“You bring your gun to church?” A Chinese American Pastor’s Reflections on the Epidemic of Gun Violence

By Pastor John Tung

For many Asian American and Chinese American Christians, guns are not something that is top of mind or something that many had first-hand experience with. However, it is likely that guns are a bigger part of our lives and more present in our communities than we think. In this reflection, Pastor John Tung, one of the attendees at the AACC Gun Gun Violence Symposium, considers the ways that we interact with guns in our church communities.

When I introduced myself and my interest in this topic at the “A Christian Response to Gun Violence” Symposium in Washington, D.C. on September 16, 2022, I started thinking about the number of times I encountered Christians with guns or guns in the church. I was surprised by how many incidents I have experienced within the decade, and how much guns have intersected with my church community and life.

A man and his wife started visiting our church quite a few years ago. I made a pastoral visit to them in their home and after dinner with them, the man said, “I would like to show you something.” He then proceeded to lead me to his bedroom and there inside was a vault that reached from floor to ceiling. He opened the vault and revealed about 30 guns to me. He said, “You probably have not seen this before. I said, “You’re right, I have never seen anything like this.” It turned out he is a gun collector. But when I asked him why he got his first gun, he said, “It comforts me. I feel it is my friend and it makes me feel powerful.” That was the first time I heard someone explain to me why they owned a gun.  This man first bought a gun because he had been bullied in school and was abused by a relative.  Guns provided some psychological comfort and power for him. I thought to myself that if a person needs a gun to placate himself and feel empowered, there is something missing in his life.  How about the gospel of Christ? How about family and friendship? How about work? He was not a Christian at that time, so the gun served as his source of comfort and friendship.  

A few years ago, a woman in our church became a police officer. One day she asked me if she could bring her gun to church. She said she works the night shift and it’s too far for her to drive home, leave her gun at home and then come to church.   As a police officer, she cannot leave her gun in her car; she had to carry it on her person. 

When I asked a church leader about whether this officer could bring her gun to our church, his answer surprised me. He said, “Yes, she can bring it because I bring my gun to church.” I was incredulous. “What!  You bring a gun to church?!”  I learned that as a law enforcement agent he was allowed to carry a gun. I think he brought the gun to church in case something happened.  

More recently, as I was talking with another church member prior to the gun violence symposium, she said she now has a gun for her family’s protection. She said in the aftermath of racial riots two years ago, she was worried riots might come to her neighborhood, and it confirmed for her the need to have a gun, just in case.

At a church level, the May 15th shooting at the Taiwanese Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods, CA struck our Chinese heritage church in a particularly personal way. Many in our church are from Taiwan and speak Taiwanese, as those in the Laguna Woods church did. That same Sunday, just as in Laguna Woods, our older aged groups were meeting in our church. And while shootings in other churches and worship places horrified us, this shooting felt closer to home.

As a result of this and more recent shootings in churches, our church leadership decided to hire an off-duty police officer during our morning worship.  The officer would park his police vehicle in front of the church and he would patrol the church to make his presence felt and called upon if needed.  

These vignettes show just how much guns are a part of the church and Christians. This was reinforced at the symposium where we learned that there are over 393 million guns in the U.S. for 330 million people, or 1.2 guns per person.

There are lots of reasons that people own guns. For comfort, to collect, as part of their jobs, for personal defense, or for sport. But as pastors and as a church, we cannot ignore and be silent on guns anymore. Whether we like it or not, people are owning guns, practicing shooting guns, and even bringing guns to church. 

Moreover, as Christians, we should lament and be concerned about the number of people in our country, especially young people, who kill themselves with guns. Over 3,000 young people between the ages of 10-24 took their own lives with a gun. There have also been 450 incidents of parents killing their children with guns each year.  And already in 2022, there have been 80 fatal incidents of unintentional shooting by children. Understandably, mass shootings get the most media attention, but what is unnoticed is that many more people die with a gun pointed at themselves. 

If your church is just starting a conversation about guns, here are some questions to start the conversation:

1. What do you think would Jesus say about people who owned guns?  

2. What is the difference between owning guns and gun violence? What do you think is the relationship between owning guns and gun violence?

3. Do we know who brings guns to church for defending the church? Is it better to know or not to know? Is bringing guns to defend the church a good idea or not?

Gun violence is a complicated issue, intersecting with questions of mental health, accidents, domestic violence, and constitutional rights.  As a church, let us not shy away from these difficult conversations, for we cannot run away or think that this is an issue that is distant or too theoretical for us to discuss. May God grant us wisdom and thoughtfulness on this!

Photo by Akira Hojo on Unsplash

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Pastor John Tung has served in the English Ministry of the Chinese Bible Church of Maryland in Rockville, MD since 1990. He is a thinker and a people person. He gets his thinking from his dad and his own pastor; his people skills from his mom and his wife.  He loves chatting with people and enjoys a cup of coffee while talking about theology, philosophy, current events or caring for people.  His family is composed of his wife Elizabeth, three grown children and their spouses and two grandsons.