Robert Farrar Capon Quotes
However much we hate the law, we are more afraid of grace
Capon, Robert Farrar. Between Noon and Three: Romance, Law, and the Outrage of Grace. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1997, p. 147.
Manava Dharma Shastra. This text is a part of the Hindu Holy Texts. Hindus believe that Manu was a prophet whose text is revealed or inspired.
The Lebanese Prime Minister had been assassinated with most Lebanese thinking that the Syrians were behind the murder. All the political parties in Lebanon called for a UN Tribunal to investigate the assassination. As the Tribunal was ending its investigation, word leaked out that the report would name Lebanese Hezbollah operatives as being involved in the assassination. If that happened, the Lebanese government and army would have the obligation to arrest the murders for trial and Lebanon would be split against Hezbollah which was the most powerful and militant political group as well as being a terrorist group. Hezbollah declared that they would not allow any arrests of their people, and that they wanted the Government, led by the murdered politicians son to repudiate the UN Tribunal even before the report was issued. When that failed, Hezbollah withdrew from the government coalition and reconstituted a government without the son of the murdered Prime Minister who was then thrown out of office. Jumblatt’s Druze party held the balance of power and surprisingly sided with Hezbollah. Usually he was a strong advocate for justice. However, if he refused to go along with Hezbollah, they would use their terror troops against the Lebanese army and civil war would result. Hence Jumblat’s answer—a classic statement of a political dilemma.
Shelly was a reformer and admired Jesus Christ and his preaching. However, he was an opponent of organized religion and was an atheist himself.
What is particularly interesting about this quotation is that the author was not a religious leader or a philosopher, but a hard-nosed military man and ruler. He recognized the corrosive effect on a society that a thirst for revenge can bring.
Robert Farrar Capon was an American Episcopal priest, author and chef.
