FLAWED
PERFECTION
What It Means to Be Human and Why It Matters for Culture, Politics, and Law
JEFFREY A. BRAUCH
Flawed Perfection: What It Means to Be Human and Why It Matters for Culture, Politics, and Law
Copyright 2017 Jeffrey A. Brauch
Lexham Press, 1313 Commercial St., Bellingham, WA 98225
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Print ISBN 9781683590248
Digital ISBN 9781683590255
Lexham Editorial: Abigail Stocker, Elliot Ritzema, Elizabeth Vince
Cover Design: Jim LePage
To Cynthia, Melissa, Christina, and Jeffrey.
I could not be more thankful or proud to be your dad.
CONTENTS
Chapter 1: Why Human Nature Matters
Chapter 2: Christianity on Human Nature
Chapter 8: Criminal Punishment
Chapter 9: Environmental Influence Defenses
Chapter 10: Christian Utopianism
HUMAN NATURE
WHY HUMAN NATURE MATTERS
How does our understanding of human nature affect how we address the pressing questions of our day?
The average person in Rwanda, they would no sooner kill their neighbor than you or I. But when the killing began by those who were ready to do it, the fear just took a hold of people, and it went like wildfire.
—CARL WILKENS,
Adventist Development and Relief Agency1
Over the course of one hundred days in 1994, Rwandan Hutus slaughtered more than 800,000 of their countrymen. Men, women, children. Over three hundred per hour. Over five per minute.
The trigger was the April 6, 1996, explosion of a plane carrying the Hutu president of Rwanda, Juvénal Habyarimana, along with the president of Burundi. Hutus, blaming the explosion on Tutsi rebels, immediately launched attacks on Tutsis and other Hutus perceived to be Tutsi sympathizers. While organized by leaders of militia groups and the armed forces, the genocide involved the whole population. Leaders turned citizens into killers of neighbors and even their own family members. Between 100,000 and 200,000 Hutus participated in the genocide. While some killers had guns and grenades, most wielded ...
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About Flawed Perfection: What It Means to Be Human and Why It Matters for Culture, Politics, and LawFrom exploitation and violence to decisions about how to wisely govern or care for human life, the problems humanity faces aren’t just abstract issues—they impact the day-to-day lives of many individuals and communities across the globe. How should Christians wrestle with these complex and difficult problems in a thoughtful, ethical way? According to Jeffrey A. Brauch, we need to start with an informed grasp of human nature. It’s only by understanding our nature correctly that we can recognize our our profound value as God’s good creation despite our fallen condition, and uphold our equal human rights regardless of our differences. Flawed Perfection will help Christians from across the political and cultural spectrum think carefully about and actively respond to these issues with both gravity and grace. |
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