for those like me who weren't previously familiar with the disagreement between Questioner & Momma Angel about the obligation of Christians to be doormats, the passage in question is Matthew 5:39. here's the English Standard Version:
Quote:Matthew 5:39 But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.
King James V. has the word smite in place of slap; other versions have the word strike. While Jehovah's Witnesses interpret the verse as prohibiting self-defence, they seem to be in the minority. here's an explanation i came across:
Quote:Jesus specifically mentions the right here , even though a blow from a right-handed person would normally fall on the left cheek. This probably means that the blow is delivered with the back of the hand, since then it would indeed fall on the right cheek. We know for certain that such a blow was considered particularly insulting. The injustice that is willingly accepted here is therefore not so much a matter of body injury as of shame. (H.N. Ridderbos. "Matthew": Bible Students Commentary. Zondervan. p. 113)
so basically Jesus instructed his followers not to return insults. it doesn't preclude objecting to an insult, or defending others against insults. but that's just my 2 cents. i'm not even Christian, and Christians don't always agree anyway, as ehBeth pointed out.
