Christians and Martial Arts

[Dobbersky]

Being a Christian myself, I accumulated various articles on Religion and Martial Arts, truth is its goes hand in hand, all throughout the bible it specifically states the training in "martial arts" is good for the mind / soul. I would love to post them but issue with copyright, I'll try and find a URL

OSU

[cheesefrysamurai]

I am not a Christian.

I'm not sure turning the other cheek meant taking a beating without reciprocation, I feel it probably meant that a really high level of forgiveness and compassion should be observed.

[Harkon72]

I'm not a Christian, but many of my friends are.

My favorite quote is; "Do unto others then run away!"

[Lupin1]

Not sure how accurate this is, but my (atheist) religion professor in college told us that turning the other cheek was meant as an act of defiance. The master would only slap a subordinate with the back of his left hand (or right. Can't remember. One of them) and so to turn your other cheek towards him was to make it harder for him to hit you again. So it was more peaceful resistance. Don't fight back, but take a step so they can't hit you again.

Again, not sure how accurate it was because I've never heard it anywhere else, but the dude did have a PhD in Theology from Princeton, so... who knows...

[AngelAriz]

Meekness is strength under control. Not cowardice. Turning the cheek is about forgiving a person for their rash treatment of others. Not a lesson in cowardice.

[Harkon72]

They say Jesus was meek and mild - I don't think so! To take the punishment at his Passion he must have been physically and mentally very tough. And I bet when he threw over the money lenders' tables at the temple he must of thrown a punch or two. I can see him with biceps like cooking apples.

[kensei]

I dont practice any organized....or disorganized religion at all. However, I am aware of a few "religious sayings" from the good book and a few that sticks out in this case is "do unto others" and "An eye for an eye".

I would assume that the history of the world would show that not all people live by the single "turn the other cheek" ideal. Not getting into any debates here but as a martial arts instructor I teach students not to get hurt and if someone chooses to try and hurt you that you have the right to defend yourself and preserve your life and health...its their choice to attack you and they need to know that the results can be less than favorable for them.

[alexis101]

Meekness is strength under control. Not cowardice. Turning the cheek is about forgiving a person for their rash treatment of others. Not a lesson in cowardice.

Nice thought, i agree with you

Learning martial arts does have benefits in health and in character build-up.

It's core is not fighting back or revenge, but it's about discipline and self-control.

[andym]

I still class myself as Christian, not a very good one, but....The non-violence of 'turn the other cheek', is better in some circumstances. We call it 'De-escalation' these days. But it's all relative to circumstances. Sometimes action is necessary : remember Christ's cleansing of the temple.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleansing_of_the_Temple

[Spartacus Maximus]

It seems to me that it is always the non mainstream Christians that see any conflict between the religious teachings they follow and martial arts. The opposition usually comes from those who know next to nothing about them

I come from a culture that for most of its history was fiercely Christian. The Catholic Church controlled society with an iron fist. Even now the overwhelming majority identifies to that religion. Despite this martial arts are still very popular.

The USA is mostly Christian as well and martial arts a probably more popular there than where many originated.