The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1915-01-14
CAPITAL PUNISHMENT
uNCHRISTIhNLIKE

v
The taking of human life is an
anarchronism and an exotic in mod
arn life. 1t is belated and foreign
We have outgrown 1t, but we still
permit it to cling to US like barna-
Gle. We are different people from
what existed in the past, and the claim
that human nature has been the same
in all ages as it is now, can be success
fully controverted by an appeal to
history, literature or language. One
sepcific instance will illuserate the
General principle. We will take the
word charity 1t is wholly modern
and a product of present day civiliza-
lion. The delivers about Karnak and
other places in Mesopotamia have dis
covered libraries in which were store
-ons and tons of cuneiform tablets,
recording everything concerning the
life and activities of a progressive and
enlightened people, but nowhere is the
equivalent of the word charity found.
Beginning at the birthplace of the
human race, it is nowhere found in
any of the Oriental literature. 1t is
absent from classic literature, for the
iimple reason that righ and grand
md glorious as was the civilization of
hes people, they had not grown up
20 he concept of charity. The Spar
ans assembled from time to time
heir deaf, dumb and blind and lame,
thelr incurably wunded, the old and
Unfit, and threw them over cliff
that rose in sheer precipitancy init
,hasm below, and if they failed to
lash their brains out on the rocks,
here was no way of getting out, and
hey starved to death, This was a
summary enforcement of tire law of
The su vival of the fittest. The Athen-
ians assembled the same classes of
unfortunates. Being more spiritual
lied, they put them to death in some
easy manner, from which comes our
word euthanasia. The Romans COM.
ing after them disposer of these un-
fortunates by throwing them into IT,
yellow Tiber, to be drowned as some
81 rown blind kittens. In spite of
sleir splendid civilization they knew
not crarity. 1t was a sentiment that
lad not risen above the plane of
their consciousness. The word char
lty nowhere appears in the Old Testa-
ment, because these people worshiped
a God of vengeance and a jealous
God. The word charity is nowhere
be found in the four gospels. It is
absnt from the greatest of all COM
parable Sermon on the Mount. Christ
told His disciples that He could not
tell them all, because they were not
to receive it and could no
understand it. The word charity ap-
pears in the New Testament twenty
nine times Paul uses III ANfAy-
two times, Peter uses it four times,
John once, Jude once, and it appears
once in Revelation. And today mod
ern scholarship is excluding it from
the sacred text and using another
word which glorifies modern civili-
zation with having given the senti-
ment not only name but a vitality. |
a meaning, and being. AS with the
apostles, the message was not all |
given to us, and we are only be ginn-
ing to understand ap art of that which |
was vouchsafed us. We are learning
that our Father in Heaven is not a |
God of vengeance and cruelty, a God |
Of power and force, who comes in a |
attitude to punish and de-
stroy. We are learning that ours is
1 God of love and mercy, who pities.
'escues and conserves. who would
'ather save than destroy, reform and
Aob SA,Si hhhutc, uClp anu not nurL,
owe and not hate, serve and not sub
ugate. Out of this has sprung the
'enascence of humanitarian efforts
md national reform, which must soon
10 away with belated and barbar-
'us of capital punishment. Lex tai
mis- and all the ancient cruelties were
'rdered from the human heart when
,hrist cried aloud on the cross: "Itl
S finished" Charity teaches us that
IL revenge is crime, and as an
yidence our spiritual growth we
hould rejoice that we have given a
abitation and name to charity and
earn much to our advantage II
From the charity that standeth with ,
her sunny wings unfurled, ],
While her white hands shower bless
ings and her sweet lips kiss the
!. world"
Note-This is the third of series
five articles on the question of Cap I
al Punishment. prepared by M. w.
Managing Editor of the
femDhiS News Ccinitar H.