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37 "Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves a son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.
How can anyone use Jesus to justify the waging of war when He himself said in Luke 6 27-36?
27 "But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32 "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
How can anyone use Jesus to justify the waging of war when He himself said in John 18:10-11?
10 Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.)
11 Jesus commanded Peter, "Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?"
Clearly he did not want his servants to fight. Jesus had a mission to fulfil, and demanded that His servants let Him complete it.
How can anyone use Jesus to justify the waging of war when He himself said in John 18:36?
36 Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place."
Clearly he did not want his servants to fight. He knew that this world was not his to command.
Just because someone has a differing opinion than you, doesn’t make them a non-Christian. It makes them someone who read what Jesus said and came to a different conclusion than you, be they Christian or not.
Jeff Imparato
Typical of Topeka
Dear Editor,
It was nice reading the article in the May 9th issue of The Metro News regarding the volunteers preparing to clean up the Topeka Cemetery for Memorial Day.
It is a good idea. But, how many know that just across the street in Mount Auburn Cemetery, which is, ALSO OWNED BY TOPEKA, has large potholes on the roads, many, many headstones knocked over or sunken, weeds everywhere and trash everyplace.
So your Topeka Cemetery has a lot of politicians buried there. Big deal! There are many Topekans and Kansans buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery. The only difference is many poor and many black souls are buried there.
If Topeka volunteers want to clean up and prepare a cemetery for Memorial Day, why not consider "Topeka’s Eyesore", Mount Auburn. Let the rest of Kansas know that Topeka remembers those who helped make Topeka what it is today.
Ron Bessler
