From Para. 56 of Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life), an encyclical letter on various threats to human life which Pope John Paul II issued on March 25, 1995. "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.Regarding war:
The most consistent and frequent promoter of peace and human rights for the last two decades has been Pope John Paul II. From Iraqi War I to Iraqi War II, he has echoed the voice of Paul VI, crying out before the United Nations in 1965: War No More, War Never Again! John Paul II stated before the 2003 war that this war would be a defeat for humanity which could not be morally or legally justified.But what do I know?
Not much about Catholic dogma vis a vis the death penalty and just war doctrine I'm afraid.
Not so. The bible does not preach aganist all war or the death penalty. The Pope can not change that unless he becomes apostate. Those things you list are his personal opinions not doctrine. It takes a little understanding to get the intellectual working of the Catholic Church and the Pope. As much as some liberals would like the Bible is not a living breathing document like their interpretation of the Constitution.