Leading off a Capitol Hill press conference on January 15, the Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson II delivered a faith-based appeal: “Let our love bind us together to challenge the onslaught of gun violence in our nation. Tell Congress and our President to pass legislation that will tighten gun laws in this country. God is love!”
Nelson, director of the Presbyterian Church (USA) Office of Public Witness in Washington, was first in a lineup of religious officials presenting a letter to Congress proclaiming “the call of our faiths to confront America’s gun violence epidemic and to rally support for policies that reduce death and injury from gunfire.” Specifically, the 47 signers of the letter urged:
- “Every person who buys a gun should pass a criminal background check.”
- “High-capacity weapons and ammunition magazines should not be available to civilians.”
- “Gun trafficking should be made a federal crime.”
Besides Nelson, other signers included representatives of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the United Methodist Church, the Episcopal Church, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the Islamic Society of North America, and liberal Jewish groups. Prominent religious bodies not represented included the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest historically black Baptist denominations, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
The press release announcing the letter quoted Nelson as warning, “We are living in a society in which gun violence is making everyone vulnerable to premature death.” At the press conference, the PCUSA lobbyist looked toward “the eradication of gun violence in the United States.” Recalling that January 15 was the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., Nelson asserted, “I am convinced that if he [King] were here today, this issue would be the priority of his leadership.”
Nelson noted how last month’s massacre of schoolchildren in Newtown, CT, “brought this issue of gun violence to the fore.” He expressed a sense of urgency: “No longer can faith communities stand idly by and commit to performing burials while bowing to [pro-gun] lobbyists whose motivations are driven by a false standard of profit and power.” The denominational official declared, “Our purpose here today is to declare that our faith perspectives and holy books call us, first and foremost, to love one another, not to protect ourselves against one another.”
Nelson denounced “a culture of violence that self-perpetuates and makes gun violence acceptable.” To “eradicat[e] gun violence,” he said, “there must be a change of heart and Spirit in our nation.”
Introducing himself at the press conference, Nelson stated: “I represent nearly two million members of our denomination [the PCUSA]. I also represent today the National Council of Churches, which includes 37 Christian denominations and their over 100,000 congregations and 45 million persons in the United States.” The “Faiths United to Prevent Gun Violence” press release touted the endorsement of “47 national religious leaders representing over 80 million Americans.”
There do not appear to be any survey data by which one could test Nelson’s claim to have the backing of nearly 2 million Presbyterians. If PCUSA members resemble the general population – which, politically, they often do – then they are probably divided on questions of gun control.
In any case, Nelson’s advocacy is based upon many General Assembly resolutions going back at least to 1968. The most recent resolution, from 2010, recommends “licensing, registration, and waiting periods to allow comprehensive background checks, and cooling-off periods, for all guns sold.” The resolution also favors “ban[ning] semiautomatic assault weapons, armor piercing handgun ammunition, and .50 caliber sniper rifles.”
The January 15 press conference came just a day before President Obama rolled out a new set of gun control proposals, which track closely with the positions espoused by the religious officials. Nelson and many of those same officials will also be in step with Obama’s high-profile push to liberalize immigration laws. And they have already taken the President’s side in disputes with House Republicans over how to address government deficits and debts.