A Catholic Campaign to End the Death Penalty

The bishops of the United States have launched a Catholic Campaign to End the Death Penalty. Elements of the campaign include educational materials and resources explaining Catholic teaching on this issue and ways to get involved in local, state or national efforts to end the use of the death penalty.

Why a Campaign Now?

Pope John Paul and our bishops have clearly asked us to act to end the use of the death penalty.
Catholic teaching, as expressed in the Catechism of the Catholic Church and other statements of the Vatican and the U.S. bishops make clear that the use of the death penalty cannot be justified when the state has other ways to protect society.
The death penalty in our land is deeply flawed, more than 100 people on death row have been exonerated; the death penalty is unfairly applied depending on where a crime is committed, the race of the victim and offender, the quality and costs of defense and other factors.
Catholics are re-examining and changing their minds about the use of the death penalty. Less than half of all Catholics now support the use of the death penalty, down substantially from past years.
The death penalty diminishes all of us. Its use ought to be abandoned not only for what id does to those who are executed, but what it does to us as a society. We cannot teach respect for life by taking life.

“We oppose capital punishment not just for what it does to those guilty of horrible crimes but for what it does to all of us as a society. Increasing reliance on the death penalty diminishes all of us and is a sign of growing disrespect for human life.”

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, A Good Friday Appeal to End the Death Penalty (Washington, DC: USCCB, 1999)

Facts About the Death Penalty

Approximately 3500 inmates are on death row in 38 states and federal prisons. The largest number, over 600, are in California.
Since 1973, there have been 117 exonerations of death row inmates.
Recent Supreme Court decisions have limited the use of the death penalty by declaring it unconstitutional to execute persons with mental retardation and juveniles under the age of 18. The court has also ruled that defendants are entitled to have a jury decide whether to impose the death penalty.
Twelve states do not impose the death penalty. Attempts to reinstitute its use in two other states have so far failed. (Massachusetts and Minnesota).
Only two states do not offer life without parole in capital cases (Texas and New Mexico). The U. S. military and the federal government offer life without parole.

The new evangelization calls for followers of Christ who are unconditionally pro-life who will proclaim, celebrate and serve the Gospel of Life in every situation. A sign of hope is the increasing recognition that the dignity of human life must never be taken away, even in the case of someone who has done great evil. Modern society has the means of protecting itself, without definitively denying criminals the change to reform.

cf. Pope John Paul II, The Gospel of Life (Evangelium Vitae) (Washington, DC: USCCB- Liberia Editrice Vaticana, nos. 27-28)

Catholic Teaching and the Death Penalty

Catholic teaching offers a unique perspective on crime and punishment. It begins with the recognition that the dignity of the human person applies to both victims and offenders. If affirms our commitment to comfort and support victims and their families, while acknowledging the God-given dignity of every human life, even those who do great hear.

Catholic teaching on human life begins with the belief that life is a gift from God that is not for us to take away. As it is applied to the death penalty, this teaching is both complicated and clear. The Church has long acknowledged the right of the state to use the death penalty in order to protect society. However, the Church has more and more clearly insisted the state should forgo this right if it has other means to protect society. Our fundamental respect for every human life in response to violent crimes if non-lethal options are available. Pope John Paul II, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the Vatican Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, and statements from U.S. bishops are all clear and consistent that the use of the death penalty ought to be abandoned in our nation because we have alternative ways to protect society.

In his encyclical The Gospel of Life, the Holy Father challenges followers of Christ to be “unconditionally pro life,” willing to “proclaim, celebrate and serve the Gospel of life in every situation.” He reminds us that, “the dignity of Human life must never be taken away, even in the case of someone who has done great evil. Modern society has the means of protecting itself, without definitively denying criminals the chance to reform.” (27) The cases where society could not defend itself, according to the Pope, “are very rare if not practically nonexistent. The Gospel of Life, #56.

In response to the Holy Father’s call during his January 1999 visit to the U.S., to end the death penalty, the bishops issued A Good Friday Appeal to end the Death Penalty. They reiterated the Pope’s challenge to “end the death penalty which is both cruel and unnecessary.” They concluded that their opposition to the death penalty is about much more than “what is does to those guilty of horrible crimes but for what it does to all of us as a society.”

What You Can Do

As part of the Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty you can:

Pray for victims of crime and their families, those who have been wrongly convicted, and those awaiting execution.

Learn about Catholic social teaching, U.S. criminal justice policies, and the policies in your state. Go to the web site listed below for more information about the death penalty.

Educate people in your parish or community about Catholic social teaching and the criminal justice system. Visit the web site listed below for Vatican and U.S. bishops’ statements on the death penalty as well as statements from individual bishops and states Catholic Conferences.

Advocate by contacting your elected officials. Discuss Catholic teaching on the death penalty and what steps could be taken at the state and national level to curtail or end its use.

For a wide range of resources to help individual parishes and dioceses participate in the Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty go to www.usccb.org/sdwp.