History of the Catholic Church on the Death Penalty - Research Paper Example

? Outline Introduction From the beginning there has been a battle within the Catholic Church on whether the Church should support the use of capital punishment or not Point 1: Many in the early church had a problem with the use of the death penalty, even though it was church doctrine that it could be used. Point 2: Aquinas's writings to this day are considered to be sound doctrine by many in the Catholic Church. Point 3: As the Catholic Church enters the twenty-first century, the debate over the death penalty is still active among many of its members Conclusion As it has happened throughout the history of the Catholic Church, the debate over the death penalty is still active. It is obvious that many within the Catholic church are against the death penalty. But the church as of today has not taken any official stance. History of the Catholic Church on the death penalty Introduction From the beginning there has been a battle within the Catholic Church on whether the Church should support the use of capital punishment or not. In the Catechism of the Catholic Church, it seems clear that the church's response should be to support the use of capital punishment, as long as it is done justly and all efforts are made to guarantee that an innocent man or woman is not put to death. Recently, popes and some of the bishops in the United States, have started to campaign against the use of the death penalty. It seems clear that these individuals are not denying the compatibility of capital punishment with Catholic teaching, but instead have just begun to argue against its use for a variety of personal reasons. This paper looks at the history of the Catholic Church on the death penalty and notes how it has changed over time. Early History The first real testimony against the use of the death penalty can be found in the Montanist works of Tertullian. Tertullian writing sometime between 197 and 207 composed ‘De Idololatria’. In this, Tertullian states in chapter seventeen that even if the servant of God appeals to the power of the state, he should not pronounce capital sentences. Following up on Tertullian, Lactantius writing about 305 to 323, wrote Divinae Institutiones. In this Lactantius states that when God prohibited murder, this also refers to the men who administer the death penalty (Bockle & Pohier 46). Lantantius's position was clear: a man could not even charge or be charged with a capital offense. After Tertullian and Lantantius others began to write on the subject. Felix in his work ‘Octavius V’, written around 225, states that it is wrong for the church to assist in the killing of man, or even to listen to an account of it. In the Canons of Hippolytus II, 16, Hippolytus in a more ancient Egyptian tradition states that whoever holds the power of the sword, and the judge who proceeds over capital cases, should renounce their office or be excluded from the catechism (Bockle & Pohier 47). In the same vein, The Council of Elvira in 305 ordered that all the duumvirate magistrates should not enter a church during their years of office, even though they were not required to pronounce capital sentences (Bockle & Pohier 47). The church had a problem here as to how it could support the right of the state to execute the hardened criminal, but deny to those who enforce the law the rights and privileges of the church. Ambrose, a former imperial officer, saw this and in or about the year 385 wrote to the Magistrate Studius about just this issue. In this letter Ambrose stated that ‘Romans 13’ recognizes the state's power to take life, but he also goes on to say that we should imitate Christ in his forgiveness of the adulteress. In Ambrose's mind he could not find a solution to the church's dilemma. Augustine was to follow Ambrose in his writings in his ‘De Libero Arbitrio’. In this Augustine stated that the death penalty is a commandment of God. However Augustine was to go on to say in the ‘Epistle LIV’ to Macedonius that Christian moderation should be able to have a say (Bockle & Pohier 47). Augustine understood that the use of the death penalty was just, as long as it is used justly and in moderation. Clearly, many in the early church had a problem with the use of the death penalty, even though it was church doctrine that it could be used. These abolitionists were to get a great ally with the reign of Pope Nicholas I. Nicholas, believed that the church had to give up its support of the death penalty and stick to the business of the salvation of souls. Pope Nicholas used the Apostle Paul as his example in teaching his beliefs. Nicholas also pointed out that the Apostle Paul in the beginning of his life was a persecutor of men, but upon his conversion he gave up his ideas on the death penalty and stuck to the business of savings souls. Because of this, Nicholas believed that all men had to give up the practice of executing the criminal in every possible circumstance and concentrate on saving the soul of the sinner (Bockle & Pohier 47-48). After Pope Nicholas, church doctrine concentrated on the issue of conversion of the criminal. The church began to profess that all capital crimes were just sins and that the soul of the convicted criminal was more important than their crimes. In a sense the conversion of criminal became more important than the justice of punishing the criminal. Because of this, the church began to promote the idea that the death penalty was not to be used. This aversion to the use of the death penalty was to change. In the twelfth century the church put out the ‘Decretals’. In this the church stated that the state did in fact have the right to administer the death penalty, but the church did not and was not to get involved in the practice. The church did reserve for itself the right to watch over the courts in order to see that law was being administered fairly and justly (Bockle & Pohier 48). This stance on the death penalty was to remain until the thirteenth century when Pope Innocent III, in 1208, declared that it was permissible to exercise the use of capital punishment, but with the proviso that the reprisal should not be taken out of hatred but in the spirit of wisdom (Bockle & Pohier 48). Innocent's teachings were to become the leading thought of the day, but almost sixty years later a man was to come along and solidify the church's position on the use of the death penalty. This man was Thomas Aquinas. St. Thomas Aquinas Aquinas took up the issue of homicide in his greatest work ‘Summa Theologiae’. In Section 64.2 Aquinas analyzed the question of whether it is a sin to kill a sinner. Aquinas stated that he could understand how it would seem to be illegal to kill sinners: God forbids man to kill, and anything forbidden by God is a sin. Aquinas also stated that human justice is modeled after and on divine justice. Because of this, God does allow the sinner time to repent. As Ezekiel 18:23 says, God does not enjoy the death of the sinner (Aquinas, Section 64.2). On the other hand, in Psalm 101:8 it states: "[E]very morning I will destroy all the wicked of the land, so as to cut off from the city of the Lord all those who do iniquity." Using this verse and others like it. Aquinas comes to the conclusion that all individuals are a part of the whole, just as every part of a person's body is part of the whole. Understanding this, Aquinas deduced that just as a doctor removes a gangrenous limb from the body in order to protect the whole of the body, the use of the death penalty against an individual who is a threat to the whole of society is a proper action for the welfare of all (Aquinas, Section 64.2). Using this analogy, Aquinas shows that the use of the death penalty is good for the whole of society, not just a tool for vengeance. Aquinas's writings to this day are considered to be sound doctrine by many in the Catholic Church. There are also many outside of the Catholic Church as well who use Aquinas for their reasoning on the issue. Many feel that the use of the death penalty is wrong, but using Aquinas's reasoning, its use is the only way that society can protect itself when seriously threatened. Because of this, many within and without the Catholic Church have joined Aquinas in his support of the death penalty. Modern Times As the Catholic Church enters the twenty-first century, the debate over the death penalty is still active among many of its members. It is commonly believed that these individuals are not denying the compatibility of capital punishment with the teachings of the Catholic Church, but instead for their own reasons they have taken a stand against its use. On April 11, 1963, Pope John XXIII released his Pacem in Terris. In this document Pope John discusses the inalienable rights of the human person. Pope John makes it clear that all men are equal in the eyes of God and, as such, all men are to be treated fairly and justly. Pope John also makes it clear that all men are guaranteed by God that their lives are sacred in the eyes of God. Pope John did not say that the use of capital punishment was a sin, but many in the modem church are continuing and will continue to use his writing as reasoning against the use of the death penalty (Hodgkinson 126). More recently the priests have picked up a more vocal ally in their fight, Pope John Paul II. On March 25, 1995, John Paul II also published the ‘Evangelium Vitae’. The gospel of life is at the center of this document that deals very specifically with the topics of abortion and euthanasia. The death penalty is also mentioned in this document and John Paul makes his most definitive statement to date on this issue (‘Evangelium Vitae’ Section 56.1; see Miller, 844). In Evangelium Vitae, John Paul makes it clear that he is against the use of capital punishment in all cases except those where no other possible means can be used to defend society. He goes on to say that with today's modern penal system he feels that the need for the use of the death penalty is almost non-existent anymore. This statement by John Paul is clearly the closest that a modern Pope has ever come to calling for the complete abolition of the death penalty (Miller, 845). John Paul had made his decision on what he feels should be the church' s position on the use of the death penalty. With this statement, though, it has lead many in the Catholic Church to call for changes in catholic doctrine. One vocal ally for this change in church doctrine is Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. Ratzinger argues that the Pope's position on capital punishment clearly represents a palpable development of doctrine. John J. Conley on the other hand refutes Cardinal Ratzinger and his call for change. Conley, clearly points out in his review of John Pauls Evangelium Vitae entitled ‘Narrative, Act, Structure: John Paul II’s Method of Moral Analysis’ that: "The encyclical itself, however, provides scant treatment of how the church moved from clear support for capital punishment to prudential opposition to it in the space of several decades" (Conley, 17). So what should be the Catholic Church’s responsibility and response to the issue of the death penalty? It is obvious that the Catechism, and the teachings of many of the great Catholic scholars, say that the use of the death penalty is a just and responsible practice, as long as it is done in a just and fair manner for the good of all society. Along with this, these pro-capital punishment scholars are asserting that its use has to come after taking all precautions that an innocent person is not put to death. It is also clear in the teachings of the Catechism, and in the teachings of many of the great Catholic scholars, that there is a clear continuity within Catholic Church doctrine on the sanctity of life. In this stance, taken in both the death penalty and abortion sections of the Catechism, it is made clear that the sanctity of life of both the living and the unborn are priorities of the church. This position of protecting the life of the innocent is not an inconsistent doctrine when it comes to the death penalty. But on the other hand, the teachings of the previous scholars are recently being clouded by statements and writings of Pope John XXXIII and Pope John Paul II. Pope John XXXIII's writings reflect a new emphasis in the Catholic Church on the notion of the inalienable rights of the human person. With this new understanding of just what inalienable rights are, many in the church are starting to use this argument to justify their anti-death penalty beliefs. To add to this, Pope John Paul II in his book ‘Crossing the Threshold of Hope’ has come out and made a clear statement, without using the words death penalty or capital punishment, that he is against the use of the death penalty all together (Miller, 845). Summary As it has happened throughout the history of the Catholic Church, the debate over the death penalty is still active. It is obvious that many within the Catholic church are against the death penalty. But the church as of today has not taken any official stance. What is known is that America needs to pay close attention to the Catholic Church and its statements in the coming years on this issue. This debate is surely going to continue to rage within the church. Work Cited Aquinas, St. Thomas. Summa Theologiae: Volume 38 of the Black Friars Edition. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1975. Saint Thomas Aquinas was a Dominican priest of the Catholic Church. He was an influential philosopher and theologian in the tradition of scholasticism. Bockle, Franz and Pohier, Jacques. The Death Penalty and Torture. New York, NY: Seabury Press. 1979. Franz Bockle, stands as one of the major figures in the history of the renewal of moral theology. Pohier, Jacques was the dean of theology faculty at a French Dominican theological school. Conley, John. "Narrative. Act. Structure: John Paul II's Method of Moral Analysis." In Choosing Life: A Dialogue on Evangelium Vitae Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 1997. John Conley, Professor of Philosophy and Theology at Loyola College in Maryland, has the expertise necessary to discern the theological and philosophical ideas in the diverse writings. Hodgkinson, Peter, & Schabas, A. Williams. Capital punishment: strategies for abolition, Cambridge University Press, 2004. Professor William A. Schabas is director of the Irish Centre for Human Rights. Hodgkinson, Peter is director of the Centre for Capital Punishment Studies. The majority of their work comprised of capital punishment scholarship and its applied relationship to penal policy and practice. Miller, Michael J., The Encyclicals of John Paul II, Huntington. IN: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division, 1996. John Michael Miller is a Canadian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He is currently Archbishop of Vancouver. He has also served as a Secretary of the Congregation for Catholic Education. . Read More