A recent Fox News story highlights Spike's Tactical's recently released "Crusader" Rifle, which has attracted attention not only because of the rifle's name ("Crusader"), but also because of the Bible verse that is inscribed on the right hand side of the gun: "Blessed be the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle" (Ps 144:1).
But Spike's Tactical is not unique in its desire to associate its firearms with the Christian faith. Other firearms companies include religious inscriptions and iconography on their guns and other other firearms related items. Patriot Ordinance Factory (P.O.F.), for instance, regularly inscribes "God bless America" on their rifles' ejection port covers.
Trijicon, a premier optics company that contracts with the US military, sparked a controversy when it was discovered that the company includes abbreviated citations of Bible verses. The story was predictably controversial, and was covered by a number of professional and popular news sources:
Accurate Shooter: http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2010/01/trijicons-subtle-christian-messages/id=9575794
The Truth about Guns: http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2012/09/robert-farago/trijicon-jesus-rifle-controversy-continues/
Apparently, Trijicon has ceased this practice when it comes to optics sold to the US military.
Although recently attention has been given to the Spike's Tactical Crusader rifle, it is important to note that the assignment of religious significance to a gun, or to a weapon more generally, is (historically speaking) a widespread and ancient practice. Humanity often finds the transcendent in the material, especially when the material items themselves are so closely associated with the realities of life, death, power, and will.
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