"Si vis pacem, para bellum." If you want peace, prepare for war. —Roman proverb

Paul Dowling has some news for Jews who believe that they should not own guns.  First, their own history should tell them that they need guns for self defense.  If you don't believe it, just go visit the website of the Jews for the Preservation of Firearm Ownership. As a Christian, I view the Jewish people fondly, because if they had not been there, Christ would not have come into the World, and God's plan for salvation would not be possible. But I do not agree with the pacifist strain that runs through both Judaism and Christianity because it goes against God's word:

"You shall not murder." —Exodus 20:13

The above commandment does not prohibit the righteous taking of a human life, only the immoral taking of a human life. Properly translated, this negative commandment reads, "You shall not murder." The positive corollary of this commandment would go something like this: "You shall use deadly force, if necessary, to protect innocent life." Thus, all righteous citizens in a republic, to the greatest extent possible and appropriate, should possess the proper means by which to fulfill their shared obligation to defend the lives of their loved ones and fellow citizens.

"If a burglar be found breaking in, and be struck dead, it is not murder." —Exodus 22:2

Jewish law has always required the active defense of every innocent life. According to God's commandment, in Exodus 22:2, a thief should be proactively attacked, to defend against the deadly threat he poses. If the thief were to die of his wounds, the defender's blood is not to be shed as a penalty for having justifiably taken the life of a criminal. A person who is capable of defending the innocent but chooses not to do so is guilty of a tremendous wrongdoing. Also, he who actively enables the deaths of others, by supporting government-sponsored victim-disarmament (AKA "gun control"), has blood on his hands — the blood of those wrongly murdered, with no chance of rightfully defending themselves against their criminal aggressors, be those assailants lone outlaws or state actors.

Of course, Dowling is here writing about the Hanukah attack in Monesy, NY, in which 5 people were stabbed during a Hanukah party at a Rabbi's home. Why was there no armed security, as there was at the Christian church in Texas?  The Bible contains truth for all people at all times.  Human nature has not changed since man first walked the Earth, and hence, the 10 Commandments remain as operative today as they were when first written down.  That you shall not murder also means that you shall do all in your power to protect and defend your neighbor.  These laws were given to the people of Israel first, but too many ignore it.  They do so at their own peril.

I have noted before that I consider the Constitution to have been divinely inspired, though not itself Holy Scripture, but rather deriving from Scripture by men who had studied and believed the teachings of the Bible.  The Second Amendment was placed there for multiple reasons.  The first was as a way to avoid a standing army, allowing the central government to call up the militia in time of invasion.  The second purpose was to place power in the people to avoid tyranny.  The third was to allow everyone to act in time of personal attack.

Also, please note that the presence of police does not guarantee your individual security.  The police are agents of the government, and are there to carry out the will of those in charge of the government.  Not to put too fine a point on it here, but the police are there to draw chalk outlines, investigate and bring the perpetrators to justice...if those in charge so choose.  Justice in this world is an iffy thing.

Our rights were granted by God to all people.  But there are those desirous of power over others who would deny our rights.  As our rights defend us, so we must defend our rights.  Si vis pacem, para bellum.

After thought:  Jesus said that those who live by the sword would die by it.  It is, of course, true.  But owning a gun is not "living by the gun."  Living by the gun would be holding up others at gun point for their goods.  Islam, notoriously, allows jihadis to profit in such fashion from its religious warfare.  That is living by the sword. Owning a gun, and having it ready to use in defense of your life does not ..