Anyone who knows me knows I'm a pacifist, but that's another story for another day . . . and probably one of my other websites. The only reason I mention the fact is that there are people who think I'm really confused because I do support the people within law enforcement who do, at times, use violence. My apologies, force and violence are two different things and I slipped into the pacifist terminology. At worst, they think I'm lying about believing all Christians should be pacifist, yet also state I don't think anyone within the law enforcement ranks can't be a Christian because they don't believe or act the same way I do. Again, another story for another day. This site wasn't created for deep theological discussions.
      Many of the police officers I know are Christians and I do support them in the work they do. I believe we have a lot in common, even if our theology differs. Police officers are sworn to serve and protect the communities in which they live. Any time they can prevent crime or get the criminals off the street, our community becomes a safer place to live. Both I and the police are hard at work making positive changes. They teach through enforcing the laws, while I teach through my words. If we work as a team, they can take a criminal off the street and I can reach out and show them the alternatives to a life of crime.
      But this is also the reason I think some Christians can and do work within law enforcement. Many of those I know split their work between the office and outreach programs. They're responsible for putting people behind bars, yet they have knowledge of the laws and the experience of people in bad situations they can use to further help teach people about the alternatives. The police can't evangelize on the job, but they can show people respect and that there are people who really care about them.
      One argument I've heard, besides the pacifist one, against Christian police is about how they're more likely to ignore any crime committed against anyone in a group which opposes their personal beliefs. While this does happen from time to time, it's more probable an officer of any religion will ignore crimes based on the race, occupation, or economic level of the victim or criminal. None of these are acceptable. What I've found is that Christian police, at least those I know, will more often enforce every law the same because they view life from the perspective that every human has equal value.
      Everything I've said here could and probably is a generalization based on the police offers I know. If you're a Christian within law enforcement, I'm interested in hearing how and why you tie your faith to your job. Send me an email, just be sure to use one of the links on my contact page or type "Detective Jake's Place" in the subject line. Also, if you have a website, please include your site name and URL in the email.