Faith Leaders Start New Faith-Based Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence at Press Conference
in Front of Well-Known Philadelphia Gun Dealer

Philadelphia: A distinguished delegation of Delaware Valley faith leaders stood in front of Colosimo’s Gun
Center at 9th and Spring Garden Streets in Philadelphia this afternoon and called on all gun dealers throughout
the Commonwealth to adopt a ‘code of conduct’ identical to the Responsible Firearms Partnership Agreement
between Wal-Mart, America’s #1 gun seller and the Mayors Against Illegal Guns coalition (see
http://www.mayorsagainstillegalguns.org/html/partnership/partnership.shtml).

The Rt. Rev. Allen L. Bartlett, Jr., Assisting Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania said: “We believe
adoption of the code by all PA gun dealers will severely reduce the current flood of guns from legal sale at PA
gun stores to illegal street sale, diminish the supply of illegal street guns, and gun crime and violence.”
Mrgr. Michael J. Carroll, of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia said: “Human life is sacred, God’s
gift. It is a gift to be cherished and nourished. When the gift is threatened or destroyed, we are required, in
faith, to reach out to the injured and to do what we reasonably can to prevent any further injury or destruction
of life, unjustly inflicted. We have joined with our brothers and sisters of differing faith communities to do just
that, to prevent in this case, gun violence.”

Philadelphia and the Del Val are beset by gun violence that devastates families, neighborhoods and cities. Gun
crime and violence are fueled by the illegal trade that moves handguns from legal sale at PA gun stores to
llegal street sale. Straw buying is the linchpin of this illegal trade, whereby stand-ins make bulk handgun
purchases for gun traffickers.

It has proven exasperatingly difficult to get the Pennsylvania Legislature to enact legislation to ameliorate the
problem. So, faith leaders and their followers have come together to seek the adoption by PA gun stores of a
non-legislative, non-burdensome ‘code of conduct,’ identical to the Responsible Firearms Partnership
Agreement between Wal-Mart, America’s #1 gun seller and the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition.

“We provided Mr. James Colosimo with the code a month ago,” continued Bishop Bartlett, “and have met with
him twicet. We begin our campaign to get all PA gun shops to adopt the code with Colosimo’s, but the starting
place is not as important as the eventual goal of reducing gun violence by diminishing the illegal trade in guns.”

Rabbi Linda Holtzman of Mishkan Shalom Synagogue said: “Judaism is a life affirming tradition. As a Jew, I
am obligated to stand in the way of murder before it happens. If we are all created in the image of God, none of
us has the right to wantonly take another's life. Our request of Mr. Colosimo is simply a request that he also
affirm life by doing everything that he can do to prevent future needless murders, and limit the ways
that dangerous weapons reach the hands of those who will use them to kill innocent people.”

“We remain hopeful that Mr. Colosimo’s refusal to adopt the non-burdensome code represents only a
temporary dislocation in our effort to gain adoption by him and all gun dealers in the Commonwealth of the
code,” said Thomas Swain, Clerk, Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends.”