by punkofnice 36 Replies latest watchtower bible
Billy the Ex-Bethelite : you brought up Jewish law but I am only talking about Jesus in the NT (recall that Jesus came to add to the Torah), an enemy can be many things but they also mean all of them, an enemy isn't simply a person that hates you, who is your enemy in war?
"love your enemy", "don't do to others what others might do to you", "judge and you will be judged", apply these 3 "moral" teachings in real life and yes rapists and murderers will run free.
LV101, Thank you!
I am so sorry dear 3rdgen about losing your son. I have a son. He is 14. I feel your pain.
I agree with cofty. It is not possible to imagine how one would feel if something awful would happen. God bless you and your family 3rdgen
Don't beat yourself up over it too much, Punk. I remember a few years ago about an Amish school involved in a shooting spree similar to the Columbine masacre and the parents of the victims forgave the killer. I am not sure if I could forgive someone for hurting or killing my kids or not but either way I would insist on swift justice for their crimes with a punishment that fits it.
I just hope and pray that I never have to confront this.
3rdGen, my heart and prayers go out to you.
Nancy and Gary Thank you too! I didn't mean to hijack this thread. I'm trying to make the point that 1st: It's probably a moot point. Punk, you probably will never be in that position in the first place.
2nd: I want to clarify that my decision was not based upon my interpretation of Christianity. It was based on preserving my mental health. I was too fragile to make a stink at the time. The race course was dangerous(a separate issue) and my
sons father was stalking me at the time as well. So I simply couldn't bear taking on any more drama. I also had my other child to think about as well. There were many factors that made me leave the whole mess alone.
The Jesus described in the Bible is not unreasonable. Johnnie the Bethelite makes some good points about the context of Jesus words about forgivness. He also recognized Ceasers role in keeping order. Murders, rapists, etc. can and should be prosecuted. Jesus never said his followers should be doormats or tolerate abuse.
Hope this clarifys a little.
Hope this clarifys
Yes it does. Personal experience is not a highjacking. It is good to share with us practical wisdom that can only be gained by living it. The point that you brought out well 3rdgen is one really doesn't know what one would feel like until something really happens. It is a good natural type of law it seems. More violence does not cure violence. One day at a time. You are doing quite well. You should feel proud of yourself!
Forgiveness is not about whether that person deserves to be forgiven or not, but it is more about yourself - forgiveness is good and healthy for your mental/spiritual health. Grudges and bitterness will eventually damage you. Forgiveness is about letting go of the pain/anger/hurts/bitterness the person had cause you, not about letting forgeting what the person had done to you. I guess it is up to God tp judge/punish the person.
3rdgen I didn't see your post when I posted mine, I am sorry to hear about what happened to your son.
Billy the Ex-Bethelite : Furthermore, what happened to an eye for an eye?
N.drew wrote: More violence does not cure violence.
Dont you think that that depends on the circunstances? If I told you that tommorrow night I am going to walk into your house and kill you, would you call the police or pray? and if the police happened to be very busy on that day, would you not self defend yourself? Here's another scenario, I run over your son with my car because I am imperfect, so I walk out of the car and apologise, I really didn't mean it to happen, would you do the Christian thing or get the police to test me for drugs/alchool to convict me?
garyneal:Amish are the only ones I am aware of who really follows the bible when it comes to Jesus teachings on love and forgiveness.
DilemmaGF wrote: forgiveness is good and healthy for your mental/spiritual health. Grudges and bitterness will eventually damage you. Forgiveness is about letting go of the pain/anger/hurts/bitterness the person had cause you, not about letting forgeting what the person had done to you. I guess it is up to God tp judge/punish the person.
I have been forgiving in all my 20+ years, if anything I had something inside me that just wanted to explode, I needed to go to the highest mountain and scream my lungs out, punch on a punching bad. I can still forgive but depending on the circumstance and too an extend, or it's immoral from my part, this really comes down to what Christians thinks is moral and what a humanist thinks is moral.
"love your enemy",
"don't do to others what others might do to you",
"judge and you will be judged"
Thank humanity for courts and police.
Thank humanity for courts and police.
I strongly believe that we should do what we should for some justice... I think forgiveness is not letting the person go away with the wrongs he did, but it is about you letting go of your hatred and anger for that person.
