By Susan Quinn
Carrying guns may seem contrary to those who are attending their churches and synagogues, anticipating a spiritual and peaceful encounter. But the facts are in: attending a house of worship comes with inherent danger, and we all should consider the importance and value of being armed.
Under President Trump, the federal government (FEMA specifically) created a new grant program, directing taxpayer dollars to the Nonprofit Security Grant Program so that faith-based institutions could fund security operations:
Today [August 19, 2025], the Department of Homeland Security announced it is awarding $110 million to more than 600 faith-based organizations and other nonprofits across the United States. In the face of violent criminals and radical organizations intent on hurting American communities, the Trump-Vance Administration is helping houses of worship, schools and community centers to harden their defenses against attacks and protect themselves.
In June 2025, DHS announced the first round of funding: $100 million allocated to more than 500 Jewish faith-based organizations across the United States. This initial announcement came after the terror attack in Boulder, Colorado, and the murder of two Israeli Embassy staffers. All faith-based institutions were eligible to apply for grant funding to help defend themselves from threats.
Do the number of attacks justify the spending of government dollars? Absolutely. Here are the results of one study from the Family Research Council:
It [the report] declares that ‘hostility against American churches is not only on the rise but also accelerating.’ Identifying some 436 incidents against churches in 2023 — more than double the number in 2022, according to their records, and more than eight times the number in 2018 — it warned that these are ‘destructive and have the potential to intimidate a religious community.’
full story at https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2025/10/houses_of_worship_must_arm_themselves.html