Valley station church to hold gun service
By Peter Smith •
psmith@courier-journal.com • June 3, 2009
A Valley Station Road church is sponsoring an "Open Carry Church Service" in late June, encouraging people to wear unloaded guns in their holsters, enter a raffle to win a free handgun, hear patriotic music and listen to talks by operators of gun stores and firing ranges.
Pastor Ken Pagano of New Bethel Church said the first-time event is "basically trying to think a little bit outside the box" to promote "responsible gun ownership and 2nd Amendment rights."
The event, slated for late Saturday afternoon, June 27, is being promoted with online posters, including one using a red font resembling splattered blood with the words: "Open Carry Church Service."
Pagano said the poster wasn't intended to glorify bloodshed and that the lettering was just "a font that somebody developed." And he said he didn't want the event to be confused with regular Sunday worship at the Assemblies of God congregation.
"It's just a celebration we're doing to coincide with Fourth of July," he said. "There are people who own firearms and do so responsibly and enjoy them as a sport, maybe like golfing or bowling."
Some worry about the message that is being sent.
"Even if I were perfectly comfortable with open-carry handguns or gun rights, it seems to me a completely whole other thing to connect those rights to Jesus Christ," said the Rev. Jerry Cappel, president of the Kentuckiana Interfaith Community, a coalition of local leaders from various religions.
Tying in the event "with one who explicitly called us to put down the sword and pick up the cross and love our enemies and turn the other cheek, it just makes no sense," he said.
The Rev. Nancy Jo Kemper of Lexington, who has lobbied against laws such as one allowing citizens with permits to carry concealed weapons, said the event "would nauseate Jesus."
The Rev. Marian McClure, incoming executive director of the Kentucky Council of Churches — which has lobbied for some gun restrictions — said she called Pagano after The Courier-Journal contacted her about the service.
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"Pastor Pagano assured me that the event is designed to help people who own handguns to be very responsible, and that the proceeds will all go for charitable causes in the community," she said in a statement. "Those two commitments are consistent with the high value the Assemblies of God churches place on human life."
Pagano said any proceeds exceeding the cost of the event will go to a local charity. People are also encouraged to bring canned food for the needy.
New Bethel Church has about 125 to 150 members, said Pagano, who has been pastor since 2000. The Marine veteran also works as a Louisville Metro Police chaplain.
Pagano said the event was planned several months ago — long before Sunday's shooting death of an abortion doctor at his Kansas church refocused attention on, among other things, churches and guns.
Other churches, including Baptist, independent and Unitarian Universalist congregations, have also been targets of gun violence over the past several years.
Pagano said a major impetus for the event was concern among many gun-rights advocates about then-presidential candidate Obama's legislative record in favor of some firearms restrictions — despite Obama's attempt to reassure gun owners.
Sales of guns rose significantly at the time of Obama's election, and a majority of gun owners supported his Republican opponent, John McCain, according to exit polls.
Pagano said the issue deserved discussion, but his approach at the time was, "Listen, guys, we can do this (discussion) as a religious person and be responsible about it," rather than "all this fear-mongering, ammo-hoarding."
That prompted the idea of an Independence Day-themed event, he said.
Pagano said he planned to invite managers of gun-related businesses and a police officer to talk about gun issues.
Win Underwood, one of the owners of Bluegrass Indoor Range, said he would try to attend the event if family responsibilities allow.
"I'm not aware that anybody's ever done anything like this before," he said.
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New Bethel members regularly have outings at the firing rang, he said.
"You would be surprised how many churches use shooting for recreation with fellowship," he said.
Underwood said he's a religious person himself and believes the First and Second amendments are closely tied in the nation's Revolutionary War history.
"Guns are the one thing that secured freedom of religion for our country," he said.
Dave Lowley, an elder at the church and a military veteran, supported the event as part of the congregation's efforts to conduct creative evangelistic outreaches.
"We're advocating gun safety and gun awareness," he said.
Joseph Girdler, superintendent of the Assemblies of God Kentucky District Council, said he didn't know the details of the event but Pagano informed him of it.
He praised Pagano's creativity and community service in areas such as the police chaplaincy.
The service "would be an encouragement" for those who carry firearms legally, Girdler said. "If he wants to have a service to speak about those endeavors, it would be a great thing," he said.
But Pam Gersch of Louisville, who helped organize local participation in the Million Mom March against gun violence in 2000, said such violence has only worsened in the years since.
"People have a right to carry guns, but I also think they have a responsibility to do it with other people's safety in mind," she said. "If people want to carry guns to a church and the church is condoning it and the members think it's OK, that's their right to do that."
But she added: "You open the paper every day and there's multiple murders. We're not making any progress as far as responsibility goes with guns."
Pagano said he's open to dialogue.
"Not every branch of Christianity is pacifistic," he said. If someone is "not against the First and Second amendments, I'll be glad to sit down with anybody to say, 'How can we do this better?'"
Reporter Peter Smith can be reached at (502) 582-4469.
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