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The Death Penalty

I was just reading an article by a progressive Christian on the sentencing of the Boston Marathon Bomber.  The gist of the article was that it is inconsistent for Christians to claim to be pro-life, while still upholding the death penalty.  Statistically, he quotes a Barna poll which reported that only 8% of Protestants believe Jesus would support the death penalty.

I have to admit this was a new one for me.  I have never run across someone who believes the death penalty is wrong because it is inconsistent with a pro-life stance.  However, I believe that the writer' argument is in fact anti-life - not pro-life.

It always amazes me that when the death penalty debate arises, that those who seek its abolition always seem to speak of the value of the life of the murderer.  Few of them ever mention the value of the life of the victim.  You see, the victim was a person made in the image of God.  As a consequence, that victim was of inestimable value. The murderer has made the most anti-life statement that it is possible for a human to make by snuffing out the life on a person made in the image of Almighty God.

5 And for your lifeblood I will require a reckoning: from every beast I will require it and from man. From his fellow man I will require a reckoning for the life of man.
6 "Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image. (Gen 9:5-6 ESV)
In this passage, Almighty God (including the second person of the Trinity, Jesus) says in order truly value human life, the life of the murderer must be taken. Ironically, the article claiming to be pro-life falls short by applying man's standards rather than God's and by attributing greater value to the life of the criminal than to the life of the victim.

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