“Plead God to stop the pandemic of arms, large and small, which infects our world.”
As Catholics, it is our duty to object to the laws in our country which fail to protect human life and dignity.
When the number one reason that parents will bury their children in the US is gun related injury and violence, we need to confront our relationship with guns and gun culture.
Quick Statistics:
- Gun violence is the leading cause of death for children under 18 years since 2020
- US gun homicide rate is 7x higher than similar high-income countries.
- Gun homicide rate is 49x for 15-24 age group
- There are more guns than people in the US
- 400-500 million civilian owned firearms in the US
- 1.5 guns for every person
- There have been over 400 school shootings in the US since the 1999 Columbine high school shooting.
- In 2024, 178 people were killed in Maine by a gun, at a per-capita rate of one person for every 8,000 residents – the highest per capita rate in the Northeast.
- Citations:
- Villarreal, S., Kim, R., Wagner, E., Somayaji, N., Davis, A., & Crifasi, C. K. (2024). Gun Violence in the United States 2022: Examining the Burden Among Children and Teens. Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions. Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
- Small Arms Survey Global Firearms Holdings Press Release, 18 June 2018.
- “A Timeline of School Shootings Since Columbine”, Security.org (accessed 26 Sept 2025).
- “Opinion: Actually, Governor Mills, you’re wrong. We do need a red flag law.”, Maine Beacon, mainebeacon.org (accessed 26 Sept 2025).
“Remembering in our prayers for the victims of the tragic shooting during a school Mass in the American state of Minnesota. We include in our prayers the countless children killed and injured every day around the world. Let us plead God to stop the pandemic of arms, large and small, which infects our world. May our mother, Mary, the Queen of Peace, help us to fulfill the prophecy of Isaiah: ‘They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.’”
Pope Leo XIV, Sunday Noon Blessing, Aug 31, 2025
“Why are deadly weapons being sold to those who plan to inflict untold suffering on individuals and society? Sadly, the answer, as we all know, is simply for money: money that is drenched in blood, often innocent blood. In the face of this shameful and culpable silence, it is our duty to confront the problem and to stop the arms trade.”
Pope Francis, Address of the Holy Father to the Joint Session of the United States Congress, Sept 24, 2015
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has been a long-standing advocate for firearm law reform.
The USCCB has supported:
- Ban on assault style weapons
- Limitations on civilian access to high capacity weapons and ammunition magazines
- Ban bump stocks
- Control sale and use firearms – universal background checks
- Federal law to criminalize gun trafficking
- More appropriate minimum age for gun ownership
- Locks preventing anyone other than owner from operating a gun
Advocated to address the root cause of violent acts:
- Increased mental health resources
- Earlier mental health interventions
- Peace-building in communities
- Assessment of the toll of violent images and experiences on youth
“There is something deeply wrong with a culture where these acts of violence are increasingly common. There must be dialogue followed by concrete action to bring about a broader social renewal that addresses all aspects of the crisis, including mental health, the state of families, the valuation of life, the influence of entertainment and gaming industries, bullying, and the availability of firearms. Among the many steps toward addressing this endemic of violence is the passage of reasonable gun control measures. In this, we implore you to join the Holy Father who, in his continued expression of grief over the tragedy in Texas, declared, ‘It is time to say ‘no more’ to the indiscriminate trafficking of weapons.”
Bishop Chairman of USCCB in Letter to Congress, June 6, 2022