Posted on 10/23/2014 1:37:07 PM PDT by Gamecock
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis called for abolition of the death penalty as well as life imprisonment, and denounced what he called a "penal populism" that promises to solve society's problems by punishing crime instead of pursuing social justice.
"It is impossible to imagine that states today cannot make use of another means than capital punishment to defend peoples' lives from an unjust aggressor," the pope said Oct. 23 in a meeting with representatives of the International Association of Penal Law.
All Christians and people of good will are thus called today to struggle not only for abolition of the death penalty, whether it be legal or illegal and in all its forms, but also to improve prison conditions, out of respect for the human dignity of persons deprived of their liberty. And this, I connect with life imprisonment," he said. "Life imprisonment is a hidden death penalty."
The pope noted that the Vatican recently eliminated life inprisonment from its own penal code.
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, cited by Pope Francis in his talk, "the traditional teaching of the church does not exclude recourse to the death penalty, if this is the only possible way of effectively defending human lives against the unjust aggressor," but modern advances in protecting society from dangerous criminals mean that "cases in which the execution of the offender is an absolute necessity are very rare, if not practically nonexistent."
The pope said that, although a number of countries have formally abolished capital punishment, "the death penalty, illegally and to a varying extent, is applied all over the planet," because "extrajudicial executions" are often disguised as "clashes with offenders or presented as the undesired consequences of the reasonable, necessary and proportionate use of force to apply the law."
The pope denounced the detention of prisoners without trial, who he said account for more than 50 percent of all incarcerated people in some countries. He said maximum security prisons can be a form of torture, since their "principal characteristic is none other than external isolation," which can lead to "psychic and physical sufferings such as paranoia, anxiety, depression and weight loss and significantly increase the chance of suicide."
He also rebuked unspecified governments involved in kidnapping people for "illegal transportation to detention centers in which torture is practiced."
The pope said criminal penalties should not apply to children, and should be waived or limited for the elderly, who "on the basis of their very errors can offer lessons to the rest of society. We don't learn only from the virtues of saints but also from the failings and errors of sinners."
Pope Francis said contemporary societies overuse criminal punishment, partially out of a primitive tendency to offer up "sacrificial victims, accused of the disgraces that strike the community."
The pope said some politicians and members of the media promote "violence and revenge, public and private, not only against those responsible for crimes, but also against those under suspicion, justified or not."
He denounced a growing tendency to think that the "most varied social problems can be resolved through public punishment ... that by means of that punishment we can obtain benefits that would require the implementation of another type of social policy, economic policy and policy of social inclusion."
Using techniques similar to those of racist regimes of the past, the pope said, unspecified forces today create "stereotypical figures that sum up the characteristics that society perceives as threatening."
Pope Francis concluded his talk by denouncing human trafficking and corruption, both crimes he said "could never be committed without the complicity, active or passive, of public authorities."
The pope spoke scathingly about the mentality of the typical corrupt person, whom he described as conceited, unable to accept criticism, and prompt to insult and even persecute those who disagree with him.
"The corrupt one does not perceive his own corruption. It is a little like what happens with bad breath: someone who has it hardly ever realizes it; other people notice and have to tell him," the pope said. "Corruption is an evil greater than sin. More than forgiveness, this evil needs to be cured."
“Did you read the entire article?”
NO just an old guy that relies on my memory some of the time.
“Nov. 21, 1974 - National Conference of Catholic Bishops Publicly Opposes Death Penalty”
“The National Conference of Catholic Bishops speaks out against capital punishment in a reversal of the traditional Roman Catholic Church position supporting the death penalty as a legitimate means of self-protection for the state.”
I am answering your questions. You are ignoring what I clearly wrote.
Does God deny the state the right to terminate a man’s life, knowing that it will terminate any chance the man has of repenting? Of course not! God made it clear a just law WILL do that!
There are not 2 Gods - one from the OT and one from the New. Jesus isn’t God v.2. God hasn’t changed. What we claim is our compassion is really our immorality and sin nature, rejecting God.
This guy is rocketing down the list of my favorites. In fact, he has hit the floor.
And what about the rest of the posted article. Lot more there than capital punishment!
I understand.
The Poop needs to be run through the Scared Straight program.
i am so tired that yet again this is somehow the media’s fault for mistranslating what he’s saying.
i don’t believe it’s the media’s fault anymore. it falls on him.
he didn’t say life in prison was the death penalty and that should go away, too.
absolutely nothing wrong with the death penalty whatsoever.
and even if this was correct, let’s examine current mexico and see how that’s working out for them.
the only thing i’d adopt from mexico is their extremely strict laws on immigration and foreign property holders.
you can repent before. like everyone else.
if you can explain how he’s been taken out of context here, have at it.
we’ve had so many popes that speak multiple languages before and this ‘mistranslation’ excuse was not trotted out. namely because they weren’t saying things like francis actually says.
it’s not a mistranslation problem - that excuse has worn thin.
i’m for speedy trial and speedy executions. none of this decades on death row/dying on death row crap. one week max before execution carried out. bullet to the head.
Francis goes further. He wants to end life sentences, also, while still giving Holy Communion to adulterers and pro-aborts.
she can’t face the truth. it has nothing to do with mistranslation. notice this excuse never surfaced with prior recent popes, who spoke in other languages than english.
punishment and forgiveness aren’t identical things.
punishment is part of ensuring fair justice is done. having a just punishment meted out is a necessary component for most people to be able to forgive those that have done horrible thjings, that they are assured the evildoer will get a just punishment. it allows victims to move on and be able to forgive.
if you dont’ think a murderer or any criminal gets a just sentence it makes forgiveness far more difficult.
and this is so true because God tells us to forgive because He wants us to believe He will judge those that do wrong to us. if we don’t believe that, it’s hard to really forgive.
but forgiveness doesn’t mean temporal punishment goes away.
and notice this is unjust sheding of blood. not in self-defense from an attacker.
it’s easy to give an account for self-defense. you don’t let anyone steal your God-given life.
why not answer him? He apparently believes God’s said certain things about these activities, and it’s clear he doesn’t think God has changed His mind about it.
second person you couldn’t handle talking to on this thread tonite.
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