Sep 7, 2019 07:41 PM
https://www.redletterchristians.org/ted-...the-bible/
EXCERPT (Shane Claiborne): It takes some serious theological gymnastics to twist the Bible to defend guns. Ted Cruz was the largest recipient of National Rifle Association funds in the Senate race of 2016. And it appears to have affected the way he interprets the Bible. Here’s the backdrop for those who missed it.
It all started with a tweet thread from Texas state Rep. Matt Schaefer in which he declared gun ownership to be one of our “God-given rights.” Not Constitution-given, but God-given. Enter Alyssa Milano. The actress-turned-activist (and perhaps now a budding theologian?) asked a fair question: “Can someone cite which passage of the Bible God states it is a god-given right to own a gun?”
Cruz took the bait and responded with a lengthy thread of his own. [...] Cruz quoted an obscure text from the Book of Exodus: “If a thief is caught breaking in at night and is struck a fatal blow, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed” (Exodus 22:2). Cruz himself even conceded the next verse says if the same thing happens during daylight, it’s no longer self-defense and the law forbids it. So by Cruz’s own argument, the right to self-defense by gun ends at dawn. After that, it is murder.
[...] It’s noteworthy that the same chapter of Exodus used by Cruz speaks pointedly about caring for foreigners, widows and orphans and making sure the poor receive justice and compassion. The same chapter, Exodus 22, says this: “Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were once foreigners in Egypt. Do not take advantage of the widow or the fatherless. If you do, and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry.” Whoa. I wished he took that part literally. Or the part in the next chapter, Exodus 23, that says, “Do not accept a bribe.” While Exodus does not defend guns, it does prohibit taking a bribe … like, say $360,727.
Like a target at the shooting range, there are many holes in Cruz’s theology. But the biggest hole in his theology is this: There is no Jesus in it. In his argument in support of guns, he doesn’t mention Jesus or the gospel a single time. When it comes to interpreting the Old Testament, Jesus is the lens through which we understand everything. When you interpret Jesus in light of Exodus, rather than Exodus in light of Jesus, you get some whacked-out theology.
[...] Were I to sit down with Cruz and a Bible, I would turn to a story that appears in Luke 22 — when the disciple Peter uses a weapon to defend Jesus — a story so important to the disciples that it appears in all four Gospels. When the Roman soldiers attempt to arrest Jesus, Peter picks up his sword and cuts a man’s ear off. Jesus responds in a stunning and bemusing way. He scolds Peter and tells him to put his sword away, insisting “those who live by the sword will die by the sword.” Then Jesus heals the wounded man, picking up the man’s ear and putting it back on. Peter learned, as any of us who dare follow Jesus must learn, we cannot carry a cross in one hand and a weapon in the other. Jesus models for us how to interact with violence without mirroring the violence... (MORE - details)
EXCERPT (Shane Claiborne): It takes some serious theological gymnastics to twist the Bible to defend guns. Ted Cruz was the largest recipient of National Rifle Association funds in the Senate race of 2016. And it appears to have affected the way he interprets the Bible. Here’s the backdrop for those who missed it.
It all started with a tweet thread from Texas state Rep. Matt Schaefer in which he declared gun ownership to be one of our “God-given rights.” Not Constitution-given, but God-given. Enter Alyssa Milano. The actress-turned-activist (and perhaps now a budding theologian?) asked a fair question: “Can someone cite which passage of the Bible God states it is a god-given right to own a gun?”
Cruz took the bait and responded with a lengthy thread of his own. [...] Cruz quoted an obscure text from the Book of Exodus: “If a thief is caught breaking in at night and is struck a fatal blow, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed” (Exodus 22:2). Cruz himself even conceded the next verse says if the same thing happens during daylight, it’s no longer self-defense and the law forbids it. So by Cruz’s own argument, the right to self-defense by gun ends at dawn. After that, it is murder.
[...] It’s noteworthy that the same chapter of Exodus used by Cruz speaks pointedly about caring for foreigners, widows and orphans and making sure the poor receive justice and compassion. The same chapter, Exodus 22, says this: “Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were once foreigners in Egypt. Do not take advantage of the widow or the fatherless. If you do, and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry.” Whoa. I wished he took that part literally. Or the part in the next chapter, Exodus 23, that says, “Do not accept a bribe.” While Exodus does not defend guns, it does prohibit taking a bribe … like, say $360,727.
Like a target at the shooting range, there are many holes in Cruz’s theology. But the biggest hole in his theology is this: There is no Jesus in it. In his argument in support of guns, he doesn’t mention Jesus or the gospel a single time. When it comes to interpreting the Old Testament, Jesus is the lens through which we understand everything. When you interpret Jesus in light of Exodus, rather than Exodus in light of Jesus, you get some whacked-out theology.
[...] Were I to sit down with Cruz and a Bible, I would turn to a story that appears in Luke 22 — when the disciple Peter uses a weapon to defend Jesus — a story so important to the disciples that it appears in all four Gospels. When the Roman soldiers attempt to arrest Jesus, Peter picks up his sword and cuts a man’s ear off. Jesus responds in a stunning and bemusing way. He scolds Peter and tells him to put his sword away, insisting “those who live by the sword will die by the sword.” Then Jesus heals the wounded man, picking up the man’s ear and putting it back on. Peter learned, as any of us who dare follow Jesus must learn, we cannot carry a cross in one hand and a weapon in the other. Jesus models for us how to interact with violence without mirroring the violence... (MORE - details)