Only a little bit Off Topic....
...must we regress to the vengeful God of the Old Testament?
One of the leading schools of the fundamentalist right, "Christian Reconstructionism," whose prophet is R. J. Rushdoony, advocates doing just that.
According to the Christian Reconstructionists, the New Testament is only a "commentary" on the Old Testament; where there is an apparent contradiction, the Old Testament takes precedence. Besides, Jesus did not mean what he appears to have meant. Take a look at this Anthology, for the Reconstructionists interpretations of Jesus' pronouncements on such matters as turning the other cheek, forgiving your enemies, etc., etc.
serve.com
Christian Reconstructionists advocate the peaceful transformation of the United States into a theocracy, governed by the strict precepts of Mosaic Law, as laid out in Rushdoony's Institutes (yes, he is a professed Calvinist).
This means, among other things:
Doctrinal leaders (notably Rushdoony, North, and Bahnsen) call for the death penalty for a wide range of crimes in
addition to such contemporary capital crimes as rape, kidnapping, and murder. Death is also the punishment for
apostasy (abandonment of the faith), heresy, blasphemy, witchcraft, astrology, adultery, "sodomy or homosexuality,"
incest, striking a parent, incorrigible juvenile delinquency, and, in the case of women, "unchastity before marriage."
According to Gary North, women who have abortions should be publicly executed, "along with those who advised them
to abort their children." Rushdoony concludes: "God's government prevails, and His alternatives are clear-cut: either men
and nations obey His laws, or God invokes the death penalty against them." Reconstructionists insist that "the death
penalty is the maximum, not necessarily the mandatory penalty."
.....The Biblically approved methods of execution include burning (at the stake for example), stoning, hanging, and "the
sword." Gary North, the self-described economist of Reconstructionism, prefers stoning because, among other things,
stones are cheap, plentiful, and convenient. Punishments for non-capital crimes generally involve whipping, restitution
in the form of indentured servitude, or slavery..."
publiceye.org
Don't be surprised by the use of slavery as punishment -- we are told the Bible sanctions that ancient institution. See the above-cited Anthology.
Now, we could dismiss these people as being so far out on the fringe that nobody could possibly take them seriously.
But would we be right?
Note the following, for example:
1) Even such a relatively mainstream, non-reconstructionist representative of the religious right as Pat Robertson, a former Presidential candidate, last year called for the stoning to death of UFO enthusiasts. (And -IMO - showed himself at least as wacked out as the potential stonees.) For the details, see:
ifas.org
2) Rushdoony (like Robertson) is a top member of the Council for National Policy, which has been called the "umbrella group for the hard right," representing its religious, pollitical, business, and political leadership. Other members include Dick Armey, Tom DeLay, Jesse Helms, Trent Lott, Bob Dornan, Dan Burton. Not exactly bush-league politicians.
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