Milwaukee - After a new law permitting people to
carry concealed weapons was passed, Catholic bishops in Wisconsin are asking their parishioners
not to bring them to church.
The
statement, read by Archbishop Jerome Listecki, reads “intuitively,
we understand that acts of violence, destruction, and murder are
antithetical to the message and person of Jesus Christ and have no
rightful place in our society, especially sacred places," the
bishops said just before the law went into effect on Tuesday.
"We ask that all people seriously
consider not carrying weapons into church buildings as a sign of
reverence for these sacred spaces.”
Listecki said the law makes it an individual church's decision
whether to ban weapons or not. The permit allows people to carry
concealed handguns, electric weapons, any knife except for
switchblades, and clubs. Machine guns, short-barreled rifles, and
shot-barreled shotguns are not part of the law and are still banned.
An employer may bar an employee from bringing their concealed
weapon to work but cannot stop them from keeping them in the car even
if it's on workplace property.
In order to get the permit a mandatory four-hour training course
or hunter-safety course must be passed.
Since the bill passed on Tuesday, there have been more than
20-thousand permit applications. So far 879 were approved and 793
were printed. The state's Justice Department said 117 were rejected
due to incomplete applicant data, insufficient training
documentation, or a missing payment.
