Through his words and deeds in St. Louis last week, Pope John Paul II is making it very difficult for some Catholics to feel comfortable about their positions on life issues. For years, that sentence applied mostly to those Catholics who supported legalized abortion in contradiction to Church teaching. Now, the Pope is making an even larger group uneasy: Catholics who support the death penalty.
During his visit to St. Louis last week, the Pope not only spoke against capital punishment but also did something to save one man's life, appealing to Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan to stop the scheduled execution of death-row inmate Darrell Mease. The Governor responded by commuting the triple murderer's sentence to life without parole.
"In reaching this decision, I took into account the extraordinary circumstances of the pope's request and the historical significance of the papal visit to St. Louis and the state of Missouri," said Carnahan. "After careful consideration of his direct and personal appeal, and because of a deep and abiding respect for the pontiff and all he represents, I decided to grant his request."
Addressing all Americans, the Pope challenged them to "resist the culture of death and choose to stand steadfastly on the side of life." In specific comments on the death penalty, the Pope said: "The dignity of human life must never be taken away, even in the case of someone who has done great evil. Modern society has the means of protecting itself, without definitively denying criminals the chance to reform. I renew my appeal for a consensus to end the death penalty, which is both cruel and unnecessary."
A recent survey by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago found that 67 percent of Catholics favor capital punishment. That 67 percent need to begin examining their position in light of the recent on-rush of papal statements condemning the death penalty. But the papal list of life issues extends beyond abortion and capital punishment (see below), and probably provides every Catholic with something to examine his or her conscience about.
"Today," the Pope said last week, "the conflict is between a culture that affirms, cherishes and celebrates the gift of life, and a culture that seeks to declare entire groups of human beings -- the unborn, the terminally ill, the handicapped and others considered `un-useful' -- to be outside the boundaries of legal protection."
Which side of the conflict are you on?