Concealed Carry

[living4JC]

Well, it's official. I had to wait due to unforseen expenses, but I was finally able to apply yesterday for my Conceal/Carry permit yesterday. So now I have to wait up to 30 days (it takes 30 days here in MN, as the Sheriff like to make us wait) to get my permit. I think I've decided on a Bersa 9mm to start, since it seems like a reliable gun, and the compact seems small enough to carry. Initally I was looking at the .380, but I like the idea of the 9mm a bit more. Plus, a couple of buddies of mine all have 9's, so we can buy ammo in bulk and save some $$$. So now it's just a waiting game, like a kid waiting for Christmas!! January 18th is 30 days!! If anyone has experience with Bersa's, their input is appreciated. Everything I've read up on them seems positive so far, and unfortunately I don't have the money to go for a Glock (although I'd like to)....

[NewWorldOrder]

NewWorldOrder - concerning carrying with a chambered round, if I remember correctly, you are using a S&W MP? If so it is perfectly safe to carry with a round in the chamber. That is the way the pistol was designed to be carried. I would also ask how you carry? If you are using a quality holster, it should cover the trigger guard so that it cannot be accidently pulled.

To carry with a loaded magazine, and an empty chamber puts you at a disadvantage it a hostile situation, as you have to rack the slide of your weapon to ready it to defend yourself. There are many reasons this is not a good idea, as in, you may have been grabbed by one arm, or injured in an arm, and unable to use both hands. In a fight, it will not be like in the movies, it will be up close and VERY personal, and you need to be able to present your weapon quickly and effeciently.

Also, you should practice shooting one handed with both strong and weak hands so that you are familiar with using the weapon that way. Shoot a lot, practice dryfiring, if you can get some professional instruction. As you become more proficient, you will become more comfortable with carrying your weapon fully loaded.

That being said, be safe, keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire, never let the muzzle of the weapon cross anything you are not willing to destroy, and treat every weapon as if it were loaded. When someone hands you a weapon, even if they say it is not loaded, check it yourself! Every time you pick up your weapon, verify it as being loaded or not.

You are wise to be concerned with safety. A pistol is a tool, and properly used it is very effective, but just like any other tool, safety is #1!

If you have any questions, feel free to PM me. I would be glad to help if I can. The right to carry is a passion of mine!

Byrd, you were very helpful with your reply. :thumb Yes, I do carry a S&W M&P and it's a very good gun. I think I will go ahead and start carrying with a chambered round, though my husband has one trepidation about it, and that's when it comes to unloading the gun. I know how to properly unload a gun, so I'm not very worried about it. At the moment I am using a Galco IWB holster. I'm not too crazy about it, because the belt clip prints too much, otherwise it does a good job of concealing the trigger. I have been practicing unholstering and reholstering, unloaded of course, and I am improving. I just need to be able to get my shirt out of the way. I carry on my left appendix as a cross draw because the pistol grip bulges out too much if I carry on my side.

Thanks again for your reply, you were extremely helpful. :)

[WVBORN56]

This thread seems really foreign to me on a Christian web site. I mean I live in a very rural state and have been a big hunter in my day. I have never owned a hand gun only shot guns and rifles for hunting.

I just find it totaly odd that no one has even questioned believers needing to carry a concealed weapon? Believe me I am not a flaming liberal and certainly believe in our rights to own guns but....

Carrying a gun in church? I would at least run this by your elders at the very least.

I wonder what Jesus would be packin?

This is at least worth discussing. I guess I may look at this differently if I or one of my family had been attacked? Not judging...just trying to understand.

[Byrd]

WVBorn56 - That is a good question you presented, why should a Christian carry a weapon? For the same reason any other individual should, self defense should the need arise. I think this is an issue that anyone who carries a weapon needs to come to grips with. When you carry a weapon it is not for intimidation, or to threaten someone, it is not to play Rambo or be "cool" it is to stop an attack on your life or the lives of your family.

Think of it as having life & health insurance, car & homeowners insurance, carrying a spare $100 in your wallet, just in case, or having an emergency kit in your home should the power go out. Or perhaps smoke alarms and carbon dioxide dectors in the house. They all serve a purpose, to get you out of a jam, or save your life.

I personally carry a weapon because in July, 1995 I was mugged, spent 2 days in intensive care, and a couple years recovering from a head injury. The Dr. said if I had been hit i inch lower, I would be dead. An occurance like that gives you an entirely different perspective on how things should be.

I grew up with guns, hunted everything from squirrel to deer, and took up handgun hunting while living in SD. It was then I became interested in competition, and began competing and winning in local matches.

The attack I survived changed my outlook on the use of handguns, and I now carry because I have learned from personal experience that somone can take your life in an instant, or disable you for the rest of your life.

Our society has become an extremely violent and dangerous one, and I believe that you are responsible for your own safety in it. One cannot afford to even think that the Police can protect you, they respond after the fact, and if you are lucky catch whoever attacked you. My brother in law is a detective in Chicago, and a close friend is a local patrolman, and they both voiced the same opinion.

As to carrying a weapon in church, if it is legal in your jurisdiction, and you have a permit, there is no reason not to. You do not need anyone's permission, as you are not breaking any laws. The operative word is "concealed" which means that no one can see it, and you do not tell everyone that you have a weapon, as it is none of their business.

Carrying a weapon is a huge responsibility, and should not be taken lightly, and if you have to use it to defend you or your loved ones, you have to deal with the fact that you have taken another's life. This is an issue that must be carefully decided before you carry. If you do not think you could use it, or just use it as a threat, it will be taken from you and used against you.

As you can tell, I am passionate on the subject. Having been an innocent victim, I have seen the other side, and it is not pretty. As a free born American citizen I must take issue with those who tell us if we can defend ourselves, when we can defend ourselves, and in what state we have the right to do so. Example; in Washington D.C. the city is known as the murder capitol of the world, but handguns are ILLEGAL! So our government has decided that in our nations capitol, honest citizens have no right to self defense, but the city has the largest murder rate in the country.

So, good question, what does this discussion have on a Christian forum? I was the Pastor of a small rural church in Illinois, and a newly saved lady in our church was stabbed to death by her husband. He was a well connected politicain in the state, and he got 5 years. She is dead. In Illinois, you do NOT have the right to carry a handgun to defend yourself.

I Pastored a church in S.E. Arkansas, got a call in the middle of the night, and a lady in the church AND her daughter were held at gunpoint, and taken advantage of.

In both cases I wish those women had handguns, and had used them appropriatly. Both men are now out of jail, and one lady is dead, and the other lady and her daughter have to live with the trauma of sexual assult.

Think about the issues, draw your own conclusions, but the right to keep and bear arms is a topic that will never go away as long as our society is the way it is.

[Joseph The Carpenter]

This thread seems really foreign to me on a Christian web site. I mean I live in a very rural state and have been a big hunter in my day. I have never owned a hand gun only shot guns and rifles for hunting.

I just find it totaly odd that no one has even questioned believers needing to carry a concealed weapon? Believe me I am not a flaming liberal and certainly believe in our rights to own guns but....

Carrying a gun in church? I would at least run this by your elders at the very least.

I wonder what Jesus would be packin?

This is at least worth discussing. I guess I may look at this differently if I or one of my family had been attacked? Not judging...just trying to understand.



Christians need to carry firearms because there are evil men in the world.
When JESUS returns:yeah we will no longer need to protect ourselves and others.:wave

[FrankBeMe]

Wisconsin tries to pass a concealed carry law almost every year, but our governor believes that all the crazies who own guns (and he owns several himself) will run around killing everyone who doesn't own or carry a gun.

[Byrd]

That shows that he is very uninformed. In Kansas we had to pass a background check by the KBI & be fingerprinted. Send him a copy of the book More Guns, Less Crime by John Lott. He is an attorney who researched the effect that legal CCW had on the rise of crime...the result; in EVERY state that passed it violent crime went DOWN! I guess the bad guys don't want any resistance?

[XD Joe]

Man! I get away from the computer for a couple of days and this thread takes on a life of it's own!:scratch

Brother Byrd, excellent advice for NWO on the 4 gun safety rules!:thumb

[WVBORN56]

Byrd thanks for the thoughtful reply. I can't be dogmatic on this issue. It is a tough call. Maybe again if I felt threatened were I live I might feel differently.

What about missionaries carring guns in dangerous mission fields? Many missionaries over the years have layed down their lives? They would never entertain the idea of defending themselves with a gun. They rely on the Lord to defend themselves.

What about the Christian girl at columbine high school in CO who became a martyr for Christ? Look how she touched the world for Christ.

If someone broke into my house and I had one of my guns loaded and available I guess I too would consider using it? I am not trying to be holier than thou here but I do think this is a healthy discussion.

We do know Jesus did not run or fight back....11 of the 12 disciples all died as martyrs as well. I do think we are called to lay down our lives if called to do so are we not?

[XD Joe]

WVBORN56, perhaps I might be able to help you out here. One of the biggest insults for christians in the bible can be found in 1Tim5:8. It says that if we dont provide for our families, that we have denied our faith and are worse than infidels. One of the most important things we can provide for our families is protection. Also, if we allow someone to maim or kill us, as providers of our families we cannot allow that to happen.:shocked

I hope this helps,
Joe