Young Brunette Girl With A Crossbow Weapon

Can. 29 of the Second Lateran Council under Pope Innocent II in 1139 may have banned the use of crossbows against Christians. The authenticity, interpretation and translation of this source is contested. Military historian K.C. Eyre suggested in an unpublished paper that the more probable explanation was a ban on William Tell-like marksmanship demonstrations, in which people would shoot apples off heads, and so on. Given the high-risk nature of this sport, it is easy to see why the Church might discourage it. Given the generally nasty nature of conflict at the time, and the proliferation of ballistic, blunt and edged weapons in use, it is harder to see why the Church would have singled out the crossbow in particular as unsuitable.
Today the crossbow often has a complicated legal status due to the possibility of lethal use and its similarities with both firearms and archery weapons. Within the United States, regulations vary by state. Hunting is allowed in some states by persons with physical limitations that causes them to be unable to draw a conventional bow. In general, hunting regulations are being progressively relaxed.