Ending the death penalty is equivalent to promoting the dignity and protection of life. The Church has continually worked toward this end and, along with many others, raised its voice against the practice. Recently, 175 members of the 17th National Assembly were ready to vote for the abrogation but time and problems prevented the success of the attempt.
The editorial in the Catholic Times noted that popular feeling at present would probably be against abrogating the punishment because of a horrible murder recently publicized, upsetting many and no doubt convincing them that the death penalty is a necessary deterrent to such crimes.
As Christians we base the way we see capital punishment, not on any news story, but on the Gospel teaching. In addition, it has been long known that according to many studies the death penalty does not diminish the number of these crimes.
During the seminar, it was mentioned that fewer countries are using the death penalty than in the past. In 2011, among 198 countries, only 20 continue to use the death penalty. We are likely to see this trend to end capital punishment continue into the future.
Getting rid of the death penalty does not mean, of course, the end of penalties for crimes. Isolating the criminal from society is still accomplished by serving time in prison, and for serious crimes, sentencing for life behind bars. The concern of the editorial was to explain clearly the life issues that are involved when a country legalizes the taking of a human life, and why we need to support the efforts to bring an end to this inhuman practice.
