Thou Shalt Not Kill

SUN., JULY 8, 1990, 6:35 AM
FARM, STUDY

This is a commandment. Commandments are absolute, aren’t they? Any breaking of the commandment is a grievous sin… right?!

It is rather obvious, of course, that, as stated, this commandment has to be relative. To kill is to take a life… to cause death when it would not otherwise have happened. The first category of life to be exempted from this prohibition is plants. Plants are obviously forms of life, but, presumably, without consciousness. Some plants are basic food materials and are grown purposely to maintain human life. A carrot is pulled from the ground, washed, and eaten. The carrot has been killed, but human life is sustained by this. The corollary is the killing of plants deemed to be weeds because they interfere with the growth of plants you want. You feed killed weeds to your chickens. Does this diminish the sin of killing?

Relatively, then, let’s exclude plants from the commandment. Insects and microorganisms – are they to be killed, or spared? The modern human answer is kill those that are harmful to you… or are even bothersome. The human body is armed with cells that kill foreign forms of life. So the physical body, for its own protection, breaks the commandment and kills. In fact, some of the earth’s healthiest people are those who immune systems kill most effectively.

As you move up the “animal scale”, killing becomes more selective. Humans readily kill mice, rats and other rodents, and rarely for their food value. Some birds are valued and protected. Others are raised to be killed for food. Fish and other marine life are seen as food, and just now is there some movement away from killing dolphins in the efficient process of killing tuna.

Cattle and swine are raised to be killed and eaten. Horses are not to be eaten. Dogs and cats are pets and are not to be killed for food. However, it is accepted that under certain conditions of injury, disease, or old age such animals can, even should, be killed… euphemistically, “put to sleep.” Stash was put to sleep because of his injury and because of Peter’s death. If Peter had had a comparable injury there would have been much medical treatment to maintain his life, even if Stash had been killed.

So what about human life? It’s easier to be absolute here, for the human body is not perceived as a food source. However, there always has been much killing in the earth. As Almighty God I thundered the commandment, Thou Shalt Not Kill, but then I ordered My Jewish people to kill those who occupied the land I wanted them to have. I killed many young Egyptian soldiers as I caused the Sea to crash in upon them, saving the lives of My people.

So it appears that killing is acceptable if other people are causing you harm or threatening your life or are even bothersome. Your culture, influenced greatly by Christianity, has an awesome military force that has killed to maintain freedom… even killing those who threatened freedom indirectly, as in Korea and Vietnam. It is acceptable for police officers to kill criminals who are a potential threat to their own life or the life of others. The state can punish crime with death – an eye for an eye.

How does the commandment apply to old, sick, disabled humans? Since everyone dies eventually, can death be hastened? Is this killing? It is acceptable to kill for freedom. Should individuals be free to kill themselves? As your population increases in numbers are there more exceptions to the commandment? Should treatment be withheld which is, in effect, killing the patient? Is the hospice concept a form of killing?