First Baptist Church Providence, RI April 2, 2013 (courtesy The Truth About Guns)

A fellow Rhode Islander and member of TTAG’s Armed Intelligentsia pinged me yesterday. He wanted to assure me that the Ocean State wasn’t going to follow New York and Connecticut and go full retard on gun control. There’s nothing firearms related on the legislative calendar. I told him I’d believe that when I didn’t see it. Twenty-minutes later I drove past this sign in front of the First Baptist Church on North Main Street. It was like running into Jamie Eason at Dunkin’ Donuts. Even so, I’m still headed to the Lone Star State, where people respect human rights, and those that don’t know that those who do aren’t defenseless. Not that I am, but you know what I mean.

38 COMMENTS

    • Absolutely, and it’s an important distinction!
      The above dangerous mistranslation is often misintrepreted and extrapolated to say: since you shall never kill you shall not posses any weapons. I assume they mean what RF’s Rhode Islander thinks they mean, but they could just as easily be twisting the verse to suport disarmament.

    • As you know, Aharon, that’s the correct translation. I don’t understand how it was mistranslated in the first place. The Sixth Commandment prohibits shedding the blood of the innocent. The guilty get what’s coming to them.

      • Not a mistranslation. The issue is how the English word has changed since the 1500s. Murder is the best word in English now, but 16th and 17th century readers understood a distinction between SD/war and shall not kill.

      • There are shaded meanings to the original Aramaic.

        For instance, the Chosen face no proscription against lying in general, but rather only against the pernicious bearing of false witness.

        They are free to answer “No.” in response to “Does this dress make me look fat?”

        Subtle, but important.

        I’d say that we have a gun control law – 2A, making it illegal for the government to deprive the citizenry of guns, knives and other personal arms reasonable to the defense of self, property and the State.

        The Constitution is, after all, the highest law in the land.

        Qui gubernum administravit?

        • “For instance, the Chosen face no proscription against lying in general, but rather only against the pernicious bearing false witness.”

          That’s a new one to me. I’m Jewish and was always taught the Commandment as “Thous shalt not lie” and apart from religion itself culturally misrepresenting the truth was wrong.

        • They are free to answer “No.” in response to “Does this dress make me look fat?”

          Russ, I think you look great in that dress. But for a formal occasion, I’d rather see you in dove gray chiffon with a single strand of pearls.

    • I’d prefer they post the state’s murder statute, since you know, America isn’t a theocracy and the 10 commandments aren’t laws.

      • We shouldn’t be a theocracy and the 10 commandments shouldn’t be verbatim law but we’ve a ways to go to get away from that.

      • If one believes in the 10 Commandments, one believes they are law.
        The state doesn’t exist. It is a corporation which labels itself as the single corporation of jurisdiction, etc. within a geographic area. A contract signed between men 200 years ago is not a contract signed by me. Cooperation with the corporation is only pragmatic.

        A theocracy can mean, apparently, rule by God or rule by people who claim that God has appointed them. Believing in the 10 Commandments is following the former; believing in statism (democracy, monarchy, communism, etc.) sometimes is following the latter.

    • Judaism (whence TSNK) offers also the directive “If a man comes to slay you, slay him first.”

      Yup.

    • “Thou shalt not murder.” is the ACTUAL language. King James had it changed to read “Thou shalt not kill.” Reason he wanted to control the populace. This is nothing new folks. During the reign of one Chinese Emporer, he wanted all bows, arrows, daggers, and other such emplements banned, in order to keep the peasants from rising up in revolt. Any one caught with a bow and arrows was executed.

    • Bingo Aharon. Original Hebrew was MURDER. King James using KILL is (can be) entirely different meaning (self defense, family, country,etc…).
      Jamie Easons a cutie (usually short hair dont work, but in this case…).

    • The phrase “Thou shalt not kill” was correctly translated in the English language of 1611 when the King James Version was published.

      If they had meant to proscribe the taking of life in general, they would have said “Thou shalt not slay.”

    • I do! Thank you for giving the correct translation.” Homicide” is the killing of a human being ,which may be legal or illegal. The Hebrew language had several words for killing, but the word for it in EX.20:13 is “lo tirzach” which is never used in the administration of justice or killing in war. ETZ HAYIM p.447 It only means murder.

  1. I used to live in Tiverton. I didn’t think thee state was large enough to fit a rifle range. 🙂

  2. It is interesting to see a church with that sign, even more so if by making that statement the intended message is ‘lay off our guns’………

    ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ

  3. Let me just say I like the continued evolution of controlling the language via important distinctions. Just like how you made the good decision from translating “gun control” as “civilian disarmament,” so too is the usage of “slave state” rather than “blue state” very apt and true. Call ’em like they are.

    Now we just have to change “gun control advocate” to “domestic enemy” and we’re set.

  4. Come on down RF, come on down. The Lone Star State is also trying to pass open carry and campus carry. We shall see…but it’s a great state for self defense believers at any rate

  5. We are always glad to have people strengthen our cause in Texas. I’m sure you know Austin is an anti’s breeding ground, I only mention it cause someone has to walk to the hornet’s nest to enact some pest control…

    Otherwise I suggest my city, San Antonio! Love this place.

  6. I seldom click on your cheesecake links (not what I come to TTAG for), but I did this time. Holy damn, what a body.

  7. New England sure does have some pretty little towns. It’s a shame that it’s become such a bastion of the statists.

    One note about Texas: Not sure if you guys down there are aware, but one of Obama’s former campaign strategists has been sent to Texas by the Democrats to launch a “Turn Texas Blue” project, with the main target being Latinos. I hope it’s a cold day in hell before Texas falls to a platform supporting gun control and higher taxes, but y’all remain vigilant down there and stay active politically just to be safe.

  8. The gun control laws we need:

    1. You shall not murder. Exodus 20:13 (NIV)

    2. The right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. The Second Amendment.

    3. If someone tries to kill you, you kill him right back. Captain Malcolm Reynolds, Firefly.

  9. Regardless of the original translation, you’ve got to look at context. If the scripture was promoting complete pacifism, it would have been a complete contradiction to the events of Moses’ life, to say nothing of his successor Joshua. More to the point, the inherent right to self defence is something you find lauded over and over during later texts. For example, when the wall to jerusalem was being rebuilt, it was done with a hammer in one hand and a spear in the other. And although I know Passover was recently held up as an example of this principle, perhaps an even better example would be Purim, a festival directly devoted to Jews in the persian empire being permitted to defend their homes and prevent genocide themselves, NOT wait for the persian officials to come to their defence.

  10. Carlos Ortiz, 27, of Bristol, Conn. is charged as a fugitive from justice in connection with the murder of Lloyd. He reportedly waived extradition to Massachusetts and will face additional charges in Bristol County, Mass.

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