SAN ANTONIO -- Shootings at churches across the country, like in Sutherland Springs where more than 20 people were killed, are creating a new wave of crisis management. From domestic disputes, to church shootings, worship centers are finding themselves at the center of it all.

  • Church leaders training staff and volunteers
  • How to secure and respond if a threat enters

To help combat this problem, some church leaders in San Antonio are now training their staff and volunteers to respond to active threats.

"We don’t like to think about it," said training instructor Guy Beveridge with Strategos International. "We think of church as a welcoming, come one, come all approach. Unfortunately, we’re being attacked because we’re looked at as a soft target."

From deacons, to ushers and parking lot attendants, Beveridge is training men and women across the country, on how to secure and respond if a threat made its way inside their church.

"From parking lot to pulpit with our protection. We want to have a plan from band-aids to bullets, and everything in between," said Beveridge.

For church security leaders like Jesse Pullen, the training is a harsh reminder of the threats his church may face while aiming to protect vulnerable children and the elderly.

"It lets your local community know that my church in my area is taking things seriously," said Pullen. "Yes you can come in here and not have to worry and be constantly kind of listening to what’s maybe creeping behind you, but you can pay attention to what’s being said up there."

For many, the overall message learned in biblical context is to respond with aide and support to any active threat lurking outside the church doors.

"Safety is security, it’s not a Baptist, it’s not a Catholic, it’s not a Methodist, it’s not a Latter Day Saint, it’s a non-denominational and we need to stop being our own little islands and start talking and communicating with one another.”