Why do you most Christian states support the death penalty?

Question

For example, TEXAS is a huge one, along with Louisianan, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Tennessee ALL in favor of the death penalty, yet, they are also known as the Bible Belt, which means they are big Christians.

It says right in the Holy Bible "Thou Shall Not Kill", and that includes Serial Killers also. Not to mention the death penalty is not NEAR the suffering a serial killer would face by being put behind bars for LIFE.

BTW, I'm a Catholic.

Answer 1

trace, maybe you should read the Bible.



In reality, like Trace so apply showed, Christian fundies like to reinterpret the Bible to fit their need, which led to Augustine's Just War Theory that states it is justified to kill the sinner to protect all the souls he would come in contact with and taint.

Pretty much the same as an extremist Muslim view.



The problem is, right-wingers like Big government when it supports their views, but hate it when it doesn't.

Example:

they want church and state merged when it comes to school prayer and abortion, but want it separated when it comes to the death penalty.

This is the way they interpret everything.

Answer 2

Probably because most states support the death penalty. Also, the majority of ALL states are Christian. Just because a country/state is majority Christian doesn't mean that every law and/or penalty is based on Christianity. Remember that little old thing called "Separation of Church and State"? Remember also that the same set of 10 Commandments that says Thou Shalt Not Murder also says Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery. If you want to be ruled by these laws, there will be an awful lot of adulterers sitting in prison (or under the old code being stoned to death).....worshipping idols is up there too.



You can't take one piece of something like the Ten Commandments and then disregard the rest. That WOULD be hypocritical.



Those states that have the death penalty are:

Alabama

Arizona

Arkansas

California

Colorado

Connecticut

Delaware

Florida

Georgia

Idaho

Indiana

Illinois

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

Maryland

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Nevada

New Hampshire

New Mexico

North Carolina

Ohio

Oklahoma

Oregon

Pennsylvania

South Carolina

South Dakota

Tennessee

Texas

Utah

Virginia

Washington

Wyoming

Answer 3

properly before everything Jesus Christ had dedicated no crime and of each and every individual who has walked this earth he merits an execution the least of each and every person, in actuality he does not deserve it in any respect and all of us deserve it. The dying penalty is a no longer common element to communicate for every person, yet between the main important issues we could think of roughly is the point of the dying. we will not kill a individual's soul and the dying penalty in maximum situations is meant for punishing fairly wicked crimes with the intention to set a typical so as that it will no longer take place back, or a minimum of as in many situations. we've verses like Genesis 9:6: “Whoever sheds human blood, by making use of people shall their blood be shed; for in same to God has God made mankind. Then we've verses from the ministry of Jesus with regard to the adulteress women individuals being stoned, telling the sinless guy to throw the 1st stone. that's and has been an rather debated subject count and we probably will never have an answer, yet one element is for particular and that's that God is conscious war happens and crime and offender punishment is a lesser quantity of war. There are hundreds of battles in the process the bible from the very beginning up of the outdated testomony all a thank you to the tip in revelations. we've a battlefield occurring in our minds at present, and besides the actuality that devil could strike the heel of the Lord, finally the Lord will weigh down devil's head. that's one element to teach the different cheek and to enable somebody flow off murdering hundreds of individuals.

Answer 4

There are several points I want to make. The translation of the ten commandments is more acurate to read thou shall not murder, not thou shall not kill. It may not seem like a difference, but it is. Catholics are slightly more republican, but not by much. I think that is mostly because of the abortion issue, and being conservative by nature.



I don't know why the bible belt supports the death penalty. Probably because in those states they use fear to rule. In years past it was a fear of blacks, and now it carries over into a fear of crime and terrorists, in general. It's how they get elected.

Answer 5

While I agree that life in prison is the ultimate suffering as long as the prisoners are not isolated from the general population. However, under extreme circumstances they should be put to death. The point you were trying to make about "Thou shalt not kill" is incorrect. The original was written in Hebrew and the word kill is actually "ratsah" which literally means "Thou shalt not MURDER". Murder is purposefully the shedding of innocent blood.



Killing and murder are 2 different things. There is killing in self defense which is NOT murder. There is killing in war. There is accidental killing...do you get it now or are YOU that ignorant? Good God do I have to always spell everything out to you so called educated liberals. Wtf are you educated in? The Special Olympics?



LOL yes you are ignorant! Obama is not very anti-death penalty. He supports it in extreme cases. Now how do you feel? I know more about your candidate then you do. Typical.

Answer 6

Because Christians are hypocrites and gullible. They believe the world is 6000 years old and a book filled with fairy tales. One day something or someone will deliver the final deathblow to Christianity for good and the world will be a better place. Oh by the way the God of the old testament murders millions did u forget to read that part of the bible? That's why they see it as moral.

Answer 7

Interesting question. Many people, whether or not they are Christians, support the death penalty because of concerns that brutal criminals will be released into their communities and because they haven't yet looked at the death penalty system in action. For example, some of the answers you have received are mistaken on the facts.



129 people on death rows have been released with proof that they were wrongfully convicted. DNA, available in less than 10% of all homicides, can’t guarantee we won’t execute innocent people. No system crafted by human beings gets it right every time. Human beings are fallible.



The death penalty doesn't prevent others from committing murder. Homicide rates are higher in states and regions that have it than in those that don’t.



Life without parole, on the books in 48 states, also prevents reoffending. It means what it says, and spending 23 of 24 hours a day locked in a tiny cell is not a picnic. Life without parole costs less than the death penalty.



The death penalty is much more expensive than life in prison, mostly because of the upfront costs of legal process which is supposed to prevent executions of innocent people. (upfront=before and during the initial trial)



The death penalty isn't reserved for the worst crimes, but for defendants with the worst lawyers. It doesn't apply to people with money. When is the last time a wealthy person was on death row, let alone executed?



The death penalty doesn't necessarily help families of murder victims. Murder victim family members have testified that the drawn-out death penalty process is painful for them and that life without parole is an appropriate alternative.



Problems with speeding up the process. Over 50 of the innocent people released from death row had already served over a decade. Speed up the process and we will execute innocent people.







Sources:



Death Penalty Information Center, www.deathpenaltyinfo.org, for stats on executions, reports on costs, deterrence studies, links to FBI crime stats and links to testimony (at state legislatures) of victims' family members.



FBI http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2006/data/table_04.html



The Innocence Project, www.innocenceproject.org



http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/COcosttestimony.pdf page 3 and 4 on why the death penalty is so expensive



http://www.njadp.org/forms/signon-survivor.html for statements of victims’ families



http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/deathpenalty/ for the Catholic Bishops Campaign to abolish the death penalty

Answer 8

Because religion is twisted. Particularly Christianity, it picks and chooses which parts of the Bible should be strictly followed and which we can do without. Which in my opinion makes it crap. So we can eat lobster and wear clothing of two different fibers but no one can be gay, even though all these things are in the same section of the Bible. And what about the apparently BS message of forgiveness? This would include serial killers and I believe a true Christian would forgive and would not wish death on murderers.

Answer 9

In favor of the death penalty. Not a Christian.



Actually in favor of public executions. I believe that would be a deterrent to those who would kill for profit. The nuts on the other hand would never be deterred but, death would certainly deter them from doing it again.



Execution is not killing, it's culling so you can get around the bible that way. It's actually an act of self defense.

Answer 10

Because its ok to murder a "guilty" possible murderer.



The problem with the death penalty is that it assumes everyone gets a fair trial. For if O.J. were poor like many other black men, he would have definetly have gotten the chair.



But imagine if someone confused O.J. with someother poor black dude who was innocent.



That has happened MANY times to poor black men, THAT is the problem with the death penalty.



I personally dont understand how christains can support the Iraq war, but support the iraq war christians do. Id love to hear jesus' opinon on that, as an buddhist.

Answer 11

The original text is "thou shalt not murder" Big difference between killing and murder.



According to you, we should NEVER kill? What if you come home and someone is raping and torturing your 4 year old daughter? Should you let them continue or kill them?



There are MANY instances where killing is the MORAL thing to do. Should we have not gone to war to end Hitlers reign of terror? We killed many in that war to stop it. Should we have just let him continue murdering innocents?



Get real!

Answer 12

I believe EVERY muslim country does. Funny you missed that. Try understanding a religion before you attempt to malign it. These types of cowardly attempts to marginalize groups of people certainly goes along way to eliminating any credibility you could have had.

Answer 13

You have no idea of who or what most Christians support. You parrot talking points mindlessly and make weird assumptions because some nutball says it is true.

Answer 14

there is no sense in paying for a murderer to sit in prison all his life, thats alot of money coming from the state. just kill them and get it over with.

Answer 15

You mean like Saudi Arabia; Iran; Palestine, etc. etc. P.S. The commandment literally translates : Thou shall not murder; As in, to lay in wait (plan) to kill someone. Ask your priest.

Answer 16

Because in these states we would rather save the $42000 a year it costs to keep the scum alive. Also please give Missouri credit for Cap punishment we kill killers every chance we get.

Answer 17

It does. However it also talks about an eye for a eye in the bible as well as forgivness.



It could also be said that many Catholics are Dems and the Dems support killing babies. I would take killing murders over killing babies.



No offense intended here.

Answer 18

Because they aren't really Christians. They are Pharisees and zealots. It's odd to me that most of the fundamentalist Christians in the US, especially Protestants, but certainly all denominations, seem to get their marching orders from the Old Testament, which, by the way, is what the Jewish people tend to follow. Once Christ hit the deck, that's what you're supposed to believe. If you're a Christian, that is.

Answer 19

Are you human? ok with that out of the way, we have feelings and needs. If I murdered your family or a member of it you would want me dead now not in Heavan? Right? Know the differfnce in scripture and reality.

Answer 20

Christians support the death penalty, I think, because Christ was put to death so he could forgive them. I think they believe the more people they execute, the more they'll be forgiven.

Answer 21

Because sorry to say, most christians are hypocrites. If you want to get a real answer and engage in a real conversation you can email and we can chat. I'm sorry to say too but not many people here give any advice or answers that are worth a damn.

Answer 22

cuz christians r hypocrites. srsly they say we should obey the bible but... the bible says that you should kill your disobedient children and that you can sell your daughter...



hmm???? food for thought?

Answer 23

Hypocritical thinking. I'll bet if you polled these so called Christians they would also strongly support public executions of the "enemy combatants" at Guantanamo.

Answer 24

Probably that whole "eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth" thing.



I don't support the death penalty.

Answer 25

Bush executed more people then any other Governor but flew home to sign a law to save Terry Schivoe They Are All HYPOCRITES!

Answer 26

read the entire Bible. not just the "thou shall not kill" that all liberals seem to like to quote.

Answer 27

because they're hypocrites!!!!