checklist – SemperVerus

Self-Defense Includes First-Aid Defense: Turn to ProTrainings to Learn

If you volunteer on a church security team, or if you want to acquire the skill for your own and your family’s well-being, you’ll want to learn as much as you can about first-aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

[ Read the SemperVerus article, A Directory of Medical Kit Resources ]

Co-founded by classroom CPR instructor Roy Shaw, ProTrainings was started in 2003 to teach CPR training to healthcare professionals, as well as everyday citizens, using the convenience of a computer with video-based courses rather than only in a classroom. Today its Blended CPR program (use discount code CPR-SemperVerus) includes live video conference evaluations and a patented single-use home-shipped mannequin having a chest compression feedback mechanism (the lungs inflate, chest resistance is felt, audio feedback is given during compressions, and necessary head-tilt motions can be performed to demonstrate all essential CPR skills) for simulated CPR training to offer students in-home skills evaluations, making ProTrainings the most compliant (and convenient) CPR course available online.

Emergency Communication Plans for Churches

When (not if) your church experiences an emergency or critical incident—such as a destructive tornado, a grave medical episode, or an active killer crisis—clear, rapid, and frequent communication with your congregation, public safety agencies, and local news media is necessary to maintain order, prevent further injury, and provide strong leadership.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, A Prayer for Church Security Team Members ]

This article on Religious Product News, written by Protect His House, will help you create and implement an emergency communication plan tailored to your church’s needs.

Its main points are:

By semperverus
Posted on 02/01/202502/01/2025

The 5 Lines of Defense in Church Security, Beginning Outside

You’ve seen the headlines:

• “FBI Warns of Terror Threats to Churches, Synagogues”
• “Idaho Teen Accused of Planning Church Attacks in Loyalty to Islamic State”
• “Churches Urged to Be Vigilant Against Increasing Threats”

Bollards protecting a building from vehicle attacks [ Read the SemperVerus article, Chart: The Spectrum of Potential Threat Personas in Self-Defense and Church Security ]

Here are practical suggestions to harden your church building and sharpen your defensive practices to keep your congregants and facilities safe from criminal and terrorist attacks:

• Erect bollards and/or reinforced concrete planters parallel to the entire church building’s exterior that is most vulnerable to vehicle attacks (e.g., doors, glass windows and walls, etc.).

• Affix security film on all first-floor windows and glass walls, reinforcing them to resist criminal breakage.

Church Security Armament Recommendations By Tom Givens, John Correia, and 6 Other Professionals

SemperVerus asked 8 firearms training professionals for their recommendations as to what they consider to be optimal for church security team volunteers to carry while on duty, having as their objective to protect others rather than concerning their own everyday self-defense.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Church Security Training: Decision Decks Help You Think Through a Crisis Before It Happens ]

Every one of the questioned professionals stresses the absolute #1 prioritization of obtaining ongoing defensive mindset and quality skill training as the primary requirement before considering what guns and gear should be used. It’s not the weapon that makes the defender succeed; it’s the defender’s superior training and mental acuity. Once that is understood, they offer their equipment recommendations.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, A Prayer for Church Security Team Members ]

The categories to which the professionals responded are:

Brand of firearm
Style (full size/duty size, compact, subcompact, micro compact, pocket, etc.)
Optics/Sights (red dot, reflex, night sights, 3-dot sights, black out rear site, fiber optic, tritium, etc.)
Carry method (IWB, OWB, appendix, shoulder, pocket, ankle, off-body, etc.)
Action Type (revolver, semi-auto)
Action (single, double, DA/SA, hammer, striker, etc.)
External Safety: (yes, no)
Magazine (single stack, double stack)
Magazine Capacity
Number of Extra Magazines
Caliber
Ammo Brand
Weapon Mounted Light (yes, no)