Guns in Church

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

A: You can't bring guns in here! This is a church!
B: And these are holy guns. Because they make a rather large hole-y.

—Jackie Chan's First Strike

Imagine this scenario for a bit: You're at a bank, and someone walks in, wielding a sword, gun, axe, or any other matter of established weapon (not a chair leg). The implications are far from good, unless of course, it happens in a video game. Obviously, the hero has just come to withdraw money from his account so he can purchase even bigger swords to walk into banks with.

In short, Guns in Church is what occurs when a weapon is carried or brandished when not appropriate. When you have Guns In Church, the bank, the supermarket, the U.N, an airport, or anywhere else where the very mention of a weapon could be grounds for arrest, people in games are surprisingly aloof to the dangers it presents. As a result, everyone fantasizes about owning a sword/gun/etc that will never leave their side in all of life's journeys.

In Real Life, however, throughout most of the civilized world, life is just peaceful enough that this is typically a bad idea. With an individual who normally is expected to carry a weapon (such as a knight, policeman, or soldier), if they have a means to store a weapon that can be easily drawn, this trope then is restricted to them actually carrying it (For example, a policeman who has a gun in his hand everywhere he goes, leaving his holster empty.)

Some weapons (such as rifles, large machine guns, and Arm Cannons) can't be sheathed/holstered, and due to context, the trope is often averted by necessity. If you are a soldier, then chances are, not only do you play the trope straight, but you're actually better off for it. The same does not hold true for an average white-collar office drone walking down the street holding a claymore. (the mine or the sword).

Compare Improbable Use of a Weapon, when a weapon may be appropriate, but the one used is unlikely or impossible. Also, Ornamental Weapon, where it is carried, but doesn't get used for other reasons. Compare also Brats with Slingshots, which has a tendency to reflect this trope but with children.

For when a shootout actually does take place in a church, see Bloodstained-Glass Windows.

Despite the trope name, churches are only a minor example.

Why do these examples have their weapons out?

Anime and Manga

  • One rather hilarious subversion comes in Lupin III. Daisuke Jigen almost always has a weapon handy, but as bad luck would have it, violence breaks out during a wedding, one of the rare times he is not. He instinctively goes to for his holster, and is noticeably embarrassed to realize it isn't there.
  • Premise of Tetragrammaton Labyrinth has the main characters fighting evil. They live in a church. Some fight scenes take place in churches.

Film

  • Subverted In the K-9 sequel K-9-11, James Belushi's character gets into a discussion with his boss about the kind of sidearms he carries while on the job, at the same time brandishing each handgun in succession. His boss urges him to put them away several times.
    • Later on in the same movie, while at the park, when he mistakes a toy gun for a real one, he pulls out his own. This prompts his partner/rival's dog to charge him and bite his arm, dropping the gun from his hands.
  • In The Weather Man, Nicolas Cage's character takes up archery as a hobby. At the end of the movie, he is seen carrying a bow over his shoulder as he walks down the city streets. In closing narration, he acknowledges that it might be why people don't throw things at him from their cars anymore.
  • In Kill Bill, the Bride carries a katana onto a trans-oceanic flight and through the airport without trouble. Shots seem to suggest that everyone on the flight has a katana though.
  • Used twice in the 3rd Dirty Harry movie The Enforcer. First he chases a suspect into a church and has him at gunpoint when the minister gets pissed (then his partner kicks the door open with her gun drawn). Later he returns to the church to question the minister about someone in connection to the kidnapping (and potential murder) of the mayor and ends up drawing his gun when the minister refuses to talk. As Harry is dealing with that a woman dressed as a nun tries to shoot him with a shotgun, only for Harry's partner to show up and shoot the nun.
  • Spoofed in Spy Hard, when Leslie Nielson's character sneaks into a church to rescue a girl, he has to deal with a bunch of violence-prone nuns, ending with nuns brandishing machine guns and trying to shoot at them!

"Girls! Make 'em holy!"

  • In Unforgiven sheriff Little Bill is deadly serious about his 'no guns in town' policy so any time a stranger in town is seen carrying any weapon, even holstered, it means big trouble. Either, the stranger is about to shoot people or Little Bill is going to beat him into a bloody pulp.
  • Used for a joke early in Man Of The House. When Texas Ranger Sharp and his partner go to a church to get information from an ex-con turned minister, Sharp keeps his gun with him. When reminded by his partner that they're entering a church, Sharp replies, "that's why I didn't bring the helicopter".

Literature

  • In Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the Shepardsons and the Grangerfords take their rifles everywhere, including church on Sunday.
    • This is something from Real Life, at least in the old English-Scots Border region where many of the rural Southerners came from. The Border was a lawless and violent place, and if you didn't have a weapon at all times you'd likely meet someone who did have one and was willing to use it. On you.
  • In The Hunt for Red October, the Soviet representative states that although the USSR's submarines are massing on the US eastern coast, they are still in international waters and legally allowed to be there. An American points out that in the USA someone may be legally allowed to carry a shotgun on their property but if your next door neighbor starts patrolling his lawn with one while your children are playing on your lawn, you are not going to be happy about it.
  • In the Iron Druid Chronicles the Atticus gets a lot of flak for carrying his sword with him in public despite there being nothing inherently illegal about it. To be fair the cops suspect him in multiple murders including cop killings. He usually uses his magic to make his weapons invisible, so if other people can see them, it means that he is in trouble and violence is very likely to occur.
    • Normally carrying a baseball bat will not look very suspicious but when Atticus was lurking in a night club parking lot after dark with two baseball bats the police justifiably thought he was up to no good. He really could not explain that he was backing up a witch in killing a bunch of monsters who were immune to iron.

Live-Action TV

  • Brass Eye evoked this in a satirical News Parody about America's fascination with handguns.
  • On Combat Hospital all the doctors and nurses wear a sidearm strapped to their hip. They are soldiers in a war zone and are required to carry a weapon.
  • Thirty Rock: Pete is justifiably alarmed when Kenneth turns in a gun as well along with his page's badge. For non-fans: they work on a television show, folks.
    • When Liz visits a bad neighborhood nicknamed "Little Chechnya", she asks if she just saw a man walking down the street holding a gun. She is told, "Yeah, but don't worry, he's not a cop."
  • On Garth Marenghi's Darkplace, most of the characters, who work in a hospital, seem to have guns at all times. This comes in handy when they're attacked by Animate Inanimate Objects, undead warlocks, and Scotsmen.

Newspaper Comics

  • Part Rule of Funny, part Take That. One Peanuts strip had Snoopy renewing his dog licence. He also gets a driving permit and a fishing licence, but according to the people in the government building, he didn't need one for the assault rifle he'd brought with (presumably in Hammerspace).

Tabletop Games

  • A common joke regarding the Imperial Guard involves Guardsmen obsessively taking their standard-issue lasrifles everywhere, including to the latrines and, presumably, mass (granted, said mass is conducted by an organization that employs flamethrower-equipped nuns). Since IG regulations proscribe execution for losing an issue weapon outside of combat, they have a solid reason not to let it out of sight.
    • Truth in Television in actual armed forces; your personal weapon during a deployment does not leave your side. It accompanies you everywhere from the latrine to the chow hall to divine services. The only places you got without your weapon is the shower (if you can get one) or the grave.
      • This is in large part because the enemy is usually not polite enough to let you go fetch your weapon should they happen to attack while you have your pants down.
  • Plenty of players in a wide range of RPG games will take for granted that they can carry their swords/bows/guns/staffs of power anywhere without hindrance, including bars, temples and audiences with the king. Just have an NPC ask them to leave their weapons behind, and they'll react with fear, suspicion and outrage. Then they'll usually try to conceal the weapons somehow, or develop elaborate tactics to reach their weapons just in case the pacifistic church where no one is allowed to carry a weapon happens to be full of armed soldiers.
  • Dungeons & Dragons traditionally doesn't even bother. In most settings you'll see palaces and places with Truce Zone rules having "check on entry" rule, but that's all. It doesn't help that few authors remember that there are differences between poleaxes and sidearms.
    • Forgotten Realms has many political entities, from minor city-states to Cormyr, that exercise "peace bonding" tradition: carrying sidearms is allowed almost anywhere, but one must check each weapon on entry and have it tied to stay in the sheath (or wherever it's carried) with a ribbon using an elaborate knot. This doesn't hinder self-defense much, but gives the hot-headed a chance to remember where they are, or at least helps the local enforcement to see who had steel out and who didn't later (accurately tying a non-trivial knot is not easy to do in a rush and/or on the run).

Video Games

  • Deus Ex: Certain areas will have a "No Weapons" sign when you enter them. Ignoring this sign will cause unarmed NPCs to panic, and armed ones to attack you.
    • 2027 a Game Mod for Deus Ex, cleverly averts this by forcing you to leave your weapons with a bouncer when you enter a nightclub.
  • Deus Ex Invisible War averts this, though, as in certain areas you can have your weapons, but they are "locked down" so you can't use them. Also the strength mod is suppressed so you can't use items in the environment heavy enough to damage.
  • Deus Ex Human Revolution averts this. Certain areas won't allow you to pull out your weapons, and in other areas civilians will panic and/or refuse to talk to you if your gun is drawn.
  • In the Gothic games, unsheathing a weapon or preparing an offensive spell out of combat will make people nervous, and they will attack you if you don't put it away after a few warnings.
  • Radd Spencer of Bionic Commando is warned not to shoot within neutral zones, but the fact that he brought a bazooka with him is perfectly okay.
    • The computer, naturally, is not at all restricted, and can attack Radd freely. If he retaliates, he's killed by the peacekeepers.
  • Duke Nukem 3D features a protagonist arming himself across various normal settings, including a movie theater, a burger chain, a theme park, a supermarket, and even a hotel. The trope is justified by the fact that there is an invasion underway.
  • Faxanadu shows the main character holding his weapon even when he's in a town, or in a King's throne room.
  • Averted in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Link cannot draw his sword in Castle Town.
  • Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. Link's sprites show him constantly holding his sword, even if he is in a peaceful town. One must wonder if this makes the townspeople nervous.
  • Averted in Perfect Dark, when wearing a disguise. If Joanna pulls out a weapon in front of a guard or is caught wielding one otherwise, Her cover will immediately be blown, and she may even be accosted for it.
    • Where did you get that!?
    • Put that down, NOW!
  • Similarly, during the undercover missions in the early Medal of Honor games, pulling a gun out in front of German soldiers would blow your cover. But thanks to No Body Left Behind, taking out lone guards while their back was turned with your silenced pistol didn't.
  • Averted in all 3 games of S.T.A.L.K.E.R, you can't enter most populated places with your weapon out and nearly no one will talk to you unless you put your weapon away.
  • Mostly averted in Mass Effect, as being a Spectre allows Shepard to go around armed wherever s/he pleases, and in the first game no one bats an eye if Shepard whips out a shotgun in a residential area and starts firing. There are a couple of exceptions where guards try to confiscate your weapons, i.e. the guards as Noveria and Purgatory, and one specific mission in Mass Effect 2 requires Shepard to go around unarmed, while another restricts Shepard to just his/her sidearm at a formal dinner party where only concealed sidearms are allowed.
    • Keep in mind that even after the weapon crackdown between games, Shepard is still allowed to walk around the Citadel with a mini-nuke on his/her back.
  • While taking a gun out while in a fight or police chase will get you shot at, feel free to walk down a street in Liberty City or San Andreas with an assault rifle and not get even a second look from a police officer. However, if you take a gun out inside a police station, they finally take notice (to the player's surprise if they went in to pick up a weapon and forgot it would automatically appear in their hands...)
    • Another aversion appears in Grand Theft Auto IV, where walking into a strip club with a weapon out will get you attacked by the bouncers.
    • Another aversion in Vice City Stories, where entering into the airport automatically strips you of all your weapons. The same goes for the golf course in Vice City, but there's an alternate path into the course that's not particularly hard to go through.
  • In the otherwise forgettable video game for Star Wars: Episode I, Qui-Gon could not draw his lightsaber in Mos Eisley without putting the whole town on alert.
    • The shopkeepers would also comment on you having your lightsaber out.
  • In Star Wars:Jedi Outcast at the start of the Nar Shaddaa level, the game stops you from drawing any weapons or using any Force powers, mainly because Kyle is trying to keep a low profile. When he enters a cantina, his pistol is immediately confiscated, yet he is allowed to keep his lightsabre (although the game still won't let you activate until the action begins).
  • In Knights of the Old Republic and its sequel, you can go anywhere, anytime with any weapon clearly visible in your hands, even Manaan, a planet under very strict pacifist rule. There is a moment on Tatooine in a cantina where the barkeep tell you not to use blasters inside, but he still seems okay with you waving one or two around.
  • Averted in Postal 2. Waving any kind of weapon around will scare people away and/or alert the police. The "E" key allows you holster your weapon.
  • The Elder Scrolls games vary. In Arena and Daggerfall nobody notices you pointing your Daedric Longsword at them in a threatening manner. In Morrowind and Oblivion, however, keeping your weapon drawn while talking to people will result in barely noticeable disposition penalties.
    • In Skyrim guards will complain if you go around with your weapon drawn, but will do nothing to make you sheath it. Also, NPCs may comment if you have a spell ready
  • In Lego Star Wars, attacking anyone (friend, foe, droid, or neutral party) in the hubs will set off a bar brawl in which you can actually take damage and die.
  • The Hitman series of games takes this trope and tosses it off a cliff. If you carry ANY weapon that isn't concealed whilst wearing your default outfit, you will blow your cover and all hell will break loose, with the exception of one level in the entire series (so far), however if you have a guards uniform on things get a bit more relaxed, you can carry two handed weapons, however you can only carry them underslung, and they have to be standard issue to guards/security/gang members. (So if the guards are armed with SMG's, you can't be carrying around a gatling gun), carrying them "at the ready" is still allowed, but far more suspicious, but don't even THINK about aiming. Interestingly even if an alert has been raised, you can only ever have pistols concealed, even if other guards are running around pseudo-aiming, if you draw yours you will be fired upon the moment you are spotted.
  • Aversion in Fable: When you enter Bowerstone, a guard will confiscate your weapons until you leave again. Played straight everywhere else, but "everywhere else" is a lot of small hamlets and the townspeople will still freak out if you actually draw a weapon.
    • While carrying your weapons on your back (or on your side for that matter) in Fable II is acceptable seeing as it is an archaic society, oddly enough, most NPCs keep their weapons in hammerspace.
  • Being unarmed in the world of Fallout is generally a bad idea. There are, however two notable exceptions: The New California Republic in Fallout 2 doesn't allow drawn guns within the city (they have a police force, after all) and waving you gun in someone else's face will penalize speech checks in Fallout 3.
    • And throughout Fallout 1 and 2 there are several places where people will tell you to put your guns away, before they allow you to talk to them or walk into the town.
    • Not exactly this trope but wearing your power armor everywhere can scare quite a few people.
    • The casinos in New Vegas frisk guests for weapons, and thus the guards get understandably upset when you draw a weapon. Gets hilarious when you're treated politely while wearing full Brotherhood of Steel power armour and accompanied by an eight foot tall Super Mutant and a Cyborg German Shepherd, but the guards all pull guns if you slip on brass knuckles.
  • Avoidance of this is an actual play element of No One Lives Forever, as civilians are less than cooperative when Cate is brandishing, so use of quiet weapons and timely holstering are both necessary when in public levels.
  • Subverted in Divine Divinity. People notice when you talk to them with your weapon drawn, and you are given you the option to threaten them, or attack them.
  • Cave Story. No NPC will ever mind if you test your weapons inside their house. Not even Hermit Gunsmith while sleeping.
  • In Vampire: The Masquerade Redemption, your characters could walk around in full tactical armour brandishing RPGs and flamethrowers, and police, store owners and private citizens didn't bat an eye (in NYC this was bad enough but London?). Just don't get caught necking with someone in an alleyway...
  • Given its relative realism you'd expect that drawing weapons in a city might cause a ruckus, but Mount & Blade averts this, and with good reason. Calradia is in a state of constant war, with raiding parties, bandits, and mercenaries pretty much everywhere. A person carrying weapons openly while covered in plate armor is hardly worth a second glance, but civilian NPCs won't fuss if you happen to draw a spear and shove the pointy end in their face while talking to them. Shopkeepers blithely ignore the mace being waved in their face by your character while you browse their wares, and even city guards will simply give you a generic 'don't cause trouble' message.
  • A gameplay element in Scarface the World Is Yours. Waving a gun around causes people to flee and police interest to skyrocket. Paying off the cops is possible. Outright hiding works as well. Even crooks get nervous around your gun. It gets funky when you're trying to do in-game required missions in the middle of the street.
  • Explicitly averted in Persona 4. The Protagonist and Yosuke are ready to go into the TV World to find some clues on the murder of one of their classmates, so Yosuke brings along weapons for them to defend themselves with. Problem is, the portal to the TV World is a TV screen at the local supermarket. And the town IS on edge due to the murder investigation. A brief incident with the police later, they have to spend a few tense moments sweating it out with the Protagonist's uncle (the detective in charge of the investigation) and he spends the entire game being suspicious of his nephew's activities afterwards. They wisely decide to hide their weapons under their clothes next time.
  • In Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines, anywhere designated a 'combat' zone allows you to draw your heaviest artillery and blast away, with no worse repercussions than making nearby non-combatants panic. Normally, combat zones are in areas not covered by law enforcement anyway, but there are a few examples where you'd think you'd get some problems. The trope is inverted in one case, however: A certain enemy has to be killed without the use of firearms or you will be chewed out by the quest-giver, as the subsequent investigation into the enemy's death will have multiple witnesses hearing the gunshots.
  • Played with in Mafia, where the player character stumbles in on the funeral of somebody that they murdered, and is recognized; the mourners draw their guns and a tactical shoot-out ensues. It turns out the family attending goes everywhere armed with their guns.
  • The first gun obtained in They Hunger, is in fact, found in a church. It lies next to the corpse of a Priest, who attempted to ring the church bell that unlocks his secret Dynamite stash. Someone apparently knew that a Zombie Apocalypse was going to happen sooner or later.

Real Life

  • According to this USA Today article, the nuclear football once entered St. John's Church.
  • Europeans seem to think that this is the norm everywhere in America.
    • Most Westerns would have you believe this was case in the wild west. In reality many towns at the time had ordinances requiring you to turn your guns over at a saloon or livery while you were in town. This was one of the things that led up to the shootout between The Earps and The Clantons & McLaurys at the O.K. Corral.
    • In most States in the US, it is legal to walk around wearing guns openly, but there are variations in both law and practice that a wise man would do well to familiarize himself with. Additionally, just because it's legal doesn't mean that some random citizen won't freak out at the mere sight of a firearm; or that you won't have occasional conversations with Law Enforcement while they try to determine if you are going to cause a problem. Private property owners also have the right to forbid weapons on their property.
      • In the state of Pennsylvania, it is actually legal for you to carry most sorts of weapons as long as they are not concealed, and you are not brandishing them. You need to get a special license to carry concealed.
      • In Germany you have to have a special permit to carry a concealed weapon, more special than the permit for carrying a weapon.
      • This really depends on where you are and what kind of gun. Going into a supermarket with a pistol strapped to your waist will probably at least get odd looks even in Texas (even if they're just wondering why you don't conceal it like everyone else - but in metro areas probably the cops will be alerted). Walking down a country road with a .22 over your shoulder will probably garner no more than an offer for a ride to the creek where you plan to go shooting.
        • Texas law forbids the carrying of an openly displayed firearm in public. If you want to carry in Texas, you need a concealed weapons permit and the firearm cannot be showing. On the other hand, carrying openly in Kentucky is likely to get attention only in the most metropolitan areas and even then police will just politely ask the carrier not to carry openly if possible due to the risk of an alarmed citizen wasting police time with a report of a "man with a gun".
    • A lot of people seem to think this is the case in Texas. It's true that Texas gun laws are not strict when it comes to the purchasing and possession of firearms for an ordinary citizen who is not a convicted felon. But there are plenty of limitations on where you can carry, even if you have a concealed handgun license.
      • Churches are in fact one of the places specifically mentioned by Texas state law as off limits for concealed carry.
      • Which is amusing to some, as in certain areas of Massachusetts, there are artifact laws requiring you to bring a gun to church (Danvers and Salem, I believe), that are unenforced, and in Vermont, you can carry a concealed firearm nearly anywhere, including inside a state building, but not public K-12 schools. Though that's more a matter of federal law.
    • Admittedly played 110% terrifyingly straight in a Colorado church in 2007, when two people carrying guns into Church prevented a third (who had apparently chained the other doors shut and was in the only available escape path) from turning the house of worship into an abbatoir.
    • Ironically, there a few places in Europe where this approaches the truth - In Switzerland, you may sometimes find men doing their military service traveling by train and carrying their (unloaded) assault rifles with them. Civilians doing rifle shooting might also carry their assault rifles with them to the range. Still, you won't generally find anyone carrying guns publicly unless it's for the two reasons mentioned (policemen and border guards excepted).
  • There's a joke about how Israel is the safest country in the world because it's the only place where a group of young men can walk into a bank carrying guns and be expected to wait in line (soldiers carry their guns with them when on leave).
    • While Israeli soldiers, like their Swiss counterparts, are not allowed to have their weapons loaded unless they're either at the range or in battle, the considerably higher odds of the latter situation happening in Israel means that they typically carry their assault rifles "unloaded" by simply having the fully-loaded magazine strapped to the side of the rifle instead of inserted into the magazine well. Thus, the "unloaded" rifle is still ready for action within a matter of seconds.
  • Truth in Television. While churches have a very long history of being sanctuaries where you're not permitted to bring a holstered and concealed weapon, there have been been cases of police officers interrupting mass or sermons with drawn guns and not understanding what people are so upset about.
    • The exact phrase used for this sort of situation (at least in Texas) is ".22s for Jesus". Of course we all know that the Lord would prefer to use a Jericho, but that gets into a completely different debate all together.
    • Louisiana recently passed a law allowing people to carry firearms in church. It prompted a lot of snarky comments. Generally from folks who hadn't read the law in question. Not only do you have to have a Concealed Handgun License, but you also have to have permission from the pastor/priest/rabbi/imam/etc, and to be a member of a volunteer security group for that church.
  • Truth in Television in much of the US, where concealed-weapons permits are easy to obtain. May not count as this trope since they're...well...concealed.
    • And even so, even those can be banned from certain places, such as schools, government buildings, and some private businesses.
    • Interestingly enough, many gun shops in the US (which often contain an attached shooting range and offer gunsmith services so you can get your weapon fixed) will have a strict rule concerning concealed or holstered weapons: They STAY that way while you are in the store. If you want to have the gunsmith look at the weapon, or if you want to use the shooting range, you walk in with the weapon out where they can see it. And unloaded, until you actually step in to the shooting range.
      • This way you pulling the weapon out won't be misconstrued as you drawing a gun to rob the place or shoot someone. And yes, there have been cases where a guy walked into a gun store (with customers in there) and tried to rob it. One had to walk past a police car to get to the gun shop...
      • Gun shop carry rules are also often in place to prevent incidents of negligent discharge in the "trying out holsters" situation (holsters come in all manner of designs to accommodate differing body types and carry positions. Quality holsters can be expensive, and carrying a 4 lb chunk of metal on your body in a poorly-fitting holster can be very uncomfortable, making "try before you buy" a good idea in holster selection if you're not independently wealthy).
    • Depends highly on the state. Usually concealed carry states forbid bars and schools. The federal government also doesn't like it in most federal institutions, so Courthouses and such are off limits. The VA actively sends police officers to check on every admitted patient. Federal lands are a mixed bag, as hunting in national parks and national forests is a big debate.
      • A law was recently passed that applies all states' concealed carry licenses (or rather, the 49 for which such licenses exist) to be applicable in national parks. Since rifles and hunting-suitable large-caliber handguns are basically impossible to conceal, they can still only go through a national park while unloaded and locked away.
    • And then, some states have open-carry laws which don't require any permit so long as the weapon is worn in plain sight. Federal property restrictions still apply and private property owners can forbid them, but as long as you can legally possess a weapon it's okay. Don't assume or take anyone's word that your state allows open carry - Check your local laws first.
    • It should also be noted that most states have separate laws for handguns and long guns. For example, in Michigan a license must be obtained to carry a concealed handgun, but no permit is needed to carry in the open. It's perfectly legal to carry around a rifle or shotgun without a license, so long as it's not in or on a motor vehicle (due to hunting from vehicles being prohibited). If you want to carry in a church, synagogue, mosque, etc., you need the concealed carry permit along with the permission of the person in charge of the house of worship.
    • Michigan also happens to be one of the few states that require law-enforcement personnel to carry their sidearms even when off duty, except in church.
    • In colonial times Massachusetts had a law requiring people to bring a gun to church. This was back in the days when the community could potentially get attacked by hostile natives during the sermon, so it was justified. It probably isn't on the books anymore, and even if it is, it certainly isn't enforced.
  • There are some places in the States where guns are allowed in bars.
  • Despite being under Norwegian sovereignty, Svalbard allows everyone to carry rifles openly (although there are some rules on how to carry them in populated areas). Why? Because of Polar Bears.
  • Averted in the UK, where handguns aren't allowed, at all. So when a French cop working in St Pancras station for the international customs office (they have French cops on the British side and vice-versa) forgot to take her gun out of her holster when she walked across to the non-international section of the station to buy lunch, she got in serious trouble.
  • Swords served a dual purpose in Medieval Europe, especially during Crusades: In addition to weapons, they were also a makeshift crucifix. It was not that uncommon for a knight to enter a place of worship and use it as such, or in some other peaceful, humble way.
  • In communities in the Canadian Arctic it isn't impossible to see someone walking into the local store with a slung rifle to pick up something before they head out on to the land, although it's generally considered to be rude. On the other hand, seeing people driving down the street on an ATV or a snowmobile carrying a rifle or shotgun is extremely common. It actually became a security issue when G8 Finance Ministers were meeting in Iqaluit and southern security personnel had to be briefed in advance to make sure that they didn't shoot an elder puttering along down the street heading out to his cabin.
  • In Colonial New England the Church doubled not only as a political and social center but as the militia's ammunition dump. Naturally that made it hard on the congregation when they could not light a furnace in New England's infamous winters. Don't doubt it, anyone from there, your ancestors were tough.
  • Similarly Scottish Covenanters have long had a tradition of setting watch during Church service in case their religious(and clan) rivals wished to put on a surprise. The tradition remains in Covenator regiments though the probability of being interrupted at chapel by someone wanting to burn them at the stake has...somewhat decreased of late.
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