Is concealed carry in places of worship legal in Tennessee?

[Guest 1eyedwillie]

It is not illegal in Tennessee.

Everyone has the right to their religious beliefs (or lack thereof) in this country. Having said that--

I never understood the rationale of a church being a restricted carry location for practical or religious reasons. Bad people are generally free to come into a church building as much as anyone. After all, it is open to the public in most cases.

My frame of reference is christian. My personal view is that Jesus Christ was the only son of the only God. (again, you are free to disagree). As such, He said in Luke 22:36 for his followers to equip themselves with various practical articles, among which was a sword (machaira); a short all purpose tool which could be used for self defense among other uses. Some folks say that He really didn't mean an actual sword. I can't follow that line of reasoning. The Son of God did/does not 'mis-speak'. He means what He says.

That being the case, why would He want His followers to be defenseless in the assembly? Now, I can understand not making folks nervous or distracting from the worship experience, so I think concealed carry is the better option.

But, if you live in a state such as Arkansas or Mississippi which makes it illegal, work with your legislators to get the law changed. Bad things do sometimes happen in churches. Google 'church shooting' or something similar to see examples.

[safeandsecure]

... in Luke 22:36 for his followers to equip themselves with various practical articles, among which was a sword (machaira); a short all purpose tool which could be used for self defense among other uses.

100% correct. He actually instructed them to sell their garment in order to buy one (if they didn't have a sword).

[daddyo]

It's interesting how the ones who find it abhorrent to defend one's self with a firearm would trample you to death to get out the door if a shooter came into the building and opened fire.

[aquaman67]

Let me google that for you

That was awesome!

How do you do that? I gotta know!

[Guest pws_smokeyjones]

A word of caution to the thieves that might decide to hit various Baptist Churches in Jackson, it would be a sad day.

As one of the TGO guy's sig line says, Luke 11:21 "When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace"

Hmmm... seems I have heard that somewhere before.

I carry at Church, along with most of our leadership team. It is legal.

[Fallguy]

That was awesome!

How do you do that? I gotta know!

PM sent

[vontar]

why would you carry in a church?

because I don't have one of these.

[Guest Glock23ForMe]

That was awesome!

How do you do that? I gotta know!

I will show you

[Fallguy]

I will show you

Now that's funny right there...

[JPS]

The church I attend sometimes has some pretty rough people in the congregation, and there are a LOT of them packed into a small location. I never quite felt comfortable before getting my permit and carrying. Now we sit near (one of the few) exits and enjoy the service.

(I figure it doesn't hurt to ask for a little blessing on my carry gun once in a while either.)

[Guest grays]

Let me google that for you

rofl

[Guest TargetShooter84]

What about big churches that often have police presence? Would that be legal or not?

[Fallguy]

What about big churches that often have police presence? Would that be legal or not?

Why in the world would a police presence change anything?

AFAIK there is no law that makes it illegal to carry where LEOs are when it is otherwise legal.

[Smith]

What about big churches that often have police presence? Would that be legal or not?

That should probably answer the question of why to carry at church.

[Guest TnRebel]

I'm waiting for the guns and church or guns and God don't mix argument.

[Fallguy]

This was posted somewhere a while back and I saved it..

Should Christians Keep and Bear Arms

A Christian Viewpoint

Dr. Marshall C. St. John

The Constitution of the United States of

American contains this sentence:

“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.â€

Our Constitution is not part of the Bible, however

it is based on Biblical principles.

For example, the Constitution speaks of the

necessity of a militia for the security of a free

nation. “Militia†does not mean a professional

army. It means the citizens of the nation bearing

arms. It is the teaching of the Bible that citizens

MAY, and often MUST bear arms for the

defense of the nation. For example:

7 And ye shall chase your enemies, and they

shall fall before you by the sword.

8 And five of you shall chase an hundred, and

an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to

flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by

the sword.

9 For I will have respect unto you, and make

you fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my

covenant with you.

(Leviticus 26:7-9)

In order for God's people to accomplish the will

of God, it may sometimes be necessary for them

to bear arms and literally fight. King David

wrote in Psalm 18:34-39...

“He teacheth my hands to war, so that a bow of

steel is broken by mine arms...I have pursued

mine enemies, and overtaken them: neither did I

turn again till they were consumed. I have

wounded them that they were not able to rise:

they are fallen under my feet. For thou hast

girded me with strength unto the battle...â€

LESSONS FROM NEHEMIAH

When Nehemiah was rebuilding the wall around

Jerusalem, it was necessary for him and the

other men to go armed for self-defense.

Nehemiah 4:16-18

“And it came to pass from that time forth, that

the half of my servants wrought in the work,

and the other half of them held both the

spears, the shields, and the bows, and the

habergeons; and the rulers were behind all the

house of Judah. They which builded on the wall,

and they that bare burdens, with those that

laded, every one with one of his hands

wrought in the work, and with the other hand

held a weapon. For the builders, every one

had his sword girded by his side, and so

builded. And he that sounded the trumpet was

by me.â€

Many of the heros of the Bible were men at

arms: Joshua, Gideon, Samson, etc.

lessons from God’s Law

The first five books of the Bible are sometimes

called the “Torah,†which means “The Law.†In

these books we find the Ten Commandments,

and many other laws God gave to His people to

order their lives. In Exodus 22:2-3 we read:

“If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten

that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.

If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood

shed for him; for he should make full restitution;

if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his

theft.â€

In other words, homeowners are allowed by

God’s Law to defend themselves against

burglars who break in at night.

lessons from Jesus

In Luke 22:36 Jesus commanded His disciples

to be armed for self-defense.

“Then said he unto them, But now, he that hath a

purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and

he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment,

and buy one.â€

Jesus commanded his disciples to buy swords, if

they had none. They said they already had two,

and Jesus said that would be enough. As a band

of a dozen able-bodied men, they were quite

safe from roving bandits, even if every man in

the group was not carrying a weapon. The

application is that Jesus commands us to be

armed for self-defense, but He does not

recommend that we go overboard with our

weapons. Jesus said in another place, “He who

lives by the sword shall die by the sword.â€

Jesus encourages his followers to defend

themselves, but He does not encourage us to

be eager for battle and bloodshed.

Self-defense may be necessary as a last resort,

but violence should not be sought after and

relished. God’s people are supposed to be

peacemakers, not ruffians. Neither are we

allowed to spread the Gospel by means of

violence or military aggression.

LESSONS FROM PAUL

“But if any provide not for his own, and specially

for those of his own house, he hath denied the

faith, and is worse than an infidel.â€

I Timothy 5:8

We must provide food and shelter for our

families. It is also our duty to provide protection

from criminals. The most effective way to do this

is to move your family to a safe neighborhood.

Also, we should make sure our communities

have effective law enforcement officers. But

what would you do if a criminal broke into your

home? Are you prepared to defend your family?

We pray for God to provide for us; but that does

not excuse us from earning money, buying food

and building houses. We pray for God to defend

us from criminals, but that does not excuse us

from taking steps to protect our families.

Preserving Your Right to

Keep and Bear Arms

The importance of preserving your right to keep

and bear arms is illustrated in I Samuel

13:19-22.

“Now there was no smith found throughout all

the land of Israel: for the Philistines said, Lest

the Hebrews make them swords or spears: But

all the Israelites went down to the Philistines, to

sharpen every man his share, and his coulter,

and his ax, and his mattock. Yet they had a file

for the mattocks, and for the coulters, and for the

forks, and for the axes, and to sharpen the

goads. So it came to pass in the day of battle,

that there was neither sword nor spear found in

the hand of any of the people that were with Saul

and Jonathan: but with Saul and with Jonathan

his son was there found.â€

The Philistines conquered and dis-armed the

Israelites. They even took away the means of

weapons production, in order to enslave them.

In order to revolt, the few Israelites who had

weapons attacked some Philistines and took

their weapons. This process continued until

many Israelites had arms. In modern times, It

is impossible to overthrow tyrants and have

a free society unless the citizens have

firearms, and know how to use them.

RIGHTS COME FROM GOD

It is vital for every Christian to realize that all

our rights actually come from God. The

government never gives you rights, but only

recognizes rights you already have, or tries

to take your rights away from you, to

increase its power. It is clearly obvious that

as government grows larger, our liberties are

gradually being taken away.

The second Amendment of the Constitution, the

second right enumerated in the Bill of Rights, is

the right to “keep and bear arms.†As we have

seen from the scriptures quoted above, this right

is rooted in the Bible, because the right to

self-defense, and the obligation to protect the

weak, is rooted in the Bible.

An Objection Answered

Someone may ask: “But what about turning the

other cheek and not resisting evil? Aren’t

Christians supposed to act like that? Aren’t we

supposed to be pacifists?â€

The answer is simple: In those verses Jesus

was telling Christians how to react to minor

insults: a slap on the cheek, the loss of a coat,

and so on. He was not addressing the

Christian’s response to criminal activity or a

tyrannical government. He did that when He

said, “Do unto others as you would have them do

unto you.†and “Love your neighbor as yourself.â€

If we love our neighbors, we will take steps to

keep them safe from criminals. That may mean

that we will personally need to use weapons to

help our neighbors. It also means that we will

support our local police in the apprehension of

criminals. It also means that we will do whatever

we can to make our government one that honors

individual rights and liberties.

Instead of taking vengeance on criminals

personally, we will call on the police to find and

arrest them, and bring them to justice. But

when criminals attack us or our neighbors, and

the police are not present, we will do what it

takes, not just for our own sake, but for the

Christian love we have for our families and

communities. To dis-arm and to allow criminals

to attack us and our neighbors unopposed is to

be negligent about our Christian duty.

Presbyterians thought this out a long time ago.

In our official doctrinal statement, the

Westminster Larger Catechism, Answer # 135

we read:

“The duties required in the sixth commandmentâ€

include “just defense against violence.â€

Self-defense, and that involves keeping and

bearing arms, is not only your privilege as an

American Christian, it is your duty.

Wayside Presbyterian Church

2502 Fairmount Pike

Signal Mountain, TN 37377

www.waysidechurch.org

__________________

Dr. M. St. John

www.waysidechurch.org

[Mad_Squirrell]

I stole it thanks for posting it

[Justbo1901]

My sisters Church just north of Nashville, had a church wide HCP class offered to the church

[vontar]

My sisters Church just north of Nashville, had a church wide HCP class offered to the church

+10

Sounds like mine kind of Church. however I am 2 far from Nashville.

[Mike.357]

Dr. Marshall C. St. John

isn't he a member here?

[Oh Shoot]

isn't he a member here?

Mousegunner

- OS

[tnhawk]

The church I attended in Houston several years ago, had reserved parking for law enforcement and military. The pastor often spoke of the virtues of the 45 acp and 12 gauge shotgun.

[Il Duce]

I carry into my church every service and lets just say the entrance is armed

[Guest Glock23ForMe]

I carry into my church every service and lets just say the entrance is armed with lasers...

FTFY.

[Il Duce]

actually we use sharks with lasers but close