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Eye for an Eye: One of the Greatest Ideas in History

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Nowadays, many people, particularly those living in Western civilization, no longer regard their society as morally superior to any other. In this video, Dennis Prager lays out how this view does not spring from intellectual rigor, but from intellectual laziness.

Dennis Prager’s new book, The Rational Bible, is now available. Order today: https://www.amazon.com/Rational-Bible-Exodus-Dennis-Prager/dp/1621577724

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Script:

Even atheists acknowledge that the book that is most responsible for creating Western civilization is the Bible.

Until very recently, that was considered quite an achievement.

After all, it was Western civilization that created societies rooted in individual liberty, rooted in democracy, that affirmed the equality of all people, and which gave the world the notion of universal human rights.

Of course, these unique moral ideals took centuries to be realized, and the ideals were often violated. But only the West formulated these ideals, let alone achieved them — and then spread them around the world.

In the last half century, however, many of the recipients of these gifts — especially the well-educated — no longer regarded Western civilization as morally superior to any other. And as reverence for Western civilization fell, so did reverence for the source of that civilization.

The Bible has not only been neglected, but reviled — as a foolish fairy tale at best, and as an immoral work at worst. This view springs not from intellectual rigor, but from intellectual laziness.

People throw out all sorts of objections to the Bible as if there are no rational and moral responses to those objections. But the fact is there are rational and moral responses to all those objections.

I give many of them in my book, The Rational Bible, but let me offer two here.

In the biblical book of Deuteronomy, it says if someone has a rebellious  son  who does not obey his father and mother, his parents can take him to the elders of the city for judgment. And if the son is found guilty, the citizens are to stone him to death.

Sounds pretty primitive, doesn’t it?

In fact, however, it was an enormous moral leap forward. This law ended — forever — parental ownership of their children, and with it the right to kill to them. The brilliance of this law was that it seemed to preserve the absolute authority of parents, but in fact ended it.

But, you will respond, the citizens of the city could still kill the child. Theoretically, that was true. But we have no instance of it ever happening in the history of the Jews — the people who brought the book into the world and lived by its rules.

Critics of Western religion also often cite the famous biblical law, “an eye for an eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand,” etc. as another example of an immoral biblical law.

But this law — known by its Latin name, lex talionis, the law of retaliation — was another great moral advance. It was not meant to be taken literally, and it never was — for the simple reason that it’s impossible to exactly duplicate bodily harm. Only “a life for a life” was meant literally and taken literally: there is capital punishment for premeditated murder.

So, then, what did it mean?

For one thing, lex talionis is the ultimate statement of human equality. Every person’s eye is as precious as anyone else’s. The eye of a prince is worth no more than the eye of a peasant. This was completely new in history. The Babylonian Code of Hammurabi, for example, legislated that the eye of a noble was of much greater value than the eye of a commoner.

For the complete script, visit https://www.prageru.com/videos/eye-eye-one-greatest-ideas-history

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24 Comments

  3. I'd argue its one of the most horrible ideas, it feels good for the first person to lose an eye for a little bit, 50 years later, all you have are two spiteful blind people, it makes ptsd and depression more common, and that's bad enough on its own but it can often effect parents and their relationship with children.

    even if you take out all morals and only look at practically its still a bad idea, if your blind, do you want to go shopping less or more? is it easier to shop, the answer to both of those is "less and no"

    it is absolutely horrible idea based on revenge throwing out all other considerations.

    A better idea is a rehabilitative model with much more comfortable prisons, such as in Finland, if you do a crime, than the aftermath should be in a place of education.

  6. "Could God create a stone so heavy that even he could not lift it?"

    Can Western logic solve omnipotence paradox? No

    I can solve it using Asian advanced logic.

    What does it say about the origins of bible (creator God concept)?

  11. “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.”

    – Matthew 5:38-42

  14. Western civilisation IS the best, most progressive civilisation in history, it has spread human rights and aspires to democracy, even if it doesn't always achieve it, this is NOT the case in ANY other culture in history.

  17. jesus " “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’[a] 39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. 40 And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. 41 If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. 42 Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.""

  19. LMAO flawed logic. So dumb. Dont fall for this shit. Imagine using a biblical argument as a Christian and focusing on old testament (classic PragerU) and not the new covenant that replaces the old with a turn the other cheek approach and love everyone like your neighbor. SMH.