Church security groups step up as violent attacks are on the rise

Incidents of church violence are on the rise. About 1,050 people died in 2,361 incidents from 1999 to 2,000, “The Epoch Times” reports. Robbery was the leading reason for the attacks, with 464 incidents reported. The second-leading cause of fatal force encounters was domestic violence, accounting for nearly 15 percent of all cases.

Deadly attacks at houses of worship are becoming more commonplace, said Carl Chinn, president of the Faith Based Security Network.

“We absolutely are seeing more animosity toward faith-based organizations by those who espouse what I would call anti-moral opinions,” he said. “I believe we are going to continue seeing attacks.”

The network has 800 members from Christian congregations, Jewish synagogues and other religious groups across the nation. Chinn’s mission is to make membership organizations “ready, willing and able to protect the people they love.”

Raising awareness of potential threats, creating security teams and protocols, building security and using deadly force and non-lethal means are some of the things the network teaches.

Attacks have more than doubled in 2023.

“I believe it is an absolute requirement for the coming age,” Chinn said. “I think we’re in for tough times in this country. The divisions are very sharp. I absolutely believe there is a slip in moral character in our country, which has lessened the degree of respect for sanctuary-type places.”

Chinn said his organization does not monitor hate crimes, focusing instead on lethal encounters. “We only track deadly force incidents,” he said. “When you’re tracking the worst of the worst, the dataset changes.”

The Arizona Church Security Network helps about 300 churches in the state with resources and training. The group’s founder and executive director, Chris Taylor, said the organization has adopted a three-pronged approach that includes threat assessment, emergency planning and information sharing with other houses of worship.

“What we wanted to do is, from a biblical worldview, share with congregations what steps they could take in order to protect themselves from all different threats,” he said. “We really want to network the faith community so that as certain things arise, we’re able to share that information with houses of worship.”

Taylor agreed that anti-religious violence is on the rise. “Once, houses of worship were really a sanctuary from criminal activity,” he said. “Unfortunately, we know they’re not necessarily that anymore.”

–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice