When The Hand Of God Is Also A Registered Weapon

At last, the tyranny of Wrestling for Jesus may be over. Those guys will be running for the hills when faced with the might of Karate for Christ, a movement with more than 400,000 members who will turn the other cheek just so often. It is not known whether Jesus used The Crane technique in his teachings, but we do know that those money lenders' tables didn't turn over by themselves. And it brings us a little closer to God when we think that Christ may have spent idle hours with the apostles splitting boards with his head.

Jesus was, in fact, a brown belt, as we can see in this historical photo.

But can martial arts — which has its roots in Eastern philosophy — coexist with Christianity?

"They can work together," said Michael Rhodes, director of the Blue Ridge Karate Club. "We try to show [that] Christians don't have to be a humble doormat for people." Eight-year-old Tristan "Termite" Taylor delighted Saturday in using a cardboard paper-towel roll he found in the bathroom to practice sword moves. "I've been looking forward to making new friends," he said.

Karate And Christianity Make For An Unusal Pair [The Roanoke Times] Karate For Christ And The Lord Said, 'Matches Shall Be Two Out Of Three Falls, And No Gouging' [Deadspin]