Don't be a soft target

After you read this next post, the reality of how vast these soft targets are will become maddeningly clear. Many of you will already know and will have, will be taking steps to prevent you and yours from becoming soft targets.

This excellent post was written by Mary from Marin and we know each other from hanging out out at Conservative Tree house or The Last Refuge. MFM was kind enough to grant me permission to re-post it here. 

This was originally posted over at iOwnTheWorld.

I will not dilute nor will I remove any attention away from this post by my own comments or thoughts. I agree with this 100%. PatriotUSA

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Don't be a soft target
By Mary from Marin
  
In light of recent events and the continuing threat of madmen in the world, iOTW endorses this guest post by Mary From Marin. Everybody should take the appropriate steps to prepare themselves and their loved ones against any future attack. This post speaks specifically about places of worship and its vulnerabilities.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All Saints Church  (Pakistan) 

Church of the Annunciation & Church of the Martyrs (Syria) 

Church of St. George & Church of the Virgin Mary (Egypt) 

Church Bethel Injil (Indonesia) 

Hiawatha Church (Ohio) 

Sikh Temple (Wisconsin) 

Congregation Beth El (New Jersey) 

Christ Holy Sanctified (Oklahoma)

What do these places have in common? They are all places where violence has occurred—and they are all churches.

Most churches—like schools (think Beslan and Newtown) and shopping malls (think Nairobi)—are soft targets. People do not expect violence to occur in their places of worship, and are therefore generally oblivious to safety and security issues.

However, because of their vulnerability, churches are often targeted: by the homeless, by the mentally ill, by disgruntled parishioners, by spouses angered due to pastoral marital counseling which has “gone against them”, by thieves, by pedophiles, by gangs, and also by those wishing to make a statement through violent means–ideological terrorists.

Is your church, synagogue, or temple a physically safe place for you and your family? There are organizations which focus on safety in churches, and some books that address these issues. I’d like to highlight one of each of these:  Black Watch Threat Management Services, and the book, Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church from Violence.

I think highly of the book, and I think highly of the author–who happens to be my husband. Both of us are very concerned about the vulnerability of churches.We believe that it is only a matter of time before organized ideological terrorism strikes our churches here in the U.S., as it has in many other countries around the world. That sense of urgency is one of the reasons he wrote this book.

Even now, there is plenty of violence in churches (frequently unreported by the MSM) much of which could be avoided by paying attention to safety and security concerns, both physical and psychological.

Look at your church, synagogue, or temple with the eyes of an intruder. How easy would it be to break in, or even just WALK in, unchallenged? If your church has a weekday school, Sunday church school, or youth ministry, how safe are the children? Are they as protected as they can be from possible invasion and violence? As we saw in Beslan, Newtown, and Nairobi, youth is no guarantor of safety. In Beslan, schoolchildren were raped, tortured, and murdered. In Nairobi, it is being reported that dead children were found in food court refrigerators, with knives embedded in their bodies.

With ideological terrorism, children are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches and churchgoers of all ages are indeed often singled out, due to their belief stance being in opposition to the perpetrators’ ideology (seen unmistakably in Nairobi).

What can you do to ensure increased security in your church, synagogue, or temple? First and foremost, realize that “it CAN happen here”. Churches do not have to be soft targets, however. Much can be done to improve safety and security. I believe that my husband’s book is very good, and very thorough. He is uniquely qualified to write this, being both an ordained pastor and a clinical psychologist, with training in executive protection and threat assessment. Check out the table of contents to see what is covered; look at a brief list of recent church violence, of many types (links below).  And then consider the possible results of inaction or dismissal. Some of them are irreversible.

A final word, from the book:

“As with a medieval castle, we proposed the erection of walls around the people of the church. The first wall is spiritual, armed and defended by prayer and discernment. The second wall is psychological, watched over by knowledge of pre-incident indicators and the respect of our intuition. Finally, before violence can reach the vulnerable people within, it will have to breach the final wall of safety technology, efficiently enacted policies, and a tactically trained protection team…Church leaders have been called to represent the Good Shepherd, the one who leads his sheep into good pastures and keeps them safe from the wolves. Even in the valley of the shadow of death, security and caring are there for the sheep because the rod and staff of the shepherd are held in the hands of the leaders.”  (p. 200)

Violence already impacts our churches, and will likely get worse. NOW is the time for churches and church leaders to prepare.

_______________________________________

“Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church From Violence”

(home page:  http://blackwatchprotection.org/  )

(table of contents  http://blackwatchprotection.org/books__articles  )

(brief list of examples of violence in churches   http://blackwatchprotection.org/incidents_of_church_attacks  )

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

In light of recent events and the continuing threat of madmen in the world, iOTW endorses this guest post by Mary From Marin. Everybody should take the appropriate steps to prepare themselves and their loved ones against any future attack. This post speaks specifically about places of worship and its vulnerabilities.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All Saints Church  (Pakistan) 

Church of the Annunciation & Church of the Martyrs (Syria) 

Church of St. George & Church of the Virgin Mary (Egypt) 

Church Bethel Injil (Indonesia) 

Hiawatha Church (Ohio) 

Sikh Temple (Wisconsin) 

Congregation Beth El (New Jersey) 

Christ Holy Sanctified (Oklahoma)

What do these places have in common? They are all places where violence has occurred—and they are all churches.

Most churches—like schools (think Beslan and Newtown) and shopping malls (think Nairobi)—are soft targets. People do not expect violence to occur in their places of worship, and are therefore generally oblivious to safety and security issues.

However, because of their vulnerability, churches are often targeted: by the homeless, by the mentally ill, by disgruntled parishioners, by spouses angered due to pastoral marital counseling which has “gone against them”, by thieves, by pedophiles, by gangs, and also by those wishing to make a statement through violent means–ideological terrorists.

Is your church, synagogue, or temple a physically safe place for you and your family? There are organizations which focus on safety in churches, and some books that address these issues. I’d like to highlight one of each of these:  Black Watch Threat Management Services, and the book, Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church from Violence.

I think highly of the book, and I think highly of the author–who happens to be my husband. Both of us are very concerned about the vulnerability of churches.We believe that it is only a matter of time before organized ideological terrorism strikes our churches here in the U.S., as it has in many other countries around the world. That sense of urgency is one of the reasons he wrote this book.

Even now, there is plenty of violence in churches (frequently unreported by the MSM) much of which could be avoided by paying attention to safety and security concerns, both physical and psychological.

Look at your church, synagogue, or temple with the eyes of an intruder. How easy would it be to break in, or even just WALK in, unchallenged? If your church has a weekday school, Sunday church school, or youth ministry, how safe are the children? Are they as protected as they can be from possible invasion and violence? As we saw in Beslan, Newtown, and Nairobi, youth is no guarantor of safety. In Beslan, schoolchildren were raped, tortured, and murdered. In Nairobi, it is being reported that dead children were found in food court refrigerators, with knives embedded in their bodies.

With ideological terrorism, children are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches and churchgoers of all ages are indeed often singled out, due to their belief stance being in opposition to the perpetrators’ ideology (seen unmistakably in Nairobi).

What can you do to ensure increased security in your church, synagogue, or temple? First and foremost, realize that “it CAN happen here”. Churches do not have to be soft targets, however. Much can be done to improve safety and security. I believe that my husband’s book is very good, and very thorough. He is uniquely qualified to write this, being both an ordained pastor and a clinical psychologist, with training in executive protection and threat assessment. Check out the table of contents to see what is covered; look at a brief list of recent church violence, of many types (links below).  And then consider the possible results of inaction or dismissal. Some of them are irreversible.

A final word, from the book:

“As with a medieval castle, we proposed the erection of walls around the people of the church. The first wall is spiritual, armed and defended by prayer and discernment. The second wall is psychological, watched over by knowledge of pre-incident indicators and the respect of our intuition. Finally, before violence can reach the vulnerable people within, it will have to breach the final wall of safety technology, efficiently enacted policies, and a tactically trained protection team…Church leaders have been called to represent the Good Shepherd, the one who leads his sheep into good pastures and keeps them safe from the wolves. Even in the valley of the shadow of death, security and caring are there for the sheep because the rod and staff of the shepherd are held in the hands of the leaders.”  (p. 200)

Violence already impacts our churches, and will likely get worse. NOW is the time for churches and church leaders to prepare.

_______________________________________

“Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church From Violence”

(home page:  http://blackwatchprotection.org/  )

(table of contents  http://blackwatchprotection.org/books__articles  )

(brief list of examples of violence in churches   http://blackwatchprotection.org/incidents_of_church_

 Source is here.

In light of recent events and the continuing threat of madmen in the world, iOTW endorses this guest post by Mary From Marin. Everybody should take the appropriate steps to prepare themselves and their loved ones against any future attack. This post speaks specifically about places of worship and its vulnerabilities.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All Saints Church  (Pakistan) 

Church of the Annunciation & Church of the Martyrs (Syria) 

Church of St. George & Church of the Virgin Mary (Egypt) 

Church Bethel Injil (Indonesia) 

Hiawatha Church (Ohio) 

Sikh Temple (Wisconsin) 

Congregation Beth El (New Jersey) 

Christ Holy Sanctified (Oklahoma)

What do these places have in common? They are all places where violence has occurred—and they are all churches.

Most churches—like schools (think Beslan and Newtown) and shopping malls (think Nairobi)—are soft targets. People do not expect violence to occur in their places of worship, and are therefore generally oblivious to safety and security issues.

However, because of their vulnerability, churches are often targeted: by the homeless, by the mentally ill, by disgruntled parishioners, by spouses angered due to pastoral marital counseling which has “gone against them”, by thieves, by pedophiles, by gangs, and also by those wishing to make a statement through violent means–ideological terrorists.

Is your church, synagogue, or temple a physically safe place for you and your family? There are organizations which focus on safety in churches, and some books that address these issues. I’d like to highlight one of each of these:  Black Watch Threat Management Services, and the book, Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church from Violence.

I think highly of the book, and I think highly of the author–who happens to be my husband. Both of us are very concerned about the vulnerability of churches.We believe that it is only a matter of time before organized ideological terrorism strikes our churches here in the U.S., as it has in many other countries around the world. That sense of urgency is one of the reasons he wrote this book.

Even now, there is plenty of violence in churches (frequently unreported by the MSM) much of which could be avoided by paying attention to safety and security concerns, both physical and psychological.

Look at your church, synagogue, or temple with the eyes of an intruder. How easy would it be to break in, or even just WALK in, unchallenged? If your church has a weekday school, Sunday church school, or youth ministry, how safe are the children? Are they as protected as they can be from possible invasion and violence? As we saw in Beslan, Newtown, and Nairobi, youth is no guarantor of safety. In Beslan, schoolchildren were raped, tortured, and murdered. In Nairobi, it is being reported that dead children were found in food court refrigerators, with knives embedded in their bodies.

With ideological terrorism, children are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches and churchgoers of all ages are indeed often singled out, due to their belief stance being in opposition to the perpetrators’ ideology (seen unmistakably in Nairobi).

What can you do to ensure increased security in your church, synagogue, or temple? First and foremost, realize that “it CAN happen here”. Churches do not have to be soft targets, however. Much can be done to improve safety and security. I believe that my husband’s book is very good, and very thorough. He is uniquely qualified to write this, being both an ordained pastor and a clinical psychologist, with training in executive protection and threat assessment. Check out the table of contents to see what is covered; look at a brief list of recent church violence, of many types (links below).  And then consider the possible results of inaction or dismissal. Some of them are irreversible.

A final word, from the book:

“As with a medieval castle, we proposed the erection of walls around the people of the church. The first wall is spiritual, armed and defended by prayer and discernment. The second wall is psychological, watched over by knowledge of pre-incident indicators and the respect of our intuition. Finally, before violence can reach the vulnerable people within, it will have to breach the final wall of safety technology, efficiently enacted policies, and a tactically trained protection team…Church leaders have been called to represent the Good Shepherd, the one who leads his sheep into good pastures and keeps them safe from the wolves. Even in the valley of the shadow of death, security and caring are there for the sheep because the rod and staff of the shepherd are held in the hands of the leaders.”  (p. 200)

Violence already impacts our churches, and will likely get worse. NOW is the time for churches and church leaders to prepare.

_______________________________________

“Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church From Violence”

(home page:  http://blackwatchprotection.org/  )

(table of contents  http://blackwatchprotection.org/books__articles  )

(brief list of examples of violence in churches   http://blackwatchprotection.org/incidents_of_church_

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

n light of recent events and the continuing threat of madmen in the world, iOTW endorses this guest post by Mary From Marin. Everybody should take the appropriate steps to prepare themselves and their loved ones against any future attack. This post speaks specifically about places of worship and its vulnerabilities.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All Saints Church  (Pakistan) 

Church of the Annunciation & Church of the Martyrs (Syria) 

Church of St. George & Church of the Virgin Mary (Egypt) 

Church Bethel Injil (Indonesia) 

Hiawatha Church (Ohio) 

Sikh Temple (Wisconsin) 

Congregation Beth El (New Jersey) 

Christ Holy Sanctified (Oklahoma)

What do these places have in common? They are all places where violence has occurred—and they are all churches.

Most churches—like schools (think Beslan and Newtown) and shopping malls (think Nairobi)—are soft targets. People do not expect violence to occur in their places of worship, and are therefore generally oblivious to safety and security issues.

However, because of their vulnerability, churches are often targeted: by the homeless, by the mentally ill, by disgruntled parishioners, by spouses angered due to pastoral marital counseling which has “gone against them”, by thieves, by pedophiles, by gangs, and also by those wishing to make a statement through violent means–ideological terrorists.

Is your church, synagogue, or temple a physically safe place for you and your family? There are organizations which focus on safety in churches, and some books that address these issues. I’d like to highlight one of each of these:  Black Watch Threat Management Services, and the book, Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church from Violence.

I think highly of the book, and I think highly of the author–who happens to be my husband. Both of us are very concerned about the vulnerability of churches.We believe that it is only a matter of time before organized ideological terrorism strikes our churches here in the U.S., as it has in many other countries around the world. That sense of urgency is one of the reasons he wrote this book.

Even now, there is plenty of violence in churches (frequently unreported by the MSM) much of which could be avoided by paying attention to safety and security concerns, both physical and psychological.

Look at your church, synagogue, or temple with the eyes of an intruder. How easy would it be to break in, or even just WALK in, unchallenged? If your church has a weekday school, Sunday church school, or youth ministry, how safe are the children? Are they as protected as they can be from possible invasion and violence? As we saw in Beslan, Newtown, and Nairobi, youth is no guarantor of safety. In Beslan, schoolchildren were raped, tortured, and murdered. In Nairobi, it is being reported that dead children were found in food court refrigerators, with knives embedded in their bodies.

With ideological terrorism, children are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches and churchgoers of all ages are indeed often singled out, due to their belief stance being in opposition to the perpetrators’ ideology (seen unmistakably in Nairobi).

What can you do to ensure increased security in your church, synagogue, or temple? First and foremost, realize that “it CAN happen here”. Churches do not have to be soft targets, however. Much can be done to improve safety and security. I believe that my husband’s book is very good, and very thorough. He is uniquely qualified to write this, being both an ordained pastor and a clinical psychologist, with training in executive protection and threat assessment. Check out the table of contents to see what is covered; look at a brief list of recent church violence, of many types (links below).  And then consider the possible results of inaction or dismissal. Some of them are irreversible.

A final word, from the book:

“As with a medieval castle, we proposed the erection of walls around the people of the church. The first wall is spiritual, armed and defended by prayer and discernment. The second wall is psychological, watched over by knowledge of pre-incident indicators and the respect of our intuition. Finally, before violence can reach the vulnerable people within, it will have to breach the final wall of safety technology, efficiently enacted policies, and a tactically trained protection team…Church leaders have been called to represent the Good Shepherd, the one who leads his sheep into good pastures and keeps them safe from the wolves. Even in the valley of the shadow of death, security and caring are there for the sheep because the rod and staff of the shepherd are held in the hands of the leaders.”  (p. 200)

Violence already impacts our churches, and will likely get worse. NOW is the time for churches and church leaders to prepare.

_______________________________________

“Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church From Violence”

(home page:  http://blackwatchprotection.org/  )

(table of contents  http://blackwatchprotection.org/books__articles  )

(brief list of examples of violence in churches   http://blackwatchprotection.org/incidents_of_church_attacks  )

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#5XwXUm8fEEu9x5X8.99

All Saints Church  (Pakistan) 

Church of the Annunciation & Church of the Martyrs (Syria) 

Church of St. George & Church of the Virgin Mary (Egypt) 

Church Bethel Injil (Indonesia) 

Hiawatha Church (Ohio) 

Sikh Temple (Wisconsin) 

Congregation Beth El (New Jersey) 

Christ Holy Sanctified (Oklahoma)

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

_______________________________________

“Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church From Violence”

(home page:  http://blackwatchprotection.org/  )

(table of contents  http://blackwatchprotection.org/books__articles  )

(brief list of examples of violence in churches   http://blackwatchprotection.org/incidents_of_church_attacks  )

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

_______________________________________

“Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church From Violence”

(home page:  http://blackwatchprotection.org/  )

(table of contents  http://blackwatchprotection.org/books__articles  )

(brief list of examples of violence in churches   http://blackwatchprotection.org/incidents_of_church_attacks  )

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

In light of recent events and the continuing threat of madmen in the world, iOTW endorses this guest post by Mary From Marin. Everybody should take the appropriate steps to prepare themselves and their loved ones against any future attack. This post speaks specifically about places of worship and its vulnerabilities.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All Saints Church  (Pakistan) 

Church of the Annunciation & Church of the Martyrs (Syria) 

Church of St. George & Church of the Virgin Mary (Egypt) 

Church Bethel Injil (Indonesia) 

Hiawatha Church (Ohio) 

Sikh Temple (Wisconsin) 

Congregation Beth El (New Jersey) 

Christ Holy Sanctified (Oklahoma)

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

In light of recent events and the continuing threat of madmen in the world, iOTW endorses this guest post by Mary From Marin. Everybody should take the appropriate steps to prepare themselves and their loved ones against any future attack. This post speaks specifically about places of worship and its vulnerabilities.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All Saints Church  (Pakistan) 

Church of the Annunciation & Church of the Martyrs (Syria) 

Church of St. George & Church of the Virgin Mary (Egypt) 

Church Bethel Injil (Indonesia) 

Hiawatha Church (Ohio) 

Sikh Temple (Wisconsin) 

Congregation Beth El (New Jersey) 

Christ Holy Sanctified (Oklahoma)

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

In light of recent events and the continuing threat of madmen in the world, iOTW endorses this guest post by Mary From Marin. Everybody should take the appropriate steps to prepare themselves and their loved ones against any future attack. This post speaks specifically about places of worship and its vulnerabilities.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All Saints Church  (Pakistan) 

Church of the Annunciation & Church of the Martyrs (Syria) 

Church of St. George & Church of the Virgin Mary (Egypt) 

Church Bethel Injil (Indonesia) 

Hiawatha Church (Ohio) 

Sikh Temple (Wisconsin) 

Congregation Beth El (New Jersey) 

Christ Holy Sanctified (Oklahoma)

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

In light of recent events and the continuing threat of madmen in the world, iOTW endorses this guest post by Mary From Marin. Everybody should take the appropriate steps to prepare themselves and their loved ones against any future attack. This post speaks specifically about places of worship and its vulnerabilities.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All Saints Church  (Pakistan) 

Church of the Annunciation & Church of the Martyrs (Syria) 

Church of St. George & Church of the Virgin Mary (Egypt) 

Church Bethel Injil (Indonesia) 

Hiawatha Church (Ohio) 

Sikh Temple (Wisconsin) 

Congregation Beth El (New Jersey) 

Christ Holy Sanctified (Oklahoma)

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

In light of recent events and the continuing threat of madmen in the world, iOTW endorses this guest post by Mary From Marin. Everybody should take the appropriate steps to prepare themselves and their loved ones against any future attack. This post speaks specifically about places of worship and its vulnerabilities.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All Saints Church  (Pakistan) 

Church of the Annunciation & Church of the Martyrs (Syria) 

Church of St. George & Church of the Virgin Mary (Egypt) 

Church Bethel Injil (Indonesia) 

Hiawatha Church (Ohio) 

Sikh Temple (Wisconsin) 

Congregation Beth El (New Jersey) 

Christ Holy Sanctified (Oklahoma)

What do these places have in common? They are all places where violence has occurred—and they are all churches.

Most churches—like schools (think Beslan and Newtown) and shopping malls (think Nairobi)—are soft targets. People do not expect violence to occur in their places of worship, and are therefore generally oblivious to safety and security issues.

However, because of their vulnerability, churches are often targeted: by the homeless, by the mentally ill, by disgruntled parishioners, by spouses angered due to pastoral marital counseling which has “gone against them”, by thieves, by pedophiles, by gangs, and also by those wishing to make a statement through violent means–ideological terrorists.

Is your church, synagogue, or temple a physically safe place for you and your family? There are organizations which focus on safety in churches, and some books that address these issues. I’d like to highlight one of each of these:  Black Watch Threat Management Services, and the book, Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church from Violence.

I think highly of the book, and I think highly of the author–who happens to be my husband. Both of us are very concerned about the vulnerability of churches.We believe that it is only a matter of time before organized ideological terrorism strikes our churches here in the U.S., as it has in many other countries around the world. That sense of urgency is one of the reasons he wrote this book.

Even now, there is plenty of violence in churches (frequently unreported by the MSM) much of which could be avoided by paying attention to safety and security concerns, both physical and psychological.

Look at your church, synagogue, or temple with the eyes of an intruder. How easy would it be to break in, or even just WALK in, unchallenged? If your church has a weekday school, Sunday church school, or youth ministry, how safe are the children? Are they as protected as they can be from possible invasion and violence? As we saw in Beslan, Newtown, and Nairobi, youth is no guarantor of safety. In Beslan, schoolchildren were raped, tortured, and murdered. In Nairobi, it is being reported that dead children were found in food court refrigerators, with knives embedded in their bodies.

With ideological terrorism, children are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches and churchgoers of all ages are indeed often singled out, due to their belief stance being in opposition to the perpetrators’ ideology (seen unmistakably in Nairobi).

What can you do to ensure increased security in your church, synagogue, or temple? First and foremost, realize that “it CAN happen here”. Churches do not have to be soft targets, however. Much can be done to improve safety and security. I believe that my husband’s book is very good, and very thorough. He is uniquely qualified to write this, being both an ordained pastor and a clinical psychologist, with training in executive protection and threat assessment. Check out the table of contents to see what is covered; look at a brief list of recent church violence, of many types (links below).  And then consider the possible results of inaction or dismissal. Some of them are irreversible.

A final word, from the book:

“As with a medieval castle, we proposed the erection of walls around the people of the church. The first wall is spiritual, armed and defended by prayer and discernment. The second wall is psychological, watched over by knowledge of pre-incident indicators and the respect of our intuition. Finally, before violence can reach the vulnerable people within, it will have to breach the final wall of safety technology, efficiently enacted policies, and a tactically trained protection team…Church leaders have been called to represent the Good Shepherd, the one who leads his sheep into good pastures and keeps them safe from the wolves. Even in the valley of the shadow of death, security and caring are there for the sheep because the rod and staff of the shepherd are held in the hands of the leaders.”  (p. 200)

Violence already impacts our churches, and will likely get worse. NOW is the time for churches and church leaders to prepare.

_______________________________________

“Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church From Violence”

(home page:  http://blackwatchprotection.org/  )

(table of contents  http://blackwatchprotection.org/books__articles  )

(brief list of examples of violence in churches   http://blackwatchprotection.org/incidents_of_church_attacks  )

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

In light of recent events and the continuing threat of madmen in the world, iOTW endorses this guest post by Mary From Marin. Everybody should take the appropriate steps to prepare themselves and their loved ones against any future attack. This post speaks specifically about places of worship and its vulnerabilities.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All Saints Church  (Pakistan) 

Church of the Annunciation & Church of the Martyrs (Syria) 

Church of St. George & Church of the Virgin Mary (Egypt) 

Church Bethel Injil (Indonesia) 

Hiawatha Church (Ohio) 

Sikh Temple (Wisconsin) 

Congregation Beth El (New Jersey) 

Christ Holy Sanctified (Oklahoma)

What do these places have in common? They are all places where violence has occurred—and they are all churches.

Most churches—like schools (think Beslan and Newtown) and shopping malls (think Nairobi)—are soft targets. People do not expect violence to occur in their places of worship, and are therefore generally oblivious to safety and security issues.

However, because of their vulnerability, churches are often targeted: by the homeless, by the mentally ill, by disgruntled parishioners, by spouses angered due to pastoral marital counseling which has “gone against them”, by thieves, by pedophiles, by gangs, and also by those wishing to make a statement through violent means–ideological terrorists.

Is your church, synagogue, or temple a physically safe place for you and your family? There are organizations which focus on safety in churches, and some books that address these issues. I’d like to highlight one of each of these:  Black Watch Threat Management Services, and the book, Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church from Violence.

I think highly of the book, and I think highly of the author–who happens to be my husband. Both of us are very concerned about the vulnerability of churches.We believe that it is only a matter of time before organized ideological terrorism strikes our churches here in the U.S., as it has in many other countries around the world. That sense of urgency is one of the reasons he wrote this book.

Even now, there is plenty of violence in churches (frequently unreported by the MSM) much of which could be avoided by paying attention to safety and security concerns, both physical and psychological.

Look at your church, synagogue, or temple with the eyes of an intruder. How easy would it be to break in, or even just WALK in, unchallenged? If your church has a weekday school, Sunday church school, or youth ministry, how safe are the children? Are they as protected as they can be from possible invasion and violence? As we saw in Beslan, Newtown, and Nairobi, youth is no guarantor of safety. In Beslan, schoolchildren were raped, tortured, and murdered. In Nairobi, it is being reported that dead children were found in food court refrigerators, with knives embedded in their bodies.

With ideological terrorism, children are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches are considered to be legitimate targets. Churches and churchgoers of all ages are indeed often singled out, due to their belief stance being in opposition to the perpetrators’ ideology (seen unmistakably in Nairobi).

What can you do to ensure increased security in your church, synagogue, or temple? First and foremost, realize that “it CAN happen here”. Churches do not have to be soft targets, however. Much can be done to improve safety and security. I believe that my husband’s book is very good, and very thorough. He is uniquely qualified to write this, being both an ordained pastor and a clinical psychologist, with training in executive protection and threat assessment. Check out the table of contents to see what is covered; look at a brief list of recent church violence, of many types (links below).  And then consider the possible results of inaction or dismissal. Some of them are irreversible.

A final word, from the book:

“As with a medieval castle, we proposed the erection of walls around the people of the church. The first wall is spiritual, armed and defended by prayer and discernment. The second wall is psychological, watched over by knowledge of pre-incident indicators and the respect of our intuition. Finally, before violence can reach the vulnerable people within, it will have to breach the final wall of safety technology, efficiently enacted policies, and a tactically trained protection team…Church leaders have been called to represent the Good Shepherd, the one who leads his sheep into good pastures and keeps them safe from the wolves. Even in the valley of the shadow of death, security and caring are there for the sheep because the rod and staff of the shepherd are held in the hands of the leaders.”  (p. 200)

Violence already impacts our churches, and will likely get worse. NOW is the time for churches and church leaders to prepare.

_______________________________________

“Wolves Among the Sheep: Protecting Your Church From Violence”

(home page:  http://blackwatchprotection.org/  )

(table of contents  http://blackwatchprotection.org/books__articles  )

(brief list of examples of violence in churches   http://blackwatchprotection.org/incidents_of_church_attacks  )

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

A final word, from the book:

“As with a medieval castle, we proposed the erection of walls around the people of the church. The first wall is spiritual, armed and defended by prayer and discernment. The second wall is psychological, watched over by knowledge of pre-incident indicators and the respect of our intuition. Finally, before violence can reach the vulnerable people within, it will have to breach the final wall of safety technology, efficiently enacted policies, and a tactically trained protection team…Church leaders have been called to represent the Good Shepherd, the one who leads his sheep into good pastures and keeps them safe from the wolves. Even in the valley of the shadow of death, security and caring are there for the sheep because the rod and staff of the shepherd are held in the hands of the leaders.”  (p. 200)

Violence already impacts our churches, and will likely get worse. NOW is the time for churches and church leaders to prepare.

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

A final word, from the book:

“As with a medieval castle, we proposed the erection of walls around the people of the church. The first wall is spiritual, armed and defended by prayer and discernment. The second wall is psychological, watched over by knowledge of pre-incident indicators and the respect of our intuition. Finally, before violence can reach the vulnerable people within, it will have to breach the final wall of safety technology, efficiently enacted policies, and a tactically trained protection team…Church leaders have been called to represent the Good Shepherd, the one who leads his sheep into good pastures and keeps them safe from the wolves. Even in the valley of the shadow of death, security and caring are there for the sheep because the rod and staff of the shepherd are held in the hands of the leaders.”  (p. 200)

Violence already impacts our churches, and will likely get worse. NOW is the time for churches and church leaders to prepare.

Read more at http://iowntheworld.com/blog/?p=205765#B5hkrHOqyXVYqRT4.99

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Tags: Vigilance, Watchers on the walls of Jerusalem, Second American Revolution, Attacks on Churches, Temples, Synagogues, Islam and Jihad, Communism, Collectivism, Persecution of people of the Book. To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the Patriot's Corner. Thanks!