“Always, in every legal sentence, there must be a window of hope. Capital punishment offers no justice to victims, but rather encourages revenge.”
The plea is part of the Worldwide Prayer Network series, which every month produces videos promoting the pope’s monthly prayer intentions.
For September, Pope Francis offers this:
Always, in every legal sentence, there must be a window of hope. Capital punishment offers no justice to victims, but rather encourages revenge. And it prevents any possibility of undoing a possible miscarriage of justice. Additionally, the death penalty is morally inadmissible, for it destroys the most important gift we have received: life. Let us not forget that, up to the very last moment, a person can convert and change. And in the light of the Gospel, the death penalty is unacceptable. The commandment, “Thou shalt not kill,” refers to both the innocent and the guilty. I, therefore, call on all people of goodwill to mobilize for the abolition of the death penalty throughout the world. Let us pray that the death penalty, which attacks the dignity of the human person, may be legally abolished in every country.”
Watch it below:
