Niraj Warikoo

Detroit Free Press

At 180th annual convention, Episcopal leaders pass resolution calling for more gun control

Conservatives in Episcopal Church say the gun resolution violates state and federal gun rights

Supporters of gun resolution say it aligns with the values of the Episcopal Church and Christianity

Episcopal Church in Michigan is facing sharp declines in membership and attendance

The Episcopal Church in Michigan has passed a controversial resolution calling for stiffer gun control, drawing sharp criticism from conservative members who say it violates the right to bear arms.

The dispute is part of a larger debate among Episcopalians and other mainline Protestants about the future of their churches as they face sharp declines in membership.

Some conservatives say the gun resolution is the latest example of the Episcopal Church focusing on promoting liberal social issues such as gun control and same-sex marriage instead of the gospel, alienating congregants. But liberals say that their views are in line with the teachings of Christianity.

By a clear majority, members of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan — which consists of southeast Michigan and the Lansing and Jackson areas — voted recently to approve a resolution calling for universal background checks on all gun purchases, banning all sales of semiautomatic weapons, high-impact ammunition, high-capacity ammunition magazines, and making gun trafficking a federal crime.

It was passed at the 180th annual convention of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan, held Oct. 24-25 in Lansing.

"We ... stand for public policies to ban violence and assault weapons," the resolution states. "Access to guns with rapid fire ability and high capacity magazines are a common, deadly ingredient in ... repeated killings."

The resolution passed after an intense debate among Episcopalians, with each side accusing each other of being extremists, according to participants.

While the resolution doesn't have a direct policy effect, it's a move that symbolizes the direction of the influential religious group.

The Episcopal Diocese of Michigan has deep roots in the state. It was created in 1836, one year before the state was established.

Rick Schulte, director of communications for the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan, did not comment on the resolution. Supporters say it was a necessary move and one that reflects the views of the Episcopal Church and Christianity. They noted last week's shooting in a Washington state high school as the latest example of gun violence.

"We work to bring God's peace to the world," said the Rev. Chris Yaw, rector of St. David's Episcopal Church in Southfield. "God's kingdom is not of violence; it's of peace."

Conservatives agreed that gun violence is something that should be reduced, but they said the resolution passed would target law-abiding people, not criminals.

"I think there is a heartfelt desire by all of the church to keep people safe from violence," said the Rev. Steven Kelly, rector of St. John's Episcopal Church, near Comerica Park in Detroit, who objected to the resolution. "However, most of those who intend violence are going to get weapons anyways, no matter what kind of legislation we pass."

Kelly, whose church features a more traditional liturgy, said he's concerned that Episcopal leaders increasingly seem more interested in a social agenda, which he said turns people off.

"The people in my congregation don't want to hear a social gospel," Kelly said. "They want to hear about grace and forgiveness and salvation, so they can go out and do the right things, rather than have something new foisted upon them every week."

The debate comes at a time of a continued membership declines in the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan. From 2000 to 2013, average Sunday attendance in its roughly 90 congregations has decreased 35%, from 10,400 to 6,791. Over the same time period, the number of baptized members has declined 37%, from 29,769 to 18,816.

Conservatives attribute the decline in membership partly to the church's leftward tilt, though liberals say there are other factors, such as a general move away from traditional religious institutions in the U.S.

At the convention, Dennis Lennox, a member of St. John's Episcopal Church in Detroit, tried to amend the gun resolution by striking the word "universal" before "background checks" and replacing the call for "a clear ban" of all military-style semiautomatic weapons with "a substantive discussion."

During the debate, Lennox said, he was called a "radical with an extreme NRA agenda," and his amendments were rejected.

Lennox and others said the resolution violates state laws and the Second Amendment.

"Passing an inherently political resolution ... does absolutely nothing to proclaim the glory of God and bring new people to the pews of churches," Lennox said. "I wish churches ... would focus on being a house of prayer for all people, instead of becoming extensions of political movements and parties."

The resolution says that the "Episcopal Church supports the U.S. Constitution's protections of the rights of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms," but adds that "wholesale murder is made possible because those without proper moral guide have easy access to these assault weapons."

Contact Niraj Warikoo: nwarikoo@freepress.com or 313-223-4792. Follow him on Twitter @nwarikoo.

To read more

To read the full Episcopal gun resolution, go to www.edomi.org/edomi/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Resolutions-2014-New2.pdf and scroll down to Resolution #7