary.

I lived in Lombard……

 

[foszoe]

YMMV, but you're more apt to find a security team, things like that at one of the "mega-churches" or a Christian church than you are at a Catholic Church...

is that an "article of faith" though or something you have intimate knowledge of?

 

[Cameramonkey]

Im a Methodist. We are by doctrine, no guns in church.

Luckily our Pastor is smart enough to know that is ridiculous and we ignore it. And she chooses to be willfully ignorant of what the safety team does. She essentially stands with her fingers in her ears saying "la la la I cant hear you!" and we make it a point to not keep her in the loop as to what we are doing. Her involvement is strictly need to know.

 

[foszoe]

Im a Methodist. We are by doctrine, no guns in church.

Luckily our Pastor is smart enough to know that is ridiculous and we ignore it. And she chooses to be willfully ignorant of what the safety team does. She essentially stands with her fingers in her ears saying "la la la I cant hear you!" and we make it a point to not keep her in the loop as to what we are doing. Her involvement is strictly need to know.

I think that is where most church congregations are.

 

[Ziggidy]

I like the way you think. Most of our team are members of USCCA

You may want to check and verify USCCA will actually cover you in you are on a security team, even if it is a volunteer for a church. I cannot be 100% on this but the last time I checked the only one that covered church security was CCW Safe; it’s in writing.

 

[ductape]

Wow. This has been an interesting thread. There is no security to my knowledge at any of the churches I attend. There are probably those who conceal carry without the knowledge of others. My first rule of gun safety has always been "don't go anywhere you need a gun". I realize nowadays, that means you have to stay home to some degree, but I never thought it necessary to carry a gun into church. I have a music ministry and go into many local churches of different faith. I may be strange to others, but I don't intend to ever carry a weapon other than my Bible into church. I also don't travel into really large cities either. I've only seen one incident in all my years, and that guy was just mouthy. Once a couple of us approached him, he calmed down and left the building before we got to him.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Yeah, we only had CCers up until I think the Sunderland Springs shooting. That was our wakeup call to take it serious, realizing houses of worship were no longer sacred and safe.

Now we have a team of those same CCers, we train together, get additional training like first aid and AEDs, etc. And also have somebody watching the cams and hallways every service.

And I used to only carry "in the dangerous places" like downtown Indy. Ive since learned that you cant avoid trouble by avoiding the dangerous places because everyplace is at least somewhat dangerous. Now If I'm wearing pants, I'm armed. (unless its a LEGALLY prohibited place)

 

[foszoe]

Yeah, we only had CCers up until I think the Sunderland Springs shooting. That was our wakeup call to take it serious, realizing houses of worship were no longer sacred and safe.

Now we have a team of those same CCers, we train together, get additional training like first aid and AEDs, etc. And also have somebody watching the cams and hallways every service.

And I used to only carry "in the dangerous places" like downtown Indy. Ive since learned that you cant avoid trouble by avoiding the dangerous places because everyplace is at least somewhat dangerous. Now If I'm wearing pants, I'm armed. (unless its a LEGALLY prohibited place)

Unarmed while performing your moderator duties, got it.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Unarmed while performing your moderator duties, got it.

Exactly. But usually the gun is on the desk next to my keyboard.