If the state identifies itself as “a group of Christians”, then they are not equally concerned for every other person in the country, and therefore not suited to represent the state.
Justice must overlook the religion, sex and orientation of people and act according to the law, before which all men and women are equal.
It is in equanimity that it should be decided what to do about the problems of society.
In another thread, I asked what would Jesus (or Christians) do if the adulterous woman kept committing adultery. As you know, Jesus said to her : “… go and sin no more”. But what if she continues to sin? What if they keep bringing her back to Jesus?
My statement remains … I am not presumtuous enough to assume the role of the state. I only know that there are humane and christian ways to try to deal with these problems.
Nor am I, with regard to your other question, Jesus. The question remains unanswered because there is no answer. Unless, course, someone comes along who claims to know the mind of God - as has often happened.
The lack of answers in some cases could be healthy for a society, because it shows that there isn’t a blueprint for everything and you can’t tar everybody with the same brush. The reasons for horrible deeds are often unfathomable, but are we to be equally unfathomable in our thirst for revenge? Isn’t revenge Gods, and not ours?
It’s not a question of revenge, it’s a question of what to do about bad and destructive behavior. And it’s a question that has to be answered every day.
Jesus’ answer was different. And he made that very clear. Be clever, not deadly. That was what the Jewish way was supposed to be too. The Christians didn’t end up owning Rome through violence, but by converting the emperor. Granted, the emperor got a bit testy. But by that time, a great deal of “Christianity” was already merely CINO.
The strategies for survival are complex and require intelligence to use moment by moment. One of Jesus’ short comings was his tendency to expect people to be more like him than they were. The average person can’t do that. And that means that there has to be an order that allows untalented people to be directed by the more strategic people (just like any other group). Governments hate organized religions because politicians want absolute control, not shared.
The strategy of Christianity is far more sophisticated than this thread (as are Islam and Judaism for that matter).
Did it ever occur to you that you do not know what the alternative would really have been? Just because violence is so common, one could claim that all things of man depend upon violence. And in fact, that claim is often made … generally by those selling weapons and money (and instigating violence).
What would really have happened if Jesus’ way was actually held to despite the violence elsewhere? You can’t know. It is a question of very detailed strategy and secrets (one doesn’t broadcast his chess moves to the opponent).