Concepts Of Civil Disobedience

1237 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Issues surrounding civil disobedience

Addressing Ethical Concepts Paper
Recently on a trip to St. Louis, my family and I drove through the town of Ferguson, Missouri. This city was the site of several violent protests over the alleged unequal treatment of black Americans by the Ferguson police force. A year after the events had ended, the destruction in the area was still evident with several boarded up storefronts and business. These types of protests are seen fairly regularly on the nightly news due to social injustice concerns from one side or the other. Violent protests are seemingly out of the question for most Christians, however, at what point does civil disobedience become an appropriate course of action for a Christian?
The world in which humans live is a fallen world, …show more content…

Civil disobedience is defined as “refusal to obey governmental demands or commands especially as a nonviolent and usually collective means of forcing concessions from the government” (Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary, n.d.). The first view on civil obedience is anarchism. Anarchists believe that all civil disobedience is appropriate for any reason and at any time. Anarchism is not suitable for the Christian as it is not biblically based (Geisler, 2010). The second view on civil disobedience is radical patriotism. Those with this view believe the government should always be obeyed (Geisler, 2010). To corroborate this view, Romans 13:1-7, is used to show governments are ordained of God and should, therefore, be obeyed (New International Version). To disobey the government would be to disobey God. The third view, biblical submissionism, holds that the laws of the government should be obeyed, however, if there is a conflict between God’s law and the human law, God’s law will prevail (Geisler, 2010). Wyma (2014) upon reviewing the perspective of Thomas Aquinas found that when human law directly contradicts God’s law, it is not only proper to disobey the human law, it is a requirement. Of the three views, biblical submissionism is the only view that provides a morally appropriate …show more content…

There are several cases of civil disobedience found in the Bible. In Exodus 1:15-22, two Hebrew midwives are told by Pharaoh to kill all baby boys. The midwives knew this was against God’s law and therefore refused to abide by the law. There was no violence, no fighting, just peaceful resistance. An additional example of civil disobedience occurs in Daniel 3:1-30, when Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego refused to bow down to the king’s idol. The three men accepted their punishment for failure to follow the law and were thrown into the fiery furnace. Each of the biblical examples shows clearly that civil disobedience is only appropriate when the law is in direct conflict with God’s

Show More
Related

  • Comparisons On The Advocacies Of Henry Thoreau vs Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

    950 Words  | 2 Pages

    "There is a higher law than civil law- the law of conscience- and that when these laws are in conflict, it is a citizen's duty to obey the voice of God within rather than that of the civil authority without," (Harding 207). As Harding described in his brief explanation of Henry David Thoreau's Civil Disobedience, there are some instances in which it is necessary to disobey a social law. Martin Luther King, Jr., in addition to Thoreau, reasoned that should a civil law be judged unjust, one had a moral obligation not only to himself but also to those around him to disregard that particular law in exchange for a higher one voiced by God.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Thoreau And Civil Disobedience

    596 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the great era of foundational philosophers, two stand out, Plato and Thoreau. Each had their own opinion on various topics, especially on civil disobedience. Plato’s life span was approximately 428-348 BC. Plato wrote numerous works throughout his lifetime, however we will be focusing on one, the Crito. Thoreau’s life span was 1817-1862. To help us determine what civil disobedience means to both of these philosophers we will first look at a general definition. According to Merriam-Webster civil disobedience is defined as “refusal to obey governmental demands or commands especially as a nonviolent and usually collective means of forcing concessions from the government.” This definition will act as a springboard to compare and contrast both of their thoughts on the topic. We will determine, according to Plato and Thoreau, when we are called to engage in civil disobedience and when the moral parameters of civil disobedience are pushed too far.

    Read More

  • civil disobediance

    736 Words  | 2 Pages

    In Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience," he uses a hyperbole to support his belief that "one person can make a change," an idea still relevant today. Thoreau uses many forms of literary techniques such as multiple hyperbole, emotional appeals, and paradoxes. Thoreau uses these to sustain his ideas on civil disobedience. He believes if you believe in something, and support something you should do whatever it takes to help the cause. Many people in today's society believe to just go with the flow, rather than living like Thoreau has, and supporting his own beliefs no matter what the consequence. Henry David Thoreau had a lot of personal authority, he was all about his own independence. Many different people believed in being a non-conformist, and Thoreau was one of them, and he very well showed how much he supported it. Thoreau was not the only nonconformist, they're many people who followed his beliefs and they refused to be bound by anybody, or anything they did not support. Other non-conformists were Gandhi, Galileo, Malcom X and many more.

    Read More

  • Civil Obedience And Henry David Thoreau's Civil Disobedience

    1338 Words  | 3 Pages

    Civil Disobedience occurs when an individual or group of people are in violation of the law rather than a refusal of the system as a whole. There is evidence of civil disobedience dating back to the era after Jesus was born. Jesus followers broke the laws that went against their faith. An example of this is in Acts 4:19-20,”God told the church to preach the gospel, so they defied orders to keep quiet about Jesus,” In my opinion civil disobedience will always be needed in the world. The ability to identify with yourself and knowing right from wrong helps to explain my opinion. Often in society when civil

    Read More

  • Civil Disobedience Analysis

    1791 Words  | 4 Pages

    Why partake in civil disobedience? Oscar Wilde, an influential author, has an opinion on utilization of civil disobedience. “Disobedience, in the eyes of anyone who has read history, is man's original virtue. It is through disobedience that progress has been made, through disobedience and through rebellion. Meaning, if a person wants to change society and its actions, they must rebel against the governing body in order to create effective alterations. Many situations exist where civil disobedience advocates change. In those situations, people have rights for disobedience, but must realize consequences may result from their disobedient actions.

    Read More

  • Rawls and King on Civil Disobedience

    773 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the Theory of Justice by John Rawls, he defines civil disobedience,” I shall begin by defining civil disobedience as a public, nonviolent, conscientious yet political act contrary to law usually done with the aim of bringing about a change in the law or policies of the government”.

    Read More

  • Paradox Of Civil Disobedience

    661 Words  | 2 Pages

    Civil Disobedience is a paradox. Civility and disobedience diametrically oppose one another; civility implies politeness or a regard to the status quo while disobedience is a refusal to submit to the standard. When these words are coupled together, however, they compliment one another. The purpose of Civil Disobedience is to disregard the obligation of observing a law with the intention of highlighting a need for change. Morality, Religion, and Ethics often play into the decision to willingly break a law which creates more depth behind the practical meaning phrase, because those three tend to emphasize a respect for authority and integrity. When people break the law in the name of civility, they often are asking questions like, “What must I

    Read More

  • The Pros and Cons of Civil Disobedience

    1017 Words  | 3 Pages

    Civil disobedience is the refusal to obey civil laws in an effort to induce change in governmental policy or legislation, characterized by the use of passive resistance or other nonviolent means. The use of nonviolence runs throughout history however the fusion of organized mass struggle and nonviolence is relatively new.

    Read More

  • Civil Disobedience

    1266 Words  | 3 Pages

    Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. received a Nobel Prize and was honored by the President of the United States for his contributions to society. On the other hand, he was prosecuted, convicted, incarcerated, and had his sentence reaffirmed by the Supreme Court. These explanations seem rather contradictory. If what he did was noble, why was he jailed for his actions? When we take into account these manifestations of the government's attitude towards Martin Luther King, we can safely make the assumption that the government is not always justified in the laws that it creates. Our government's original purpose was to keep order and ensure freedom to its people. As history has shown us, as in the case of African Americans, the government will expand its role and take away liberties of the few. The individual is justified in acting out in civil disobedience when the government restricts the liberties of the individual.

    Read More

  • Civil Disobedience

    577 Words  | 2 Pages

    Civil disobedience has been around for a long time. In Bible times Christians would disobey laws that would go against their beliefs, such as the law that they couldn’t preach. (Acts 4) Christians still disobey laws in many countries that do not let them practice their faith, some end up in jail or killed.

    Read More

  • Civil Disobedience as a Method of Protest

    875 Words  | 2 Pages

    The use of civil disobedience is a respectable way of protesting a governments rule. When someone believes that they are being forced into following unjust laws they should stand up for what they believe in no matter the consequences because it is not just one individual they are protesting for they are protesting for the well-being of a nation. Thoreau says ?to resist, the government, when its tyranny or its inefficiency are great and unendurable.? People should only let wrong and right be governed by what they believe not the people of the majority. The public should always stand for what is right, stand when they think a government is wrong, and trust in their moral beliefs.

    Read More

  • Civil Disobedience Dbq

    800 Words  | 2 Pages

    Disobedience to laws and governments that we the people see as wrong is a deep-seated part of our culture. It hearkens back to the Revolutionary war which the colonies used to create this great country from a previous government that the people saw as tyrannical. But this kind of disobedience, even being somewhat rare, can be seen in many cases throughout history. A step up from this is civil disobedience. Civil Disobedience can even be found as far back as Jefferson's time when he would advocate for "threat of revolution" and forms of changing the government that were placed in the constitution like "elections, amending process" and more (Rebellion, Revolution, and the Constitution). The same document even cites him as believing that unsuccessful

    Read More

  • Civil Disobedience Rhetorical Analysis

    677 Words  | 2 Pages

    Civil disobedience: refusal to obey governmental demands or commands especially as a nonviolent and usually collective means of forcing concessions from the government. (Merriam) Henry perceives that if the law is of discretion, then the people should not subside. Henry chose to not participate in such evils, that he even failed to pay his taxes and was jailed for a night. He substantially argues that the United States government fits the profile of an unjust government. He appeals the support of slavery, and practice of war. Thoreau believes that one cannot see government for what it is if

    Read More

  • Civil Disobedience Rhetorical Analysis

    926 Words  | 2 Pages

    It is something that is extremely variable as its results are not always predictable, and it is possible that civil disobedience will worsen the cause. During the inauguration of Donald Trump, there were a series of riots to protest his election. While their cause was against the negative qualities of Trump, such as his racist, sexist remarks, the protests did not do much. They only caused thousands of dollars in property damage as during these riots it was common to deface public property, and caused aspersions from immutable citizens who did not agree with their actions. Their actions also tended to undermine the fact that civil disobedience is supposed to be peaceful, and there was violence against property and other people. Also, the leaders of the causes being run have to be great; however, this is not always the case. Not everyone can be a Martin Luther King, Jr. and Gandhi. For example, John Brown was a man outraged by slavery and with his megalomania contrived a way to change it in a horrifying, bizzare way. With his heart in the right place to eradicate it, he went out and slaughtered slavery supporters in an extremely heinous way; he used machetes. This was an extremely violent action and deemed too harsh. He led his followers into the situation with him as well, and his followers were castigated. This shows the negatives of following morals above law as they are not always the right actions to

    Read More

  • Civil Disobedience Rhetorical Analysis

    721 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Boston Tea is an act of civil disobedience because the citizens of Massachusetts trespassed onto a British ship and dumped their tea overboard rather than pay their taxes to Britain (Starr). This act of civil disobedience is acceptable because no one was injured and it was an act of nonviolence. Another act of civil disobedience would be the Salem voting rights act. This act was led by Martin Luther King Jr. it was a march from Salem to Montgomery to show the efforts to get the blacks to register to vote.

    Read More

More about Concepts Of Civil Disobedience

Open Document