Violence in houses of worship never justified

Jun 1, 2009

Yesterday, May 31, 2009, George Tiller was shot to death while serving as an usher at his Lutheran church in Wichita, Kansas.

"Whoever saw fit to murder George Tiller--in a house of worship no less--has done something unspeakably evil. Period.” said Kevin “Seamus” Hasson, President and Founder of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.

The Becket Fund’s long-held position has been that violence in or against houses of worship is never justified.

“The authorities seem to think they have this particular crime well in hand. Nevertheless, to repeat once again: We stand ready to defend houses of worship of any tradition—Jewish, Christian, Hindu, or any other —from violence, regardless of the cause that violence seeks to serve.” added Hasson. “The way to approach disputes over serious moral questions such as abortion is through reasoned public debate open to all.“

The Becket Fund is a non-profit, public interest law firm defending the freedom of religion of people of all faiths. Our clients have included Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, and Zoroastrians.