Hello everyone,
Someone asked about how Catholics feel about guns and such. As I'm Catholic and carry concealed on a daily basis, I'll throw in my two cents.
Catholicism is a bit misunderstood for in many religions the spiritual leader's opinions become the teachings of the church. In many cases, unless he is quoting official teachings of the Catholic church, the Pope's opinion is not a directive for all Catholics to follow...merely a suggestion. If it was an instruction, it would be known as a Papal Dictate, and this has not occurred in about 200 years.
A good example of this is our Pope John Paul II's opposition to the death penalty. This is his opinion. In actual Catholic teaching the death penalty is not a sin if used for only the most serious crimes.
While Pope John Paul II encourages peaceful action, the actual teaching of Catholicism is that the use of arms in times of war and self defense is permitted and therefore not a sin.
I've discussed this with my priest as my primary interest in shooting is self defense. His only suggestion was that lethal force should be used as an absolute last resort when all non-lethal force options had been exhausted or were not feasible. In training terms, this means being well versed in unarmed combat, verbal intervention, OC spray, and other such options. In my opinion, things CHL holders should do anyway.
So there's my $0.02. Enjoy.
Good shooting.
- Anthony