Death penalty

"Brutal murder can challenge all of us in a way that puts our head and our hearts at odds.

The death penalty offers the tragic illusion that we can defend life by taking life."

Antoinette Bosco, Liguorian Magazine, November 2000

In Evangelium vitae (The Gospel of Life), Pope John Paul II writes, “…, "legitimate defence can be not only a right but a grave duty for someone responsible for another's life, the common good of the family or of the State. Unfortunately it happens that the need to render the aggressor incapable of causing harm sometimes involves taking his life. In this case, the fatal outcome is attributable to the aggressor whose action brought it about, even though he may not be morally responsible because of a lack of the use of reason.

This is the context in which to place the problem of the death penalty. On this matter there is a growing tendency, both in the Church and in civil society, to demand that it be applied in a very limited way or even that it be abolished completely. The problem must be viewed in the context of a system of penal justice ever more in line with human dignity and thus, in the end, with God's plan for man and society. The primary purpose of the punishment which society inflicts is ‘to redress the disorder caused by the offence’.^[CCC2266]  Public authority must redress the violation of personal and social rights by imposing on the offender an adequate punishment for the crime, as a condition for the offender to regain the exercise of his or her freedom. In this way authority also fulfils the purpose of defending public order and ensuring people's safety, while at the same time offering the offender an incentive and help to change his or her behaviour and be rehabilitated.

It is clear that, for these purposes to be achieved, the nature and extent of the punishment must be carefully evaluated and decided upon, and ought not go to the extreme of executing the offender except in cases of absolute necessity: in other words, when it would not be possible otherwise to defend society. Today however, as a result of steady improvements in the organization of the penal system, such cases are very rare, if not practically non-existent.

In any event, the principle set forth in the new Catechism of the Catholic Church remains valid: ‘If bloodless means are sufficient to defend human lives against an aggressor and to protect public order and the safety of persons, public authority must limit itself to such means, because they better correspond to the concrete conditions of the common good and are more in conformity to the dignity of the human person’ ^[CCC2267].” ^{[EV 55-56]}

This “dignity” is ours because of our relationship to our heavenly Father; it is not conditioned upon our innocence, and it cannot be removed because of our guilt.  All of us are beloved children of the Most High God who calls us all into oneness with Himself.

So may we:

• remember that Jesus suffered the death penalty to save everyone -- not just the innocent.

• seek God’s forgiveness for our own sins.

• continue to speak out for everyone’s right to life.  

The new evangelization calls for followers of Christ who are unconditionally pro-life: who will proclaim, celebrate and serve the Gospel of life in every situation. A sign of hope is the increasing recognition that the dignity of human life must never be taken away, even in the case of someone who as done great evil. Modern society has the means of protecting itself without definitively denying criminals the chance to reform. I renew the appeal I made most recently at Christmas for a consensus to end the death penalty, which is both cruel and unnecessary. Pope John Paul II, January 27, 1999, St. Louis, Missouri

Archdiocese Prison Ministry

Moratorium Now