I am very hopeful that Christianity Today will become a voice of faithful reason, advocating for gun control and mental health reforms.

I cannot fathom how semi-automatic weapons are acceptable to those who follow the Prince of Peace.

Do we honestly think this young man had never been taught right from wrong? That it was not okay to murder? I think "teaching morality" is a pretty weak response. And I'm a white evangelical Christian.

@John: It's not just a matter of telling someone "Don't murder." Our culture is heavily deficient on what to say to those who would ask "Why?" The answer was once obvious: Because all human beings are God's children, the same as you. Therefore, an assault on human life was an assault on God himself. Now, we live in a culture dominated by the idea that human beings are not anything special, but are simply just another life form, barely different from dogs, rats or bacteria. These ideas spur many to endorse abortion and even eugenics; I have read more than one article lauding the decrease in live births of children with Downs syndrome, or crediting abortion with decreasing overall crime rates in recent decades. Once you cheapen human life, you merely set the stage for evil people to feel justified in acting on their evil impulses. We as a culture need to do a much better job of stressing the importance and sanctity of human life. If you don't believe me, ask yourself this: Why in the aftermath of Sandy Hook are there no prominent mainstream cultural voices asking why it seemed that this shooter had no trouble whatsoever gunning down 6 year old children at point blank range?

I am a white, evangelical Christian. My response would be a focus on mental health screening. We have many individuals walking the streets who are mentally disturbed. I do think a focus on morality is necessary, but it needs to be coincided with an emphasis on mental health.

I'm sorry, but this notion that forcing Jewish kids to pray Christian prayers in public schools would have stopped a highly unstable and armed individual from killing a group of kindergarteners is absolutely mind-boggling to me. When evangelical leaders blame this tragedy on gay marriage or the protection of freedom of religion in the public sphere, they come across as hateful and irrational. To call for a return to the "good old days" when school-sponsored religious events were the norm...but segregation was also the norm...shows that this is about protecting civic religion, not faith, not Christ. God's presence is not tied to God's name being invoked over the school intercom. God can be wherever God wants to be. We couldn't "systematically remove God from public schools" if we tried! I wish so badly we had better spokespeople teaching evangelicals to respond with more tact, wisdom, and grace.

Also, just curious - why are only white evangelicals represented? Wondering if some racial diversity might affect the numbers. Not an accusation - just a question. I'm sure there was a reason.

as a christian, who understands and believes what the bible says. i personally believe the word where Jesus cast out a legion of demons from one man, and many more from other people, including one woman who had a spirit of infirmity. this is something the western church seems to just ignore, but since i have now had 3 spirits cast out of me, i have learned that much mental illness is based in demonic possession and oppression. more mental health procedures and answers only mask the real problem. just like western medicine only treats the symptoms of most illness, this would just perpetuate their reactionary approach. you have to take all of the bible, and this young man was most likely operating under the direction of spiritual powers.

Wondering why the separation in the headings:

ALL AMERICANS WHITE EVANGELICAL

Didn't read the article just because of that!!! Wow, can't quite wrap my head around that?

So now I read it having stated that.. A Christian is a Christian is a Christian, when I think of WHITE EVANGELICALS I think of the south, where racism and bigotry run rampant. And they love their guns...

God has a plan here... I don't pretend to know what it is, but you all showing your ignorance, in calling yourself a Christian magazine and allowing racism to creep into the discussion, is an atrocity. This was a WHITE BOY shooting WHITE CHILDREN.

Please know that I am also WHITE.... and ashamed of this "Christian" article.

@JB13 Respect for the sanctity of life isn't about trying to get as many people born as possible. It's about ensuring that human beings on our planet have access to a certain basic standard of living and quality of life.

I would like to know how they defined 'evangelical', 'mainline' and 'minority' Christians...

I'm sorry, but this notion that forcing Jewish kids to pray Christian prayers in public schools would have stopped a highly unstable and armed individual from killing a group of kindergarteners is absolutely mind-boggling to me. When evangelical leaders blame this tragedy on gay marriage or the protection of religious freedom in the public sphere, they come across as hateful and irrational. This is why so many young people are leaving evangelical Christianity. It's why I've got one foot out the door. I wish so badly we had better spokespeople teaching evangelicals to respond to tragedies like these with more tact, wisdom, and grace.

Also, why were only white evangelicals consulted? Just curious. I'm guessing there's an explanation.

My "humble view" from North of the border (Canada) the survey question may bias readers' views & consequently their responses. The fact is that the US public's & policy makers' responses to this tragedy are not limited to one (and only one) action plan. "Putting more emphasis on God & morality in schools & society" [White Christians #1 strategy] does not exclude vigorously pursuing other strategies, like "stricter gun control laws & enforcement" [All Americans' #1 strategy]. But the survey & results present these as an "either or" choice.

Oh what a sad article. I concur with Mr. Brooks, this is a very racist poll and written article. And, I am a white male, who is Christian also. I am highly offended by this article.

I am a Dutch national and I am following it all from a distance. We have had a similar thing in a shopping centre in Alphen aan de Rijn about 18 months ago,when a young guy started to shoot at random, making innocent victims. He even had a licence for a gun since was a member of the shooting club in his town. This is strange, because he also seemed to have a mentol disorder in the spectrum of autism. Our Constiution which is one of the oldest in the world does not allow anyone in our country to have a gun, in order to defend oneself. We find it very hard to understand that after all this headlines breaking news about yet another lunatic shooting around and making innocent victims and finally killing himself as well, that the American people are so divided about the gunlaw. It should be abolished, just like slavery was abolised under Abraham LIncoln if I have not been mistaken. The USA considers itself to be a civilised nation, even more the greatest nation on earth, yet it cannot reach an agreement on something so simply and so obviously dangerous as the gun act. This is not the Wild West of the pioneers anymore when there was not that much law and order as nowadays. Honestly, it is ridiculous that people and also the evangelical Christians in the USA especially on the Bible belt do not want to renounce that law. The law should enable people who do not necessarily need a gun, to bring them to a special depot and that the ones who do so, could get a tax reduction or some kind of recompense, as a sign of mutual agreement and as a gesture from the government to make it attractive to handle in those murder weapons. Only the ones that jobwise need one, e.g should be given a special licence or as long as one is a member of a shooting club,or for hunting. And evein then one should consider if it would be wise to be allowed to have one,since also these guns could be stored in a special place instead of bringing them home. Not only this example but also individuals being killed due to marital problems and other domestic kind of conflicts, then the figures of domestic murder as a way of resolving conflcts, thus making it only even worse, will drop dramatically. So, America, take you responsibility and make a strong stand against unneccesary ownership of guns. I am glad to know that none of my relatives or neigbours has a gun. We can resolve at least to resolve conflicts peacefully. So, Christian America, think about this, blessed are the peacemakers for they shall inherit the Kingdom. Support your congressmen, send them emails, tweets, facebook messages and messages to your president Obama, to let them know YOU WANT THIS TO END AS A SIGN THAT THE USA IS A CIVILIED NATION. Please remember that this is never what the Pilgrim Fathers who first left Rotterdam-Delfshaven before sailing to Plymouth with the Mayflower to New England had in mind when they founded the USA. They fled for violence and they would literally turn themselves in their graves and feel embarrassed of what the USA is today and how the Christians have omitted their duty and have abandoned their ideals for one nation under God Almighty. God bless you all

I grew up in the 40s and 50s in a community a large percentage of had guns. The churches and schools remained unlocked during the day. Most people did not lock the doors to their houses. The largest discipline problems in school were cum chewing and whispering in class. There was no gang problem.to speak of. Shooting rampages were unheard of. If a kid got in trouble in school or elsewhere, he or she got in trouble at home. The churches were full on Sundays. There was very little crime. Very few could afford a television set. Most went to movie theatres. And the typical motion pictures, if not always wholesome, had a moral to them. When television became available, the shows were family fare Then some things happened: 1) The Supreme Court ruled that God was not allowed in public schools. 2) The Court also required that the mentally ill be released from the mental institutions. 3) The"Me Generation" was born, forming the Hippie movement which, in turn, spawned radical Marxist and other anti-American and leftist movements. Those people have become teachers, professors, journalists and politicians, and they have remade America into the vision of Satan. Our cultlure has become vile and evil. What we have today is the result of America turning its back on God and His laws. We are not going to see an improvement until we publically admit that we as a culture have sinned, and fall on our faces before the Living God.

It saddens me that so few Christians seem to see a moral downside to total lack of gun control, or to the pervasiveness of guns in our society. When many evangelicals talk of "moral decay" they mean increase in gay rights and increased separation of church in state, while being willfully blind to the moral implications of guns.

First of all, guns are not morally neutral objects, despite what many gun owners claim. Guns are, obviously, designed to injure and kill. Furthermore, many studies have shown that having a gun in the room -- or even being shown a picture of a gun -- increases people's desires to act aggressively toward perceived threats or even mild annoyances. While the majority of gun owners are eager to claim that having a gun makes them in no way more violent, the evidence suggests that to some degree the gun does, in fact, pull the trigger.

Second, and more significantly, the large increase in guns and gun culture in America has led to a fetishization of the 2nd Amendment, that for a certain vocal number of gun owners has become an intoxicating counterculture. Guns are the sole guarantor of many people's personal protection, displacing a faith in one's neighbors and one's government. For many people, owning guns has become synonymous with patriotism, and even Christian morality. This fosters a culture where Christian pacifism and opposition to warring government policy is much neglected or seen as weak. Guns also feed into a new "masculine Christianity" that in its worst interpretations hurts women, as they are frequently the victims of domestic gun violence. Guns and disengagement from the nation at large have become a new symbol for some extreme factions of the Evangelical movement, and for them to question the relevance of the 2nd Amendment to today's America is as much heresy as doubting the authenticity of the Gospels.

Finally, the gun culture, even that of responsible gun owners, hurts innocent people unintentionally. Many people, especially children, are killed in gun-related accidents every year. Every new gun that is purchased is money that goes to gun manufacturers who do not care about the cost in human lives which guns have cost us as a nation. Every new gun purchased runs the risk of eventually ending up in the hands of a criminal, through theft or careless resale. And every gun that appears in public is a threat to civic life. People are less likely to contradict a speaker at a town hall meeting or other public format if that speaker openly carries a gun. People are less likely to go out in public to school, to church, to shop or to assemble to petition the government, if there is a perceived chance they will be shot. Despite what gun owners claim, guns are poor self-defense weapons. What little chance at self-defense they offer is largely dependent on a defender being able to react, not to mention hit a target that probably would not be hittable, before they themselves are shot. Possessing a gun in your home is far, far more likely to result in you or a member of your family being shot.

I would ask Christians to consider a different moral problem underlying the heart of America's violence problem. The dependence on guns in this country is an addiction that separates us from peace, kindness, and gentleness, not to mention our civic responsibilities and our willingness to see our own failings for what they are. I would beg Christians to consider that Christ Himself carried no weapon, and was content that his disciples had two swords for the 12 of them at the hour of danger. He sent us out into the world, without weapons, to bring it light -- yet many people are failing to see that guns only bring it more pain and suffering.

Lulu - you said that in the South, racism and bigotry run rampant. Please check your facts. The South has made tremendous progress in the last few decades. We've had to confront our sin while other regions pretend that they don't have any racist problems. So, please get your facts straight.

BTW, speaking as a white Southern Christian, I say it's time to end the gun worship and ban assault rifles.

Paul, the 40's and 50's were rife with social problems that privileged white males, so white males were free to go blithely on pretending that they didn't exist. It is ridiculous to pretend that an era that spawned such tales as West Side Story had no gangs. Thank goodness for the "me generation" that helped ensure that the rights of marginalized people were respected in this country. We've come a long way in the past few decades, but we have even further to go.

Lulu, it is worth noting that minorities tend to favor gun controls in much higher numbers than whites. Minorities are killed by guns at a much higher rate than whites.

Maybe Christians aren't ready to pound their swords into plowshares yet, but we are getting closer to a society that shows kindness "the least of these" and listens to all of its members and not just the privileged.

As a white evangelical, I'm embarasse to see that a greater percentage of white evangelicals than any other group (165) believes that believes that allowing more folks to carry guns is the single best thing to do, while more than 40% of our minority brothers and sisters believe that stricter gun control laws and enforcement are the best answer. And which group is more victimized by gun violence? Since CT is read primarily by believers, might that difference not have been at least a secondary focus of the article?

As a white evangelical, I'm embarrassed to see that a greater percentage of white evangelicals than any other group (16%) believes that allowing more folks to carry guns is the single best thing to do, while more than 40% of our minority brothers and sisters believe that stricter gun control laws and enforcement are the best answer. And which group is more victimized by gun violence? Since CT is read primarily by believers, might those facts not have been at least a secondary focus of the article?

As a white Bible believing Christian and a pastor, who is also a gun owner, hunter, NRA member, and concealed carry permit holder I do not believe the answer is more gun control. I own 2 semi-automatic weapons. One is used mainly for shooting rabbits and squirrels. The other is my concealed carry weapon. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with a semi-automatic weapon. Guns do not kill people, people kill people. I do not believe there would be any problem showing that more innocent people are killed in abortion clinics than are killed by guns.

By the way, all four of the deer I have killed have been with bolt action rifles. If I were to want to kill someone (and I am not) I could just as easily do it with a bolt action rifle as I could with a semi-automatic. Although if I were to wish to kill a large number of people it would be a bit slower. I could probably do it at a longer range than most people could do it with an AR weapon.

Morality and the Bible should once again be taught in our schools, and I for one believe that we should see more armed law abiding citizens who are willing to get involved in protecting others.

Data compiled by the United Nations' Office on Drugs and Crime confirms Americans are living with greater risk of gun-related death than are residents of other developed countries. From 2007 to 2009, the U.S. averaged 10,987 homicides per year by firearm, compared with an average of 182 in Germany, 75 in Spain and 47 in the United Kingdom. In the U.S., 8,583 of 12,664 murder victims in 2011 were killed by firearms, according to FBI data. California and Texas had the most murders by firearm in 2011, with 1,220 and 699, respectively. California alone is 1,220 in 2011.
We Christians should support Gun-control to stop gun-related violence. We should not see it as an issue of political stand GOP vs. Democrate. We have the responsibility to support cleaning up crimes and violence from our society, not less than against abortion, another crime.

I am a white Christian. I don't know if I qualify as Evangelical or not. I think God is the solution. An early response rightfully said that Adam Lanza had surely been taught right from wrong. That is true. But we have no evidence that he had been taught about who he is in God. Mental health problems were likely a contributing factor and we certainly need to factor that in and is a higher priority to me than gun control. But even people with mental illness are unlikely to go on a mass shooting rampage if they know God. And I mean KNOW him, not just that He exists or that they attend church but have a real relationship with Him. That's the key for everyone, the solution to every problem.

Gun violence is higher in america, but Violent Crime is lower than in America than all those nations cited @Joanne.

Violent crimes per 100,000 people:

* Great Britain = 2,034
* South Africa = 1,609
* Sweden = 1123
* Canda = 935
* Finland = 738
* France = 504
* USA = 466

That's right, in Great Britain where guns are severely restricted, even cops don't carry them, you are 5 times more likely to be a victim of violent crime.

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/334904/violent-britain-charles-c-w-cooke

Well said Brandi Day..

"The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the Lord." (Proverbs 21:31). I'm no Bible scholar, but to me that means that no matter what you do (replace horse with gun), no matter how much you think that you are prepared, only the Lord can keep you safe. I have experienced two home invasions in my life and the intruders came and left and no one was hurt. Both times a elderly saint from my church told us (my mother and I) not to be afraid that the Lord said he would protect us. Even though I now live in a high crime area, the thought of purchasing and using a gun for protection never has entered my mind. I understand those that are not of the household of faith, how they need something tangible to put their trust in. What I can't understand is how Christians can support gun ownership? How many of them own guns themselves? Either you trust God with everything or you trust Him with nothing. Because purchasing a gun is basically telling God that He can't do or doesn't know how to do His job.

Quite a few, up above, simply don't get it.

Regardless of your political persuasion, even if you're one of those above who are far out in left field: Very simply, God IS.

Nobody said Jewish kids should be forced to say Christian prayers in public schools. However, Christians, Jews, and Moslems ALL worship the same God - to them homosexuality is an abomination.

Once you start rationalizing fundamental right and wrong, and "normalizing" abominations - then you're on the way to rationalizing everything - including mass murder.

Incidental, that evil semi-automatic is the same as the common sword of Jesus' time: There's a time and place for everything.

I can't believe all my spelling errors above. That's what comes of posting without my glasses.

Perhaps this will help:

Folks, you and I together ARE the government. You not only have a constitutional RIGHT to bear arms, and to keep our paid employees on track - you have a RESPONSIBILITY to do so.