Tales of the Cities

Guns N’ Churches in Colorado Springs

It’s a little slice of heaven

Colorado and Denver

With the majestic Rocky Mountains taking up the frames of travelers and professional photographers' pictures, many people think of Colorado as “God’s Country”.

If that’s the case, why is Colorado also so well known for its numerous mass shootings?

First, let’s talk about politics. In the last four presidential elections, Colorado has voted blue. Both of its senators are democrats. Four of its seven congressional representatives are democrats.

The governor of Colorado, Jared Polis, is a democrat and is openly gay, only the second to be elected as governor of a U.S. state. He is the only governor to be in a same-sex marriage. Polis is also Jewish.

The mayor of Denver, Michael Hancock, is a democrat. Hancock is Black and is currently serving in his third term as mayor. Interestingly, he attended tiny Hastings College in tiny Hastings, Nebraska (population 25,000) for his undergraduate education. Hastings is 1% Black.

Denver, with a metro area of nearly three million, constitutes 52% of the state’s population of 5.8 million. The area votes democratic by far with more and more young, college-educated and suburban voters. As Denver goes, so goes the state.

Denver is virtually intolerable for a conservative.

Colorado Springs

Meanwhile, 71 miles south on I-25 lies the second city, Colorado Springs. With a metro population of 755,000, it makes up about 13% of the citizens of Colorado.

And it can’t be redder. Well OK, let’s call it a solid purple.

Because of the huge military presence there, as well as military retirees who lean conservative, “The Springs” is the place to be in Colorado if you’re a Republican and/or conservative. But there’s one other reason.

Colorado Springs is one of the largest bastions of Evangelical Christianity in the world.

The world.

One of Colorado Springs’ founding fathers was Brigadier General William Jackson Palmer. He, along with other founders, donated land in the city’s historic downtown district for the building of churches. He also made liquor forbidden to protect the young town’s property values. Despite it being legal in Colorado, recreational marijuana sales are still banned in the city.

Palmer was an abolitionist. He fought against slavery and fought for racial and women’s rights. The land donations meant broad representation from many denominations. There was even an African-American church erected in 1875.

Jews began coming to the area after its founding in 1859, and in 1900, their first congregation, the Orthodox Kehilla opened.

Church!

In the early 80s, desperate to escape an economic slump, the city lured businesses and nonprofits, especially Christian organizations to Colorado Springs with a promise of cheap land and low crime. It became a city of megachurches and Christian radio networks. At one point, 81 different religious organizations were based in the city.

This rise of fundamentalist religious ministries from 1988 to 1993 led the city to be known as “the Vatican of evangelical Christianity” and “the evangelical capital of the United States”.

Perhaps the most famous of these organizations is “Focus on the Family”, a fundamentalist Christian organization. Their 81-acre campus has its own exit sign on I-25, its own zip code, and a full-time postal worker. Their mission is to promote creationism, abstinence-only sex education, adoption only by heterosexuals, school prayer, and traditional gender roles. FOTF popularized the term “family values”.

Being gay in Colorado Springs might be challenging. FOTF opposes homosexuality, incest (who do they think we are?), pre-marital sex, porn, drugs, gambling, divorce, and abortion. They actively lobby against LGBTQ rights, including adoption, parenting, and same-sex marriage. FOTF lobbyists denounce any liberal Supreme Court rulings in favor of gay rights.

Remember good ‘ol hypocrite Ted Haggard? He came to The Springs in 1984 with a vision. “I think God has a plan for this city”, he proclaimed. Haggard began traveling around town, forming prayer groups in open fields and parking lots. Eventually, he founded the New Life Church, with 10,000 people in its congregation.

But Ted liked men. He probably still does. He was shamed in 2006 when a male prostitute/masseur alleged that he had been paid by Haggard for sex over a three-year period, and also purchased and consumed crystal meth. He confessed to the allegations (“I have sinned!”), and fell from grace from his own church. “Born again” in 2010, he and his “wife” founded the Saint James Church, where he is the founding pastor.

Guns!

Colorado is well known for its mass shootings (Columbine High, the Aurora cinema, and the Boulder grocery store shootings). Despite all their white puritanical bullshit, Colorado Springs has been the scene of three mass shootings: two in 2015 that left a combined seven dead, including three at a Planned Parenthood facility, and one in 2021 leaving another seven murdered.

“Some think Colorado Springs’ Christian gun culture made the Planned Parenthood attack inevitable.” ~ Isadora Teich, Dead State, 11/29/2015

Colorado Springs saw 23 murders in 2019. In 2020, that number nearly doubled, to 39. 2021 saw one less homicide — down to 38. The vast majority of violent crimes were committed by whites. Only 6.3% of its residents are Black.

Anyway, I’m sure Colorado Springs is a lovely city with many positive assets. Personally, I wouldn’t mind an evening in the lap of luxury at The Broadmoor. Anybody got a joint?

Oh.

Sources: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-jul-06-et-kelly6-story.html https://gazette.com/colorado-springs-history/colorado-springs-at-150-years-how-churches-helped-shape-the-city-of-colorado-springs/article_d972653c-df3b-11eb-bd34-531faeca3022.html https://deadstate.org/some-think-colorado-springs-christian-gun-culture-made-planned-parenthood-attack-inevitable/ https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2021/july-august/colorado-springs-after-evangelical-vatican-culture-wars.html

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