How safe are you in your church? This is not something most of us think about
too much. But hopefully you have someone in your church that is thinking about
security. The latest statistics are a reminder that we aren’t as safe in our houses of
worship as we used to be.

Last week I had Jimmy Meeks on my radio program to talk about church security.
He has been a police officer for more than three decades and an ordained minister for
four decades. He is also an expert in crime prevention and has conducted over 75 church
safety seminars. He and his wife were married at a church that was the site of one of the
first church shootings.

You might remember the church shooting at Wedgewood Baptist Church in 1999.
Jimmy Meeks says that since 1999 there have been 431 violent deaths in churches and
other faith-based facilities. More people have been killed in these venues than have been
killed in schools. These killings have been in Baptist churches, Amish facilities, even
Buddhist Temples.

His website (Cop and Cross) addresses many of the threats we face in society
from violence against women to violence against children to violence in the church. He
also speaks about the threat from pedophiles that often seek out churches and camps
looking for victims.

Alliance Defending Freedom has put together a resource of “Church Security
Recommendations.” Churches need to have a plan and put someone in charge. Then they
can begin to ask relevant questions about surveillance and layers of security. The church
also needs to know how to isolate or remove disruptors.

Childcare is another issue. A church needs to conduct background checks and
have a foolproof system for check-in. They also need a lockdown procedure.

Sadly churches and houses of worship are not as safe as they used to be. We need
to be trained and ready for whatever might happen in what used to be one of the safest
places on earth.