This is the cover of the English edition of Pope Francis encyclical Fratelli Tutti, on Fraternity and Social Friendship, issued Oct. 4, 2020. The document offers path forward for U.S. Catholics, panelists at the recent Catholic Social Ministry Gathering said. (CNS photo/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops) Feb. 11, 2021 Catholic News Service A Catholic panel analyzing a path forward during moments of strife or of social sin said the only way to move ahead as a society toward healing is to recognize the damage done to a person or communities, to lay the truth out for everyone to see. The Healing as Church & Nation: Remembering, Recognizing & Reimagining Common Good, a panel during the Catholic Social Ministry Gathering, which took place online Feb. 6-9 this year, also looked at how Pope Francis teachings can help.
Demonstrators in in Terre Haute, Ind., gather to protest the execution of Lisa Montgomery on Jan. 12. She was put to death by lethal injection at the federal prison in Terre Haute soon after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted a hold on her execution at 1:31 a.m. (EST). She was the first woman to be put to death in federal prison since 1953. (CNS photo/Bryan Woolston, Reuters)
The federal death penalty will almost certainly be suspended under President Biden, and great strides have been made to reduce the use of the death penalty at the state level. But the work of putting an end to capital punishment is far from done, and recent events have pointed to the need for a conversion of U.S. culture from death and vengeance.
Jan 9, 2021 national correspondent
Demonstrators are seen near the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Ind., showing their opposition to the death penalty July 13, 2020. (Credit: Bryan Woolston/Reuters, via CNS)
To Sister Helen Prejean, the first stand a Catholic takes against the death penalty in the United States doesn’t need to be grand. In fact, she believes all it takes is a desire, and a pen, to start on the path towards change.
NEW YORK For Sister Helen Prejean, the first stand a Catholic takes against the death penalty in the United States doesn’t need to be grand. In fact, she believes all it takes is a desire, and a pen, to start on the path towards change.
Death penalty hits historic low ‘despite federal execution spree’
Demonstrators are seen near the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Ind., showing their opposition to the death penalty July 13, 2020. (CNS photo/Bryan Woolston, Reuters)
By Carol Zimmermann • Catholic News Service • Posted December 17, 2020
WASHINGTON (CNS) A new report Dec. 16 by the Death Penalty Information Center said the use of capital punishment reached a historic low this year in the United States even with the return of federal executions by the Trump administration.
Seventeen people were executed in 2020, down from 22 in 2019. This lower figure stems in part from the coronavirus pandemic, but the report also notes that before the pandemic struck, the nation was set for a sixth straight year of lower numbers of death sentences and executions.
Dec 17, 2020 catholic news service
Demonstrators are seen near the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Ind., showing their opposition to the death penalty July 13, 2020. (Credit: Bryan Woolston/Reuters via CNS.)
A new report Dec. 16 by the Death Penalty Information Center said the use of capital punishment reached a historic low this year in the United States even with the return of federal executions by the Trump administration.
WASHINGTON, D.C. A new report Dec. 16 by the Death Penalty Information Center said the use of capital punishment reached a historic low this year in the United States even with the return of federal executions by the Trump administration.