Peace and Justice

Peace and Justice

1. Crime and Punishment

   • Capital Punishment
     • OT: "An eye for and eye and the whole world will be blind"
     • Sanctity of life
     • Jesus preaches forgivness
     • can cause martyrdom
     • effective deterant
     • retribution for family/victim
   • Justice
     • It is the fair treatment of all
     • Jesus believed that those who judge must be honest themselves
       • "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own"
   • Aims of punishment
     • Deterrance, Protenction, Retribution and Reformation

2. War

   • Background
     • Nowadays the vast majority of casualties of war are civilian
   • "Live by the sword, die by the sword"
   • Just War Theory
     • Jus ad Bellum
       • Must be fought with the right intention
       • War must be a last resort
     • Jus in Bello
       • Civilians are not to be harmed
       • Min. force to be used to reduce death
     • Jus post Bellum
       • No revenge to be taken
       • Punishment must not be too harsh
     • Citicism of the Theory
       • Created by Constantine to convice his soilders to fight
       • May LEGITIMISE war
       • Unrealistic criteria
         • If one side follows it is at a disadvantage
   • Violence and Pacifism
     • In the Old Testament God commands wars however in the New Testament Jesus is a pacifist
     • "utterly destroyed all that breathed as the Lord God commanded"
     • Types of Pacifism
       • Absolute
         • e.g. Jesus, Gandi
         • believe violence is never right
       • Relative
         • Violence is sometimes the lesser of the 2 evils
     • "Blessed are the peacemakers"

3. Social Injustice

   • Social Injustice is the discrimination of people in society or the denial of rights
   • Christians believe everyone is equal
     • "Neither Jew nor Greek..."
   • Amnestiy Int.
   • Anti-slavery Int.
   • Liberation Theology
     • Catholic Church criticize it
     • Positive action against social injustice through violence
     • e.g. Camilla Torres, Oscar Romeo