Today, many of our prisons are no more than modern Gulags, concentration camps or medieval dungeons. Inflicting unnecessary pain, whether mental or physical, is a sin against God. Placing convicts in cells without windows and access to the natural world is a crime against God. Any action against another person that dehumanizes that person is a crime against God. Christians should be especially sensitive to act in a way that would make Jesus happy. If you are in any position of authority over any other person, ask yourself these questions before acting on any punishment:
1. Would Jesus lock up one of God's children in a "supermax" prison without access to natural light and the natural world?
2. Would Jesus kill any one of God's children by hanging, gassing, electrocuting or poisoning?
3. Would Jesus mentally abuse any one of God's children through any process of dehumanization?
Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and all of God's children of all faiths must work to make God happy by never participating in the use of cruel punishment toward another of God's children.
We must all learn to live by the "Golden Rule."
ETHICIUS I
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