Wouldnt Jesus want socialized medicine?

Question

The man is famous for his saying " If you have 2 tunics, and your neighbor has none, give him one of your tunics"

SURELY thats amounts to a modern day version of pay higher taxes so the least fortunate has health care. Or am i missing something?

I dont think he would be too fond of 3000 americans dying per year due to poor healthcare (i suppose he could heal some, but would be a rather busy fellow i would think)

Your a bible student eartha q?

OK, when jesus said Neighbor do you think he meant LITERAL neighbor (ie, the guy living closest to you) Or do you think he meant your fellow man?

By paying higher taxes, you would in effect be helping your "neighbor" by helping subsidize his healthcare. In this instance You are not giving your neighbor a tunic, you might be giving him prostate medicine. But There was no Flomaxx in Jesus' day, so i think he went with "tunic" to keep it simple.

WOW, there are some SERIOUSLY greedy christians in this thread.

Is it more realistic for you and everyone else to wander around the neighborhood trying to see who needs what medicine (tunic) or would it make sense to allow the government to set up a medicaid style system of some sort?

I guess a lot of people think Jesus is important UNTIL his wishes cause them to get higher taxes. At that point... Perhaps his wishes are over the top?

OOPS I checked it out.. your right dew, it wasnt Jesus, it was John the Baptist made the tunic comment.

SO, theres 2 ways you can look at it, either Jesus WOULD agree with the sentiment, OR as Jesus didnt say it DIRECTLY it can be ignored (as many things he didnt say directly are).. All a matter of perspective.

Answer 1

Yes, Jesus would; however, SUV-driving, Rotary Clubbing, GOP pseudo-Christians would instead want their shares of HCA stock to rise at any cost while pretending to have allegiance to Jesus. What they have is a personalized version of a religion to suit their own selfish wants.

Jesus was one of the earliest socialists, it's as plain as day. This is all assuming a historical person really ever lived, but based on the literature alone his position is clear.

Answer 2

I am a poor person without health care coverage and higher taxes are the last thing I want. I guarantee that socialized medicine is a giant fiscal fraud waiting to happen. Look at how rediculous and irresponsible the government spends money now and then compare that with the astronomically inflated insurance claims that doctors make. Common sense dictates that you are probably talking about at least a 10-20% tax increase over the first 10 years. With the approved minimum wage increase and the would be increased taxes, it would send the inflation rate through the roof and cripple the struggling dollar in the world market. If Jesus is speaking to the government and not the individual, why did he also say, "give to Ceaser what is Ceaser's and to God what is God's"? The unlimited checkbook and arm of power is not what belongs to Ceaser because the US is founded on the principle WE THE PEOPLE, not WE THE CEASER!

one more thing.....I am not a Christian and don't think you are either.

Answer 3

I wouldn't presume to speak for Jesus and the passage you cite does not apply since in it Jesus is speaking of volunteerism. Nevertheless, I do strongly support socialized medicine as a Christian. I believe the big principles of love and wisdom would lead to such a conclusion. Medical expenses are so great at times that volunteerism is not adequate. We are already paying a great deal of money to insurance companies. Why not cut out the middle man as a nation and band together to form a health cooperative? It would make much more sense than our current system. I believe it would not cost us any more since we would be rid of insurance expenses and all would be fairly treated.

Answer 4

Jesus would indeed endorse socialized medicine.I don't know why so many Americans are against it. We already have socialized medicine in the military and medicare . It works fine.I think Jesus would be appalled at the lack of medical care for the poor in the richest nation on earth. Especially a nation which professes to be christian.

Answer 5

Interesting question....

But hopefully you know that Jesus never said that if you had two tunics to give one to someone in need. You will not find such a statement by Jesus anywhere in the Bible.

Jesus did however tell (in Matthew 25) how the master would judge his servants. Any who had not used their "talents" in such a way that they profited from them, and remained in poverty, had what little they did have taken away and given to the richest man around. And the poor man was cast out into punishment.

That seems a difficult statement by Jesus to reconcile with the idea of overtaxing people to give it to the poor.

Answer 6

In a complex society, taxes are the only efficient way to redistribute wealth so that the poor and needy can survive. Tithes are another word for taxes.

Yes, if you have more than you need it is the christian thing to give the surplus to someone in need. Using the taxation system is simply an efficient way to do it. Jesus would definitely approve. So would anyone who truely followed our Saviour's instructions.

Answer 7

Jesus Christ would be very unimpressed with the United States at this moment. Christ was as democratic and fair as any human could be.

Jesus believed in fairness above all else. Democracy is the idea that we are all born the same. That sounds "fair," doesn't it?

Any "Christian" who disagrees is a hypocrite of the highest caliber.

Answer 8

Health care should be considered a human right and it is considered such in every civilized country except the USA. Its because our health care system is driven by greed, profit and inequality.

Yes, Jesus would be all for it.

Answer 9

Aha...now this is a noteworthy argument I haven't yet seen. Congratulations...I thought I'd seen it all.

Have you considered the Gospel data regarding how Jesus responded to health care needs in His own era? He healed lots of people who were sick by the power of the Holy Spirit, and He belittled Pharisees (mostly religion teachers) for not personally taking care of their elderly parents.

My guess is that Jesus expected His followers to contribute voluntarily to the physical needs of their neighbors (think: parable of the good Samaritan). I don't believe Jesus said anything to indicate that this assistance should be non-voluntary (e.g. taxed) and involve the secular government.

Answer 10

Jesus could not afford a medical coverage and since the church steals all His dough, He still cannot afford it, so He has to rely on divine healing as a last resort.