Challenges to positions on the death penalty and abortion

Question: [The following was sent in multi-color, multi-font format, which I find is usually done to distract readers. I removed all of it.] Good evening sir. Death Penalty After reading your article on ‘Early Christians and Abortion’ you seem to support the death penalty because you said, “When a criminal is put to death, it…

Read More

Should a Christian support capital punishment?

Question: Dear Minister, I read today in an article on your site that you approve of capital punishment. It is my opinion that capital punishment and the biblical teaching of loving and forgiving one’s enemies are not compatible. I am, however, willing to change my views upon sufficient evidence from the Bible. Kindly explain further.…

Read More

On Stoning Adulterers and Not Eating Shellfish

by Hugh Fulford via The Fellowship Room Periodically — at least three or four times a year — someone feels compelled to demonstrate his or her lack of knowledge of the Bible by writing a letter to the editor of the local newspaper railing against Bible-believers who oppose homosexuality. (Capital punishment of convicted murderers is another…

Read More

Was the death penalty for homosexuals only referring to hell?

Question: Does Deuteronomy 20 really say that we should kill gay people? I was always under the idea that it was saying God was going to kill them by sending them to hell when they died because they knew better and refused to change. Am I right? It came up in conversation and I was…

Read More

Why did Jesus allow divorce when the Law had a death penalty for adultery?

Question: I’m trying to figure out how to reconcile a couple of Jesus’ statements in the Sermon on the Mount. First Jesus said, “Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them,…

Read More

Why was stoning used as an execution method?

Question: I’m just wondering if there’s a significance in stoning as a means of execution in the Bible.  Christ was on the cross because that was the worst way to die and it was a prophecy fulfilled.  How about stoning?  Why not drowning or burning instead for example? Answer: If you are asking why Jesus…

Read More

What Would Jesus Do About the Death Penalty?

by Joe Neil Clayton Recently C-span carried a speech by Alan Keyes to an audience in Virginia. Mr. Keyes, a respected columnist, orator, and candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, captivated his hearers with a lecture on the causes and cures for the moral collapse in our country. Part of the cause, he stated, was the…

Read More

Early Christians and Abortion

by William J. Stewart Several years ago, with an election approaching, a candidate canvassing in our area stopped by my home seeking my support in his pursuit of public office. I politely, but firmly informed him that he would not receive my vote, as we had fundamental disagreements on important moral issues. We briefly discussed…

Read More

What constitutes a witness in the Bible?

Question: In Deuteronomy 17:6 and II Corinthians13:1, the passages refer to the “two or three witnesses.” I assume these are eyewitnesses. Does DNA count as an eye witness for justice biblically? So when individuals are convicted on DNA evidence alone for their crimes and incarcerated or put to death, is that biblical or not? Answer:…

Read More

Notes on Capital Punishment

The Patriarchal Age Genesis 9:6 “Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man his blood shall be shed; for in the image of God He made man.” The Mosaic Age Over 30 crimes were to be punished by death, including: Exodus 21:15 Striking a parent Exodus 21:16 Kidnapping Exodus 22:18 Witchcraft Exodus 31:14 Sabbath breaking Leviticus 20:10…

Read More