 YouTube has two speeds. Absolute approval and absolute criticism. It's appropriate that they've gone from the five-star system to a simple thumbs up or thumbs down. I mirrored a promo for the Magic Sandwich show where the topic was the death by beating of the young girl Lydia Schatz, killed by her parents Kevin and Elizabeth. The title for that show was Pearls Before Swine, a reference to Matthew 7.6 from the Sermon on the Mount. Don't give that which is holy to the dogs, neither throw your pearls before the pigs, lest perhaps they trample them under their feet and turn and tear you to pieces. I'll leave a link to the mirrored video below. The original author was DPR Jones, but it's been on my channel for weeks. DPR Jones took his copy down shortly after the show as part of the regular processing of promos. Many people have asked me to retract the video and apologize publicly to the parties they feel I have wronged, namely Jack, a.k.a. together for peace and peace in Christ alone. I'm always open to valid criticisms and welcome any responses to this video, video for more in comments. I try to read all comments as time allows and respond to valid concerns, questions and criticism. I've reviewed DPR Jones' video several times now, as well as the full videos the clips were taken from. And while I don't necessarily agree with the stylistic or editorial choices, I don't think the video is dishonest, and my only complaint would be that it didn't include some key content that framed why these clips were included. This really is much more about the people, the parents, and to me not really so much about the Bible and God and Christianity. And I hope that people can see, you know, I understand why people like to do these sorts of things, this whole sort of correlation-causation idea that people have in their mind, but hopefully we can be a little bit more critical and reasoned as we think through some of these very emotional issues. And address, begin to think about some of the foundational issues and ask ourselves as a society, do we envision, do we find situations in which physical discipline can be deemed appropriate? When the MSS put together a promo, we typically pick a relevant topic and relate it back to something going on in YouTube. In this case, the Christian response to a tragedy of religiously motivated child abuse that ended in the death of a little girl. When Christians on YouTube are confronted with something done not just by Christians, but according to Scripture, they're put in a difficult spot. Their commitment to scriptural truth, their belief in a benign deity, and their modern ethical sensibilities are in conflict. What usually comes out is a very sophisticated denial mechanism. No true Scotsman, for example. No true Christian would harm their child because Jesus didn't. Or those people were crazy because Christianity is all about love. I don't see how they could have the love of God in them to do that. Jesus never beat children. There are a lot of Scriptures, by the way, that do talk about beating a child that's in Proverbs, not in the New Testament, in the Old Testament. But it wasn't only to punish a child, it also says to punish a fool. Where they might go with the equivocation route, beating your child is terrible. But what the Bible really means is don't beat them too much or don't beat them until they die. I believe he's going too far to tell people to beat their children to that extent. Proverbs 26-3, a whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the back of fools. There are plenty of ways to avoid the rather unpleasant truth that the Bible contains much that is to be condemned. I think that's what DPR Jones was trying to highlight. The mismatch between the type of vacillating response and the magnitude and motivation of the crown. Apologetics ring very hollow when stacked against the death of a young girl at the hands of her parents. Parents who thought they were following God's law. Whom shall we blame? The parents who were too credible? The book author who took scripture too literally. The entire Christian faith that centers too much on the morality written in an old book. The actual discussion during the show centered on research showing a strong correlation between biblical literalism and corporal punishment and the link between corporal punishment and child aggression, mental disorder, and eventual maladjustment. The Bible, like most holy books, can be used to support virtually any perspective. That's its great danger. It is a loaded weapon of justification for any atrocity. Throughout history the Bible has been used to validate one opinion or another. To quote Steven Weinberg, With or without religion good people can behave well and bad people can do evil. But for good people to do evil that takes religion. Am I saying that all religious people beat their children? Of course not. Am I saying that Jack in Peace and Christ alone are in favor of beating their children? Of course not. Am I saying that scriptural adherence causes some child abuse? Absolutely, yes. It also causes religious medical neglect, emotional and mental abuse of children. That's what Christians have a very hard time admitting to themselves and others. They are conflicted between what they know is right and defending a book they value very highly. It's cognitive dissonance and it's painful to experience. Painful enough to cause some people to abandon their religion in favor of their personal moral compass. I am not an anti-theist. In my experience religious belief isn't something you can consciously choose. I think it should be a personal private matter for adults to decide for themselves. When children are involved the parents or guardians have to make smart choices for them. When those parents or guardians fail in that basic duty then it remains for our social institutions, activists and advocacy groups to speak out for those who cannot speak for themselves. If Jack has been misrepresented, if anyone was honestly misled to believe that Jack approved of scripturally motivated child abuse from the clip, I apologize for the harm done. Ditto for Peace in Christ alone. If the comments included were somehow out of context from their actual purpose, I would offer a retraction. However if the only objection is the editorial choice to juxtapose scenes of a Christian equivocating about condemning the underlying motivations of the parents, which was explicitly that they felt it was their scriptural duty, with the human impact of the tragedy, the beaten and bruised little girl. I don't think it's appropriate for me to apologize. I stand behind the sentiment. Lastly, is it wrong to lump spanking and beating into one large category? I don't think it is. Beating is one of those terms never used by the people doing it. The other guy beats his kids. You just give them a reminder, swat or slap or clip around the ear, or something to get their attention. It's just one of those psychological phenomena. Everyone always sees themselves as wise and restrained, right up until the police show up. The easiest way is not to start, not to allow the small amount of violence, or rely on your own self-control when you're angry, tired or emotional. The best research shows that hitting your kids mostly tells them that hitting is how the strong control the weak. Kids follow the example set by adults. It's very tempting to use the old mantra of, when I was a kid, my dad gave me a couple of spankings and I turned out alright. But the rational community is better than such sloppy thinking. We know that data is not the plural of anecdote. If you spank your kids, consider stopping. I'll cite some nice articles that suggest it's linked to child aggression and behavioral maladjustment. You might look into some really reputable parenting sites like the American Academy of Pediatrics, or parenting.org, or talk to a certified professional counselor or pediatrician. What you shouldn't do when you're looking for parenting advice is to rely on religious texts or supernatural voices in your head. Being a parent isn't easy. It's the most important job you'll ever have. Thanks for watching.