Dear Powerball:
I heard you in the past say you were in favor of the death penalty. This is hypocritical to oppose abortion and at the same time support the death penalty. Doesn't this go against the Catholic Church teachings?
Putting the hypocrite accusation aside, the death penalty has not been outlawed by the Catholic Church. In fact, I believe it to be perfectly consistant in being pro-life and pro-death penalty. The punishment of death displays how valuable life is.
The Church's traditional position is that society has the authority to inflict punishments upon its members, and even to deprive a criminal of his life for specific reasons:
(1) to vindicate the moral order
(2) to defend itself
(3) to deter other would-be-offenders
(4) to reform the criminal.
Given these purposes, an execution may take place if the following conditions are met:
(a) the guilt of the prisoner is certain
(b) the crime is of major gravity
(c) the penalty is to be inflicted, after due process, by State authority, not by private individuals or by lynching
(d) the prisoner is given the opportunity to make his peace with God.
Pope Pius XII answered it this way: "Even in the question of the execution of a man condemned to death, the State does not dispose of the individual's right to life. It then falls to the public authority to deprive the condemned man of the good of life in expiation of his fault after he, by his crime, has already deprived himself of his right to life."
2 comments:
Good answer.
Here are some additional "thoughts" on the subject:
"Not all moral issues have the same moral weight as abortion and euthanasia. For example, if a Catholic were to be at odds with the Holy Father on the application of capital punishment or on the decision to wage war, he would not for that reason be considered unworthy to present himself to receive Holy Communion. While the Church exhorts civil authorities to seek peace, not war, and to exercise discretion and mercy in imposing punishment on criminals, it may still be permissible to take up arms to repel an aggressor or to have recourse to capital punishment. There may be a legitimate diversity of opinion even among Catholics about waging war and applying the death penalty, but not however with regard to abortion and euthanasia."
The noted theologian that wrote that is now Pope Benedict XVI
That capital punishment opinion was only recently published in the latest revision (note the word REVISION) of the Catechism of the Cath. Church. For about 1,900 years previous to that revision popes, bishops, priests and saints did not condemn capital punishment. Does that make them (and you and I) bad people? I hope not.
“Who spills man’s blood,
By man shall his blood be spilt,
For God made man in His image.”
Gen. 9:6
The abortion vs capital punnishment is an apples and oranges comparison.
Abortion falls under the "THOU SHALT NOT KILL" commandment, while the latter falls well within the delegated authority God has given government for the rule of people.
Good answer PBall!
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