There has been a long controversy over the ability of the religious right to justify most any position of the GOP on the environment or civil liberties in terms of religious faith. However, the recent Republican effort to embrace and justify torture presented a bit of a problem for the faithful, particularly Christians who worship a man who was tortured to death on a cross. That presented no problem for Gary Bauer, a former Republican presidential candidate and leader of the religious right, who has announced that it would have been immoral for the Bush administration not to torture people.
Recently, a poll showed that religious people are more likely to support torture. The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life found 62 percent of white evangelical Protestants said torture of a suspected terrorist could be often or sometimes justified to obtain important information.
Gary Bauer rejected the question of “Would Jesus torture?” Instead, he explained “There are a lot of things Jesus wouldn’t do because he’s the son of God. I can’t imagine Jesus being a Marine or a policeman or a bank president, for that matter. The more appropriate question is, ‘What is a follower of Jesus permitted to do?’ I think if we believe the person we have can give us information to stop thousands of Americans from being killed, it would be morally suspect to not use harsh tactics to get that information.” In our steady moral decline, it is “morally suspect” not to torture. It turns out the the question of “what is a follower of Jesus permitted to do?” is not answered by Jesus’ image or teachings but people like Bauer who believe that torturing people is morally superior despite that fact that it violated international law and every intelligible moral precept.
Of course, the Bush administration tortured people just in case they knew about attacks. Dick Cheney reportedly called for the torture of detainees to establish a link between Al Qaeda and Iraq to fend off critics of the Iraq war.
For the full story, click here.
Three months later, we are still at war. I guess that torture stuff didn’t work too well after all.
Mespo…
Thanks for checking it out at least. I think it’s important to read about issues from all viewpoints, even if one doesn’t agree with it. I believe that it further helps one understand things if you read info from both sides of the fence.
Thanks Sally for the site. Looks like a selective reading of the text. While many passages extol the virtues of kindness and love, an equal amount resort to depravity and violence to solve problems. Such an internally inconsistent work shouldn’t serve as the basis for a philosophy. Is it really the best we can do? I’d take that rubbish of Khalil Gibran’s over it any time. At least “The Prophet” doesn’t condone slavery.
Mespo wrote:
Here’s a few off the top of my head:
“A fool’s lips enter into contention, and his mouth calleth for strokes.” Proverbs 18:6
“A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass, and a rod for the fool’s back.” Proverbs 26:3
“And it shall be, if the wicked man be worthy to be beaten, that the judge shall cause him to lie down, and to be beaten before his face, according to his fault, by a certain number.” Deuteronomy 25:2
“Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die. Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.” Proverbs 23: 13-14
And I ‘m just in the Old Testament.
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I’d like to know when mespo and I might be permitted to conceive
‘OUR’ love child together outside of our perspective ongoing relationships…
I’d vote for him for President or anything else he chose to run for!
Sally,
Only if you use warm water. But then you will have to clean up the other mess?
Mike…
How about soap and waterboarding?? Not only are you punishing your kid, but they’re also getting a bath at the same time! !
okay, bad joke, I know!
Mespo…
check out this site.
http://www.gotquestions.org/torture-Bible.html
Let me know what you think
Parents used to wash their kids mouths out with soap. Can’t we just waterboard them now? After all, if waterboarding is not torture and physical punishment is not torture, then it follows that waterboarding should be an acceptable form of punishment.