Apparently, God is a good shot. Volunteer security guard Jeanne Assam, who shot gunman Matthew Murray at the New Life Church in Colorado Springs, CO, credits God with the shooting of Murray.

Certainly, the actions of Assam saved lives. I have no argument with her actions, and am certain they required more than a little courage. Unlike many of my progressive fellow travelers, I am a proponent of the right to bear arms and believe that people should be able to carry a concealed weapon after passing the appropriate background checks. The fact is that people who commit crimes with firearms by and large have NOT purchased them legally. That is an argument for another blog, however, and today I have a different question.

Why does a church need an armed security guard? Don’t tell me that this incident proves that a church needs armed protection, because that is both hindsight and a statistical anomaly.

What in the world is going on at New Life [sic] Church in Colorado Springs that requires an armed guard? For that matter, why would anyone bring a weapon into a church? If you claim to be a follower of Jesus, who advocated non-violence (remember turning the other cheek?) why would you have security guards, volunteer or otherwise, packing heat?

There is a form of extremely militant Christianity that is on the rise in this country, and the reality of armed security inside churches and the existence of so called “missionary training centers” is frightening and has no place in authentic spirituality. This is the same mindset that brought you Islamic jihadists and is well on its way to bringing you Christian jihadists. Let’s not lose sight of the fact that both are distortions of their faith.

I’m sorry, Ms. Assam, God was not aiming your gun for you. God was weeping because it was necessary for you to use it, and probably grieved at your decision to carry it inside a house of worship.