Speeding

[Ave Maria]

Is speeding a sin? The Bible says to be subject to the governmental authorities but yet we should be even more concerned for the safety of others and sometimes going to the speed limit endangers others lives whereas going with the flow of traffic does not. What do you all think?

 

[KarateCowboy]

Since it is not a crime but I think a misdemeanor, and since some states officially allow minor speeding through law, I think if it were a sin it would only be venial. So in other words, no.

 

[Sojourner<><]

Is speeding a sin? The Bible says to be subject to the governmental authorities but yet we should be even more concerned for the safety of others and sometimes going to the speed limit endangers others lives whereas going with the flow of traffic does not. What do you all think?

I think it was socrates who came up with a solution to this problem... can't quote him word for word but the jist of it was that if it's right to break the rules, do so only with a willingness to face the consequences.

 

[MsScarlett]

...going to the speed limit endangers others lives whereas going with the flow of traffic does not. What do you all think?

Sounds like you're making excuses to break the law.

 

[IndomitableAmy]

Sounds like you're making excuses to break the law.

Meh. In some/many states, in addition to laws which say "obey posted speed limits" there are also laws which say "do not drive in such a way that impedes traffic". Given this, if everyone else is speeding, you must break one law or another. In this case, I'd say break the law that would cause the least danger.

 

[YourChild]

Paladin girl - you're pagan now? How serious is your eternity to you?

 

[YourChild]

Is speeding a sin? The Bible says to be subject to the governmental authorities but yet we should be even more concerned for the safety of others and sometimes going to the speed limit endangers others lives whereas going with the flow of traffic does not. What do you all think?

depends on the situation...the higher authorities of religious law during the new testament days tried to stop Paul from preaching...if he heeded to their commands, how would the Gospel be preached by him?

If you're uncle was going to pass away in 3 hrs and you need to preach the Gospel to him, its best for you to speed and get there...

if you're speeding wrecklessly for the heck of it then you should change your way of driving.

 

[Sphinx777]

Paladin girl - you're pagan now? How serious is your eternity to you?

She was a Muslim a few days ago... I think she's just playing around with the different religious icon options...

 

[Ave Maria]

Paladin girl - you're pagan now? How serious is your eternity to you?

I'm honestly not that worried about my eternity because I do not believe in an eternal Hell. I believe everyone will make it to Heaven someday.

She was a Muslim a few days ago... I think she's just playing around with the different religious icon options...

No, actually I wasn't playing around with the religious icon options. I was actually somewhat serious. I was just confused as I usually am. However, I am back to being a Christian now and hopefully for good this time.

Anyway, let's not discuss my faith or faith icon changes, let's discuss the topic at hand which is speeding. So far, I haven't gotten any satisfactory answers.

 

[angelpie545]

I'd say that since you're not supposed to do it, that yes, speeding is a sin. The Bible does say that we are to follow the laws of our land, and it is against the law to speed. Just because you can't be arrested for it (and in some cases you can be if your speed was high enough-I believe you can be charged with reckless endangerment) doesn't mean that it's alright to do it. I've personally never been in a situation where I *had* to speed in order not to disrupt traffic. You might get honked at and passed up a lot, but at least you won't get a ticket. That said however...I know that no one wants to be the "slow one" on the road. I agree that it's embarrassing.

 

[IndomitableAmy]

Anyway, let's not discuss my faith or faith icon changes, let's discuss the topic at hand which is speeding. So far, I haven't gotten any satisfactory answers.

Would anything less than yes or no and a Bible verse specifically addressing the issue be a satisfactory answer? Seriously, what kind of thing would constitute a satisfactory answer? Like.. what form might a satisfactory answer (to this question) take?

 

[OldWiseGuy]

Would anything less than yes or no and a Bible verse specifically addressing the issue be a satisfactory answer? Seriously, what kind of thing would constitute a satisfactory answer? Like.. what form might a satisfactory answer (to this question) take?

This is truly an ethical and philosophical question, if one chooses to address it as such. Because it is posed to a 'Christian' it must necessarily involve the true spirit, or higher intent of the law. The OT addressed the literal, written law, or in this case, the actual speed limit on the road travelled.

Because the OT laws were considered our 'schoolmaster' (as described by Paul) younger Christians, still needing strong literal boundaries, probably should view the speeding laws as such: a firm literal yardstick to measure behaviour. That young people are usually unable, or unwilling, to drive properly/lawfully, the legalistic aspect of the traffic laws should, and often does, apply. They usually cannot see beyond their desire to 'go faster' and the 'unreasonableness' of such laws in the first place.

The mature Christian sees the wisdom, and the necessity for such laws, far beyond their obvious safety value. That speeding is dangerous, expensive, and damaging to the social order is also clear. It's one of the 'thousand cuts' that are slowly killing us. Knowing this, as many older people do, is enough to goad the conscience into obedience to these laws, not grudgingly, but understanding their true value. Failing to do good when one knows to do so, is a sin to him/her.

So, to the immature person, speeding is no sin, as they see no 'good' in obeying the speed limit. They speed with impunity, and a clear conscience.

To the mature, who see the damage done to a nation that collectively bends and breaks a variety of laws,
it is a sin.

owg

 

[IndomitableAmy]

OWG, I was asking PaladinGirl what kind of think would be a satisfactory answer or what form a satisfactory answer would take because she said she hadn't got a satisfactory answer. I tried already but apparently that wasn't good enough, so I wanted to know what would be. The whole "bible verse" thing, hopefully, was hyperbole of a sort... or, in any case, wasn't entirely serious. This ought to be obvious, given that after I said that, I continued with "Seriously," given that I hadn't been quite so serious before.

Perhaps you didn't notice my first reply? I did take it as an ethical question, which, yes, has philosophical roots.

Is speeding a sin? The Bible says to be subject to the governmental authorities but yet we should be even more concerned for the safety of others and sometimes going to the speed limit endangers others lives whereas going with the flow of traffic does not. What do you all think?

In some/many states, in addition to laws which say "obey posted speed limits" there are also laws which say "do not drive in such a way that impedes traffic". Given this, if everyone else is speeding, you must break one law or another. In this case, I'd say break the law that would cause the least danger.

So my answer is do what causes least harm, least risk to oneself and others. This doesn't mean speeding is never right or that speeding is never wrong.

In California, at least, last I knew, impeding traffic (and possibly endangering others by such) was held as a law higher than speeding. Nobody got pulled over on freeways for keeping up with traffic. People did get pulled over for impeding traffic, for making themselves an obstacle.

Where the law accomplishes what is supposed to accomplish or where it is neutral, keep the law, that is right. Where keeping the law would compel you to be a danger to others, for instance, I would say obey the higher law against hurting others or putting others at risk.

I do address it as an ethical question. If that's not a good enough answer, I'd like to know what a good enough answer would look like.

 

[Maynard Keenan]

Excessive, dangerous speeding maybe. But most speed laws are wink-and-nod. Speed limits are set way lower than the speed dictated by road conditions, and cops sit by and do nothing as people go 10-over. So I can't imagine it to be sinful to go 10 over in this scenario, when thats what the road conditions dictate, when thats what 75% of the cars on the road are doing, and when thats what the cops allow.

 

[OldWiseGuy]

Amy,

I was just giving an example of what a good answer might look like. (Well, I thought it was good.)

owg

 

[billwald]

Yes, speeding is probably a sin but most "Christians" speed so you will never hear a sermon on the traffic code. We only preach about sins that other people do.

 

[OD3]

No its not a sin. Its just stupid.

I dont recall reading "Thou shalt always obey the speed limit" in the Bible.

 

[IronManMatt]

Of course speeding is a sin. God told us to obey our government and our government sets up speeding laws. Speed laws do not contrdict any of God's commands therefore we must obey them. Why would not want to obey traffic laws. Over 40,000 people a year die on America's roads and speeding is a major factor. And the whole issue of speeding to keep up with traffic is just an excuse to speed yourself. Speeding to keep up with traffic is not safer, it increases the likelyhood of accidents, injuries and deaths. You should obey the speed limit even if everyone around you is speeding. If other traffic has to slow down becuase of you then that is good, you are preventing others from speeding and you might just have save their life.
I am a police officer and the reason why you can usually get away with going a little over the speed limit isn't because it is a wink and nod type of law. It is because police officers understand that no one is a good enough driver to keep their speed constant within 1mph. Therefore if the speed limit is 55mph we cannot expect people to drive 55mph for any real lenth of time without going a few over or under, even using cruise control your speed can flux 4-5 mph going up and down hills. So do your best to obey the speed limit but do start crying if you look down and see your 5 over, just take your foot off of the accelerator. If you speed you are selfish, endangering others, and yes you are sinning!!

 

[Archivist]

Scripture does not address the issue of speeding, although IronManMatt is correct in that we are to obey our government when it institutes just laws.

The Bible does tell us, however, that the disciples would have been Honda drivers. Acts 1:14 stats that the disciples were &#8220;all with one Accord."

 

[Sojourner<><]

The only problem there is that sometimes governments pass laws that are sinful. But when it comes to speeding, the laws are supposed to be there mainly for our protection right? Well what if traveling at the speed limit creates an unsafe situation? In that case it would seem better for a Christian to focus on safety first, and the letter of the law second.