Church Leaders Comment on Nashville School Shooting

Washington, DC, March 27, 2023 --(PR.com)-- Evangelical Spokespersons on Nashville Christian School Shooting.

Long-time evangelical leader and spokesman, the Reverend Dr. Rob Schenck, featured prominently in Abigail Disney's Emmy Award-winning documentary on the evangelical embrace of popular gun culture, The Armor of Light, and founding president of The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute in Washington, DC, said this today about the shooting at Nashville's The Covenant School, a private Christian academy run by Covenant Presbyterian Church:

"First, our prayers mean something, so the least we can all do is pray for the families experiencing unspeakable anguish after losing their precious little ones to this horrific violence. And there are the adult victims' spouses, children, and loved ones, as well as the deeply traumatized throughout this church and school community, not to mention the more expansive social circles they occupied. The pain and fear are endless. Let us intercede for them, cry with them, and lament their terrible losses."

As we pray, remember the saying, "Don't ever pray for something you're not willing to be the answer to. The gunning down of elementary school kids is yet another wake-up call to American evangelicals, one of the most consistent population groups to resist gun regulation. We protect our kids from burning to death by legally requiring fire drills, alarms, and extinguishers in the building, and we inspect boilers, emergency exits, and much more. So why do we think the answer to protecting children from gun violence is to do nothing? God gave us brains, and we must use them to shield our children from this type of death, injury, and emotional devastation."

Evangelical author of "God and Guns in America" (Eerdmans Publishers), Dr. Michael W. Austin, professor of philosophy at Eastern Kentucky University, and a member of the same denomination of the Covenant School and church, said of this tragedy:

"Yet another school shooting in which children are sacrificed at the altar of the idol of the gun. Many more will deal with the trauma for the rest of their days. This time it happened at a Christian school, where people gather to learn and grow as students of the Christ who chose to carry a cross rather than a sword. And yet another politician, this time Governor Bill Lee, offering his prayers, the same governor who refused to even look at gun laws to increase school safety. We can reduce gun violence while protecting the rights of responsible gun owners, but we must choose to do so."

The Reverend Patrick Mahoney, Presbyterian minister and director of the Christian Defense Coalition, an activist in common sense gun regulation, said:

"The horrific shooting at The Covenant School in Nashville is a tragic reminder that no place in America is safe from gun violence. While we must pray and ask for God's comfort and strength for all those directly impacted by this tragedy, our nation must realize gun violence is a serious problem that must be addressed immediately. The faith community, in particular, must fully engage on the issue of gun violence before we lose more of our precious children."

The above individuals are available for interviews at:

Schenck: Call or text: 202-656-1252 or revschenck@gmail.com
Austin: Call or text 859-979-1355 or mike.austin@eku.edu
Mahoney: Call or text: 540-538-4747 or revmahoney@aol.com