My first encounter with the death penalty was in my home congregation. I was taking one of the youth out to lunch after a Sunday school morning service. This youth began to share with me how her uncle was on death row. She told how her mother no longer speaks to her aunt because the aunt accused her mother of not doing enough to hire a decent lawyer to get their brother off death row. This youth's mother had moved out of their home, sold everything they had and lived in a hotel for a while in order to raise money for an appropriate attorney, but this was not enough sacrifice for the family. Keep in mind - this is an African American family in which the mother works at a gas station to make ends meet while raising two children. The mother and the aunt were appauled at the ineptitude of the public defender that was assigned to their brother's case. Is this truly justice when the rich hire top rate attorneys (O.J. Simpson) yet the poor sell everything they have only to be given a third or fourth rate attorney?
This was followed by further damage to the family. The mother of the man on death row who attended my church also experienced mental delusion because of this sentence. The mother blamed herself. As my youth-grouper put it, she went "mad" as a result of the judicial system failing them. Fortunately, this mother was able to see her son removed from death row this last summer before she died in August because the Supreme Court ruled that the mentally ill and those sentenced by a judge are not able to be put on death row. It was actually a weird but tremendous joy at her funeral when the African American minister could celebrate this break through. Now this man who was on death row will spend the rest of his life in prison with no possibility of parole, which provides some sense of sanity to the family.
The second personal experience I have with the death penalty involves a close friend here at my seminary. Her cousin was executed last April (2002) in his late twenties. She is very upfront with the fact that her cousin raped and murdered a young woman. This friend of mine was asked by her cousin to be his chaplain at his death. This meant that she spent her final hours with him. My friend expressed immeasurable mercy when she said that she only hoped that something good could come from his execution. The husband of the woman had said that he wanted revenge and he hoped that her cousin would rot in hell. My friend hoped that perhaps some sense of revenge would be fulfilled through her cousin's death so that this man might find some healing. Only after the death, the newspaper reported that the husband felt no better or less angry. I was wondering why this man felt no sense of relief at the extreme punishment of his wife's killer. Perhaps this is because revenge does not truly offer comfort. It reminds me of Jesus' statements that "you have heard it said an eye for an eye but I tell you ..."
The death penalty affects more than the person executed - it affects an entire community with immeasurable pain. It also brings little relief to the family of the victim. Now that I've shared my own personal experience (which drives my argument more than any rational argument) What personal events in your life evoke such passion for you on this subject? I am often reminded of the last place Gulliver visits in his voyages. In Gulliver's Travels, he visits the island of the only rational horses. This place of supreme rationality, though, was unfulfilling in living an authentic life. I openly admit that I am moving beyond an Enlightenment paradigm with the above refelctions, but I find it to be a much more fulfilling paradigm. So if you would like to join me in this new paradigm - share your personal experience that is driving your passion on this subject.
So does murder.
It also brings little relief to the family of the victim.
It is not about relief for the victim. It is not about vengeance. It is about justice.
Now that I've shared my own personal experience (which drives my argument more than any rational argument) What personal events in your life evoke such passion for you on this subject?
Not to be flippant, but my argument is driven by reason rather than any personal experience. I can see no other just penalty for intentional homicide than death. If you think otherwise, please make your case.
Not everyone has a "personal experience" with everything. In fact, it is by dispassionate means that we arrive at what is truly just.
Neither a person whose kin is on death row, nor the families of the victims are in a dispassionate state. It would be great if the victim's family can find a way to forgive a killer who is repentant. But this is difficult for many, understandably.
SD