Thou shalt not kill! Right?!? Are Christians in favour of the death penalty?

Question

Congregants in Connecticut are debating the death penalty with new anguish after the brutal murders of three members of a family who belonged to the church.

There is a similar open question:

In Sam 15:1-3 God commands Samuel to kill women & children?

You can find it at...

http://ca.answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AncvMe0xtRuUOkYnKxNIrO7lPhV.;_ylv=3?qid=20071027205542AAo0RCU

I loved Michelle's answer to the charge of "God commanding genocide"...

"....What if those commanded by God to be put to death were white supremacists, brought up to hate and to kill the members of YOUR particular race, just because you are of that race! Is it genocide then?

...If they (had a) tradition of going on raids, where they slaughtered innocent women and children of other tribes, to steal their possessions, and took the men captive to torture them until death, kept some of the children as sex slaves, and abused the women they kept alive to the point of utter degradation, would it be genocide then?

So, if wanton murder and disfigurement and rape are being done NOW, you would consider it genocide to bring the perpetrators of such horrible crimes to account for their actions to the point of death?

Maybe what we should do then for your bleeding heart liberal crap, is send to your house all those who prey upon others, the rapists, the murderers, the child molesters.

I should add that I am a Canadian. We have no death penalty, yet a very low murder rate by population compared to our USA neighbours.

Answer 1

The Old Testament law commanded the death penalty for various acts: murder (Exodus 21:12), kidnapping (Exodus 21:16), bestiality (Exodus 22:19); adultery (Leviticus 20:10); homosexuality (Leviticus 20:13), being a false prophet (Deuteronomy 13:5), prostitution (Leviticus 21:9) and rape (Deuteronomy 22:24-25), and several other crimes. However, God often showed mercy when the death penalty was due. David committed adultery and murder, yet God did not demand his life be taken (2 Samuel 11:1-5, 14-17; 2 Samuel 12:13). Ultimately, each and every sin we commit should result in the death penalty (Romans 6:23). Thankfully, God demonstrates His love for us in not condemning us (Romans 5:8).

When the Pharisees brought a woman who was caught in the act of adultery to Jesus and asked Him if she should be stoned, Jesus replied, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her" (John 8:7). This should not be used to indicate that Jesus rejected capital punishment in all instances. Jesus was simply exposing the hypocrisy of the Pharisees. The Pharisees wanted to trick Jesus into breaking the Old Testament Law...they truly did not care about the woman being stoned (where was the man who was caught in adultery?) God was the One who instituted capital punishment: “Whoever sheds man's blood, by man his blood shall be shed, for in the image of God He made man” (Genesis 9:6). Jesus would support capital punishment in some instances. Jesus also demonstrated grace when capital punishment was due (John 8:1-11). The Apostle Paul definitely recognized the power of the government to institute capital punishment where appropriate (Romans 13:1-5).

So, basically, we are back to where we started. Yes, God allows capital punishment. But at the same time, God does not always demand the death penalty when it is due. What should a Christian’s view on the death penalty be, then? First, we must remember that God has instituted capital punishment in His Word; therefore, it would be presumptuous of us to think that we could institute a higher standard than He or be more kind than He. God has the highest standard of any being since He is perfect. This standard applies not only to us but to Himself. Therefore, He loves to an infinite degree, and He has mercy to an infinite degree. We also see that He has wrath to an infinite degree, and it is all maintained in a perfect balance.

Second, we must recognize that God has given the government the authority to determine when capital punishment is due (Genesis 9:6; Romans 13:1-7). It is unbiblical to claim that God opposes the death penalty in all instances. Christians should never rejoice when the death penalty is employed, but at the same time, Christians should not fight against the government’s right to execute the perpetrators of the most evil of crimes.

Recommended Resource: Moral Choices: An Introduction to Ethics by Scott Rae.

Answer 2

Assuming that the guilty party's identity and responsibility have been fully determined, the traditional teaching of the Church does not exclude recourse to the death penalty, if this is the only possible way of effectively defending human lives against the unjust aggressor.
If, however, non-lethal means are sufficient to defend and protect people's safety from the aggressor, authority will limit itself to such means, as these are more in keeping with the concrete conditions of the common good and are more in conformity to the dignity of the human person.

Today, in fact, as a consequence of the possibilities which the state has for effectively preventing crime, by rendering one who has committed an offense incapable of doing harm - without definitely taking away from him the possibility of redeeming himself - the cases in which the execution of the offender is an absolute necessity "are very rare, if not practically non-existent."

Answer 3

There is a verse in the bible an eye for an eye.I don't believe we should go out and just kill for no reason just for the fun of it.But when a man or woman is a serial killer should we feed him,give him shelter,cable tv and never have to work again for a living.What kind of punishment is that.!The reason for the prisons to be so filled is because we pamper the criminals with such privileges.The death penalty would deter them or make someone think twice before they harm another.

Answer 4

I have read about this - the victims were active at the United Methodist Church and seem to have been strongly anti death penalty themselves. It is a terrible tragedy.

The official position of the United Methodist Church has been strongly anti death penalty for many years. The US Conference of Catholic Bishops has its own campaign against the death penalty. You can read the positions of many other major religions at www.religioustolerance.org, on the left side scroll down to hot issues and then click on death penalty.

Answer 5

The correct translation is "do not murder."

When murderers break this commandment, they not only sin, but they commit a terrible injustice. God wants human governments to address injustices by bringing just penalties in which the same harm meted out to the victim is taken against the criminal. In the case of murder, the just penalty is death.

Jesus taught the justice of the death penalty. First, listen to this exchange with Pontius Pilate (John 19:10-12):

"Do you refuse to speak to me?" Pilate said. "Don't you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you?"

Jesus answered, "You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin."

In other words, God gives governments power to bring murderers to justice by the death penalty.

Second, remember the conversation with the crucified robber in Luke 23:41. To Jesus' approval, the robber said, "We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong."

Cheers,
Bruce

Answer 6

The wording of this saddens me. I live in a state that had so many death row inmates exonerated by DNA evidence after their conviction and many years in prison that I am afraid of the finality of the death sentence. The minorities and the poor are over-represented amonst the condemned. I also know that if one of my own was mutilated by some pervert, nothing would satisfy me. I do know I would have to forgive it, or remain unforgiven myself.

Answer 7

The commandment says clearly enough that 'Thou shalt not kill'; On the other hand, in the same book, people are slaughtering each other with great enthusiasm. So perhaps it is meant to be applied selectively.
I do not support the death penalty, because it is difficult for the law to apologize to a dead man/woman in case of mistakes.

Answer 8

The contradiction to one of the ten commandments is: an eye for a an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. I believe killing is acceptable in individual self life preserving circumstances. Hostility is no answer for any conflict.

Answer 9

The Bible has established capital punishment as an everlasting covenant between God and men. It existed long before the levitical law and was never changed.

Christians who follow the Bible are in favor of the death enalty.

Genesis 9:6 "Whoever sheds man's blood, By man his blood shall be shed, For in the image of God He made man."

Answer 10

I consider myself a Christian and I believe that sometimes there a crimes so heinous that the perpetrator needs to be put out of his misery. A good example of this is the large number of pedophiles in this country that are known pedophiles and have been punished. They get out and do it again, therefore we must conclude that they cannot be rehabilitated. When you are a chronic threat to innocent members of our society, you must be stopped.