If you look into the historical context of the time that Jesus was up and kicking, it's anything but; The entire 'turn the other cheek' is just modern interpretation that has nothing to do with the original message.
When Jesus says 'turn the other cheek', he's saying 'Force your enemy to respect you.' When he said 'carry their burdens another mile', he's telling you 'If someone seeks to enslave you, make them break the law'. Fight smartly, pick your battles, but you must fight.
Jesus was anything but passive. Violence is perfectly permissible, even applauded, under the right circumstance.
Modern teachings, however, have stressed the passivity to a near breaking point. There are two reasons for this, one known historically, and the other a personal theory of mine.
For one, women have been seen as the spiritual center of the family for atleast two centuries, if not more. Teaching of scripture is therefor going to focus on a more passive, 'get along' approach, as this is what appeals to women - and the more people in the pews on sunday, the more money the church gets.
My personal theory, though... Thing is, priests aren't stupid. They're college educated, in fact(depending on your denomination. The ones I learned of were.) And I think they very well know that the one most terrifying force in society is young, restless males, seeking to inflict change. So they work to try and remedy that, preaching passive martyrdom at every turn and opportunity.
And that's why you get modern Christanity. And why they've been consistently loosing people over the various decades.
But what the hell do I know. It's friday evening and I'm drunk. Fuck it.
Nah.
If you look into the historical context of the time that Jesus was up and kicking, it's anything but; The entire 'turn the other cheek' is just modern interpretation that has nothing to do with the original message.
When Jesus says 'turn the other cheek', he's saying 'Force your enemy to respect you.' When he said 'carry their burdens another mile', he's telling you 'If someone seeks to enslave you, make them break the law'. Fight smartly, pick your battles, but you must fight.
Jesus was anything but passive. Violence is perfectly permissible, even applauded, under the right circumstance.
Modern teachings, however, have stressed the passivity to a near breaking point. There are two reasons for this, one known historically, and the other a personal theory of mine.
For one, women have been seen as the spiritual center of the family for atleast two centuries, if not more. Teaching of scripture is therefor going to focus on a more passive, 'get along' approach, as this is what appeals to women - and the more people in the pews on sunday, the more money the church gets.
My personal theory, though... Thing is, priests aren't stupid. They're college educated, in fact(depending on your denomination. The ones I learned of were.) And I think they very well know that the one most terrifying force in society is young, restless males, seeking to inflict change. So they work to try and remedy that, preaching passive martyrdom at every turn and opportunity.
And that's why you get modern Christanity. And why they've been consistently loosing people over the various decades.
But what the hell do I know. It's friday evening and I'm drunk. Fuck it.
Cereal guy comic