FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 30, 2023

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The tragic shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville gripped our nation as we all received the Breaking News that three nine-year old children and three staff, which included the Headmaster Katherine Koonce and her daughter, lost their lives by a former transgender student.

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As pastors and leaders of ministries that embrace a Christian ethic, reaching over 1,000,000 followers of Christ, we extend our prayers and resources to the families of those who lost their lives at Covenant School.  We mourn with all of you.  

We know these mere words could never penetrate the depths of your sorrow, but we know the Holy Spirit is an ever present help in your time of need and He will bring you peace in your time of mourning.  

Our coalition of leaders is now mobilizing at the local, state, and federal levels to promote common sense solutions to fortifying soft targets, like our schools, to advocate for security software systems, on-site armed and canine security, and to repeal ordinances and laws that announce schools as Gun Free Zones.  We must end the invitation to our schools as easy targets.  We must also recognize the contribution mental illness has played in recent mass shootings and cease ignoring practical solutions that empower law enforcement to respond to threats before they occur.  

We are in a cultural revolution against God and country determined to normalize the things of darkness and to replace God from our nation at all costs.  The revolution’s agenda is fueled by sin.  We have come together across denominations and faiths to declare we will not be silent.  

We affirm there is no acceptable radicalization, domestic terrorism, or hate crime and we stand against it in all of its forms.  Moreover, instead of targeting parents who seek to protect their own children, we must demand the Department of Justice instead stop those who have plans to hurt them.  We commit our support to them in that effort. 

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We now call on all Americans to join us in standing to protect our children across our nation wherever they are vulnerable for “[i]t would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea” (Matthew. 18:6) than to hurt one of God’s children.

We denounce all calls to blame anyone, any inanimate object, or the Christian faith for the senseless murders at Covenant School based on Tennessee’s duly elected legislators passing legislation to prevent minors from undergoing gender reassignment surgery and call upon all Americans to place the blame where it belongs, squarely on Audrey Hale.  

In the Service of the Kingdom of God,

Concerned Faith Leaders For The Children