Editorial: What the wrong sentencing of an air force private says about crime and punishment

["Taiwan Church News" <enews@pctpress.org>]

3076 Edition
February 7-13, 2011

Editorial



Editorial: What the wrong sentencing of an air force private says about crime 
and punishment



Translated by Lydia Ma



New evidence suggesting that Chiang Kuo-ching was wrongfully executed for the 
murder of a girl 15 years ago surfaced recently when another suspect confessed 
to the crime, prompting public outcry. Though President Ma and National Defense 
Minister Kao Hua-chu apologized to the Chiang family due to public pressure, 
the incident prompted re-examination of whether capital punishment ought to be 
abolished.

Though the death penalty remains a divisive issue, religious and humanitarian 
organizations in Taiwan both claim that it’s a cruel and unusual punishment 
that shouldn’t exist in a civilized society. They claim the purpose of any 
punishment should be rehabilitative in nature. However, supporters of capital 
punishment assert the death penalty shouldn’t be abolished because it serves 
both a corrective measure and a retributive measure.

The Bible contains many teachings and stories about “crime and punishment”. 
When Cain murdered his brother Abel and committed the first homicide in the 
history of humankind, what God did in response is worth revisiting. We note in 
Genesis that since humans are made in God’s image, therefore, their lives are 
in God’s hands.

If we keep reading, we’ll notice that in New Testament times, God’s 
“righteousness” and “justice” remain unchanged, but something greater – Jesus’ 
“love” – overshadows them. Hence, many laws of the Old Testament are no longer 
applied in the New Testament or in modern times, though all three address the 
price of wrongful actions.

The major difference between New Testament times and Old Testament times is 
that whereas the former emphasizes restitution, sacrifice, repentance, and 
restoration, the latter puts the onus on prevention of sins beforehand rather 
than restitution for sins afterwards. New Testament writers emphasize that 
humans can be freed from sin’s bondage if they’re willing to be reconciled with 
God through the cross of Jesus, which offers salvation and transformation.

God is both loving and just and the Bible’s principles on “crime and 
punishment” will never change. We believe that those who commit crimes must pay 
for their actions, but the power to take away the life of a criminal should not 
rest in the hands of mere mortals. If murderers don’t repent, God will 
eventually avenge, for the Bible clearly states, “The wages of sin is death” 
(Romans 6:23).

From the wrong sentencing of air-force Private Chiang Kuo-ching and from the 
love of Christ, we sincerely hope for the abolition of capital punishment!

 

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