Sunday, September 14, 2025
Sunday Reflection: On killing
When I look at the last three high-profile killings-- Melissa Hortman and her husband, the Annunciation School murders, and now Charlie Kirk-- I'm unsettled by the fact that the killers in each instance spent much of their lives immersed in Christianity.
How does one get from the message of Christ to the point where it seems like the right thing to do is to kill innocent people?
I don't know what the answer to that question is.
I do know that I disagree with the prevailing belief that some killing of other people is compatible with Christianity-- for example, killing in self-defense, or as a member of the military. Jesus was clear in teaching that our directive is to love our enemy, and killing that person just is not love.
Yes, I know-- most people disagree with me about this. The marrying of Christianity and the military in the US is systemic, for example. But... how important is it what Jesus actually taught? Is it more important that cultural imperatives?
