Saddam executed

Mon, 01 Jan 2007 00:13:59 GMT

Most of us are now aware that Saddam Hussein has been hanged and buried in his hometown of Tikrit. In several interviews that I've read, respondees have said things to the effect of, "Big deal, his death won't accomplish anything to help peace in the area." I believe this type of response betrays a misunderstanding of the purpose of the death penalty. It certainly is true that occasionally the death of a particular person may serve as a catalyst in a given situation. But don't confuse outcome with purpose.

So we ask, "Why was Saddam executed?" Or, to put it more generally, "Why do we think that (at least some) criminals should be executed?"

In regards to Saddam, we are keenly aware of the atrocities committed by this brutal man. In a discussion about whether or not his actions merited the capital punishment it doesn't matter that he killed thousands of his own people... all that matters is that he killed ONE.

You see, it doesn't take the murder of a countless throng of people to warrant the death of the killer. It only takes the intentional killing of one human being to justify capital punishment. Why?

The answer is found in the fact that each person IS (not simply "bears") God's image. Because we are God's image on this earth, we represent Him as His likeness. Have you ever seen a picture of someone you didn't like? Perhaps you drew horns or blacked out a tooth... but the act of defacing the picture was more than simply exercising our creativity. That act was intended to convey a message about how we felt toward the one of whom the picture was simply a likeness.

When someone kills another human, that person is in effect saying that he/she wishes that he/she could kill God. To kill a person is an attempt to attack the person of God by way of destroying one of His created images. The only just punishment for such an act is to forfeit one's own life.

Thus, God has decreed that it is the duty of government to execute those who have forfeited their "right to life" by their actions.

Saddam murdered ONE person. For that he had to die. It was the only just course of action for the Iraqi government to take.

Until later,

Ben

Ben... On Point!: News and politics

Saddam executed