The Death Penalty &
Catholic Social Teaching
Overview
February 9, 2012
Presentation by Michael Stone
Virginia Coordinator
National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
1716 E. Franklin Street - Suite 210
Richmond, VA 23223
(804) 205-7832
michael@ncadp.org
http://www.ncadp.org/
—
T
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Regional Social Ministry Meeting
Alexandria, Virginia
Scriptural References
Hebrew Scripture (i.e., Old Testament)
Whoever takes the life of any human being shall be put to death;
whoever takes the life of an animal shall make restitution of another
animal. A life for a life!
Anyone who inflicts an injury on his neighbor shall receive the same in
return.
Limb for limb, eye for eye, tooth for tooth! The same injury that a man gives another shall be
inflicted on him in return.
- Leviticus 24: 17-20
If a man has a stubborn and unruly son who will not listen to his father or mother, and will not
obey them even though they chastise him, his father and mother shall have him apprehended
and brought out to the elders at the gate of his home city,
.. Then all his fellow citizens shall stone him to death. Thus shall you purge the evil from your
midst, and all Israel, on hearing of it, shall fear.
- Deuteronomy 21: 18-21
Whoever strikes his father or mother shall be put to death. ...
Whoever curses his father or mother shall be put to death.
- Exodus 21: 15-17
Six days there are for doing work, but the seventh day is the sabbath of complete rest, sacred to
the LORD. Anyone who does work on the sabbath day shall be put to death.
- Exodus 31:15
New Testament
You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’
But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone
strikes you on (your) right cheek, turn the other one to him as well.
- Matthew 5: 38-39
You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your
enemy.’
But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you.
- Matthew 5: 43-44
Stop judging, that you may not be judged.
For as you judge, so will you be judged, and the measure with which you measure will be
measured out to you.
- Matthew 7: 1-2
When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him and the criminals there, one on
his right, the other on his left.
Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.”
- Luke 23: 33-34
Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and
made her stand in the middle.
They said to him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery.
Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?”
They said this to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent
down and began to write on the ground with his finger.
But when they continued asking him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let the one among
you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again he bent down and wrote on
the ground.
And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders. So he was left alone
with the woman before him.
- John 8: 3-9
Bless those who persecute (you), bless and do not curse them. ... Do not repay anyone evil for
evil; be concerned for what is noble in the sight of all. If possible, on your part, live at peace
with all.
Beloved, do not look for revenge ... for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the
Lord.”
Rather, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by
so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head.” Do not be conquered by evil but conquer
evil with good.
- Romans 14-21
Catholic Social Teaching
The Catholic Church proclaims that human life is sacred and that the dignity of the
human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. Our belief in the sanctity
of human life and the inherent dignity of the human person is the foundation of all the
principles of our social teaching. We believe that every person is precious, that people
are more important than things, and that the measure of every institution is whether it
threatens or enhances the life and dignity of the human person.
Pope John Paul II, The Gospel of Life (1995)
In this document, Pope John Paul II identifies a profound crisis of culture CO}
that accepts practices that were once unanimously rejected & condemned
as criminal. >
The Pope characterizes these trends as the emergence of a culture of
death. He quotes with approval the Didache, which is one of the most ancient non-
biblical Christian texts:
The way of death is this: ... they show no compassion for the poor, they do not
suffer with the suffering, they do not acknowledge their Creator, they kill their
children and by abortion cause God's creatures to perish; they drive away the
needy, oppress the suffering, they are advocates of the rich and unjust judges of
the poor; they are filled with every sin.
The Pontiff sees western society facing an enormous & dramatic clash between good &
evil, death & life, the culture of death versus the culture of life. There is no place in
such a world for anyone -- like the unborn, the dying, or the person with disabilities --
who is considered weak or dependent on others. Society is no longer a
common home, but a harsh Darwinian world of survival of the fittest.
Pope John Paul II then identifies three major threats to human life &
dignity:
Capital Punishment
The Pope rejects any notion of vengeance in application of this ultimate punishment,
saying that the death penalty ought not to be applied except in cases of absolute
necessity, when there is no other way to defend society. He concludes by observing
that such instances today are very rare, if not non-existent.
Abortion & Embryo Experimentation
John Paul II echoes the judgment of the Second Vatican Council in condemning
abortion, together with infanticide, as an “unspeakable crime.” The Holy Father also
denounces experimental techniques that kill innocent human embryos, even if done in
an effort to help others.
Euthanasia
John Paul II goes on to discuss the tragedy of euthanasia and assisted suicide:
Euthanasia (and assisted suicide) must be called a false mercy, and indeed a
‘perversion’ of mercy. True ‘compassion’ leads to sharing another's pain; it does
not kill the person whose suffering we cannot bear.
The Pope clearly distinguishes euthanasia from the decision to forego aggressive
medical treatment. He affirms the church's teaching that people can morally refuse
medical treatment that is burdensome and disproportionate to
prospects for improvement. Such refusal is not equivalent to suicide
or euthanasia.
Building A Culture of Life
With joy and gratitude for the life that God has given, John Paul II
calls all of us to proclaim the good news of the Gospel of Life and to
build what he calls a culture of life. We are to proclaim that each &
every human life is sacred and inviolable. Life is both a great gift from God and an
exacting task for humanity.
Pura Excerpts from the . e
The Gospel of Life \t
By Pope John Paul II é
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On this matter [the death penalty] 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”. 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 fulfills 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 behavior 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”.
Excerpts from the
Catechism of the Catholic Church
Second Edition, 1997
http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt3sect2chpt2art5.shtml
2266 The efforts of the state to curb the spread of behavior harmful to people's
rights and to the basic rules of civil society correspond to the requirement of
safeguarding the common good. Legitimate public authority has the right and the
duty to inflict punishment proportionate to the gravity of the offense. Punishment
has the primary aim of redressing the disorder introduced by the offense. When it
is willingly accepted by the guilty party, it assumes the value of expiation.
Punishment then, in addition to defending public order and protecting people's
safety, has a medicinal purpose: as far as possible, it must contribute to the
correction of the guilty party. [Luke 23:4-43]
2267 Assuming that the guilty party's identity and responsibility have been fully
determined, 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.
If, however, non-lethal means are sufficient to defend and protect people's safety
from the aggressor, authority will limit itself to such means, as these are more in
keeping with the concrete conditions of the common good and more in conformity
with the dignity of the human person.
Today, in fact, as a consequence of the possibilities which the state has for
effectively preventing crime, by rendering one who has committed an offense
incapable of doing harm—without definitively taking away from him the possibility
of redeeming himself—the cases in which the execution of the offender is an
absolute necessity “are very rare, if not practically non-existent.” '[John Paul II,
Evangelium vitae 56.]
