Who Would Jesus Waterboard?

For almost four weeks my muse has gone missing. Thanks to the GOP presidential contenders, she is back, full-throated.

So, why the sudden chattiness? Well, chalk it up to the quesiton from a viewer to Herman Cain: do you support the use of torture. Mr. Cain replied "no." But then he added a "however" -- he's for the use of "enhanced interrogation techniques," including waterboarding. So, too, were others on stage including Michelle Bachmann and Rick Perry. I single these three out, though, for a particular reason. Cain, Bachmann, and Perry have all made big stinks about their Christian faith. I didn't need to spend three years at HDS to find myself wondering how one squares fidelity to the teachings of Jesus with the approval of "enhanced interrogation techniques."

Do any of these people honestly think Jesus would be okay with waterboarding? Do they really? If they do, I'd love to hear them offer an explanation because I just don't see it. Given that Jesus, our teacher, our savior, our Lord, died on a cross, you'd think that people who claim to be his followers would be extra sensitive to any action that inflicted pain and degradation on any of God's children.

Comments

  1. HnknNovember 13, 2011 at 8:36 AM

    Steve,,

    I'm just not seeing it. Their view is that we are at war, and that in war you do certain things which you would not otherwise do. E.g., none of them do (or, I feel sure, would) advocate waterboarding for civilian criminals/suspects as part of law enforcement. So, unless you think one cannot be a Christian and wage war (in which case thinkers starting at least with Augustine would like to have a word with you), I'm not sure I see what special problem you have with waterboarding as opposed to, say, shooting your enemies.

    Surely you are not coming out as a Quaker in this post!

    Matthew

    ReplyDelete
  2. Steve SilverNovember 25, 2011 at 9:20 AM

    Matthew,

    I'm just reading this now, so sorry I don't respond sooner.

    It's an understatement to say that the Christian Church has a conflicted relationship with war, one rooted in the reality of the human experience. If we look at Scripture, we see a movement away from war as reflecting God's desire for creation. Yet even given this, there is a recognition that it's part of our world and those who practice it are not always condemned out of hand (it's worth noting that the first Gentile convert is a centurion -- and he's not told to trade in his sword to take up a more irenic vocation). So, some nuance is in order.

    You're well aware of Just War Theory and while it has its limitations, it lays down a very important philosophical and theological conceptual marker: war must be constrained by certain boundaries. In essence, there are lines we shouldn't cross, period. Identifying those lines isn't easy, but I believe the attempt must be made. I think that the use of torture to extract information is one of those lines.

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