Pope Francis called for abolition of the death penalty as well as life imprisonment and denounced what he called a “penal populism” that promises to solve society’s problems by punishing crime instead of pursuing social justice. “It is impossible to imagine that states today cannot make use of another means than capital punishment to defend peoples’ lives from an unjust aggressor,” the pope said on Oct. 23 in a meeting with representatives of the International Association of Penal Law. “All Christians and people of good will are thus called today to struggle not only for abolition of the death penalty, whether it be legal or illegal and in all its forms, but also to improve prison conditions, out of respect for the human dignity of persons deprived of their liberty. And this, I connect with life imprisonment,” he said. “Life imprisonment is a hidden death penalty.”
Francis Speaks Against Capital Punishment
Show Comments (
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
The latest from america
Many aspects of Pope Francis’ remarkable program of ecclesial renewal weare prefigured in Hans Urs von Balthasar’s vision for the church.
Pixar’s best films understand that kids are capable of profound emotional intelligence. As they try to regain their former success, I think that is what they should focus on.
Sister Camille D’Arienzo “didn’t toe the line. She said what she believed. She is a progressive woman who had a very big pulpit, which was over three million listeners a week.”
Twenty years ago, David Foster Wallace delivered one of the most widely shared and admired graduation speeches of all time. It still rewards close analysis.