Iamon lyme:

> You are missing the point. Jesus recognised the reality of living "in the world." Paul talked about having to deal with wild animals and bandits, how far do you think he would have gotten if he didn't believe in defending himself?

The answer is that Jesus set an example that few human beings can live up to. Jesus could have defended himself physically. He could have grabbed a sword, ask his disciples to arm themselves to the teeth, and then fought against the Romans who came to arrest him. Why would Jesus do that? He could have called on angels to come to his aid. He could have put the Romans and the Pharisees to the angel's sword. Why would Jesus not even be remotely tempted by a violent solution to his unjust incarceration and execution? The answer is that Jesus was giving us all a lesson. Violence among human beings is pointless. It is nothing but a sin in the eyes of God.

Of course, we are not enlightened like that. We make excuses for ourselves. We own weapons for "sport" and "entertainment". We say to ourselves that the guns are there to defend ourselves and our families. We justify ownership of weapons on legal grounds such as the Constitution. But deep inside (and this is where God looks) we know that something is wrong. We want peace, and it comes out of the barrel of a gun. So we contradict ourselves.