Sir, – As regards the question of the compatability of the death penalty with Roman Catholicism (Letters, April 24th), it is perhaps worth quoting the words of Pope Francis, in a message to the participants of the Fifth World Congress Against the Death Penalty, held in Madrid in 2013.
The message reaffirmed the Holy See’s support for the abolition of the death penalty, and said that opposition to capital punishment was part of the Church’s defence of the dignity of human life – it is “a courageous reaffirmation of the conviction that humanity can successfully confront criminality” without resorting to the suppression of life. Pope Francis also mentioned that this position had been shared by his two immediate predecessors.
So, if Judge Antonin Scalia is, as Dr Sean Alexander Smith claims, a practising Catholic, it would be interesting to know how he squares this with the pope’s views. Scalia shows an extraordinary faith too in the American justice system. A few years ago he actually claimed that there had not been “a single case – not one – in which it is clear that a person was executed for a crime he did not commit. If such an event had occurred … the innocent’s name would be shouted from the rooftops.”
Well, there is at least one – Carlos DeLuna – who was executed in 1989 by the state of Texas. They got the wrong man (the whole shocking episode is outlined in Issue 3, Volume 43 of the respected Columbia Human Rights Law Review ). It is an indictment of the whole process of American capital justice from start to finish.
As Mary Stewart writes, the death penalty is not efficacious as a deterrent. The only argument for it can be to prevent murders committed subsequently by released murderers, and this purpose can be met by whole-of-life sentences. In addition, studies show that it provides little closure for victims’ relatives, and it imposes a life sentence on the executed person’s loved ones. Above all, it is irreversible. Yours, etc,
IAN d’ALTON,
Rathasker Heights,
Naas,
Co Kildare,
Sir, – Dr Sean Alexander is again mistaken when he states that “one can be a perfectly authentic Christian and support capital punishment”. Did Christ call for others to kill murderers? No. Did he call for the government to do it? No, he blessed them, called for their forgiveness, died for them, and asked his followers to do the same. This is seen most powerfully and dramatically observed during the encounter between Jesus and murderers at Jesus’s crucifixion itself. What is Jesus’s response? “Father, forgive them.” There are appropriate punishments for murderers. But murder isn’t one of them.Yours, etc,
GEOFF SCARGILL,
Loreto Grange,
Bray,
Co Wicklow
Sir, – Christians believe that the Bible is literally the word of their god. The Bible states as follows: Genesis 9:6 “Whosoever sheddeth man’s blood shall his blood be shed , for in the image of god made he man.”; Leviticus 24:12 “Whosoever takes a human life shall surely be put to death .”; ‘ Exodus 21:12 “Whoever strikes a man so that he dies shall he be put to death.” Throughout the modern era Christians of all denominations have been enthusiastic practitioners, proponents and facilitators of the death penalty. Yours, etc,
HUGH PIERCE,
Newtown Road,
Celbridge,
Co Kildare