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Christian perspective on capital punishment throughout history
Theological opposition to capital punishment
Christian perspective on capital punishment throughout history
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Capital Punishment
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Should Christians support the death penalty? The answer to that question is controversial. Many Christians feel that the Bible has spoken to the issue, but others believe that the New Testament ethic of love replaces the Old Testament law.
Old Testament Examples
Throughout the Old Testament we find many cases in which God commands the use of capital punishment. We see this first with the acts of God Himself. God was involved, either directly or indirectly, in the taking of life as a punishment for the nation of Israel or for those who threatened or harmed Israel.
One example is the flood of Noah in Genesis 6-8. God destroyed all human and animal life except that which was on the ark. Another example is Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 18-19), where God destroyed the two cities because of the heinous sin of the inhabitants. In the time of Moses, God took the lives of the Egyptians' first-born sons (Exod. 11) and destroyed the Egyptian army in the Red Sea (Exod. 14). There were also punishments such as the punishment at Kadesh-Barnea (Num. 13-14) or the rebellion of Korah (Num. 16) against the Jews wandering in the wilderness.
The Old Testament is replete with references and examples of God taking life. In a sense, God used capital punishment to deal with Israel's sins and the sins of the nations surrounding Israel.
The Old Testament also teaches that God instituted capital punishment in the Jewish law code. In fact, the principle of capital punishment even precedes the Old Testament law code. According to Genesis 9:6, capital punishment is based upon a belief in the sanctity of life. It says, "Whoever sheds man's blood by man his blood shall be shed, for in the image of God, He made man."
The Mosaic Law set forth numerous offenses that were punishable by death. The first was murder. In Exodus 21, God commanded capital punishment for murderers. Premeditated murder (or what the Old Testament described as "lying in wait") was punishable by death. A second offense punishable by death was involvement in the occult (Exod. 22; Lev. 20; Deut 18-19). This included sorcery, divination, acting as a medium, and sacrificing to false gods. Third, capital punishment was to be used against perpetrators of sexual sins such as rape, incest, or homosexual practice.
Within this Old Testament theocracy, capital punishment was extended beyond murder to cover various offenses.
Many positions can be defended when debating the issue of capital punishment. In Jonathan Glover's essay "Executions," he maintains that there are three views that a person may have in regard to capital punishment: the retributivist, the absolutist, and the utilitarian. Although Glover recognizes that both statistical and intuitive evidence cannot validate the benefits of capital punishment, he can be considered a utilitarian because he believes that social usefulness is the only way to justify it. Martin Perlmutter on the other hand, maintains the retributivist view of capital punishment, which states that a murderer deserves to be punished because of a conscious decision to break the law with knowledge of the consequences. He even goes as far to claim that just as a winner of a contest has a right to a prize, a murderer has a right to be executed. Despite the fact that retributivism is not a position that I maintain, I agree with Perlmutter in his claim that social utility cannot be used to settle the debate about capital punishment. At the same time, I do not believe that retributivism justifies the death penalty either.
A brief history of the death penalty is in order so that one can be aware of this laws nature since that is how one would start to understand how it can be applied most virtuously and to understand its morality. The death penalty can be traced as far back as the Eighteenth Century, B.C.E. where the Code of King Hammurabi of Babylon applied the death penalty to be instated as a punishment for 25 different crimes. Also it has been seen in the Fourteenth Century B.C.E in the Hittite Code; in the Seventeenth Century B.C.E’s Draconian Code of Athens (a code which made the only punishment for all crimes death); and in the Fifth Century B.C.E.’s Roman Law of the Twelve Tablets(this law was the start of a formal law which carried out death sentences by means such as crucifixion, drowning, beating to death, burring alive, and impalement)
In the Hebrew Bible, adultery is considered a capital crime, punishable by the population stoning the adulterous wife and her lover to death. Deut. 22:20 commands this communal punishment in order to “sweep away evil from Israel.” The question remains as to why this crime was considered to be such a transgression. Several explanations exist to account for the seriousness of the crime.
Capital punishment, also referred to as the death penalty, is the judicially ordered execution of a prisoner as a punishment for a serious crime, often called a capital offence or a capital crime. In those jurisdictions that practice capital punishment, its use is usually restricted to a small number of criminal offences, principally, treason and murder, that is, the deliberate premeditated killing of another person. In the early 18th and 19th century the death penalty was inflicted in many ways. Some ways were, crucifixion, boiling in oil, drawing and quartering, impalement, beheading, burning alive, crushing, tearing asunder, stoning and drowning. In the late 19th century the types of punishments were limited and only a few of them remained permissible by law.
God is the same yesterday, is the same today and forever will be. His command for the need of capital punishment for those who murder their neighbor has not changed. What Sister Helen does not realize is that God is not gray. He gives black and white commandments and they are to be followed and not be molded into something we would rather choose to do or believe in. Murder is not taking a life in a situation of defending yourself, or a soldier in the military defending the rights God has given to us. Killing, given these examples, are praised in the Bible. We Christians, in obedience to our God, must bear and support the death penalty.
The scriptures stating “Thou shalt not kill,” should actually be translated thou shalt not murder. The taking of innocent blood is not permitted as in the case of abortion. Killing someone in self-defense, in a justified war and as part of civil justice is okay. Therefore, taking of guilty blood as in capital punishment is permitted by the
Sometimes we can not always give what they deserve but, giving them less than what they deserve is unfair. The bible believes in an eye for an eye. Meaning you can kill someone who has killed. I believe in punishing murders and they should get nothing less than what they deserve, but an eye for an eye, to me, is not always the correct punishment. I am in favor of proportional retributivism because it allows flexibility within a range of murder cases. It would allow a more heinous murderer to receive the death penalty and a less severe murder criminal to receive life in prison without violating
What is capital punishment? For those who don’t know or have never heard of the word, capital punishment is a decision ruled by the court to execute someone because of his or her actions. The death penalty has been around for a very long time and is still practiced today throughout the world and in the United States. The earliest and most well known account of capital punishment can be recalled during the times of Jesus Christ. The Romans and the natives of Jerusalem believed Jesus had committed a serious crime and that he should be punished. Through consensus they agreed to crucify him ruthlessly. England, in the past, would torture the convicted criminal until they were pronounced dead. During the Middle Ages in Europe they would kill convicts for minor offenses such as stealing. Also in the past, the Massachusetts colony, would consider it a capital crime if one cursed at one’s parents and further action would take place against you. These are just some examples of capital punishment methods throughout history.
Throughout the Hebrew scriptures, God distributes divine punishment amongst offenders of his divine law and commands. The severity of these punishments differs greatly, from the use of plagues to total destruction. Many biblical scholars argue that the holy scriptures promote the idea of retributive justice (something along the lines of “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” (Exodus 21:24). The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/justice-retributive/) defines retributive justice as the act of enforcing punishment that is proportionate to the crime or offense committed, and that no innocent person(s) should be harmed by this punishment. Because God’s divine retribution found throughout the Tenakh is inconsistent
The death penalty has been promoted for thousands of years, for countless crimes committed by humans. The first established death penalty laws date as far back as the Eighteenth Century B.C. in the Code of King Hammurabi of Babylon, which codified the death penalty for 25 different crimes. The death penalty was also part of the Fourteenth Century B.C.'s Hittite Code; in the Seventh Century B.C.'s Draconian Code of Athens, which made death the only punishment for all crimes; and in the Fifth Century B.C.'s Roman law of the Twelve Tablets. Death sentences were carried out by such means as crucifixion, drowning, beating to death, burning alive, and impalement. Now in today’s society the most common methods of execution are; firing squad, hanging, and in recent years: lethal injection which is undeniably more humane than any other form of execution throughout history. The death penalty has been used to protect society from the iniquities that mankind has presented itself. The criminals, rapists, murderers, and sadists, who harm innocent people, should undeniably forfeit their own right to live as Margaret Thatcher has stated. The use of capital punishment is essential to the security of our nation and the justice in which those who are innocent and those who are the victims deserve.
The death penalty has been around for centuries. It dates back to when Hammurabi had his laws codified; it was “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”. Capital punishment in America started when spies were caught, put on trial and hung. In the past and still today people argue that, the death penalty is cruel, unusual punishment and should be illegal. Yet many people argue that it is in fact justifiable and it is not cruel and unusual. Capital punishment is not cruel and unusual; the death penalty is fair and there is evidence that the death penalty deters crime.
There are both leaders and followers in this world, no matter which you are it is undeniable that without the leaders society would fall apart. Leadership as defined in the dictionary is “ a person who guides or directs a group”, although accurate this simple sentence does not give justice to the importance of leadership. People need to be guided and have someone to look up to, and whether you are born with leadership or acquire it the way you utilize it is the most critical. There are and have been many impressive leaders in this world but one who stands out is Nelson Mandela. Born into the Madiba tribe of South Africa a name he would later adopt as his own, he is known for his philanthropy, strong political influence, and being a revolutionist in the anti-apartheid of South Africa. He is such a shining example of ideal leadership not just because of the impact he had but the starkly different way he handled things for his time. He advocated compassion, forgiveness and determination causing him to be the first black president of South African reigning from 1994-1999. His death this december caused grief but also a celebration of the wonderful influential life he enjoyed. This union of people demonstrated how many lives he touched and the vivacious presence he brought wherever he went, which is why he will forever be known as one of the best rulers, one who truly defines leadership in the most veracious of ways.
Capital punishment goes against almost every religion. Isolated passages of religious scripture have been quoted in support of the death penalty, almost all religious groups in the United States regard executions as immoral. There is no credible evidence that capital punishment deters crime from the streets in America. Scientific studies have consistently failed to demonstrate that executions deter people from committing crime anymore than long prison sentences. Moreover, states without the death penalty have much lower murder rates. Executions are carried out at staggering cost to taxpayer.The funds spent for execution should be used to target the issue of killing and find solutions to help communities unite to demonstrate a more peaceful environment. Recent CNN reported how studies done have found that the death penalty criminal litigation, costs taxpayers far more than seeking life without parole. (CNN, 2015) The states spends millions of dollars to put away death row inmates when the funds could be used to help channel society in tune with how to become more positive and getting help to those who need
Though the death penalty is considered barbaric, it is not. With those who have ones that have died viciously to the ones who died young there is such a thing as karma. The death penalty allows those people who committed the crime to be punished equally. Therefore, I agree with the reason for having the death penalty. It is only fair that the criminal be punished for his wrong doings. The bible does say, “An eye for an eye.” When there is equal punishment and safety it makes people worry less. It allows them to live out their lives in peace, and to not look back on something bad that has happened to them.
The best support documentation for this point of view comes directly from the word of God; where, in the Old Testament, the death penalty was required for a wide range of offenses, both civil and religious.