Following the massacre at synagogue in Pittsburgh last Shabbos, there have been reports of many Jews expressing interest in getting weapons training and licenses to protect against another tragedy R”L.
Now, gun store in Colorado is offering synagogues way to defend themselves, for free.
KOAA reports Mel Bernstein, owner of Dragon Arms just outside Colorado Spring, is offering to give rabbis a free AR-15 or a handgun. He’ll also include training and ammunition.
Bernstein made the comparison of an active shooting to a fire. He said if a fire broke out, you’d reach for a fire extinguisher to keep people safe, and by his reasoning, you should be able to reach for a weapon during an active shooting.
[RELATED – Every Shul Should Have An Armed Person – A Halachic Analysis]
[RELATED – WATCH: Trump: If Pittsburgh Synagogue Had An Armed Guard “They Would Have Been Able To Stop” The Shooter]
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5 Responses
Not a bad deal depending on the training. If he’s giving someone basic weapons handling and two hours at a range, it’s not enough. It takes many hours of weapons training to be able to shoot accurately and safely in crowds. It takes training at a tactical range with both static and moving targets. It’s also going to take lots of practice which is $$ for range time and ammo.
Mel Bernstein is a most interesting Yid, certainly for the east side of the rockies.
Tragicly, his wife was killed in a dumb accident involving smoke grenade cannisters, R’L.
So every Kollel yungerleit studying for semicha will be required to pass a marksmanship exam in addition to having mastered the required limudei torah?? When disagreements break out on Shabbos morning about a makom kavuah in shul or too much noise from the Kiddush club, can we expect the Rav (who is packing heat) to come waving his Glock (which of course will have been previously determined not to be muktzah)??
Seriously though, perhaps consider hiring an off-duty policeman or military veteran to provide armed security but PLEASE don’t even consider putting weapons in the hands of our rebbeim.
Good righteous gentleman who cares about safety of our brothers and sisters. Thank you
Wait till he finds out how many Rabbis there are, he’ll go bankrupt!