Can a Christian support torture?

[phill4paul]

One star. Shitty poll options.

 

[staerker]

It's a gray area if you have to choose between two evils. We aren't discussing a situation where you have to choose between good and evil.

What about 'inaction?'

 

[otherone]

It's a gray area if you have to choose between two evils. We aren't discussing a situation where you have to choose between good and evil.

The choice might be gray; but the immorality isn't. Both choices are immoral.

 

[Brett85]

What about 'inaction?'

In the example I gave, inaction would be one of the two evil options. Inaction would likely mean that your kid that was kidnapped would die.

 

[presence]

Can you cite a verse in the Bible that says that torture is always immoral?

[h=3]Luke 23:34[/h]

 

[otherone]

 

[Brett85]

[h=3]Luke 23:34[/h]

I don't see how that has anything to do with what we're talking about.

 

[Christian Liberty]

I guess I shouldn't be surprised at this, but I guess its kind of pointless to discuss how much we should tolerate torture supporters if we can't even agree, unambiguously, that torture supporters are, you know, wrong...

I hate humanity...

 

[Christian Liberty]

One star. Shitty poll options.

If Christianity is false then the question is pretty much pointless since the definition of "Christian" would be purely subjective at that point.

 

[Brett85]

If someone breaks into your home, and you kill that person, would that be an example of breaking Jesus' command of not loving your neighbor? Does loving your neighbor mean having a policy of never using violence against anyone under any circumstances?

 

[Christian Liberty]

If someone breaks into your home, and you kill that person, would that be an example of breaking Jesus' command of not loving your neighbor? Does loving your neighbor mean having a policy of never using violence against anyone under any circumstances?

No, but there's a MASSIVE difference between killing someone who is trying to kill you, or even engaging in Biblically mandated capital punishment, and deliberately causing another human being to SUFFER.

I can see how the former could be debated. Not so much the latter...

 

[Brett85]

No, but there's a MASSIVE difference between killing someone who is trying to kill you, or even engaging in Biblically mandated capital punishment, and deliberately causing another human being to SUFFER.

I can see how the former could be debated. Not so much the latter...

So taking someone's life isn't as bad as causing injuries to someone that will eventually heal?

 

[Crashland]

The choice might be gray; but the immorality isn't. Both choices are immoral.

The least evil choice IS the moral choice. I think it is in fact, moral. But again, we're just arguing about words.

 

[Brett85]

And the example I gave was an example of torture in defense of others, when a child was abducted, and information was needed to prevent the child from being killed.

 

[William Tell]

And the example I gave was an example of torture in self defense of others, when a child was abducted, and information was needed to prevent the child from being killed.

TV sitcoms have done their jobs by making us think of these scenarios.

 

[Crashland]

No, but there's a MASSIVE difference between killing someone who is trying to kill you, or even engaging in Biblically mandated capital punishment, and deliberately causing another human being to SUFFER.

I can see how the former could be debated. Not so much the latter...

Are you claiming that there does not exist ANY situation in which it would be the correct choice to deliberately cause another human being to suffer?

 

[Christian Liberty]

So taking someone's life isn't as bad as causing injuries to someone that will eventually heal?

That's a horrible way of looking at it, IMO. We're not talking about a punch to the face. We're talking about extreme, agonizing pain.

If I cut off all ten of your fingers and toes, then both hands and feet, then both arms and legs as punishment, would that be OK? Are you suggesting that if one says capital punishment is OK, that should be OK to? After all, its just "injury" we're talking about, right?

Even with animals, who we kill for food, we recongize its horrible to TORTURE them. Some here even think it should be a criminal offense, or say they would personally kill a human to stop them from doing it.

Are we really now going to equivocate when we're talking about suffering to humans?

Actually, this should be even more obvious to you as an annhilationist. You don't even think God will torture anyone for more than a day as punishment for their sins against him. So basically, you're saying there might be a circumstance where its moral to inflict a punishment harsher (or at least lengthier) than what God will inflict in Hell...

 

[Brett85]

I don't personally believe that anyone's political positions ever disqualify them from being a Christian. Even as terrible as I think it is to support legal abortion, I don't even say that people who hold that position and claim to be Christians aren't Christians.

 

[Christian Liberty]

Are you claiming that there does not exist ANY situation in which it would be the correct choice to deliberately cause another human being to suffer?

Yes, assuming we're defining our terms the same way.

 

[Christian Liberty]

I don't personally believe that anyone's political positions ever disqualify them from being a Christian. Even as terrible as I think it is to support legal abortion, I don't even say that people who hold that position and claim to be Christians aren't Christians.

I think this is worse than "legal" abortion actually. Its one thing to say the government shouldn't prohibit whatever, but to say its actually moral?

What if somebody said the Holocaust was fine? Meh?