ChatterBank1 min ago
Who was the first Christian to deliberately kill somebody?
12 Answers
Whilst we're on the theme of war and religion.
Serious question though - Obviously Jesus didn't
I can't recall any of the Apostles having done so.
Do we have to wait until Constantine adopts Christianity into the Legions for Christians to start wielding the sword or was there someone earlier?
Serious question though - Obviously Jesus didn't
I can't recall any of the Apostles having done so.
Do we have to wait until Constantine adopts Christianity into the Legions for Christians to start wielding the sword or was there someone earlier?
Answers
Best Answer
No best answer has yet been selected by jake-the-peg. Once a best answer has been selected, it will be shown here.
For more on marking an answer as the "Best Answer", please visit our FAQ.Pedantcially, Paul (Saul of Tarsus) was a Roman citizen, probably by birth, but never a Roman soldier. He did severely persecute the early Christians, but as a zealous Jew, not as a Roman... all of which was dramatically changed by the event on the road to Damascus. On the other hand Peter attempted to harm, maybe kill Malchus a servant of the High Priest in the Garden on the night the Christ was betrayed... (first healing of an amputee, by the way).
But, I have no direct answer to your query... interesting as it is, by the way...
But, I have no direct answer to your query... interesting as it is, by the way...
-- answer removed --
working on it, wizard
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7354458.stm
No idea, jake... if you're thinking of the commandment, I've heard it suggested that 'kill' is a bit of a mistranslation to modern ears; to a Jacobean the injunction was more like 'though shalt not murder'. The default word for taking life was then 'slay' rather than 'kill'. I don't know how true this is.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7354458.stm
No idea, jake... if you're thinking of the commandment, I've heard it suggested that 'kill' is a bit of a mistranslation to modern ears; to a Jacobean the injunction was more like 'though shalt not murder'. The default word for taking life was then 'slay' rather than 'kill'. I don't know how true this is.
I'm really thinking of Christian sanctioned warfare or an execution perhaps.
Obviously there's lots of sancioned warfare and executions in the old testament.
Jesus we are often told is the ultimate role model.
I'm not aware that he killed anybody, I can't imagine him fighting in the Roman army if conscripted and he actively prevented an execution (let he who is without sin cast the first stone etc.)
So I'm interested in when that changed and whether it was Constantine hijacking Christianity or whether it changed in the early church before that.
Obviously there's lots of sancioned warfare and executions in the old testament.
Jesus we are often told is the ultimate role model.
I'm not aware that he killed anybody, I can't imagine him fighting in the Roman army if conscripted and he actively prevented an execution (let he who is without sin cast the first stone etc.)
So I'm interested in when that changed and whether it was Constantine hijacking Christianity or whether it changed in the early church before that.
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