Are law and punishment Old Testament doctrines to advance religion?

[stanleyg5]

Law

n.

1. A rule of conduct or procedure established by custom, agreement, or authority.
2. The body of rules and principles governing the affairs of a community and enforced by a political authority; a legal system: international law.
3. The condition of social order and justice created by adherence to such a system: a breakdown of law and civilized behavior.
4. A set of rules or principles dealing with a specific area of a legal system: tax law; criminal law.
5. A piece of enacted legislation.
6. The system of judicial administration giving effect to the laws of a community: All citizens are equal before the law.
7. Legal action or proceedings; litigation: submit a dispute to law.
8. An impromptu or extralegal system of justice substituted for established judicial procedure: frontier law.
9. An agency or agent responsible for enforcing the law. Often used with the: "The law . . . stormed out of the woods as the vessel was being relieved of her cargo" (Sid Moody).
10. Informal. A police officer. Often used with the.
11. The science and study of law; jurisprudence.
12. Knowledge of law.
13. The profession of an attorney.
14. Something, such as an order or a dictum, having absolute or unquestioned authority: The commander's word was law.
15. Law
16. The body of principles or precepts held to express the divine will, especially as revealed in the Bible.
17. The first five books of the Hebrew Scriptures.
18. A code of principles based on morality, conscience, or nature.
19. A rule or custom generally established in a particular domain: the unwritten laws of good sportsmanship.
20. A way of life: the law of the jungle.
21. A statement describing a relationship observed to be invariable between or among phenomena for all cases in which the specified conditions are met: the law of gravity.
22. A generalization based on consistent experience or results: the law of supply and demand.
23. Mathematics. A general principle or rule that is assumed or that has been proven to hold between expressions.
24. A principle of organization, procedure, or technique: the laws of grammar; the laws of visual perspective.

intr.v., lawed, law·ing, laws.
To go to law; litigate.

idioms:
a law unto (oneself)

1. A totally independent operator: An executive who is a law unto herself.
2. take the law into (one's) own hands
3. To mete out justice as one sees fit without due recourse to law enforcement agencies or the courts.

[Middle English, from Old English lagu, from Old Norse *lagu, variant of lag, that which is laid down.]

Punishment

n.

1. The act or an instance of punishing.
2. The condition of being punished.
3. A penalty imposed for wrongdoing: "The severity of the punishment must . . . be in keeping with the kind of obligation which has been violated" (Simone Weil).
4. Rough handling; mistreatment: These old skis have taken a lot of punishment over the years.

Old Testament

n.

1. (Abbr. OT) Bible. The first of the two main divisions of the Christian Bible, corresponding to the Hebrew Scriptures.
2. The covenant of God with Israel as distinguished in Christianity from the dispensation of Jesus constituting the New Testament.

New Testament

n. Bible (Abbr. NT)
The Gospels, Acts, Pauline and other Epistles, and the Book of Revelation, together viewed by Christians as forming the record of the new dispensation belonging to the Church.

Doctrine

n.

1. A principle or body of principles presented for acceptance or belief, as by a religious, political, scientific, or philosophic group; dogma.
2. A rule or principle of law, especially when established by precedent.
3. A statement of official government policy, especially in foreign affairs and military strategy.
4. Archaic. Something taught; a teaching.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin doctrīna, from doctor, teacher. See doctor.]

Religion

n.

1. Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.
2. A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship.
3. The life or condition of a person in a religious order.
4. A set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader.
5. A cause, principle, or activity pursued with zeal or conscientious devotion.

idiom:
get religion Informal.

1. To become religious or devout.
2. To resolve to end one's immoral behavior.

[Middle English religioun, from Old French religion, from Latin religiō, religiōn-, perhaps from religāre, to tie fast. See rely.]

Logical Scenario

Harvard Law School has scheduled a debate to argue whether law and punishment are Old Testament doctrines to advance religion?

Two law school students or different faith were invited to the podium:

1. Jewish
2. Christian

Jewish law school student has argued that law and punishment are Old Testament doctrines but haven't advanced religion because courts haven't upheld the moral conduct of the Ten Commandments.

Christian law school student has argued that law and punishment are Old Testament doctrines that have advanced religion because courts have upheld the moral conduct of the Ten Commandments.

Audience has become perplexed and can't decide which law school student has presented the superior argument.

Professor has made a stunning move to invite a class of 5th grade students. They were asked to judge which of the two law school student has presented the superior argument?

Fifth grade students have all agreed that neither of the two law school students has presented the superior argument.

Without introduction of the New Testament, then either argument is incomplete and can't hold water.

Moral of my story is: In order for any law school student to debate the issue of whether law and punishment are Old Testament doctrines to advance religion, then he or she must have the knowledge of a fifth grade student to introduce the New Testament.

Rule 36 Requests for Admission

INSTRUCTION

Please check [X] ADMIT or DENY to my following requests for admission:

1. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY First Amendment has restricted laws to advance religion
2. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY Old Testament has espoused the doctrine of punishment
3. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY Old Testament has espoused the doctrine of judgment
4. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY Old Testament has espoused the doctrine of condemnation
5. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY Old Testament has espoused the Ten Commandment
6. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY Jesus has fulfilled the Ten Commandment
7. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY Jesus has denounced judgment
8. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY Jesus has denounced condemnation
9. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY Jesus has brought an end to punishment
10. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY Jesus has ordained the Golden Rule
11. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY Jesus has ordained love God with all thy might
12. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY Jesus has ordained love thy neighbor as thyself
13. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY St. Paul has denounced the letter of the law
14. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY St. Paul has espoused the spirit of the law
15. [ ] ADMIT [ ] DENY St. Paul has opened the door for Gentiles to receive Christ

Closing Arguments

Law school students have graduated from college half baked.

Law professors have neglected to instruct him or her to comprehend the doctrine of our New Testament.

Power of salvation has hinged upon law school students comprehending our First Amendment which has restricted Congress from making laws that respect the establishment of religion.

Eye for eye and tooth for tooth or when one man's blood has been shed, then by man shall man's blood be shed are religious doctrines of the Old Testament.

Crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has ended the dispensation of punishment as prescribed by our Old Testament.

Henceforth and forever, the Founding Fathers have indoctrinated the Spirit of the laws to serve as the framework of our rule of law.

Wherefore, United States laws may not be used as a vice to serve evil or fulfill Satan's ambition to conquer God.

Bondage to chain, shackle, cage or execute any human being as if he or she were an animal is both cruel and unusual premised upon the legal fact the latter has committed sacrilege against God's Golden Rule.

A short essay on the golden rule

The golden rule is endorsed by all the great world religions; Jesus, Hillel, and Confucius used it to summarize their ethical teachings. And for many centuries the idea has been influential among people of very diverse cultures. These facts suggest that the golden rule may be an important moral truth.
Let's consider an example of how the rule is used. President Kennedy in 1963 appealed to the golden rule in an anti-segregation speech at the time of the first black enrollment at the University of Alabama. He asked whites to consider what it would be like to be treated as second-class citizens because of skin color. Whites were to imagine themselves being black -- and being told that they couldn't vote, or go to the best public schools, or eat at most public restaurants, or sit in the front of the bus. Would whites be content to be treated that way? He was sure that they wouldn't -- and yet this is how they treated others. He said the "heart of the question is ... whether we are going to treat our fellow Americans as we want to be treated."

The golden rule is best interpreted as saying: "Treat others only as you consent to being treated in the same situation." To apply it, you'd imagine yourself on the receiving end of the action in the exact place of the other person (which includes having the other person's likes and dislikes). If you act in a given way toward another, and yet are unwilling to be treated that way in the same circumstances, then you violate the rule.

To apply the golden rule adequately, we need knowledge and imagination. We need to know what effect our actions have on the lives of others. And we need to be able to imagine ourselves, vividly and accurately, in the other person's place on the receiving end of the action. With knowledge, imagination, and the golden rule, we can progress far in our moral thinking.

The golden rule is best seen as a consistency principle. It doesn't replace regular moral norms. It isn't an infallible guide on which actions are right or wrong; it doesn't give all the answers. It only prescribes consistency -- that we not have our actions (toward another) be out of harmony with our desires (toward a reversed situation action). It tests our moral coherence. If we violate the golden rule, then we're violating the spirit of fairness and concern that lie at the heart of morality.

The golden rule, with roots in a wide range of world cultures, is well suited to be a standard to which different cultures could appeal in resolving conflicts. As the world becomes more and more a single interacting global community, the need for such a common standard is becoming more urgent.

Amen!