Bishops call for alternative solution to death penalty

St. Paul, MN - On December 10, 2003, the Minnesota Catholic Conference (MCC), the public policy voice of the Catholic Church in Minnesota, representing the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, and the dioceses of Crookston, Duluth, New Ulm, St. Cloud and Winona, sent the following letter to Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty in regard to his consideration of reinstating the death penalty.

Dear Governor Pawlenty:

We write today in response to your call to reinstate the death penalty in Minnesota. While we share your outrage at senseless violent crimes, we are firmly convinced that there are alternative solutions that do not require the taking of another human life. Furthermore, we do not believe the death penalty is an effective deterrent to violent crimes.

Behavior that threatens lives and violates the rights of others cannot be tolerated and those who harm others must be held accountable. Society has a right to establish and enforce laws to protect all people and advance the common good. As a society, we are challenged to work together to seek solutions that hold offenders accountable. We encourage you to confront crime without vengeance and resist injustice through non-lethal methods. Violent responses to crime only beget more violence. As a society, we must seek solutions to crime and conflicts that both respect the dignity of human life and preserve justice.

As Pope John Paul II stated in his 1999 visit to St. Louis, "The new evangelization calls for followers of Christ who are unconditionally pro-life: who will proclaim, celebrate and serve the Gospel of life in every situation. A sign of hope is the increasing recognition that 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 (cf. Evangelium Vitae, 27). I renew the appeal I made most recently at Christmas for a consensus to end the death penalty, which is both cruel and unnecessary."

We appreciate the great challenges associated with this issue. However, we respectfully submit that we cannot teach that violence is wrong by taking the lives of offenders. We ask that you work for just punishment that protects society from violent crimes in ways that do not require another act of violence. Only when we stand united in this vision by rejecting violence at all levels will we begin to realize the promise of our society.

Signed by

Most Rev. Harry Flynn, Archdiocese of St. Paul/Minneapolis; Most Rev. Richard Pates, Archdiocese of St. Paul/Minneapolis; Most Rev. Frederick Campbell, Archdiocese of St. Paul/Minneapolis; Most Rev. Victor Balke, Diocese of Crookston; Most Rev. Dennis Schnurr; Diocese of Duluth; Most Rev. John Nienstedt, Diocese of New Ulm; Most Rev. John Kinney, Diocese of St. Cloud; Most Rev. Bernard Harrington, Diocese of Winona.