I was talking to L yesterday about how people hold several contradictory beliefs at once. Fr’instance, I was teaching a class in which a student expressed the belief that people have to be good in order to get to heaven. I quizzed her—she does believe that God saves people by his grace, and that it has nothing to do with works. At the same time, she also believes that good people go to heaven and bad people go to hell.
Admittedly, this contradiction exists in scripture too. Contrary to the logicians in the church, theology is not so cut-and-dried. Both statements are true: by grace we’re saved, and the wicked will be thrown into gehenna. The theologian’s typical solution to the problem is to either create a more complex system of double predestination, or to explain away one extreme in favor of the other; but the hard truth is that our relationships with God cannot be reduced to formulas.
This morning’s discussion was on euthanasia, Terri Schiavo, the Pope, the “death with dignity” law in Oregon… The usual cheerful discussion to brighten one’s day. Really, it call comes down to the value one places on life. If life is inherently valuable, we would do all we can to preserve it. If its value is dependent on whether or not we’re functional—brain-dead, vegetative, incapacitated, suffering, prenatal and convenient to the family plan, likely to take other lives, expensive to care for—then we can put a value on it, and terminate it if the value is too low.
Many Christians say they’re in favor of life… but again, it’s not consistent because many Christians hold contradictory beliefs. Life is sacred; yet most believe in a life for a life. The same people that protest against abortion also vote for their states to enact the death penalty. Catholics appear to be more consistent—in being against both birth control and the death penalty—yet the birth rate in Italy, one of the most Catholic of countries, indicates that the teachings of the church aren’t consistent with the practices of the people.
I believe the death penalty should be expanded to include rapists and child molesters. I don’t believe life is sacred so much as I believe the innocent, weak, and defenseless should be protected. But, inconsistently, I do believe that life is sacred and that the death penalty is enacted way too often.
Hey, what can I tell you; life is messy.