wfn.org | Newsline: New faith-based initiative on gun violence is launched

[cobnews <cobnews@brethren.org>]

Newsline: Church of the Brethren News Service -- Jan. 29, 2009
Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford, News Director
800-323-8039 ext. 260 -- cobnews@brethren.org

NEW FAITH-BASED INITIATIVE ON GUN VIOLENCE IS LAUNCHED

(Jan. 29, 2009) Elgin, IL -- Throughout the week of Heeding God's Call, a p eace gathering held in Philadelphia, Pa., on Jan. 13-17, daily witnesses ag ainst gun violence were held at a gun store in the city. The witness includ ed nonviolent protest, civil disobedience, and the arrests of 12 people ove r a series of afternoons.

A day of events on Jan. 17 was billed as the beginning of a new faith-based  initiative against gun violence in America's cities. Events included an in terfaith service followed by a march and rally at Colosimo's Gun Center in  Philadelphia.

"We believe that God is calling us to send a dramatic signal on behalf of t he young people that suffer most from this epidemic of violence," said Andy  Peifer, chair of the Public Witness Planning Group. In an e-mail explainin g the new initiative he wrote, "Many have lost hope in us, lost hope that w e have the will or the vision to DO SOMETHING about this.... God is calling  us to something larger than we thought!"

"We all know too many people are dying," said Bryan Miller, executive direc tor of Ceasefire New Jersey, at the interfaith service on Jan 17.

According to a report by the Associated Press dated mid-2008, in Philadelph ia 343 people were killed by guns in 2006, and 330 were killed by guns in 2 007. The numbers had begun to slow in 2008, the AP report said.

Miller explained that guns from Pennsylvania also are making their way into  neighboring states, and that guns bought in Philadelphia are often the one s that are killing people in New Jersey. He outlined the new initiative's e mphasis on requesting gun shops to sign a voluntary 10-point code of conduc t titled "Responsible Firearms Retailer Partnership," that was developed by  the group "Mayors Against Illegal Guns."

Walmart is the largest retailer of guns to sign the code. "If Walmart can d o it, any gun shop in Pennsylvania and any state can do it," Miller said. " Colosimo's is just a starting point." He encouraged people in attendance fr om other places around the country to go to their local gun shops to ask th em to adopt the same code of conduct.

Preparation for the new initiative took many months, according to Phil Jone s, director of the Brethren Witness/Washington Office, who was one of the 1 2 arrested for civil disobedience. Preparation included personal conversati ons with the owner of Colosimo's Gun Center and conversations with Philadel phia police, Jones said. Organizers also recruited 40 faith communities in  Philadelphia to support the campaign, including Muslim, Jewish, and Christi an congregations.

Organizers hope that a code of conduct for gun stores will reduce the flow  of weapons to the streets by reducing "straw purchases" or wholesale legal  purchase of guns by people who then resell them to traffickers of illegal g uns. Organizers also hope the campaign will spread to other cities across t he country.

During the week's witnesses at Colosimo's Gun Center, groups of people held  signs and banners, engaged passersby in conversation, and encouraged motor ists to honk in support. The arrests for civil disobedience took place on J an. 14 and 16.

Jones and Church of the Brethren member Mimi Copp were in the first group o f five people arrested on Jan. 14 for not leaving the store after the owner  refused again to sign the code of conduct. Two more groups were arrested o n Jan. 16, a group of three men who sat in the front entrance of the store,  and another group of four men who sat on the sidewalk in front of the poli ce who were guarding the door.

"When the gun shop owner repeatedly refused to sign the Code of Conduct, ou r group chose to occupy the store until he agreed to sign," Jones said. "We  were subsequently arrested with varying charges. A court date has been set  for March 4."

Prayer and scripture were part of each day's witness. The 12 people who car ried out civil disobedience prepared with prayer, and received extensive su pport including help with bail money and rides back to the Heeding God's Ca ll gathering from jail--some in the middle of the night. They each spent be tween 12 and 24 hours in police custody, Jones said.

An incident during the second round of civil disobedience brought into shar p focus the tragic personal effects of gun violence in Philadelphia. A loca l resident who had stopped by to ask about the witness arrived just as the  group of three men knelt in the doorway of the store. As she watched, a pol ice captain arrived and gave the men a series of verbal warnings that they  would be arrested if they did not move.

In what became a quiet chorus to the police warnings, the woman began to re cite numbers: "Five people die a week," she said. As the police captain rep eatedly warned about the severity of the laws on blocking a fire exit, she  repeated: "Five people die a week.... Five people are shot a week.... Three  hundred people are shot a year...."

While the police waited for a van to arrive so that they could make the arr ests, the woman explained her personal tragedy: She knew someone who died a fter he was shot 11 times. He was a young man, a friend, she said.

(Go to http://www.cst-phl.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=1&twindow=&; mad=&sdetail=505&wpage=1&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&ccatm=&resta te=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repmax=&rebed=&rebath =&subname=&pform=&sc=2666&hn=cst-phl&he=.com for a report from  the "Catholic Standard and Times," a newspaper of the Roman Catholic Archdi ocese of Philadelphia, that includes more information about the new initiat ive and communications between Philadelphia's religious leaders and Colosim o's Gun Center.)

The Church of the Brethren is a Christian denomination committed to continu ing the work of Jesus peacefully and simply, and to living out its faith in  community. The denomination is based in the Anabaptist and Pietist faith t raditions and is one of the three Historic Peace Churches. It celebrated it s 300th anniversary in 2008. It counts more than 125,000 members across the  United States and Puerto Rico, and has missions and sister churches in Nig eria, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and India.

># # #

>For more information contact:

>Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford
>Director of News Services
>Church of the Brethren
>1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120
>800-323-8039 ext. 260
>cobnews@brethren.org