And He Seeks Retribution Quotes

For one such: women positioned in relations of asymmetrical moral support with men have historically been required to show him moral respect, approval, admiration, sympathy, and concern. When she breaks character, and tries to level moral criticisms or accusations in his direction, she is withholding from him the good will he may be accustomed to receiving from her. He may even be in some sense reliant on her good will to maintain his tenuous sense of self-worth. Her resentment or blame may feel like a betrayal, a reversal of the proper moral relations between them, and this may make him seek payback, revenge, retribution.

And yet,’ he went on, ‘who talks about forgiveness these days, other than the people who come to this place, or to places like this? What politician, what public person, do we hear standing up and saying that we must forgive? The message we are more likely to hear is one of blame, of how this person or that person must be held to account for something bad that has happened. It is a message of retribution – that is all it is – a message of pure retribution, sometimes dressed up in concern about victims and public safety and matters of that sort. But if you do not forgive, and you think all the time about getting even, or punishing somebody who has done you a wrong, what are you achieving? You are not going to make that person better by hating or punishing him; oh no, that will not happen. When we punish somebody, we are often just punishing ourselves, you know. If people lock others away, they are simply increasing the amount of suffering there is in the world; they may think they are diminishing it, but they are not. They are adding to the burden that suffering creates. Of course, sometimes you have no alternative but to do it – people must be protected from harm – but you should always remember that there are other ways of changing a man’s ways. ‘My brothers and sisters: do not be afraid to profess forgiveness. Do not be afraid to tell people who urge you to seek retribution or revenge that there is no place for any of that in your heart. Do not be embarrassed to say that you believe in love, and that you believe that water can wash away the sins of the world, and that you are prepared to put this message of forgiveness right at the heart of your world. My brothers and sisters, do not be afraid to say any of this, even if people laugh at you, or say that you are old-fashioned, or foolish, or that you believe things that cannot be believed. Do not worry about any of that – because love and forgiveness are more powerful than any of those cynical, mocking words and will always be so. Always.

Again, this is in no way an excuse for what my stepfather, John, did. If I were to see him in real life now, I'd love nothing more than to beat the living hell out of him. In researching this book, I was reacquainted with an intense hatred I'd held for years, and wanted to find him and seek retribution for what he had done to my mother and me, but it's important to examine the factors that contributed to his behavior in an effort to address these issues in a real and meaningful way because, as long as we raise boys to believe that emotions are unmasculine, or that they are signs of weakness, and as long as we use violence as a means of enforcement, we're going to continue raising men who abuse their partners and their children, and who often react to economic shame by enacting violence against others.

might have life.” Matthew 23:37; John 5:40. Christ saw in Jerusalem a symbol of the world hardened in unbelief and rebellion, and hastening on to meet the retributive judgments of God. The woes of a fallen race, pressing upon His soul, forced from His lips that exceeding bitter cry. He saw the record of sin traced in human misery, tears, and blood; His heart was moved with infinite pity for the afflicted and suffering ones of earth; He yearned to relieve them all. But even His hand might not turn back the tide of human woe; few would seek their only Source of help. He was willing to pour out His soul unto death, to bring salvation within their reach; but few would come to Him that they might have life.

There were five of these commandments. The First Commandment (Matthew v, 21-6) was that man must not only refrain from killing, he must not become angry with his brother, must not consider anyone to be raca, of no consequence, and if he should quarrel he must first be reconciled before bringing a gift to God, that is before praying. The Second Commandment (Matthew v, 27-32) was that man must not only refrain from adultery, he must avoid lusting after womanly beauty, and one joined to a woman he never be unfaithful to her. The Third Commandment (Matthew v, 33-7) was that man must swear no oaths. The Fourth Commandment (Matthew v, 38-42) was that man must not only refrain from taking an eye for an eye, but must turn the other cheek when smitten on one, must forgive injuries and humbly bear them and never refuse people that which they desire of him. The Fifth Commandment (Matthew v, 43-8) was that man must not only refrain from hating his enemies, and waging war against them, but must love, help and serve them. Nekhlyudov fixed his gaze on the light coming from the burning lamp, and his heart stopped. Recalling all the ugliness of our lives, he started to imagine what this life could be like if only people were educated in the principles, and his soul was filled with the kind of rapture he had not known for a very long time. It was as if he had suddenly found peace and freedom after a long period of anguish and pain. He did not sleep that night, and, as so often happens with many, many people reading the Gospels for the first time, as he read he came to a full understanding of words he had heard read many times before without taking in what they said. All that was revealed to him in that book as vital, important and joyful he drank in like a sponge soaking up water. And all that he read seemed familiar, seemed to confirm and full acknowledge things he had known for a very long time without accepting or believing them. But now he accepted and believed. But more that that: as well as accepting and believing that by obeying these commandments people will attain the highest of all possible blessings, he now accepted and believed that obeying these commandments is all that a person has to do, the only thing makes sense in human life, and that any departure from this is a mistake leading to instant retribution. This emerged from the teaching as a whole but with particular strength and clarity from the parable of the vineyard. The workers in the vineyard had come to imagine that the garden where they had been sent to work for the master was their own property, and that everything in it had been put there for their benefit, and all they had to do was to enjoy life in the garden, forget all about the master and put to death anybody who reminded them of the master and their duty towards him. ‘This is just what we are doing,’ thought Nekhlyudov, ‘living in the absurd conviction that we are masters of our own lives, and that life is given to us purely for our enjoyment. Yet this is patently absurd. Surely, if we have been sent here it must be at someone’s behest and for a purpose. But we have decided that we live only for our gratification, and naturally life turns sour on us, as it turns sour on a worker who fails to follow his master’s will. And the will of the master is expressed in these commandments. People only have to obey these commandments and the kingdom of God will be established on earth, and the people will receive the highest of all possible blessings. ‘See ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and the all the rest shall be added on to you.’ And although we are seeking ‘all the rest’, we obviously cannot find it. ‘So this is what my life is all about. As one part comes to an end, another begins.

The Floyd brothers were the reason he’d come to North Carolina. He had vowed to seek retribution, vowed to get it. He just hadn’t counted on things happening how they had, or when they had.

He arranged the infant on his chest, a warm little bundle of comfort in an otherwise abruptly bleak situation. “Attend me, young Kit.” “Gah.” Kit made another swipe at Vim’s nose. “I’ll seek retribution if you persist at this nose-capturing business.” Kit thumped Vim’s chest and levered up, grinning hugely. “Go ahead and smile, you little fiend. Do you know why the aristocracy have large families? Several reasons, the first being that any man who can afford to fuck his way through life finds it tempting to do so, and babies like you are the frequent result.” “Fah!” Another thump. “Fah, fah, fahck!” “Boy, you had better watch your language when Miss Sophie is about. Say damn. Much less vulgar.” “Bah!” “Bah is acceptable, used judiciously. The aristocracy have large families not just because they can, but also because their babies are kept well away from any situation where the pleasurable business of procreation might ensue. Babies belong in nurseries.” “Bah-bah-bah-bah!” Vim lifted Kit straight above his chest, which provoked much chortling and waving about of small limbs. “Perhaps you’ll be a balloonist.” He brought the baby back down to his chest, cradling the child close. “You saved me from folly, you know. Sophie Windham is dangerous to a man’s best intentions.” No

Probably just someone on their way into Tucson, like us. We’d better check it out, though.” The Southerner pulled his Winchester 73 from its sheath and laid it across his waist in the saddle. He’d killed a few men when he’d had to. There was always the possibility that a brother, son, or friend would seek retribution, even though the fights had been fair, the gunplay defensive, their fate deserved. He’d also riled a few lazy, drunk, or dishonest men who’d worked under him at various ranches by giving them their pay and telling them to move on. The Southerner knew that distance and the passage of time were irrelevant where vengeance was concerned. The man who’d sent the telegram asking for his help was proof of that.

I’m sorry, what’s your name again?” “Frank Tremont, Essex County investigator.” “You new on the job, Frank?” Now he spread his hands. “Do I look new?” “No, Frank, you look like a hundred years of bad decisions, but your statement about motive would be the kind of thing some oxygen-deficient rookie might try on a brain-dead paralegal. First off—pay attention here—the loser of the fight is usually the one who seeks retribution, correct?” “Most of the time.” “Well”—Hester

Was it really just an hour ago that he’d licked me into nirvana at the top of the hill? We’d been buying condoms and planning an afternoon of hot sex, and now we were on a witch-hunt. Seeking retribution. Out for blood.

Now, as many have pointed out, the Mosaic legislation calling for “an eye for an eye” itself acted to curb the escalation of retributive violence, limiting it to just one eye for an eye instead of the 7 for Cain (Gen 4:15), and then the 77 of Lamech (Gen 4:24). In this sense, Jesus can be seen as fulfilling the intent of the Mosaic legislation to curb violence. He takes the command of an “eye for an eye” which already limited retaliation, and now takes it to the next level, saying not to retaliate at all, instead proposing a superior way which seeks to restore enemies, rather than to destroy them.

But more than that: as well as accepting and believing that by obeying these commandments people will attain the highest of all possible blessing, he now accepted and believed that obeying these commandments is all that a person has to do, the only thing that makes sense in human life, and that any departure from this is a mistake leading to instant retribution. This emerged from the teaching as a whole but with particular strength and clarity from the parable of the vineyard. The workers in the vineyward had come to imagine that the garden where they had been sent to work for the master was their own property, and that everything in it had been put there for their benefit, and all they had to do was enjoy life in the garden, forget all about the master and put to death anybody who reminded them of the master and their duty towards him. ‘That is just what we are doing,’ thought Nekhlyudov, ‘living in the absurd conviction that we are masters of our own lives, and that life is given to us purely for our enjoyment. Yet this is patently absurd. Surely, if we have been sent here it must be at someone’s behest and for a purpose. But we have decided that we live only for our own gratification, and naturally life turns sour on us, as it turns sour on a worker who fails to follow his master’s will. And the will of the master is expressed in these commandments. People have only to obey these commandments and the kingdom of God will be established on earth, and the people will receive the highest of all possible blessings.’ ‘See ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all the rest shall be added on to you.’ And although we are seeking ‘all the rest’, we obviously cannot find it. ‘So this is what my life is all about. As one part comes to an end, another begins.’ That night marked the beginning of a totally new life for Nekhlyudov, not so much because he had embarked on new personal circumstances, but because everything that happened to him subsequently came with an entirely new and different meaning. How this new period of his life will end only the future will show.

One might go on to say that perhaps justice fails to be done only if the concept we entertain of justice is retributive justice, whose chief goal is to be punitive, so that the wronged party is really the state, something impersonal, which has little consideration for the real victims and almost none for the perpetrator. We contend that there is another kind of justice, restorative justice, which was characteristic of traditional African jurisprudence. Here the central concern is not retribution or punishment. In the spirit of ubuntu, the central concern is the healing of breaches, the redressing of imbalances, the restoration of broken relationships, a seeking to rehabilitate both the victim and the perpetrator, who should be given the opportunity to be reintegrated into the community he has injured by his offense.

It had nothing to do with the fact that Mika was adorable. There was just something so sweet about him, but now and then, there’d be a look in his eyes that told me he’d been through some shit. It was that wary, wounded look that had first caught my attention. It made me want to find out who’d hurt him so I could make sure it never happened again. Being protective wasn’t new for me—hell, it was in my job description—but I’d never felt the urge to hunt someone down and seek retribution before. But for him, I did.