Almost all violence emerges with some kind of rationale that justifies its use. Warfare, capital punishment, or corporal punishment all follow a self-conscious logic. At the core of this “logic” usually rests a commitment to the necessity of retribution, justifying violence as the appropriate response to wrongdoing. When wrongdoing violates the human divined moral order, “justice” requires retribution or punishment, repaying wrongdoing with punishment, pain and often also death.
This human interpretation of retribution, which is still being applied is some kind of an "historical short-circuit" that occurred in which certain concepts were taken from their biblical context, interpreted through the lens of Roman law, then used to interpret the biblical texts.
The result has been an obsession with the retributive themes of the Bible and a neglect of the restorative ones— in other words a basic theology of a retributive God who desires violence.
Consequently the legitimacy of retribution has become an accepted cultural given around the world.
Is this correct, absolutely not.
Genesis 9 verse 6 warns: “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image".
Or as we read in Deuterenomy 32 verse 35: "it is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them."
Mankind can not take the law of retribution in its own hand, because that right belongs to God.
If we look at the state of the world today, nobody has to tell you that the situation is extremely grim, maybe even hopeless for some.
Political structures are falling like a deck of cards, natural disasters are happening daily.
America and Britain, which led a "coalition of the willing" under false pretenses into a war with Iraq, which has now spread into Syria and other Middle Eastern countries, resulting in millions of casualties of innocent civilians, large numbers of refugees, will not escape divine retribution.
As a matter of fact, the results of these divine retributions are already visible. Britain's economy and its Pound Stirling are crumbling, after they voted in favor of Brexit.
The US is not only plagued today by a meltdown of its political system, but is also experiencing one natural disaster after the other.
The EU is going through an inner revolt between member states wanting closer unity and nationalistic populists, who want to turn the clock back to independent statehood.
Last but not least, on the subject of divine retribution, if you wonder why Haiti has been so hard hit recently by hurricane Matthew, and just a few years earlier by a devastating earthquake, followed by an epidemic of cholera, think again.
Roman Catholicism is the official religion of Haiti, but voodoo may be considered the country's national religion. The majority of Haitians believe in and practice at least some aspects of voodoo. Most voodooists believe that their religion can coexist with Catholicism, which is a myth. Former Haiti President François Duvalier recruited voodoo specialists to serve as "tonton makouts" to help him control all aspects of Haitian life. Duvalier also often indicated that he retained power through sorcery.
There are many more of these examples of retribution showing up daily around the world, as the day of judgement draws closer.
Yes indeed, the power of retribution is not really a part of our "human objectives" during our temporary sojourn on this planet. It belongs to God.
©
EU-Digest
This human interpretation of retribution, which is still being applied is some kind of an "historical short-circuit" that occurred in which certain concepts were taken from their biblical context, interpreted through the lens of Roman law, then used to interpret the biblical texts.
The result has been an obsession with the retributive themes of the Bible and a neglect of the restorative ones— in other words a basic theology of a retributive God who desires violence.
Consequently the legitimacy of retribution has become an accepted cultural given around the world.
Is this correct, absolutely not.
Genesis 9 verse 6 warns: “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image".
Or as we read in Deuterenomy 32 verse 35: "it is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them."
Mankind can not take the law of retribution in its own hand, because that right belongs to God.
If we look at the state of the world today, nobody has to tell you that the situation is extremely grim, maybe even hopeless for some.
Political structures are falling like a deck of cards, natural disasters are happening daily.
America and Britain, which led a "coalition of the willing" under false pretenses into a war with Iraq, which has now spread into Syria and other Middle Eastern countries, resulting in millions of casualties of innocent civilians, large numbers of refugees, will not escape divine retribution.
As a matter of fact, the results of these divine retributions are already visible. Britain's economy and its Pound Stirling are crumbling, after they voted in favor of Brexit.
The US is not only plagued today by a meltdown of its political system, but is also experiencing one natural disaster after the other.
The EU is going through an inner revolt between member states wanting closer unity and nationalistic populists, who want to turn the clock back to independent statehood.
Last but not least, on the subject of divine retribution, if you wonder why Haiti has been so hard hit recently by hurricane Matthew, and just a few years earlier by a devastating earthquake, followed by an epidemic of cholera, think again.
Roman Catholicism is the official religion of Haiti, but voodoo may be considered the country's national religion. The majority of Haitians believe in and practice at least some aspects of voodoo. Most voodooists believe that their religion can coexist with Catholicism, which is a myth. Former Haiti President François Duvalier recruited voodoo specialists to serve as "tonton makouts" to help him control all aspects of Haitian life. Duvalier also often indicated that he retained power through sorcery.
There are many more of these examples of retribution showing up daily around the world, as the day of judgement draws closer.
Yes indeed, the power of retribution is not really a part of our "human objectives" during our temporary sojourn on this planet. It belongs to God.
©
EU-Digest
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