Mass shootings are violent crimes that shock the conscience. There have been over 300 mass shootings in 2022, according to the Washington Post. There have also been 27 school shootings so far in 2022, as reported by National Public Radio (NPR). This information includes death as well as injuries.
There are those who want us to believe that guns are the issue. But are there homicides caused each year by other means? The answer is YES! Consider knives or other cutting instruments, which were used in about 10% of homicides in 2019. What about deaths caused by motor vehicles? I realize that many motor vehicle deaths are caused by inattentive drivers who did not intend to kill others. But nevertheless, death occurred. The National Safety Council informs us that as many as 42,060 people are estimated to have died in motor vehicle crashes in 2020. That is the highest in 13 years! Also, consider hands, fists and feet which, according to the Uniformed Crime Report (UCR), were used in 662 homicides in 2020. So are we going to make parts of the human body illegal? Will we make motor vehicles illegal? Shall we outlaw knives?
Friends, let common sense prevail! It is not inanimate objects that kill; it is the heart of the person where evil exists. Almost 2,000 years ago, Jesus said, “For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, and blasphemies.” (Matthew 15:19)
If we can change the hearts of people, violence would disappear. It is not a coincidence that as church attendance has declined, violence has increased and society has crumbled.
It is an easy fix if Americans would dust off their Bibles, study them and return to a Bible-teaching Church. Set a new direction for yourself and I’ll see you in church on Sunday!
Rev. David Corbett
Maine Senate Candidate
District 32 (Biddeford, Arundel, Dayton, Lyman, Hollis)