Posted on 03/20/2015 1:12:26 PM PDT by ebb tide
Capital punishment is cruel, inhuman and an offense to the dignity of human life. In today's world, the death penalty is "inadmissible, however serious the crime" that has been committed. That was Pope Francis’ unequivocal message to members of the International Commission against the death penalty who met with him on Friday morning in the Vatican.
Listen to Philippa Hitchen’s report:
In a lengthy letter written in Spanish and addressed to the president of the International Commission against the death penalty, Pope Francis thanks those who work tirelessly for a universal moratorium, with the goal of abolishing the use of capital punishment in countries right across the globe.
Pope Francis makes clear that justice can never be done by killing another human being and he stresses there can be no humane way of carrying out a death sentence. For Christians, he says, all life is sacred because every one of us is created by God, who does not want to punish one murder with another, but rather wishes to see the murderer repent. Even murderers, he went on, do not lose their human dignity and God himself is the guarantor.
Capital punishment, Pope Francis says, is the opposite of divine mercy, which should be the model for our man-made legal systems. Death sentences, he insists, imply cruel and degrading treatment, as well as the torturous anguish of a lengthy waiting period before the execution, which often leads to sickness or insanity.
The Pope also condemns the use of the death penalty by “totalitarian regimes” or “fanatical groups” who seek to exterminate “political prisoners”, “minorities”, or anyone seen as a threat to political power and ambitions.
But he makes quite clear that the use of capital punishment signifies “a failure” on the part of any State. However serious the crime, he says, an execution “does not bring justice to the victims, but rather encourages revenge” and denies any hope of repentence or reparation for the crime that has been committed.
This from the guy who talks about it being OK to punch out someone who insults your mother. So its OK to beat people but not kill them, is that the rule now?
The prohibition against killing is an admonition to not carry out the act of depriving another of life who has not earned that degree of retribution. Unprovoked homicide, or causing such grievous harm to another as to seriously limit the capability of the victim to enjoy the fruits of living, are best adjudicated by mere men in such manner that the perpetrator no longer has the means to inflict such harm on another. One would be imprisonment under condition the convict would never again taste freedom, another would be to deprive that person of life altogether for the greater good of the rest of the community.
The second option has the absolute certainty that the perpetrator shall never be paroled or be able to escape.
They have thought they know better than God for centuries. A rude awakening for these quacks waits on the horizon of eternity.
That is an ignorant statement. Murder is the intentional killing of an innocent man. Capital punishment is not murder.
Wrong. He is a liberal first, then pope.
I like how JPII explained it: in a place where there the public can be well-protected from the criminal and the danger his ongoing life creates, then there is no need to kill him and life in prison should suffice. (This was his opinion, not an ex cathedra statement). However, in a situation where that’s not possible, the state can do what it has to do and kill the criminal.
For example, when Saddam Hussein was tried and hung. There were a lot of people still in Iraq who would have busted him out of jail, if he were incarcerated for life, and his continuing to live would cast a deathly shadow over a country tying to re-boot. Hanging him wasn’t wrong.
JPII started this slippery slope. You should read the link at post 21.
The death penalty is, by far, most often administered by a criminal to someone who is between them and what they want.
I don’t think the criminals will heed the Pope’s words.
Hasn’t the Roman Catholic Church been anti-death penalty “officially-speaking” for some time now?
Yes, I would say since JPII.
That's the 100% truth and is totally backed by the Bible. In fact, one of the primary reasons I fled Yankeeland and headed here to Texas is that justice is served here by frequent application of the death penalty (see my tagline). My only complaint about Texas' handling of the death penalty is the lengthy appeals process. It needs to be sped up considerably so that more evildoers are expediently dispatched.
“Paul teaching on government authority.
“For they are God’s servants, working for your good. But if you do what is wrong, you should be afraid, for it is not without reason that they bear the sword. Indeed, they are God’s servants to administer punishment to anyone who does wrong.” - Romans 13:4”
Paul was also murdering Christians, but he got his act together, got himself right with God and repented. It’s available for God to intervene and spare the life of a murderer if that person truly turns to God and receives deliverance. Nevertheless, that doesn’t eliminate the need for the death penalty for those who reject God and refuse to turn from evil, something the Pope fails to realize.
So you can put the savior on a cross for merely insulting people but, a murderer can be given the opportunity to repent?
Well, okay.
How many times is allowed to repent beforr it becomes obvious how to deal with them once and for all?
Well, yeah, that...
Of course, judging people... and racism... are far worse than any crime he’s talking about.
Just disregard what God said about the death penalty in the OT.
That’s an anti-Biblical stance.
Apparently he has either not read, or doesn’t believe, Genesis chapter nine.
The granting by God in Genesis nine of the executive power of the sword against those who shed innocent blood has never been repealed or amended.
And it’s not optional, either.
That’s an anti-Biblical stance.
Just to clarify, what did you mean by “officially speaking”? Did you mean what the hierarchy says or do you mean official teaching? Depending upon what you meant I may have misspoke.
The Pope is a leftist agitator. Eliminating the death penalty in the States has been a leftist cause.
He is talking about the States.
It’s a public safety issue. Even if murderers serve a full life sentence, which seems to be happening rarely these days, they still represent a serious threat to guards and other prisoners. There is also the possibility of prisoners being released by a future political regime.
+ + +
The pope’s statement is a prudential judgment, so it doesn’t rise to the level of infallibility.
The Church has always upheld the permissibility of capital punishment in principle.
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