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From: grw@fortune.UUCP (Glenn Wichman)
Newsgroups: net.religion
Subject: Re: kill versus murder
Message-ID: <1376@fortune.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 29-Aug-83 13:03:36 EDT
Article-I.D.: fortune.1376
Posted: Mon Aug 29 13:03:36 1983
Date-Received: Sat, 3-Sep-83 09:55:47 EDT
References: <131@ccieng5.UUCP>
Organization: Fortune Systems, Redwood City, CA
Lines: 27


	Of course, "kill" and "murder" are both very culturally
    defined here.  What is and is not murder depends very much
    on exact circumstances and even which judge you get.  When
    God said, "Thou shalt not murder", did that include 1st,
    2nd & 3rd degree murder?  Or what?  Clearly following merely
    the letter of the law will get us nowhere (The argument
    against following the letter of the law, but not the spirit,
    was made by Jesus himself...)  This country defines it as
    not-murder to kill while protecting your stereo or your
    country, or your life.  I have problems with each of these.
	Killing someone who is trying to steal from you, it
    seems to me, is escalating things.  I don't think I need
    to argue further.
	Jesus told me to love my enemies.  I suppose that the
    "enemies" of the United States count as mine, too.  I think
    it a rather unloving thing to kill someone, so I will not
    kill my country's enemies for it.
	If someone were trying to kill me, and it was a "him/her
    or me" situation, there is no question about it:  I would let
    myself be killed.  I know where I'm going.  If the person
    who is shooting at me lives, he/she may still have a chance to
    be saved.  If I kill him/her [I hate English's gendered pronouns],
    I have taken away that chance.


					-Glenn