What Attitudes Might Christians Hold About Capital Punishment?
What attitudes might Christians hold about Capital Punishment?
A Christian believes that their life is totally dedicated to God, and there is only one God. We should love everybody including people who we have extreme dislike for. A Christian also believes that he/she should worship God at church or at home.
A Christian believes that we should forgive other people as God forgives us. A Christian also believes that we should live our life as a disciple, loving one another, reading the Bible and following it.
Capital Punishment is when you execute a person for a crime they have committed. The methods for Capital Punishment are lethal injection, electric chair, hanging, stoning, and firing squad. The reasons for someone to receive Capital Punishment is most obviously murder, if someone has murdered, they maybe receive Capital Punishment in some countries. There are many other reasons for someone to receive Capital Punishment like terrorism, rape or drug-traffiking. The countries in which Capital Punishment is legal are Iraq, Russia, Islamic Countries, Pakistan and some states in the United States of America.
A Christian believes in God. They believe that Jesus Christ forgave people that have sinned so that's what they should do. Christians worship God by going to the church, praying at home/church, and reading the Bible; in all these you are communicating with God. Christians believe that God has the only right to judge people and give/take life. They follow the Bible and forgive people just like Jesus Christ and God. Christians may have different attitudes towards moral issues, e.g. Capital Punishment.
Human life is sacred because we are all created in the image and likeness of God, we will be like/resemble God. God is the source of life, only he can give and take away life, no one else has the right. " Then the Lord God took some soil from the ground and formed a man out of it; he breathed life-giving breath into his nostrils and the man began to live. " This shows that God gave someone a life and only God can take that life away. Christians would argue that Capital Punishment is wrong because we have not the right to end a person's life.
Cain and Abel were brothers, Abel was a shepherd and Cain was a farmer. After some time, Cain brought some harvest and offered it to God. Abel bought a sheep, killed it and gave the best parts of it as an offering to God. The Lord was pleased with Abel but rejected Cain. Cain became angry, and in a rage of jealousy, he killed his brother. God punished Cain by banishing him. This proves that God didn't kill someone for a crime they have committed, he just banished Cain. " You are placed under a curse and can ...
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Cain and Abel were brothers, Abel was a shepherd and Cain was a farmer. After some time, Cain brought some harvest and offered it to God. Abel bought a sheep, killed it and gave the best parts of it as an offering to God. The Lord was pleased with Abel but rejected Cain. Cain became angry, and in a rage of jealousy, he killed his brother. God punished Cain by banishing him. This proves that God didn't kill someone for a crime they have committed, he just banished Cain. " You are placed under a curse and can no longer farm the soil. "
" If you try to grow crops, the soil will not produce anything; you will be a homeless wanderer on the earth. " Therefore, Christians are against Capital Punishment because it is not an act of mercy.
Christians believe that punishment should be about reforming the criminal because Jesus' mission was to save sinners. He will help them to turn away from their sins and return to God. This is ' reform ' (the aim of the punishment is to help the criminal change their ways and ideas, if it works they will realise that the crime is wrong and will chose to obey law in the future). In the story of the women caught in adultery. They wanted to stone her for committing a crime. Jesus said to them, "Whichever one of you has committed no sin may throw the first stone at her." Everyone left because they have committed sins. Like in this story Christians believe we can't blame people or hurt people who have broken the law unless we are perfect and have never committed a sin. Christians are against retribution because Jesus is against it. Jesus teaches us that we should love even our enemies, because God's love is for ALL people, good or bad. Jesus teaches that we shouldn't care if anyone wants revenge on us. " If someone hits you on the right cheek, let him hit you on the left cheek. If someone asks you to carry something for them for 1km, carry it for 2km. " The whole point is, Jesus is teaching us if someone asks something we give it to them, and more. Christians are against Capital Punishment because it does not offer the criminal a chance to reform.
The two lines that are the heart of the heart of the Our Father prayer are:
" Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. "
Christians believe that if we forgive someone, then God will forgive us for our sins. If we don't forgive then God wont forgive us. In the story of the unforgiving servant, a king forgave a servant, who owed him millions of pounds, the servant was very happy, on his way out he met a fellow servant who owed him a bit of money and forced him to pay it back. When the king heard about this he was furious, he told the servant, " I forgave you the whole amount you owed me just because you asked me to. You should have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you. " The king threw him into jail until he paid back what he owed. Jesus teaches us that this is how God will treat us, unless we forgive from our hearts. While Jesus was being crucified he said, " Forgive them Father! They don't know what they are doing. " Jesus promises one of the criminals that he will be in paradise with him that same day. Jesus teaches us that in order to receive forgiveness from God, we should try forgive other people no matter the crime they have committed. Therefore, Christians are against Capital Punishment because it is not an act of forgiveness.
However, many Christians believe that death is an appropriate punishment for crime because of many reasons. God uses death as a punishment for sin. When the Lord saw how evil and wicked everyone on earth was he was sorry that he ever made them. " I will wipe out these people I have created...because I am sorry that I made any of them. " Therefore people who sin by committing a terrible crime, deserve to die. If human life is sacred, then anyone who takes away human life deserves the highest punishment - death. If we are made in the image and likeness of God, then we have the power to make life and death decisions. We have a responsibility to see justice done on earth, which may include death. The Law of Moses says that, " Whoever hits someone and kills him is to be put to death." Christians support Capital Punishment because God's Law states that a murderer should be put to death -"Thou shall not commit murder." Christians argue that Capital Punishment is an act of justice NOT revenge because if someone commits a crime, which is against God's Law, then they do deserve the death sentence. It is an act of justice not revenge. The Roman Catholic Church teaches us that all people have a duty to create 'the common good'; the common good includes respect for all people, provision of basic needs, e.g education, peace, and stability. If any person threatens the common good - the law courts have the right to remove them from society, and in extreme cases, execute them. " Preserving the common good of society requires the aggressor unable to inflict harm. For this reason the traditional teaching of the Church has acknowledged as well-founded the right and duty of legitimate public authority to punish malefactors by means of penalties commensurate with the gravity of the crime, not excluding, in cases of extreme gravity, the death penalty." Catechism of the Roman Catholic Church. (P.488)
Question 2 - What place is there for forgiveness in dealing with people who commit murder?
Murder is such a serious crime because it causes grief for the families; they have to live the rest of their life without their loved ones. It also threatens the good of society. Only God is meant to give and take away life, no one else has any right to kill another human being. The consequences are long-term; you have to accept the fact that the person is gone.
A Christian should forgive because God is merciful, he didn't kill Cain, he just banished him. Jesus does not condemn sinners, - the women caught in the act of adultery, etc. He forgives us. If we except forgiveness, we must forgive. Forgiveness is an act for my benefit, welfare, and peace.
On the other hand, a Christian would struggle to forgive because of the grief, loss and bereavement. You will be too angry, you will want revenge on that person and you will have a lot of hatred for him or her, especially if the criminal showed no regret or remorse.
Conclusion - In my opinion, I believe that even though people have different attitudes towards Capital Punishment, I feel that the death penalty is WRONG morally because it is the cruel and inhumane taking of a human life. The methods by which executions are carried out can involve physical torture. Electrocution has on occasion caused extensive burns and needed more than one application of electric current to kill the condemned. I think no one, not even the State, has the authority to play God. There is even a possibility of an innocent death. The death penalty is unalterable. In case of mistake; the executed prisoner cannot be given another chance. Justice can miscarry. Undoubtedly many other cases of mistaken conviction and execution occurred and remained undocumented. A prisoner discovered to be blameless can be freed; but neither release nor compensation is possible for a corpse. I believe that the criminal should be given a chance to reform.
I used the "Good News Bible" for all of my quotes.
I also used the "Catechism of the Roman Catholic Church" page 488
David Isaac Capital Punishment Coursework
4/10/01 Year 11
