God and the Death Penalty

Theology Online ^

[johnmilken]

Just to be clear:
If a child cursed or struck their parent in public - with many reliable witnesses - and then the parent 'executed' the child with a few swings of a knife, would you consider this (which to my reading of your original post would be following the word of God) to be a Christian action, albeit one that would [should?] then be dealt with by secular authorities?

If not, why would you not follow Christ on this point?

[Conservative Coulter Fan]

See: Abandonment Theology: The Clergy and the Decline of American Christianity by John W. Chalfant.

"We contend that the "end-times-last-days" clergy who teach that America is "finished," disengage Christians from obedience to God's action mandates for our times, often sending them in retreat to the bleachers to pray for the "rapture" (which will occur in God's timing, not ours). Thus they render an incalculable neutralizing service to the cause of evil and tyranny. This book puts the teeth and militancy back into the faith."

See: World Net Daily's Whistleblower Magazine - August 2002 edition – THE NEW PAGANISM: How Christianity is being replaced by 'green' religion, goddess worship, globalism

Relentless attacks on America's Christian churches – not just from without, but from within – which are steadily remolding institutionalized Christianity to serve a new, non-Christian, globalist agenda, are the focus of August's eye-opening edition of Whistleblower.

For years, Christians have stood by helplessly as their once-dominant religion has been increasingly scoffed at, marginalized and demonized. They have watched a dizzying succession of outrageous court decisions – outlawing the 10 Commandments in schools and courtrooms, forbidding acknowledgement of God in graduation speeches, and most recently, declaring public recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance unconstitutional.

And they have reeled at prosecutions that criminalize conscientious Christians, such as that of the Canadian printer fined $5,000 for refusing to print materials for a "gay rights" group. Or the shocking revelation that the Swedish parliament is pushing to amend that country's constitution to ban speech or writing opposing homosexuality – even within churches themselves – violations of which could result in prison sentences.

But while these are the conflict's familiar flashpoints, the real fight lies elsewhere. Indeed, the biggest war of all is that raging within the churches themselves.

The Catholic Church's devastating clergy sex scandal – with its seemingly endless revelations of predatory homosexual priests molesting boys, and the stunning failure of their superiors to put a stop to it – is the tip of the iceberg. As August's Whistleblower shows, the fierce battle for control, not only of the Catholic Church, but of many of the mainline Protestant denominations as well, is the real story. The combatants range from the familiar front-line storm troopers – homosexual activists, ACLU lawyers, atheists – to the exotic – environmentalists, the United Nations, globalists, New Agers, witches and occultists, and many others almost too strange to believe. But all are engaged in an ultimate fight – a battle to the death, winner takes all – for control of the major institutions of the Christian religion.

"America is rapidly changing from the jewel of Judeo-Christian Western Civilization to a screaming babel of wild religious movements, each more wacky than the next, and all animated by rebellion against the religion and values upon which America was founded, and which made it the greatest nation in world history," said WND Editor and CEO Joseph Farah.

And just what, exactly, is attempting to replace Christianity as the dominant religion in America?

Superficially, it appears to be just a freak show, ranging from the seemingly harmless "Entertainment Paganism" ("Dungeons and Dragons," "white witchcraft," "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Witchblade") to "Teen Cult Paganism" (teens in Gothic drag, freaky hair colors, tattoos, body piercing, "body art," black garb, studs and chains) to "Ecology Theology" (free-form sexual morality, "gaia" worship, native spirituality rituals) to the wide-ranging "New Age Movement" (believes humankind is on the cusp of a new dawn, beginning new phase in evolutionary history) to "Dark Paganism" (believes there's no such thing as "evil," and for whom destruction and death are forms of beauty) to "Wicca" (witchcraft is reportedly the fastest growing religion in Australia) and "Satanism" (consciously acknowledges Satan as master, and seeks power to corrupt all things, especially Christianity).

But that's only the surface. As WND reveals in this issue of Whistleblower, the paganization of America's churches – already well under way – is consciously intended to usher in a "new age" of global government, with the United Nations as the global "brain" of a new world order.

[johnmilken]

OK. I read your post. I'm an agnostic with Taoist leanings [I was part-raised in Asia].

But you didn't answer the question:
If a child cursed or struck their parent in public - with many reliable witnesses - and then the parent 'executed' the child with a few swings of a knife, would you consider this (which to my reading of your original post would be following the word of God) to be a Christian action, albeit one that would [should?] then be dealt with by secular authorities?

If not, why would you not follow Christ on this point?

[Conservative Coulter Fan]

Leviticus, Book of (Old Testament)
Chapter 24, Verses 10-16 (RSV)

A man whose mother was an Israelite and whose father was an Egyptian came out among the people of Israel; and the Israelite woman's son and a certain Israelite began fighting in the camp. The Israelite woman's son blasphemed the Name in a curse. And they brought him to Moses--now his mother's name was Shelomith, daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan-- and they put him in custody, until the decision of the LORD should be made clear to them. The LORD said to Moses, saying: Take the blasphemer outside the camp; and let all who were within hearing lay their hands on his head, and let the whole congregation stone him. And speak to the people of Israel, saying: Anyone who curses God shall bear the sin. One who blasphemes the name of the LORD shall be put to death; the whole congregation shall stone the blasphemer. Aliens as well as citizens, when they blaspheme the Name, shall be put to death.

[johnmilken]

But you didn't answer the question:
If a child cursed or struck their parent in public - with many reliable witnesses - and then the parent 'executed' the child with a few swings of a knife, would you consider this (which to my reading of your original post would be following the word of God) to be a Christian action, albeit one that would [should?] then be dealt with by secular authorities?

If not, why would you not follow Christ on this point?

[aimhigh]

Christ said, "Think not that I am come to destroy the law

First, the context is that he was speaking to Jews under the law. He didn't come to destroy the law, but he did come to set us free from the law. Otherwise you would still have to offer an animal sacrifice for your sins.

[Conservative Coulter Fan]

No, no no. You should pay particular attention to the verse, "Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven."

[aimhigh]

You forget the context. He was speaking prior to His death, to those under the law.

You can't pick and choose what OT law you want to obey. If you are subject to one, your subject to all. If you (or we) are still subject the law, then you still have to slay a lamb for every sin you commit. You can't say Jesus eliminated the temple laws, but not the others. When did you law slay a lamb or animal sacrifice for your sins, or for a first born child?