Pastor Lawrence Adams leads Westside Bible Church. The retired police lieutenant has taken to wearing a gun under his robe.
Recently, Adams responded to a break-in at his church and surprised a burglar carrying out a bag of money. The pastor shot the man in the stomach after the man swung the bag at him. The burglar survived -- and while Adams says he's thankful for that, he points out that he could have been hurt or killed if he had not been armed.
Adams is one of several area clergymen who are carrying weapons. Minister William Revely also carries a gun at church. He says when he's armed, he has peace in more ways than one.
"I feel more comfortable now going out, and I can move with a lot more security," Revely shares. "I don't always have it on me. I have a holster that I use, but I don't always wear that when I'm preaching."
The story ends with the understatement of the year.
Detroit has seen a rise in crime over the past few years.
I recently heard that the median home sale price in Detroit is around $7,500.00. Yes, you read that correctly. But then I checked and found out that that number was from December of 2008. The number from June 2009 is $6,000.00. Makes Cleveland look like an economic boom-town by comparison.
BTW, I just picked me up a Glock 27 and it rocketh mightily.
The church I attend is on W. 43rd street in downtown Cleveland. Many of our parishioners are armed during service. For that matter, our pastor is a chaplain for the Cleveland PD and Cleveland FBI and has ridden numerous times with the police so he is no stranger to violence and mayhem.
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