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Is firearm ownership sinful?


jeffboom

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KnightofChrist

The Pope is protected by one of the world's smallest but most well armed armies. The Holy See has bought and owns many firearms. Being a believer in the right to bear arms is in the same realm of believing in the use of capital punishment. Catholics are free to disagree. Unless we wish to make ourselves into God we should not pass judgement on those that do not agree with our position.

 

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dominicansoul

The Pope himself called for global action to stop ISIS.  He said we SHOULD do everything even *gasp* using weapons to stop ISIS!

 

T H E     H O R R O R!!!!!

 

 

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dominicansoul
10 hours ago, Ice_nine said:

Yes it is a sin. It's one of the worst ones because it's a sin everyone here thinks is OK

face-palm-mt.gif

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3 hours ago, KnightofChrist said:

The Pope is protected by one of the world's smallest but most well armed armies. The Holy See has bought and owns many firearms. Being a believer in the right to bear arms is in the same realm of believing in the use of capital punishment. Catholics are free to disagree. Unless we wish to make ourselves into God we should not pass judgement on those that do not agree with our position.

 

I had posted something similar but edited it because no matter how I revised it, it came off as critical of the Pope, but I have to ask, because Pope Francis speaks pretty generally. It seems to me that he is perhaps meaning arms dealers and manufacturers that sell to dictators, criminals, terrorists and rogue nations.

There are many people that own arms made by Heckler and Koch, Beretta, Glock and Sig Sauer which are the same manufacturers that are in the Swiss Guard and the Gendarmerie Corps' arsenal. Are they sinning?

 

 

 

Edited by Maximilianus
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KnightofChrist
19 hours ago, jeffboom said:

I've been thinking about this for a long time. Is it sinful to own firearms?

The answer is no.

The Church teaches that defense of persons and of society, that is both individual persons and also those who legitimately hold authority in government, can use firearms to repeal an unjust aggressor. I hate that I can't rap quotes in quotes anymore but oh well here is the evidence for it.

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CCC - Legitimate defense

2263 The legitimate defense of persons and societies is not an exception to the prohibition against the murder of the innocent that constitutes intentional killing. "The act of self-defense can have a double effect: the preservation of one's own life; and the killing of the aggressor. . . . The one is intended, the other is not."65

2264 Love toward oneself remains a fundamental principle of morality. Therefore it is legitimate to insist on respect for one's own right to life. Someone who defends his life is not guilty of murder even if he is forced to deal his aggressor a lethal blow:

If a man in self-defense uses more than necessary violence, it will be unlawful: whereas if he repels force with moderation, his defense will be lawful. . . . Nor is it necessary for salvation that a man omit the act of moderate self-defense to avoid killing the other man, since one is bound to take more care of one's own life than of another's.66

2265 Legitimate defense can be not only a right but a grave duty for one who is responsible for the lives of others. The defense of the common good requires that an unjust aggressor be rendered unable to cause harm. For this reason, those who legitimately hold authority also have the right to use arms to repel aggressors against the civil community entrusted to their responsibility.

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Compendium of the CCC

 

467. Why is the legitimate defense of persons and of society not opposed to this norm?

2263-2265

Because in choosing to legitimately defend oneself one is respecting the right to life (either one’s own right to life or that of another) and not choosing to kill. Indeed, for someone responsible for the life of another, legitimate defense can be not only a right but a grave duty, provided only that disproportionate force is not used.

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Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace

"In a world marked by evil ... the right of legitimate defense by means of arms exists. This right can become a serious duty for those who are responsible for the lives of others, for the common good of the family or of the civil community. This right alone can justify the possession or transfer of arms."

Edited by KnightofChrist
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KnightofChrist
7 minutes ago, Ice_nine said:

Yes

No, pretend God, no.

Unless you're playing the troll in this thread, then you're being a good one at it.

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