Yeager on Turning the Other Cheek
“… people who heed the Biblical behest to turn the other cheek can actually harm decent people by letting predation be seen to pay off. Righteous indignation, conversely, can serve a social purpose.” (Ethics as Social Science, 66)
I once read someone’s opinion that Jesus’s counsels, such as to turn the other cheek and “if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, [to] let him have your cloak as well,” (Mt 5:39-40) were suitable in a society where the legal system was primitive and obtaining enforcement of laws and judicial verdicts was difficult. (Also, e.g., “Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, ‘Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.’” (Mt 18:21-22)) Today, the author argued, he’d simply call the cops.