Random Thoughts on Troy Davis, Lawrence Brewer and yesterday's travesty
Well, I suppose all of us Georgians should feel better now that Troy Davis has been executed. The streets are safer. Although given that Troy had been in prison for over 20 years now, the streets were already safe.
And we should not pay attention to the fact that there was considerable doubt cast on his guilt. Maybe he killed Mark MacPhail, maybe he did not. We will never know. But we killed Troy anyway. I suppose that should make us feel better. Some folks really like their killing, as evidenced by the tremendous public support for the death penalty. I have no idea why it gives people pleasure to kill someone. Revenge does not bring healing, only more bitterness and chop-licking.
What have we accomplished in killing Troy Davis? Next to nothing.
And to take it a step further. Texas did the wrong thing in executing Lawrence Russell Brewer, the white supremacist convicted of the atrocious dragging murder/torture of James Byrd. Again, nothing accomplished other than more death.
An almost comical example of how little these executions accomplish, other than satisfying some primordial bloodlust, comes from the Texas official who was outraged that Brewer ordered such an extravagant last meal. Before his death, Brewer ordered two chicken fried steaks, a triple meat bacon cheeseburger, a cheese omelet, a large bowl of fried okra, three fajitas, a pint of Blue Bell ice cream, and a pound of barbecue with a half loaf of white bread. So now a Texas official wants to ban the practice of any special requests for a last meal. He was horrified at Brewer's indulgence in his last supper. In other words, "We are gonna kill you and we are gonna do it with as little dignity and grace as we can possibly muster. You are the gumn on our shoes, son."
Anger, revenge, and lack of grace are never pretty. Particularly when done in the name of the people and their government.
My final question: Why were there so few death penalty protesters in Texas for Brewer's execution and so many in Georgia for Davis'? Is a black man who might be innocent worth more than a white man who killed a black man? Killing is still killing. Bloodlust knows not the color of a man's skin.
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Only God can judge Allen . We accomplished a lot more resentment more hard feelings and hate. Truly , what would Jesus do ? Come on people smile on your brother everybody get together and Love one another right now . Just like the song says . Peace in Christ!
While war may occasionally be necessary, capital punishment is not. In an era when we have prisons and the ability to incarcerate criminals for life when needed, there is no need to kill prisoners. It accomplishes nothing and arrogates to the state the ability to end life.
Most notably, how could you justify voting for Rick Perry, should he be the GOP nominee, over Barack Obama? After all, Perry is responsible for over 200 executions, but Obama is not responsible for any abortions that I know of. Furthermore, he vetoed a bill that would have banned death penalty for the mentally challenged and he criticized SCOTUS banning death penalty for minors.
Lastly, many US Catholic (arch)bishops have adopted the policy of denying communion to Catholic politicians who are pro choice, but not to those who are pro-execution. What do you think of this blatant double standard in your Church, Allen?
THere are significant moral differences between the death penalty and abortion.
In degree and kind. Two brief thoughts
Abortion involves an unborn child's being murdered for the mistakes of other people. Death penalty, in contrast, involves a convicted criminal's being executed in response to his/her own mistakes and crimes.
1,300,000 unborn children are massacred each year in this country. Roughly 40 convicts are executed.
Finally, while I am neither a priest nor a spokesman for the Church (which is not "my" Church as you suggest but rather The CHurch or God's Church), the Church has acknowledged some circumstances when the death penalty may be warranted although those circumstances are fewer and fewer in reality given the conditions of modern life. And regarding the denial of communion, I suggest you do some reading around that idea. It is more complex than your statement above reflects.
I think the Catholic church is right to deny communion to anyone who publicaly states that they support legalized abortion.Though we're all sinners this is not about sin but about undermining the Church[Christ] People are not in sin for believing in legalized abortion-you can't help what you honestly believe no matter how wrong you may be. The grounds for denying comminion are based on the sin of disobedience to the church. Even if one disagrees with the church about abortion one should in this matter of grave morals remain silent and not contradict the churchs teaching. To publicaly oppose church teaching on this grave matter is to undermine the Church. This sin of disobedience[ongoing and adament as oppossed to from the past] is grounds to deny communion .One who knowlingly,willfully takes a public stand against the church in a grave matter is undermining the church and willfully dissobeying the Church.Capital punishment has not yet been declarded infallibly wrong by the church[though it is oppossed to it ,it has not been declared as an infallible belief like abortion has]. If and when the church declares capital puncishment as on the level of abortion then i would cease and desist defending it.[capital punishment] Though my personal beliefs would not change I would remain silent about it and not defend it so as to not undermine the Church.
Doesn't your day job involve speaking and writing? An essay length treatment of the subject of death penalty and the Catholic Church would be appropriate for Dynamic Catholic, don't you think?
I agree. Death penalty is much more morally significant.
First of all, the word "murder" doesn't apply. Second, the big difference is that in case of death penalty actual thinking, feeling and self-aware human beings are being put to death. Embryos are none of these things.
Look at this chart.
As you can see, a large majority of abortions occur before the 10th gestational week and hardly any occur after week 20.
I am sorry, but to compare an embryo with an actual human being is just silly.
Numbers don't affect morality of individual cases.
And have you thought what kind of societal impact more than a million additional unwanted babies would have? The obvious solution to reducing the number of abortions is contraception, something you, your Church and quite a few socially conservative Protestants abhor.
While "my" and "your" are called "possessive adjectives", they often don't denote possession but rather a more general belonging or identification. Therefore, calling RCC your church is perfectly fine even if you are not the Pope.
Judging from historical record, these circumstances seem to be things like blasphemy and heliocentrism.
Why don't you enlighten us? From where I stand, it certainly looks like the bishops involved in this are right wing and thus have a political axe to grind in trying to damage mostly Democratic politicians with the Catholic electorate.
And you still haven't answered my question about Rick Perry (responsible for 200+ executions, supports executions of mentally challenged and minors) vs. Barack Obama (pro-choice but not responsible for any abortions).
The only answer Mr. PhD in divinity studies can offer is "have faith, praise jesus!"
And "the devil put those dinosaur bones there to trick us! have faith in TEH LORD!"
Tisk tisk Allen.
But it sure did stop it.
There was no talking to Hitler - Chamberlain tried, but every concession prompted a further escalation, until it was too late to nip the imperialist Germany in the bud and a full on world war was inevitable.
US entered the war because Germany declared war on US following Pearl Harbor and commencement of hostilities between Japan and US. But even before that US aided the fight against Nazi Germany with materials and volunteers.
By the time WWII started, there was no way to avoid it. Sorry if that offends your sensibilities.
Wait, you are against engaging in a defensive war but are for killing people who are already incarcerated and thus pose no threat out of pure revenge?
No they are not right in doing this.
Freedom of conscience is a sin? Thinking for oneself is a sin?
To say that a public official, an elected official should be obedient to a church in matters of public policy is truly beyond the pale. It is interference by an ecclesiastical body in the functioning of a secular and democratic state. The very thing John F. Kennedy denounced in very clear terms over a half century ago.
An excerpt:
I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute, where no Catholic prelate would tell the president (should he be Catholic) how to act, and no Protestant minister would tell his parishioners for whom to vote; where no church or church school is granted any public funds or political preference; and where no man is denied public office merely because his religion differs from the president who might appoint him or the people who might elect him.
I believe in an America that is officially neither Catholic, Protestant nor Jewish; where no public official either requests or accepts instructions on public policy from the Pope, the National Council of Churches or any other ecclesiastical source; where no religious body seeks to impose its will directly or indirectly upon the general populace or the public acts of its officials; and where religious liberty is so indivisible that an act against one church is treated as an act against all.
Why should they remain silent? They are public officials and primarily responsible to the public, not the Vatican.
And the Church trying to force a public official into submission by denying them communion is attempted interference into the democratic process.
Where has abortion been infallibly declared wrong?
And I gather, if you were to run for office that you would not agree with John F. Kennedy's position on the relationship between private religious beliefs and the execution of public office?
In the meantime, I leave you with this article:
Is there a death penalty-sized hole in Catholicism’s ‘seamless garment’ ethic?