U.S. scholar: Christians must not respond to violence with violence

Published: 2006-06-29

AUCKLAND, New Zealand (CNS) -- Christians must resist the temptation to respond to violence with violence, said a U.S. biblical scholar. Dominican Sister Barbara Reid is a New Testament professor at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. She gave a series of talks in New Zealand and Australia in June that included the annual Pompallier Lecture sponsored by the Catholic Institute of Theology in Auckland. Sister Barbara said she tries to examine topics that affect people in their everyday lives. And although the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, were not the catalyst for her focus on violence and responses to violence, that day and the years since helped provide context for her message. "As a biblical scholar, I look at how people of faith can be a force to counter the violence that has become so rampant in our world," Sister Barbara said.

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