|
I invite you to reflect on the following article and my comments that follow: On Christians and torture 'Shame. Shame. Shame … '
—Jim Winkler (Virginia)
Wrinkler, who is chief executive of the United Methodist General Board of Church & Society, was commenting on a Pew Research Center Forum on Religion and Public Life survey that shows more than seven in 10 Americans continue to believe there are circumstances in which the torture of suspected terrorists is justified. The survey, “The Religious Dimensions of the Torture Debate,” released April 29, also found that the more often a person attends religious services, the more likely he or she is to say torture against suspected terrorists is sometimes justified. Pew said white evangelical Protestants are the most likely group to offer at least some support for torture, while those not affiliated with a religious denomination are the least likely to do so. Only 25% of respondents said the use of torture against suspected terrorists is never justified. “Shame. Shame. Shame on any Christian who could imagine there is justification for torture against any human being,” Winkler commented in a United Methodist News Service article, “Church agency promotes anti-torture petition.” “I cannot conceive in my wildest dreams of Jesus Christ giving any blessing to torture.” I struggle with the idea that we who worship a God that was tortured and given the “death penalty” could somehow accept torture as a people of faith. Much of the public discussion has move to whether torture is effective. Most interrogators say that torture produces false information. However, this is the wrong question for people of faith. Water boarding has been deemed as torture for many years, even centuries. Our nation tried Japanese solders for the war crime of water boarding. So, what makes it okay now? The United Methodist Church’s position is: Our commitment to human rights is grounded in the conviction that each and every human life is sacred. Therefore the United Methodist Church endorses legislative and judicial remedies for the use of torture and illegal detention ...such as the appointment of special counsels [and] appropriate investigations.
#6120 "Opposition to Torture" Book of Resolutions (2008) Grace and Peace Richard |
