Looking for a patron saint of handguns?

I’ve gained a devotion to Saint Gabriel Possenti over the years for two reasons: first, he is a saint of holy purity, but more important to his 11 year old mind – Gabriel Possenti is the patron saint of handguns.

I can hear the wave of opposition building. Whenever I mention guns on this blog (or gun safes for Christmas), I get some backlash from well-meaning Catholics (usually European) that believe that guns are horrible, wicked, and evil. They find my appreciate for guns immature and misguided for a Catholic.

Oh well…

I’ll try to “disarm” you at the beginning. Yes, we use guns as tools to hunt for food. If you’re a city slicker from LA or Paris, this may sound foreign to you, but here in Texas we still kill animals, cook them, pray over them, and then eat them.

As my Franciscan friend Father Pio Hoffman says, “Yes, of course we Franciscans love animals. They are delicious.”

And as my father (who has a PhD in Meat Science from Texas A&M) says, “If God didn’t want us to eat animals, why did he make them out of meat?”

Joy’s dad brought us about 100 pounds of elk meat that he hunted. It’s in our freezer.

I’m hunting for Nilgai meat (South Texas) in March with my father, brother, and brother in law. My son also ate the deer that he patiently hunted last year.

Gentlemen, you haven’t lived until you have hunted, shot, cleaned, butchered, roasted, and eaten your own meat. Can I get a witness?

Also, I’m a big believer that firearms, when carefully respected are a great source of sport and recreation. Did you see them in the Olympics, by the way. I don’t know who thought of this sport, skiing and shooting, but it’s cool to watch:

My wife and I have also been trained in self-defense with a handgun, so, seriously, don’t mess with Joy!

By the way, I follow my friend Jordan Low’s rule, when you pick up a gun, always say a “Hail Mary” for prudence with the weapon and to avoid accidents.

All this is to say that guns can have a proper place in the life a Christian man or woman. With proper supervision and gun safe’s to prevent accidents, young adults can also enjoy guns in the context of hunting, sport, and self-defense.

Patron Saint of Handguns, Gabriel Possenti

Saint Gabriel Possenti’s feast day is February 27. He is the patron of hanguns because his marksmanship enabled him to rescue a woman about to be raped by a marauding gang of thugs at Isola del Gran Sasso, Italy in 1860.

Here’s the story:

After freeing a young woman from would-be rapists, St. Gabriel Possenti confronted the onrushing brigands waving revolvers. At that moment, Possenti fired at a lizard that happened to be running across the road and dispatched it with one shot. Thus having demonstrated his excellent handgun marksmanship, he was able to take command of the situation and ran the now-frightened brigands out of town.

St. Gabriel Possenti performed this feat of courage without causing physical harm to a single human being.

St. Gabriel Possenti died in 1862. He was canonized by Pope Benedict XV in 1920.

Shoot ’em up, pow, pow. Poor lizard.

Saint Gabriel Possenti, pray for us.

[reminder]If you’re a Christian who enjoys hunting and marksmanship, please leave a comment below.[/reminder]