Posted on April 16, 2017 by PLT Staff

Lecture given by Firmin DeBrabander at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, VA (March 2017). In response to the gun rights movement that has driven the United States into achieving the highest rate of private gun ownership in the world today, DeBrabander argues that our freedom is greatly hindered by this armed society. First discussing its threat to the very basis of civil society, he notes how the recent legislative efforts of campus carry, permitless carry, and Stand Your Ground laws are a dangerous invasion of the public sphere that undermines member discourse and democracy at large. Transitioning into the Catholic church’s teaching of the social good, DeBrabander closes with a call for faith believers to turn back the radical agenda of the NRA that impairs us as individuals, as human beings, and as God’s creation. To find a listing of all our Occasional Lectures, click here.

Excerpt: “The proliferation of guns in society, and the NRA’s objection to safety measures of any kind, victimizes populations of special concern of the church, vulnerable populations that the Gospel has charged us with protecting… We are outwardly directed and disposed by nature. We require the contribution of and interaction with others just to live, much less flourish. On our own, we are incomplete, not fully human. The Catholic church teaches that we must work in and within the political community, advancing the common good in order to perfect our nature. By contrast, there is a very dark vision of the world of humanity in the gun rights movement. Indeed, this is necessary to advance this radical agenda.”

• Audio Information
• Date Recorded:March 2017
• Location Recorded:Charlottesville, VA
• Audio File:Download File »