ANSWERS: 30
  • The short answer is "yes". The longer answer is more complex, and comes from a general notion of Christianity: Each of us has an individual responsibility to honor God's commandments, regardless of the actions of the people around us. So, even if my parents are evil people, I am still required to honor and obey them. This is not the same as doing something I know is wrong because my parents tell me to. My parents can not give me a license to sin, and my obligation to God is higher than my obligation to my parents. In short, the fact that my parents are sinners does not relieve me of the obligation to honor them. All humans are sinners. That is, in the general Christian view.
  • In the Army, you learn to salute the uniform even if the person inside it is unworthy of respect. You also have to learn the difference between a legal and an illegal order, and disobey when higher authority tells you to. Disobeying is not the same as rebelling or mutiny. And sometimes you'll have to take the consequences of disobeying an illegal order.
  • Any rule, when applied with too much absolutism, has bad consequences. The correct action to take in any situation simply cannot be reduced to even a complex set of rules, let alone one single rule. Proverbs, aphorisms, and rules like this are helpful to the degree that they stimulate us to consider something more deeply. But ultimately we each have a responsibility to act appropriately in every situation, rather than to be slavishly devoted to any single "proverb". Any rule applied in the wrong context will produce damaging results, and its the result that we're responsible for ultimately, not the rules.
  • yes, even if there evil
  • Well, where do you think the validity for the instruction to honor your parents comes from? God I assume. So, since one thing God has told you to do is valid, then everything God had told you to do is valid, right? Okay, so you have vauge instructions that can potentially conflict with each other. Since the instruction to "honor" isn't too specific, it's up to you how you obey it as long as you respect the spirit of the instruction. So, as long as you can't think of any rules that conflict with the rule to honor your parents, you should do that. If a rule DOES conflict you should step back and concider which rule is more important. For example, "not sinning" is a pretty basic rule. So if your parents want you to sin, you don't have to. You aren't doing them any "dishonor" by disobeying them in this one case because you are obeying a higher rule.
  • As an athiest, I don't believe that just because the bible says something makes it right. I believe that if you have no real reason to not honour your parents, you should
  • I think it is implied that you 'honor' them by doing right - even if they are of the sorry type. When you are old enough to make your own decisions, this does not mean 'obeying' them if their 'orders' are flawed or impure in nature.
  • There are exceptions. If they are very evil. There is no honour that is needed to give to them. Be thankful that they brought you into the world but you do not need to have anything to do with them. God will take care of them in his own way. As long as you do not treat them the same. For then you become just like them. Be forgiving. Be kind. Be loving. Stay away from them if you feel they are evil and will only cause you grief.
  • If you believe in the bible and Christianity then you should certainly honour them, whatever their failings. Allow me to elucidate. A mother knew that her son was a killer, so turned him in to police. Being interviewed after this she explained that she had to do this for two reasons - first because she obeyed the law of the land, and second because she loved her son. Her love meant that she couldn't see him suffer day after day, wondering if this would be the day the police caught him, so she ended that suffering by turning him in. In the same way your parents might be evil, and you must take account of that, but you must still honour them as your parents, because their love gave your chance to be where you are now. Jesus said "Do not judge others, lest ye yourself be judged".
  • Yes. Though honoring doesn't unnecessarily mean obey them. If they ask you to do something 'evil' or immoral you are not required to do so. If they ask you to clean your room you are. Like the story of Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego (I probably didn't spell them right). The king asks them to bow down to his image, they refuse. Did God frown on this? No! When they were punished God protected them from the flames. A good rule of them is just to honor everyone :)
  • I believe we owe our parents respect. Once we are grown we still owe the respect but we don't have to put up with their evilness.
  • It mean to still honor them yes, just because they are you mom and dad. But when it come down to them being very mean to you in ways that could hurt you.. Call the police.
  • I am a child abuse survivor. My parents didn't abuse me physically, but they failed to protect me. My mother has chosen to side with the man who raped me, who was a "friend" of my father, from a sense of misplaced loyalty. My mother accused me of being a whore when I was raped by my brother at the age of 11. She blamed me, she couldn't bear my 15 year old brother to take the rap. She has always openly stated that she prefers boys to girls. My dad has died, the stress of what his "friend" did hastened his death, I am sure. Dad was sorry about it, and apologised to me for failing to protect me before he died. My relationship with my mother is very difficult. It gives me a lot of grief. I don't hate my mother, but I can't bear it that she is pally with the man who raped me, I find it unbearable. I love my mum, but I hate what she is doing. The Bible gives good information. I pray for my mum, but it's too painful to go to see her very often. The last time I went round, on her birthday, the rapist poned up while I was there and it caused bad vibes. I tried to pretend I didn't know who was on the phone, but everyone knew what everyone else was thinking. Sorry I can't give a black and white response. I think the thing to do is to resist from hatred. Though even that is difficult at times. Sometimes I do shout at God. Perhaps that is better than shouting at my mum. God is very understanding about it, He knows how difficult it is for us all, in these last days of very bad blatent evil and corruption of the justice system. God is very understanding when we blow our top. The Bible says to honour our parents, so we have to do our best to do it.
  • Honour is unconditional, BUT if they are treating you badly or doing evil things in some other way, that does not mean you have to condone that or even accept it. The NEw Testament adds on to this: Fathers, do not make your children resentful. Otherwise, they'll become discouraged.Colossians 3:21 If they are not fulfilling their side, it does not release you from yours, but it does mean that you need to deal with whatever is going on (I don't know what it is. If it is abuse, then seek help from the police.)
  • No. What the bible has to say on it is irrelevant. Respect is earned.
  • It is sad that bible states to honor your mother and father, but doesn't give a child the same protection. My mother has openly chose my sister over me, even when my sister was diagnosed with diabetes, her comment to me was, why was it her and not you. Why couldn't it be you. I haved tried to forgive and honor, but there is too much hurt and distrust of the two of them to proceed with honoring my mother. I have prayed about this so many times, and the answers I seem to get point me even farther away from her. I hope that I am doing what is right for me and my family, but pray to be forgiven for my lack of honor.
  • I am not much for the Bible but I have, as most of us have had, an interesting relationship with my parents. Interesting and complex. When I saw your question I thought about my father, who was and is a monster, and this quote from the play "King Lear" where Cordelia is speaking of her relationship with her father. Cordelia. Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave My heart into my mouth. I love your Majesty According to my bond; no more nor less.
  • No, not in the case of parents who are abusive. Imagine if Adolph Hitler had kids and ordered them to pick up a gun and murder innocent people. His children would be exempt from the Commandment because the parent has forsaken obedience of the Commandments himself. Evil intent on the part of the parent must be an exception because it would lead to generations of evil. The line has to be drawn somewhere.
  • Yes. Unfortunately, there are no stipulations. However, the Bible offers principles that may help ease the tension in the household. Do not combat evil with evil, but conquer it with good. (Romans 12:21)
  • Yes - honor them. not their evil.
  • Matthew 15:3 "But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? 4 For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death. 5 But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; 6 And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition." Honour means give them some money. The Pharisees told people it was ok to give the money to them instead, so the parents were left broke. That is the promise given in Deuteronomy 5:16 "Honour thy father and thy mother, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee."
  • There are no reasons to since society as a whole think one parent families are fine.A lot of children do not know their fathers.
  • Honor in here means you have to respect them as your parents. It doesn't mean you should follow their evil doings but help them overcome their evilness with the goodness thru Christ.
    • Jenny_Rizzo
      Great answer.
  • Does it list any exceptions? I didn't think so.
  • Of course. The Bible also mentions that you should not repay evil for evil. If your parents get the best of you: walk away. Maybe someday they will acknowledge their wrongful behavior. 1 Peter 3:9 "Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing."
  • Afraid so!
  • Then honor them by stopping them continuing with their evil. Not necessarily by killing them, but by telling them to hand themselves over and stop their evil.
  • That's up to you. If you want to allow a book with unproven claims to run your life then do what it says. If you believe people earn respect and vile, hurtful/abusive people deserve nothing then cut them out of your life and forget about them like you would a nightmare. Your choice.
  • The Bible indeed say to honor your mother and father. Elsewhere it also say parents are not to cause a child to grief causing them to go against their parents
  • If they are proved to be really evil, then the " honouring" should be limited to not doing them any harm, and for them to be treated like any other person....You do not have to go out of your way to be specially ' nice',,, It is YOUR behavior that is important here. The principal in scripture is when a brother does something wrong and he/she is reprimanded but takes no notice of such, then that brother [ member of the congregation ] should be treated as " a man of the nations" , a stranger. with which you have no affiliation.

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