The actions of Ms. Assam could be seen as courageous and even heroic from a naturalistic viewpoint. Certainly placing oneself in the line of fire or retaliating with gun fire takes guts, but the question is would God want us to take another life even when it is in defense of another human being?

We have had to grapple with this question throughout the history of Christianity. Christians will point out that you only have to look to the final authority on earth and in heaven for the answer. The message of Jesus Christ will tell you whether violence can be used as a tool to settle a score or promote justice. But, is Jesus' message an easy one to understand?

The work of American theologian Reinhold Niebuhr is often quoted in today's media as justification for America's war in Iraq. Niebuhr started out as a pacifist and then switched to "Christian realism" when he came to believe that the teachings of Jesus were radical to the point of moral perfection. Something, he thought, that we humans can aspire to yet never obtain.

Thus "turn the other cheek" is seen as a virtual impossibility. Instead we need to stand up for our rights, and one of our rights is the right not to be killed. That is something everyone understands. Yet, is this truly the message Jesus was trying to teach us?

Stanley Hauerwas, a theologian at Duke, is a pacifist. He is responsible for this famous quote, "There are many things worth dying for. There is nothing worth killing for." Mr. Hauerwas believes that non-violence as taught by Jesus in not just one imperative among others that can be drawn from our Christian beliefs; it is the very heart of our understanding of God. Jesus' message would then be a powerful indictment against war and against the use of violence even--as in the case of Ms. Assam--to stop violence.

As Christians, do we take the middle ground and make up some rules along the way? Never kill in self-defense, but only in defense of others. Never kill on Sundays, but any other day of the week is fair game. Never kill a fellow Christian, but it's O.K. to kill a Muslim extremist.

The rules seem fairly arbitrary, which makes me uncomfortable, as does having an armed security guard at a megachurch or even a microchurch.

What are we Christians to do? I am afraid--even terrified--of the answer. Could I actually stand by and watch my son or daughter be slaughtered and not retaliate with violence? To answer "yes" would to the world seem pure folly, but to Christians who depend upon Jesus, the Rock, and who cling to the Cross, it may be our only lifeline.

To choose nonviolence in the face of extreme violence, to choose not to shoot, but instead to lay down arms, would be a testimony to the ultimate authority of Jesus Christ. Then "turning the other cheek" would affirm that we do believe that the meek will someday inherit the earth. Is this the real cost of discipleship that people talk about?