Gun Control: Then and Now

“Arms discourage and keep the invader and plunderer in awe, and preserve order in the world as well as property…Horrid mischief would ensue were the law-abiding deprived of the use of them,” (Thomas Paine, Thoughts On Defensive War, 1775).  This is a quote from Thomas Paine.   He, as well as the other founding fathers, saw an armed population to be an important part of America, not only to protect themselves against those who do not follow the law, but to also protect against threats to the Free State (including their own government).

The bill of rights and the American constitution was passed in 1791. The second amendment states “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”  The issue of gun control has been around in America about as long as the second amendment. In 1837 Georgia banned hand guns; the Supreme Court found this to be unconstitutional, and the law was thrown out. However, the issue of gun control is still around today in 2013.  http://usgovinfo.about.com/blguntime.htm

Today, one of the main arguments for both sides of the debate are what exactly did the founding fathers mean when the second amendment was written. Often People for gun control say the founding fathers and framers of the constitution did not mean private gun ownership, they met only those serving in the militia should have guns. Another argument given is the second amendment only applies to guns available in that time period. People against gun control also use arguments with sources from the contusion to back up their arguments.

This video is a speech against gun control. Please remember, this man is not a politician. He is an average American citizen, just like you and me. I tried to find a speech pro-gun control that was not given by a politician or newsperson, but was unable to.

If we truly want to know what the founding fathers intended the second amendment to mean, all we need to do is read what they wrote. Most of the framers wrote essays, letters, and books on their opinions and ideas behind what happened before, during, and after the writing of the constitution. Perhaps you have even heard of one of them, “The Federalist Papers”. I also think we should remember what a militia is and what it what in 1779.

A militia by definition is “An army composed of regular citizens as opposed to professional solders.” In 1775, at the start of the revolutionary war, the men in the militia were not supplied with weapons upon the start of the war. They brought the guns they used for home protection and hunting. During the revolutionary war, there was not a wonderfully trained and supplied army; there was the militia, who supplied their own weapons, to fight against their own government.

That is why, I believe, when the constitution states, “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed,” it means private citizens have a right to own guns to protect themselves from people who wish to harm them, whether those people are criminals, or a tyrannical government.

What was the reason for Jonathan Edwards dismissal from the church?

http://www.jonathan-edwards.org/jenew.jpg

Jonathan Edwards is considered one of the best preachers of his time. Despite this fact, he was still voted out of his church. “In 1750, Edwards’ church dismissed him from Northampton after he attempted to impose stricter qualifications for admission to the sacraments upon his congregation.”  That was all that was said about his dismissal in the biography we read for literature. I wanted to know more about what led to his dismissal. Why did he want to impose stricter rules? What kind of rules did he want to impose? Was there anything else that led to his dismissal?  All these questions led me to my final question. What caused Jonathan Edwards to be dismissed from his church? http://edwards.yale.edu/research/about-edwards/biography

His dismissal from the church was messy.  He was voted out by the congregation.  In fact, out of 253 people only 23 voted for him to stay. Even after he was voted out, he agreed to continue doing sermons until a replacement was found, which took about fifteen months.

This is his final farwell sermon.

One of the first reasons Edwards was dismissed was the one pointed out in the biography; he wanted to change who could receive sacraments, such as communion. His grandfather, Solomon Stoddard, had been the previous pastor of the church. Stoddard had very lenient rules on who was allowed to join the church and receive sacraments.  He believed being more lenient would allow more people to convert.

 Stoddard allowed anyone who outwardly appeared to be living a godly life to receive sacraments.  Edwards wanted to return to a more puritanical way of admitting people into the church. He wished to only allow people who showed evidence of receiving God’s grace to receive the sacraments. He changed the admittance policy in 1748, when he told an applicant, he must first make a “public profession of godliness.” A counsel was formed, and eventually, the congregation voted him out of the church.  http://www.reformation21.org/articles/jonathan-edwards-a-brief-storiedlife.php

http://gratefultothedead.wordpress.com/2009/12/07/preacher-in-the-hands-of-an-angry-church-the-fall-of-jonathan-edwards/

Although changing church policy was what caused him to be dismissed, other problems had occurred during his leadership.  A scandal that occurred in 1744 was dubbed the “bad book” incident.  Boys in their late teens obtained a copy of a midwifery book, and distributed it to other boys in the congregation.  They used its contents to taunt the girls of the congregation and town. When the issue was brought to the church, Edwards read the names of the boys aloud, as well as the witness’ names.  He failed to discriminate between the innocent and guilty. This outraged some of the parents. http://gratefultothedead.wordpress.com/2009/12/07/preacher-in-the-hands-of-an-angry-church-the-fall-of-jonathan-edwards/

Edwards’ reign as the Northampton pastor was clouded with salary controversies and power struggles. It seems, after the great awakening, his appeal as a pastor faded. Perhaps, it was because he continued to expect the same enthusiasm he saw in people during the great awakening, or maybe his views became stricter over time. Perhaps his failure to carefully navigate the “bad book” incident caused more tension than we know. One thing is known though; his change in church policy is what ultimately got him dismissed from the church. 

http://gratefultothedead.wordpress.com/2009/12/07/preacher-in-the-hands-of-an-angry-church-the-fall-of-jonathan-edwards/