Replies

“All four major American Jewish denominations have called for stricter firearm laws”

I don’t give a damn what the people leading a movement or even a single institution say - we, as human beings, are responsible for our own well-being. When in groups, the group has shared responsibilities in this regard. Our synagogue has long had a group (of which I’m a part) that carries while there, and we have both consulted security experts (especially since our building was NOT constructed with safety in mind) and do training together. Seal Team 6 we’re not, but no one is going to come in there and start shooting at us for free.

Lest anyone think that Judaism is against self defense, I’d suggest looking at the Bible and to events after Biblical times. First, immediately after the Exodus, it says Exodus 13:18) “...and the children of Israel were armed when they went up out of Egypt.” Second, in the story of Purim, in which the Jews in Persia survive an attempt to completely wipe them out at the hands of an ancient Hitler, the Jews resisted and killed over 75,000 Persians (Book of Esther, Chapter 9). Third, the story of Channukah, when the Jews re-established their independence from the Syrian-Greeks, is the story of an armed revolt against an occupying force. So, the only Judaism that is opposed to the use (or even ownership) of arms is liberal (in the late 20th Century sense of that word) Judaism, principally what is known as Reform and Conservative Judaism. Of course, there are those within those denominations who are complete believers in, and practitioners of, the 2nd Amendment, just as there are anti-gun Orthodox, but the general rule holds...as it does for the rest of society.

For those congregations who have armed themselves since the Pittsburgh massacre, or who are belatedly doing so now after San Diego, all that I can say is, “Welcome to our world, the world of common sense and personal responsibility. Now, perhaps, you’ll stop opposing the right to keep and bear arms in the general population, since you’ve FINALLY realized that the police can only show up after an incident and take reports.