(Death, Heaven, Purgatory, Hell)
Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults
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In the Name of Mercy and Justice
A Pastoral Letter Regarding the Morality of Capital Punishment
In recent years, many people in our country
have debated the morality of capital punishment. On one hand,
proponents see it as an acceptable form of punishment administered by
the state in very specific circumstances. On the other hand, those who
oppose the death penalty view it as a cruel and unnecessary act of
violence. While Catholic moral teaching has traditionally affirmed the
right of the state to impose capital sentences upon criminals in
certain strict circumstances, a growing number of believers
question whether conditions in the modern world can now justify the
exercise of this right. They see the growing use of capital punishment
as another manifestation of our society's "culture of death" which
deprecates all human life, whether that life be unborn, innocent,
defenseless, sick, impoverished, old or even guilty of serious
crime.1
In light of this debate, I offer this pastoral letter on
the subject of capital punishment to the faithful of Brooklyn and
Queens and to all men and women of good will in the hope that it may
guide our minds and hearts to follow the dictates of the Gospel and
the teachings of the Church.
I. The Sacredness of
All Human Life:
To understand the Church's teaching
regarding capital punishment, we must begin by acknowledging that
every human life, whether innocent or guilty of sin, is sacred and
priceless. This is true for three reasons. First, Genesis teaches us
that men and women are made in the image and likeness of God (Gn. 1:
27). "Man has been given a sublime dignity, based in the intimate bond
which unites him to his Creator: in man there shines forth a
reflection of God himself"2. We reflect the divine image in our
ability to reason and understand the world around us, to choose freely
those values that promote human life and by exercising dominion and
stewardship over all creation. "As manifestations of God in the world,
a sign of His presence, a trace of his glory"3, God has created us and
found us to be very good (Gn. 1: 31).
Second,
the sacredness of human life is reaffirmed in the Incarnation of the
Eternal Son of the Father. God, in his infinite mercy, freely chose to
take on our humanity, weakened by sin, so that all who share human
life might be healed. The destructive power of sin did not destroy the
basic goodness of human life because of Jesus Christ.
Furthermore, St. John teaches us that Jesus is life itself (Jn. 11:
25-26) who from all eternity has received life from the Father (Jn. 5:
26) and shares that life with all humanity. This new life, offered to
us through Christ's death and resurrection, gives us membership in His
Kingdom and the promise that we will also share the glorified life of
the risen Lord. For this reason, our Holy Father rightly calls the
Gospel of Christ none other than the "Gospel of Life." 4
Finally,
the promise of eternal life reminds us that our life's goal is not
confined solely to this earthly existence. Rather, human life is
sacred because it is meant to be eternal. In his encyclical entitled
Evangelium Vitae, our Holy Father reminds us of this basic truth: ". .
. the dignity of this life is linked not only to its beginning, to the
fact that it comes from God but also to its final end, to its destiny
of fellowship with God in knowledge and love of him."5 In other words,
our earthly human life is made to possess God's eternal life in
heaven–a life in which the Lord will share the fullness of His love
with each of us forever. Thus, since the goal of every human life is
eternal happiness, every human life is truly sacred and
priceless.
In light of these three reasons,
Catholics join all men and women of good will6 to proclaim that all
human life is sacred and a priceless gift from God. Life also has an
inviolable value that cannot be measured and gives to each human being
basic inalienable rights. These are granted not by any political or
civil authority but by God Himself. Chief among these rights is to
exist free from all deliberate attacks upon it. Furthermore, our human
dignity is not the result of our possessions or even our innocence and
guilt but comes from our nature, created in God's image, redeemed by
Christ and destined for eternal life. Thus, all human life demands
respect and protection. As our Holy Father reminds us, ". . .
the deepest element of God's commandment to protect human life is the
requirement to show reverence and love for every person7 and the life
of every person." In a world that has sanctioned attacks upon innocent
human life in the form of abortion and euthanasia, our defense of
human life must be clear and unwavering. "God alone is the Lord of
life from its beginning until its end: no one can, in any
circumstance, claim for himself the right to destroy directly an
innocent human being." 8
However, many ask if this same
defense of human life applies to those who are guilty of heinous
crimes against their neighbor or society? Can society, in order to
defend itself, impose the death penalty upon those criminals who pose
an enduring threat to it? Are there valid circumstances in our
contemporary society that justify capital punishment?
Ever
mindful of our unwavering defense of human life, we will now explore
the issue of capital punishment.
II. Catholic Teaching and Capital
Punishment:
A. Society's Right
to Self Defense:
Catholic moral teaching traditionally affirmed the legitimacy of
capital punishment in certain circumstances. This was true for a
number of reasons. First, the Scriptures do not clearly prohibit the
practice. Second, many Church Fathers justified its practice,
believing it to be a deterrent to crime, as a way to prevent grave
evil and as a means by which society could protect itself from further
serious harm.
Many theologians compared capital punishment to a
medical procedure that detaches a cancerous limb from the body so that
a person may live. In the case of capital punishment, a person who is
guilty of serious crime and remains an imminent threat to society is
removed so that those who are innocent may live free from harm and
fear. When exercised, capital punishment could be imposed only under
three conditions- if it was imposed by legitimate public authority, if
the gravity of the crime was weighed against the severity of the
penalty and if there was moral certainty of the criminal's guilt of
the crime.
The principal reason traditionally used to justify
capital punishment is society's right to defend itself as a last
resort against criminals who pose an enduring threat.
The
gravity of the crime committed never in itself justified the death
penalty. Rather, the inability of society to defend itself against
additional heinous crimes on the part of a criminal justified an
appeal to capital punishment. In other words, in order to be morally
justifiable, the death penalty must be the only way left to society to
protect itself against the persistent attacks of a criminal unwilling
to repent.
The right to such self-defense involves two competing
values. In this sense, society's self-defense is similar to our
individual right to self-defense. This right comes directly from the
intrinsic value of human life. The Lord Himself teaches us that we
must love our neighbor as ourselves. Proper self-love and respect
allows us to insist that our own right to life be respected,
especially when attacked without provocation.
"No one can renounce
the right to self-defense out of lack of love for life or for self."9
Thus, if someone is forced to deal his aggressor a lethal blow in an
act of self-defense, he or she is not guilty of murder.10
Second, in conjunction with our own right to life is the duty not
to harm anyone else's life. This is especially true when innocent
human life is threatened or harmed. Thus, while the right to
self-defense is legitimate, it can never be used as an excuse to
justify aggressive behavior that can and should be avoided.
The
right to self-defense also extends to society. "Legitimate defense can
be not only a right but a grave duty for someone responsible for
another's life, the common good of the family or of the state."11 In
the face of unprovoked aggression, society can and must protect itself
and its members in a reasonable fashion against further attack. The
Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches:
"Preserving the
common good of society requires rendering the aggressor unable to
inflict harm. For this reason, the traditional teaching of the Church
has acknowledged as well-founded the right and duty of legitimate
public authority to punish malefactors by means of penalties
commensurate with the gravity of the crime, not excluding, in cases of
extreme gravity, the death penalty."12
Thus, on a theoretical
level, society continues to have the right to impose the death penalty
only as a last resort in order to effectively defend itself. In these
cases, the fatal outcome of the death penalty is attributable to the
aggressor whose action brought it about and not the authority who
imposed it.
B. The Right of Self Defense and
the Contemporary World:
It is not enough, however, to speak about
society's theoretical rights while ignoring the concrete situation in
which we live. All societal rights are exercised in concrete
situations that can curtail or even prohibit their use. In terms of
capital punishment, society may continue to possess the theoretical
right to impose the sentence of capital punishment as a means to
defend itself as a last resort. However, other questions remain. Given
the resources available to modern society to defend itself, can our
nation or any other nation legitimately impose capital punishment as a
means of self-defense? Have conditions so changed in contemporary
society that a society's right to defend itself no longer needs to
resort to the use of capital punishment? Have all the circumstances
which existed in the past to justify the use of capital punishment
been effectively eliminated? If so, while the theoretical right
may still exist, the exercise of capital
punishment can no longer be
morally justified in practice. In recent years, the Holy Father has
made this point increasingly clear in his teachings. He acknowledges
that the conditions in modern society no longer justify the use of
capital punishment.
Among the signs of hope we should also count
the spread at many levels of public opinion of a new sensitivity ever
more opposed to war as an instrument for the resolution of conflicts
between peoples . . . In the same perspective there is evidence of a
growing public opposition to the death penalty, even when such a
penalty is seen as a kind of "legitimate defense" on the part of
society. Modern society in fact has the means of effectively
suppressing crime by rendering criminals harmless without definitively
denying them the chance of reform.13
Part of the change
experienced in modern society is the steady improvements made in the
security and organization of the penal system. The Pope states that
since society no longer needs to execute its criminals in order to
effectively defend itself, then the exercise of capital punishment as
a last resort is no longer justifiable. He concludes, " . . . such
cases are very rare, if not practically non-existent."14 "On
this matter, 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."15
In his recent trip to St. Louis, the
Holy Father further elaborated his opposition to capital punishment.
He did so within the context of calling all Christians to participate
in a new evangelization of the modern world. This evangelization,
needed to reinvigorate all believers as we prepare to celebrate the
Great Jubilee of the year 2000, must be "unconditionally pro-life: who
will proclaim, celebrate and serve the Gospel of life in every
situation.
"To be pro-life means to recognize and proclaim
God's love for man, the dignity of the human person and the value of
all human life."
The Pope continues: "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 chance of reform. I renew the appeal
I made recently at Christmas for a consensus to end the death penalty,
which is both cruel and unnecessary."16
In summary, it seems
clear that the exercise of capital punishment can no longer be morally
justified in practice. While some may suggest that some countries do
not yet have at their disposal the means by which they can effectively
defend themselves without the use of capital punishment, this is
certainly not true for our own country. We do possess adequate means
to defend ourselves from heinous criminal acts without resorting to
the violence associated with the death penalty. As a
result, we face the moral imperative to cease its use immediately and
without exception.
C. Other reasons cited to justify capital
punishment:
In addition to self-defense, there are other
reasons traditionally cited to justify the use of capital punishment.
They are all inadequate.
1. Capital Punishment as
Retribution:
Some argue that capital punishment restores the
balance of justice by inflicting punishment upon a criminal in
exchange for the harm that he or she has done. Such harm cannot be
undone. Misguided proponents of capital punishment mistake vengeance
for justice. They believe that justice demands a strict, proportionate
punishment so that the crime committed can be redressed. Such
punishment can also extend to the administration of the death penalty
when heinous crimes are committed. Thus, these proponents of capital
punishment argue that the ultimate cause for the death penalty lies
with criminals and not society.
The attempt to justify capital
punishment in terms of justice is flawed however because it forgets
the true purpose of administering punishment to criminals. Society
must punish criminals in order "to redress the disorder caused by the
offender."17 The punishment must be adequate to allow the defense of
public order as well as offer an incentive to help change the
offender's behavior. The nature and extent of such punishment must be
carefully evaluated and decided upon "and ought not to 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".18 In the words of the Catechism of the Catholic
Church:
If bloodless means are sufficient to defend human lives
against an aggressor and to protect public order and the safety of
persons, public authority should 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.19
If our goal is to establish a penal system more in line with human
dignity and true rehabilitation, capital punishment cannot be
justified in the name of punishment or justice.
Against the
civil concern for retribution is the Christian desire and design for
redemption. This affords the murderer opportunities to acknowledge evil,
repent and search for forgiveness.
2. Capital Punishment
as a Deterrent to Crime:
There are others who justify
capital punishment because they believe it to be a deterrent to
serious crime. If the penalty of death is administered quickly and
impartially for certain crimes, the contention is that criminals will
avoid such crimes for fear of being put to death.
However, the
deterrent quality of the death penalty has been called into question
by recent impartial studies. They show that there is no convincing
evidence that the death penalty deters crime. It has been reported
that States which have the death penalty have higher civilian murder
rates than those that do not. The average murder rate per 100,000
people in States which have capital punishment is about eight percent,
while it is only 4.4 percent in States that have abolished
it.
3.
Other Weaknesses in Capital Punishment
The fact that
innocent people have unjustly faced the death penalty is indisputable.
Since 1972, seventy-three men and two women were released from
death
row after being found innocent of the crimes for which they were
convicted. This means that one out of every seven executions involves
an innocent person being freed.20
Finally, there is evidence
that the death penalty is imposed disproportionately on racial and
ethnic minorities, the poor and disadvantaged persons who cannot
afford the best legal assistance.
III. The Mystery of Divine Justice and
Mercy:
If our society wishes to seek true justice, then
it must rediscover the power of God's divine mercy. For it is only
with mercy that true justice can be administered.
A powerful
example of divine mercy is found in the story of Cain's murder of his
brother Abel (cf., Gn. 4: 1-16). This first murder violated the "spiritual kinship" which unites the human family- a kinship that
recognizes our fundamental good and equality in personal
dignity.21 In the face of this crime, God cannot leave Cain
unpunished. The blood of Abel demands justice because blood, as the
source of life, belongs only to God. As a result, God curses Cain
because "whoever attacks human life, in some way attacks God
himself."22
However, along with punishment, God also shows His
mercy. The Scriptures remind us that the Lord put a mark on Cain lest
any who come upon him would seek to kill him. Pope John Paul
concludes:
He [the Lord] thus gave him a distinctive sign, not to
condemn him to the hatred of others but to protect and defend him from
those wishing to kill him, even out of a desire to avenge Abel's
death. Not even a murderer loses his personal dignity and God himself
pledges to guarantee this. And it is precisely here that the
paradoxical mystery of the merciful justice of God is shown forth.23
It is not solely Abel's blood that cries out for justice. Christ
shed His blood for all mankind for the forgiveness of sins. "It is
precisely by His death that Jesus reveals all the splendour and value
of life, inasmuch as his self-oblation on the Cross becomes the source
of new life for all people (Jn. 12: 32)."24 The blood of Christ
"speaks more graciously" than the blood of Abel (Heb. 7: 25) because .
. . indeed it expresses and requires a more radical "justice", and
above all it implores mercy, it makes intercession for the brethren
before the Father and it is the source of perfect redemption and the
gift of new life.25
Christ in His mercy allows the sinner to face
the truth of his sin, seek true repentance and conversion of mind and
heart. The blood of Christ, shed at the hands of executioners, shows
how precious every human life is and how great is the Father's
merciful love, who stands ready to forgive all who truly seek it. Only
when we stand before the love of God can we admit our sinfulness,
recognize its full seriousness and seek true change. God alone in His
mercy allows us this opportunity to experience true conversion. Thus,
mercy leads to repentance which ultimately opens the door to eternal
life.
Since the death penalty robs a criminal of the opportunity
in the future to recognize his or her own sinfulness and seek true
repentance, then in the name of divine mercy it must be
abandoned.
IV. Conclusion:
As I
end this pastoral letter, I commend all believers to be unwavering in
the defense of all human life, even those guilty of serious crimes. In
an age that has known great violence and despair, our eyes must now
turn to the new beginning offered to us in the coming of the Great
Jubilee. May the dawn of the new millennium be the occasion for a
rediscovered respect and protection for all human life–a respect
without which no society can hope to prosper. May Mary our
Mother, who bore Life itself into the world, bless and guide our work
on behalf of all human life, now and forever.
Sincerely in Christ,
Most Reverend Thomas V.
Daily
Bishop of Brooklyn
May 22, 1999
FOOTNOTES
1) Evangelium Vitae, no. 12.
2) Ibid., no. 34.
3)
Ibid.
4) Ibid., no. 29.
5) Ibid., no. 38; cf. Evangelium Vitae, no.
2.
6) Evangelium Vitae, no. 2: "Every person
sincerely open to truth and
goodness can, by the
light of reason and the hidden action of grace, come to
recognize in
the natural law written in the heart (cf. Rom. 2: 14-15) the
sacred
value of human life from its beginning until its end, and can affirm
the right of every human being to have this primary good respected to
the
highest degree."
7) Ibid., no. 41.
8) Ibid., no. 53.
9) Ibid., no. 55.
10 )The Catechism of the Catholic Church, art.
2264.
11) Ibid., art. 2265.
12) Ibid., art. 2266.
13) Evangelium
Vitae, no. 27.
14) Ibid., no. 56.
15) Ibid.
16) Papal Homily at
the Trans World Dome, January 27, 1999, par. 5.
17)The Catechism of the
Catholic Church, art. 2266
18) Evangelium Vitae, no. 56.
19) The
Catechism of the Catholic Church, art. 2267.
20) "Survivors Make the
Case Against Death Row," New York Times, Nov. 23,
1998.
21)
Evangelium Vitae, no. 9
22) Ibid.
23) Ibid.
24) Ibid., no.
33.
25) Ibid., no. 25.