Thou Shalt Not Murder

"I don't know about this doctrine of assassination, but if he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think we really ought to go ahead and do it. It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war, and I don't think any oil shipments will stop. But this man is a terrific danger, and this is in our sphere of influence, so we can't let this happen. We have the Monroe Doctrine, and we have other doctrines that we have announced, and without question, this is a dangerous enemy to our south, controlling a huge pool of oil that could hurt us very badly. We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability. We don't need another 200-billion-dollar war to get rid of one strong-arm dictator. It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with."

--Pat Robertson

I did not want to talk about politics on this blog, but Pat Robertson's latest statement cannot be ignored. This is a man who is not qualified to herd goats, much less people.

What I find the most disturbing about Robertson's statement is how clearly is points to the underlying streak of meanness that runs through religious conservatives of all dominations. There are far too many of them running around who lack the very basic sense of mercy and compassion for the flaws and failings of other humans. For a self-proclaimed "Minister" (a Master's of Divinity alone does NOT make you a man of God) to espouse the deliberate destruction of another's body is reprehensible. That Robertson's ilk have weaseled out of condemning him by declaring him to be a bit cuckoo is equally disturbing, but unsurprising.

Let us not split hairs either. To advocate the destruction of another human being, whether it be their body or their soul, is immoral. "Thou shall not murder" may have applied to the physical body when Moses brought those commandments down the mountain, but the teachings of Christ, who the above congregation profess to follow, clearly extended that commandment to a person's spirit. If you destroy a person's soul, you have committed murder, even if the body remains.

Unfortunately the Pat Robertson's of the world do not see it that way.