But I personally don't see this as a partisan issue at all. I see it as an issue of basic human rights, mixed with notions of "security," "justice," "punishment," and perhaps "war".
I'd like to begin by discussing an article from CNN called Torture prompts soul-searching among some Christians. The article states:
A survey conducted by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life found that white evangelical Christians are more likely to support torture than people who rarely or never attend religious services. The survey said that 62 percent of white evangelical Protestants say that the use of torture against suspected terrorists can be often or sometimes justified in order to gain important information. . . .
How can a Christian support torture? They can't -- except in extreme circumstances, some evangelicals say.
I encourage you to read the article. This survey's results totally baffled me as I wondered how any "good Christian" could justify the use of torture against anyone - suspected terrorist or otherwise - for any possible or even hypothetical reason? I must be missing something here because, apparently, I'm in the minority.
I have my own ideas and opinions as to why these views exist, and I'll be following up in the next days and weeks. But first I'd rather hear from you.
Do you believe there is justification for torture? Why/why not?
