I’m a woman who grew up around guns (my father was a police officer) and went on to marry a hunter (who has graced our table with venison and our walls with dead deer heads), but increasingly I’ve found that many people I meet are against gun ownership and hunting. (Poor Bambi!)
So when I heard that Dustin Ruth, lead vocalist for Tooth and Nail’s modern rock band Ruth, is a hunter, I decided to ask him a few questions about hunting, guns and the environment. He responded with some intelligent – and very witty – insight into the heart of a regular guy who knows that sometimes, a gun means the difference between eating and going hungry, and that God is evident in all Creation.

First, I asked Dustin for his thoughts on an American culture that has become increasingly anti-gun.
I have found that people who are anti-gun often times have never held a gun let alone shot one, and are very much not in touch with a culture of having guns [and] … just fear them and for good reason. But I do think in a matter of hours hanging with me and the band up in the amazing forests of the Northwest with a couple sweet guns and a few pop cans, we could definitely gently change their feelings. All I know is I like guns and the outdoors and shopping (when it’s for guns and stuff).
Do you eat what you kill?
Yes. I grew up in a pretty financially poor family. My dad is a mechanic and owns his own shop. If my dad got a deer, we had steak, jerky and burgers. If he didn’t we had to kill one of our handful of cows in our back acre. I had a cow named Pepsi. Needless to say I prayed pretty hard that he got a deer or elk each year. FYI: one year Pepsi was gone. I never knew where he went. I was really sad but I remember my dad BBQ’ed some burgers for me that night to cheer me up.

How did you feel the first time you killed an animal?
Every time I have ever shot an animal I have felt bad for a brief moment. I think that’s healthy and respectful. After that short initial feeling I have felt very excited and a sense of accomplishment, as well as feeling blessed at the same time.
Can you be a Christian and a hunter?
I definitely think Christians, just like every human being, have the right to hunt and fish and raise cattle to eat. God says so to Adam in Gen 2:15, where the Bible says God put Adam in the Garden of Eden “to work it and take care of it”. This meaning “work it,” to take something from it, and “take care of it”, by giving something back.
Many people might ask, How can you be a hunter and concerned about the environment?
I want to preface this with the fact that there are hours of great conversation in this. Hunting and fishing licenses and tags bring the majority of money to the wildlife resources in your state. Look it up. If I’m wrong I will give you a free poster. (If you come to a show and prove it.)
I think the world is pretty messed up in some of the things we get fixated on and other things we promote that are so damaging. Most eco-central/global-warming mantra people probably have a clothing item on that was made somewhere for pennies, in a country riddled with war. Or have a computer that they will throw away in 2 to 4 years for a new one. This will end up in most likely an Asian country or developing country to be “recycled” … Basically they turn into massive land-polluted cities where families there get paid pennies to remove valuable parts and then let the remains rot around them as they develop disease and serious health problems.
I believe Christians should be the most responsible with what God has given us. I’m not totally sure what our role should be, other than innovators and examples of good stewards of what God’s given us. FYI: I have a 1974 Ford Bronco with a 302 V8 5.0 engine that gets about 12 mpg. But I put a hybrid sticker in the rear window. What can I say? It makes me feel better about myself.
What have you learned about God from hunting?
I’m sure whatever style of hunting you do, you will get a lot of valuable lessons from God. Most of the things God has taught me through hunting have to do with how amazing and creative He is in His creation. It’s so complex and so perfect. Also He has taught me a lot about change. Your favorite hunting spots change so much over the years, from trees growing up to roads getting washed out, etc.. It’s always challenging to ponder the mysteries of time and memories and how God sustains all life.

After their successful 2007 debut Secondhand Dreaming and extensive touring with Switchfoot and Relient K on the “Appetite for Construction Tour with Habitat for Humanity,” rock band Ruth returns with their sophomore release, Anorak. The word “anorak” is British slang for an obsessive enthusiast, and refers to a person who has an unfathomable interest in something and feels compelled to talk at length about it. For a band that focuses their artistic endeavors on exploring their faith, it’s an apt title for their fantastic sophomore release, an album filled with modern rock and insightful lyrics. The album releases today, and as Dustin told me,” I live in my fiance’s aunt and uncle’s garage due to a lack of income (so buy our new record PLEASE!).”
For more about Ruth, visit the band’s website