The discussion and interpretation of warfare in theology is not a new controversy. A purely Old Testament inspired interpretation would suggest that violence can be, and often is a widely accepted practice in the eyes of God. “The Book of Joshua”, is a particularly good example of the war theology found throughout the Old Testament as it is an account of the Israelites conquests at the behest of God. The God described in ”The Book of Joshua” is ruthless, absolute in his perception of peoples being ether righteous or wicked, and champions the total destruction of the Cainites. However, the New Testament paints God in a much different light. Jesus Christ, the son of God, acts in a manner that starkly contrasts the absolutes and violence of …show more content…
To establish the nature of Clemens’ critique it is necessary to first analyze and then summarily characterize the nature of the war theology in, “The Book of Joshua”. Reading, “The Book of Joshua”, it is easy to see how human conflict has been so often justified with religion. Joshua in the conquest of Jericho commands the killing of all but the entire population of Jericho shouting, “Shout! For the Lord has given you the city! The city and all that is in it are to be devoted to the Lord. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall be spared, because she hid the spies we sent.” (New International Version, Joshua 6). “The Book of Joshua” routinely advertises God’s chosen people practicing total warfare against the lands they are conquering. In the campaign against AI the text details, “When Israel had finished killing all the men of Ai in the fields and in the wilderness where they had chased them, and when every one of them had been put to the sword, all the Israelites returned to Ai and killed those who were in it.” (New International Version, Joshua 8). The Israelites found in the Old Testament is, in a word, ruthless. The Israelites practice of genocide is a common occurrence, in the campaign against Makkedah the text recounts, “That day Joshua took Makkedah. He put the city and its king to the sword and totally destroyed everyone in it. He left no survivors. And he did to the king of Makkedah as he had done to the king of Jericho.” (New International Version, Joshua 10). God’s endorsement of these slaughters can be left in no doubt as he actively participates in the genocide. “The Book of Joshua”, in reference to those the hearts of those the Israelites conquered, details, “For it was the LORD himself who hardened
This takes us to the concept of just war. Aristotle saw just war as a means to a higher goal. You don't just fight the war to win the war there needs to be a purpose to fighting the war. He goes on to tell us how others view just war. The Romans said war was just only when conducted by the state, and only accompanied by a declaration of hostilities, meaning war had to be declared on someone. Rebellions and revolutions were not considered just wars. The Japanese did not define when war was just or proper. Early Christians rejected war; this came from the effort to be more Christ like, the Golden Rule, due unto others as you would have them do to you. Later the Christians could no longer be pacifists; they were going to have to go to war sometime after Constantine became emperor and declared Christianity as the main religion of the time.
“I have had a happy life and thank the Lord. Goodbye and may God bless all!”(199), these were the last words of Chris McCandless in a picture with him smiling and waving good-bye. Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer is an extension of an article first published in Outside magazine. In the book, Krakauer further explains the journey of Chris McCandless, while providing his own insight to provide the reader a better understanding of the McCandless reasoning. McCandless lived a nomadic life after he graduated from college, traveling from South Dakota to Mexico. However, his two year journey proved fatal when he took a trip to Alaska, his greatest undertaking. Among his remains several books were discovered, including a copy of Walden by Henry D. Thoreau
Chris McCandless "I think that Chris McCandless was bright and ignorant at the same time. He had no common sense, and he had no business going into Alaska with his romantic silliness. He made a lot of mistakes based on ignorance. I don’t admire him at all for his courage, nor his noble ideas. Really, I think he was just plain
Society wants soldiers to believe that war is glorious. But it is not. Society wants soldiers to believe war is an adventure. But it is not. Society wants soldiers to believe that our enemy is the only enemy, that our cause is the only cause, that our people are the only people. But there are many enemies, many causes and many peoples. According to Paul, all these causes are equally ignoble, and none of these enemies are worthy of being slaughtered en masse. For Paul, as for many people, past, present, and future, war is simply unacceptable, and nothing can repair the damage it does.
What is the Gate of Eden? How does it affect our main character and who he is as a person? Joe Gendreau is a very complicated character in which he is quite different from your average man. In this story there is a lot of mysteries, why is the book named the Gates of Eden, and why did the Yatsimura bros try so hard to blackmail our main character was it that important, what is Joe’s Background, is there reasons to why he was so aggressive and finally who is Ms.Ohara?
The Sacred Willow (2013) describes the modern Vietnamese history from the 19th to the end of 20th century through Mai Elliott’s personal experience, as well as stories from four generations of her family. Starting with her great grandfather's struggle to become an imperial government official, the book follows the author’s family’s cycle of fleeing violence and building wealth, almost re-starting from zero everytime. It goes further than many books on the French Colonisation of Vietnam and the Vietnam war, taking a closer look at into people of Vietnam, rather than from a geopolitical or military aspect. Since the author and her father works for the French and then the government of the Republic of Vietnam, her sister was with the Viet Minh
From Eden to New Jerusalem is a book by T. Desmond Alexander. It presents scripture as one big story from beginning to end. He uses his book to outline this overarching story. Alexander presents the ideas and concepts in a way that is very deep, yet very easy for any reader to understand. Alexander opens up his book, Eden to New Jerusalem, by presenting two important questions many people ask, ‘Why does the earth exist, and what is the purpose of human life?’ He then states that the overarching story of the bible can answer these two questions. Alexander presents an introduction to biblical theology. His course of action for this task is to outline specific themes, as stated in the title, from Eden to New Jerusalem, essentially from creation to new creation. While using John’s vision of heaven in Revelation he executes his look at the new creation. Alexander supports that the Bible should be seen as a big picture. He refers to this as a meta-story. This meta-story answers the question of God’s intentions and what he is going to
“Never think that war, no matter how necessary, nor how justified, is not a crime.” As depicted in the quote by Ernest Hemingway war is a difficult situation in which the traditional boundaries of moral ethics are tested. History is filled with unjust wars and for centuries war was not though in terms of morality. Saint Augustine, however, offered a theory detailing when war is morally permissible. The theory offers moral justifications for war as expressed in jus ad bellum (conditions for going to war) and in jus in bello (conditions within warfare).The theory places restrictions on the causes of war as well as the actions permitted throughout. Within early Christianity, the theory was used to validate crusades as morally permissible avoiding conflict with religious views. Based on the qualifications of the Just War Theory few wars have been deemed as morally acceptable, but none have notably met all the requirements. Throughout the paper I will apply Just War Theory in terms of World War II as well as other wars that depict the ideals presented by Saint Augustine.
All in all, when religious war were happening the church try to verify the ethic of war, take into some wars to be self-defense. Christians justified Jesus “Prince of Peace” war-making by noting that Jesus himself used violence on at least one occasion, described “in all four gospels”. They point to Old Testament precedents, and the New Testament to open the door to force. John the Baptists declares that soldiers do not have to abandoned all military activity.
Joshua is first mentioned in the Bible in Exodus 17:8 when Moses told him to choose men to fight against Amalek. Joshua did as Moses told him, and he defeated him with the help of the Lord. Moses went up the mountain and prayed with the rod of God raised in his hand during the battle. If his hand started to drop, Amalek would get the upper hand. Moses kept his hand raised throughout the battle and the victory was Joshua’s. He destroyed Amalek, and his people.
War is a hard thing to describe. It has benefits that can only be reaped through its respective means. Means that, while necessary, are harsh and unforgiving. William James, the author of “The Moral Equivalent of War”, speaks only of the benefits to be had and not of the horrors and sacrifices found in the turbulent times of war. James bears the title of a pacifist, but he heralds war as a necessity for society to exist. In the end of his article, James presents a “war against nature” that would, in his opinion, stand in war’s stead in bringing the proper characteristics to our people. However, my stance is that of opposition to James and his views. I believe that war, while beneficial in various ways, is unnecessary and should be avoided at all costs.
The definiton of war will never change. Its ideal prupose throughly is to cause pain of those who go through it or who are somehow involved. Through my prespective, I believe we need less hostility and use other inititatives and methods of reasoning and resolving problems rather than create brutality and increase death in this world. This book, its descriptions, but most importantly, Erich Maria Remarque, has significantly suceeded in emphasizing an in-dept overlook and understandment of what the outcome of war turns out to be which can also be associated with its supporting literature. We cannot prove anything through war; the only thing we have proven is how low us humans in general have sunk in resolving conflicts. Anybody has the potential power to kill someone through a simple pull of a trigger.
War has always been, and will always be, a necessary action perpetrated by man. There are many reasons for war: rage, passion, greed, defense, and religion to name a few. When differences cannot be solved or compromised through mediation with an opposing party, war is the last remaining option. Muslim historian Ibn Khaldun wrote in fourteenth-century Spain, that “War is a universal and inevitable aspect of life, ordained by God to the same extent as the sky and the earth, the heat and the cold. The question of whether to fright is not a significant moral question because fighting is constant; the minor decision not to fight this war will be made only in the context of knowing that another war will present itself soon enough because it is simply always there.” (Peter S. Themes. The Just War)
This paper will provide an opportunity for dialogue within a small group setting on the idea of how Christians who are to model Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, in loving our enemies, not to kill, along with the presence of defending humankind by force; more specifically, the idea of just war. This study group will meet over the course of five weeks for one and half hours each.
“The art of war is of vital importance to the State. It is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry which can on no account be neglected” (Sun Tzu, 3). Warfare has existed since man first sinned and Cain killed Able. In the Bhagavad-Gita, Arjuna is faced with a dilemma. He either has to kill family, or be killed by them. In his moment of need, Arjuna prays to Krishna, a Hindu God, to seek counsel and advice. Krishna gives advice and explains that this battle is about the greater good and must be done in order for Arjuna to achieve Dharma (sacred duty). The advice Krishna gives encompasses the entire worldview of Hinduism and affects Arjuna’s decision on what to do with his life. Krishna persuades Arjuna to follow his counsel by using the teachings of Hinduism in order for Arjuna to pursue his dharma, fight for his kingdom, and achieve moksha, proving the effectiveness of this worldview.