Guns to Gardens

The statistics show overwhelmingly that the American people want gun safety legislation. A Fox News poll (April, ’23) shows their support:

87 percent – Background Checks for Guns

81 percent – Enforce Existing Gun Laws

81 percent – Legal Age 21 to Buy All Guns

Given the inertia of the US Congress, or their indebtedness to the gun lobby which funds their campaigns, we can either despair, or say “enough!” and take action.

One active, faith-based movement that seems promising is Guns to Gardens (www.gunstogardens.org). A national organization, they use the buyback model to collect unwanted guns, disable them and use their parts for garden tools, art, or jewelry. Some of the most touching events have honored innocent victims shot to death. On April 15, 2023, 57 firearms were dismantled at Most Precious Blood church in Denver, CO in honor of Audra Dominguez.

Age 25, an A-student, Audra was attending a birthday party where a loaded and unsecured weapon brought out from the garage shot her in the head. Her family volunteered at the event, and posted pictures of her there. A similar event in Feb. ’23 at Columbine United Church in Littleton, CO collected 44 guns to honor Jayden Hoyle, age 13, killed in a car by random gunfire.

Volunteers (40 at each site) make the events run smoothly. People drive into the parking lot with the unloaded gun in their car. They remain anonymous, and receive a gift card, ranging in value from $50 for a shot gun, to $100 for a hand gun or semi-automatic to $200 for an assault rifle. Trained volunteers use a metal chop saw to dismantle guns; leftover metal parts are transformed into something life-giving. Best of all: the weapons aren’t returned to the gun marketplace.

With 400 million guns in American homes (that’s more than one per person), this effort may seem to make a small dent in the problem. In 2021, US citizens bought over 20 million firearms, for a total (including the cost of ammunition) of twenty-eight billion dollars. With that much money at stake, no wonder legislators court the wealth of gun manufacturers! But Christians know the power of an alternative: a baby born far from the seat of power who changed the world, the symbolism of a tiny mustard seed growing into a huge bush where the birds of the air take refuge, or the small measure of leaven lifting the whole lump of dough.

Ironically, we’re familiar with the example set by other countries: many like Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom have enacted strict legislation resulting in almost no gun-related deaths there now. In contrast, 43,000 Americans die every year from gun violence. Approximately 60% of these deaths are from suicide, followed by homicide, family violence and accidents. Having a gun in the home increases the likelihood of such events dramatically.

Understandably, some people want to get the guns OUT of their homes for multiple reasons—children now present, owner no longer hunting, gun returned by the police after a suicide or accident. That’s where Guns to Gardens comes in. Their safe surrender events were scheduled during June ’23 for cities in OH, CO, WI, CT, CA, NY, and MA.

Why not add your city to the list? Many churches, mosques and synagogues have a parking lot, and could find 40 volunteers to sponsor a buyback event. Or make a donation: received by Gun by Gun, a 501c3, they’re tax deductible. What a fine, practical enactment of Isaiah 2:4: “They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning hooks.”

Grandparents Day is September 10 & the perfect gift is Kathy Coffey’s latest book, A Generous Lap: A Spirituality of Grandparenting, is available from Orbis Press, 800-258-5838 https://orbisbooks.com/products/9781608339891