Death Penalty Essays (1334 words) - Human Rights, Capital Punishment

Death Penalty Patricia A. Stegall Philosophy 40, Ethics May 6, 1998 The Case for Capital Punishment Society, in general, agrees that the taking of an innocent life is an unforgivable act, and that the rape of children is particularly heinous. I will argue that all persons convicted of the crime of murder or the rape of a child under ten years of age should be given a manditory death penalty. Capital punishment is not only justifiable but is morally correct and should be the mandatory sentence for such crimes once an individual is found guilty. It would be neither unjust nor immoral to execute such an individual. It is not logical or rational to believe that a person raised in our society does not know that the crimes of murder or the rape of a child will not be tolerated. Regardless of an individual's background or socio-economic status, individual choices lead to results that carry personal responsibility. It is inappropriate to make excuses for these criminals simply because they were not reared in well-to-do circumstances. neglected, or perhaps suffered abuse as a child. None of these forced them to make the choice to commit the crime. As stated by Ernest van den Haag, by committing the crime, the criminal volunteered to assume the risk. (1)If an individual commits the crime of murder, or rapes a child, that person has forfeited any moral right to continue to live, ev en if imprisoned for life. Their victim had no choice and no chance to live a fruitful, productive life. Why should society be required to pay the costs associated with imprisonment? A society, which values the lives of its citizens, has the right to exercise capital punishment for those who have been convicted after due process of law. The U.S. Constitution provides for punishment of capital crimes so there is certainly no trouble with it in the law. However, some of the most impassioned arguments against capital punishment are the possibility of convicting the wrong person, and discriminatory application of the law. Abolitionists also argue that we should base on justice system on reform and rehabilitation. First, the possibility of convicting an innocent person is often cited as an argument that the death penalty is unjust. One Internet source indicates that 350 people were wrongly convicted of homicide or capital rape from 1900- 1985. (2) (It should be noted that the article does not specify how many of these individuals were later released.) In our text, Ernest van den Haag refers to a study conducted by Hugo Bedau that found that of 7000 executions during that same period, only 25 were purportedly innocent. (Ibid. p.286) The execution of an innocent person appears much less a risk than the risk that a person guilty of this type of violence would repeat the crime. Criminals kill people knowing that they will live and either spend the rest of their lives in prison or get out in 10 to 20 years. Consistent application of the capital punishment laws would have a deterrent effect on some potential murderers if not all. While states that do carry death penalty provisions significantly outn umber those that do not, there appears to be a certain reluctance to apply the laws. As a result, many violent criminals no longer fear the court system. Further, capital punishment laws have undergone many decades of review by the highest courts in the country and are anything but capriciously imposed. A further argument against the innocent are convicted is found in a review of the extensive appeal system that has been mandated by the courts that may take as much as fourteen years to complete. Even if this were a legitimate concern, the chances of an innocent person being wrongly convicted are very slim. The second argument, discriminatory application holds that a disproportional number of non-whites receive the death penalty upon conviction, in particular, a black convicted of murdering a white. This is really an argument against a flawed justice system that favors one class of citizen's over another. Unequal distribution among the guilty is irrelevant to the morality of the punishment. The system is far from perfect but can be improved. In the past, women were much less likely to be

Examining Relational Leadership In Christianity Religion Essay Example

Examining Relational Leadership In Christianity Religion Essay Example Examining Relational Leadership In Christianity Religion Essay Examining Relational Leadership In Christianity Religion Essay What is relational leading? Leadership is a relationship in which one individual seeks to act upon the ideas, beliefs, values, and behaviors of another individual. This is Leadership of a relationship of influence-a transforming relationship in which the leader invests in the growing and development of the followings, authorising them to go what God has gifted them to be. True leading is in relationship that makes a difference, non merely in function or in authorization. A place does nt do a leader ; rubric may give you some authorization, but non influence. Relational leading dainties people with self-respect, offers hope, gives significance and yet addresses the mission of the administration. It does non count how much power or personal appeal you think you possess, how exciting you think your vision is. What affair is, does person take to accept your influence, or follows. Leadership is about go forthing your comfort zone and taking hazard to prosecute those around you. Leadership that produces fruit is in the character Is every Christian a leader? Christians are leaders by seeking to do differences in the lives of those around them. Enter into relationship with another individual to act upon their behavior, values, beliefs or attitude Centeredness is really of import. It is the foundation of valid religion, belief and reasonable assurance. It helps to cover with the issues of: Identity: Our individuality is in understanding that God loves us. It s non in our work, or in our leading. God had entered into a relationship with us ; He commits Himself to our security-this determines our worth, values and our individual Survival: Our endurance is on the fact that God will maintain us procure for Christ and in Christ. Our relationship with God shapes our lives. Our frights and concerns are already taken attention of, because we are safe in God s manus. Leadership is non for the swoon of bosom, but it s promoting to cognize that you re non in it entirely Meaning: Our naming and significance is non to a place or function neither a specific ministry. But our naming is to populate the new life of Christ. And everyone is pointed to God wherever we are. Leadership for Christians is about God non anyone. Merely an confidant relationship with Jesus Christ can ground the Christian leader in the love of God. We have been chosen by God to be his people, to be his retainer. The ground why we are populating is to be God s kids and unrecorded life for His glorification. We begin by concentrating on our relationship with God. One intent of leading is to turn the people. Success in leading is step by the growing of the followings Relational Leadership is Servanthood: Leadership is about service, about shepherds who care for the sheep, who have been given duty to feed. Shepherd leading is servant entrusted with the attention of the flock. It is a place of duty and service, non position and power. The step of our committedness is action. We are called to function. The mensurating stick of our committedness is non our lip service, but our life. Leaders must move on their value ; action is the gage, non mere words or idea. Selfish motivations prevent a retainer s leading. Jesus, a true illustration of servant leader ; taught us the jurisprudence of shepherd forfeit and stairss of servanthood: He left the glorifications of Heaven and the highest place in Heaven, non merely to fall in His creative activity, ( followings ) but to take on the lowest signifier of the creative activity. The nazarene gave up His godly signifier. He emptied Himself of any right. He became a adult male. He became a retainer. He was obedient to the point of decease. Jesus manner of leading Teachs that we lead by functioning. He teaches that the greatest must be the retainer Leaderships lose the right to be selfish. Leaderships deny self-they are to delight others non themselves. Leaderships develop others-they attention deficit disorder value to others. Accept mistreatment-they are to forgive wrongs by copying Christ. Leaderships have nil to lose-Barnabas did nt hold to guard his repute or fright that he would lose popularity. He came to function, non to be served. This enabled him to concentrate on giving, non acquiring. As a retainer, he had no rights to lose. As duties increase ; rights decreases. As you grow into leading, you intentionally give up rights and options. Servants push for no options and presume no rights. Some leaders expect the people to function them alternatively of them functioning the people. When leaders fail to pattern servant leading, necessarily they become self-seeking. Leaderships must make whatever it takes to function the mission. Leaderships must neer bury that God calls them to function Love: This is the foundation for every act of a Leader. In the early church, leaders modelled love to their churches. In bend, the churches modelled it to the remainder of the universe. Love must be the foundation and motivation for the leaders action. Leaderships have to be first love-slaves and served the people. While leaders so possessed great gifts, their gifts should take 2nd topographic point to functioning others out of love. Clemency: Servant Leader is one who trusts in the clemency of God. Who knows that God reaches out in Christ to supply the really obeisance that we can non populate up to ourselves. We are in a compact relationship in which God offers clemencies that leads to ageless life. Managing Resistance: One of the greatest trials of leading is how you handle resistance. Nehemiah faced the usual tactics of the resistance: ridicule, opposition, and rumor. Nehemiah modelled the right response to all resistances and challenges by: Trusting on God. Respecting the resistance Reinforcing his weak points Reassuring the people Regenerating the people s strength continually. Refusing to discontinue. Continuity is the ultimate gage of our leading ; the secret is to outlive our critics. Criticism ever changes the leader. Unhappy people tend to assail the point individual. Moses taught via his action on managing resistance: Keep your humbleness Face unfavorable judgment forthrightly Be specific about the issue Lay out effects Pray for the criticizers Restore them when appropriate. Leaderships should understand the differences between constructive and destructive unfavorable judgment. Look beyond the unfavorable judgment to see the critics. Guard your ain attitude toward the critics. Keep yourself spiritually in form. Associate with people of religion. Wait for clip to turn out the critics incorrect. Concentrate on your mission ; alter your errors How to pull off conflict/opposition: The trial of a hostile crowd-handling people who do nt desire to go with you is the acerb trial of a leader s poise Remain unagitated and soft when facing struggle, and your illustration will go contagious Speak sagely, doing certain your information is true and accurate Remember, God is the ultimate Judge and will put to death justness Use your words to further healing ; fix the job, non the incrimination Stay docile ; be unfastened to rectification and quick to apologise when incorrect Add value to everyone who contacts you, even when you disagree. Communicating vision Having a message does nt count if leaders do nt pass on clearly and motivate others. Without the ability to pass on, a leader travels entirely. The more the squad knows, the more it can assist. Open communicating and sharing of information develop trust Be clear in your communicating: your squad can non put to death if they do nt cognize what you want. No 1 will catch your vision unless you foremost reassign a image of it into his or her bosom. When you communicate the vision, you paint the mark, flicker and fuel the fire from within, and pull them frontward Good leaders provide grips to enable their people to catch clasp of the vision. Effective leaders find a manner to pass on future vision and past triumphs, because their people need to be invariably reminded of both When pass oning your vision, you need to be courteous-everyone deserves to be shown regard, no affair what their place or what sort of history you might hold with them. If you re gracious to your people, you set a tone for the full administration. Never forget that as the leader, your communicating sets the tone for the interaction among your people. Reduce your message to one memorable phrase-effective leaders know the importance of compacting their complex activities into an easy memorized sentence. This is a secret of good communicating. Make it short! Make it simple! Make it important! Pull offing Change: When programs change, leaders over-communicate-Paul knew leaders must be flexible, non fickle. Yet when programs change, people need more communicating. Leaderships maintain unity when they over-communicate and calmly guarantee their people that they are still doing advancement. Some leaders merely work best in one manner, with one degree of follower adulthood. While such leading may be effectual, it does non turn people. Leaderships must be adaptable. You must be able to alter your leading manner to fit the adulthood degree of your followings in other to turn them. Leaderships who are non adaptable tend to maintain followings at one inactive degree of adulthood. Leaderships should acknowledge these displacements and non be surprise by them. When the state of affairs alterations, the adulthood degree alterations ; and the leader needs to accommodate to the appropriate relational leading manner. The manner you choose to take is non up to you. It is determined by the adulthood of the individual you seek to act upon. Conclusively, servant leading is non about place or accomplishment. It s about attitude. Some leaders have hapless attitudes towards servanthood, and merely as you can feel when a worker does nt desire to assist people, you can merely as easy observe whether a leader has a retainer s bosom. True servant leaders put others in front of their ain docket. They possess the assurance to function and originate service to others. They are non place witting and they serve out of love. Servant leading is neer motivated by use or self-promotion. In the terminal, the extent of your influence depends on the deepness of your concern for others. Followings come when leaders serve. God frequently calls His leaders servant. If you will be a servant to these people and function them they will ever be your retainers.