History's Most Heinous Execution Gives Pause
Jesus was a victim of the death penalty.
Did you ever think about it that way? He was. We remember His heinous execution every Good Friday.
Shouldn’t we honor His ultimate sacrifice – for our redemption – the rest of the year by living a witness that respects the dignity of every human life from conception to natural death? Our Holy Father believes so; and he makes no bones about it when it comes to the death penalty.
“Human life is sacred as, from its beginning, from the first instant of conception, it is the fruit of God's creating action,” Pope Francis said just two weeks ago during an audience with members of the International Commission Against the Death Penalty. “When the death penalty is applied, it is not for a current act of aggression, but rather for an act committed in the past.
“Nowadays the death penalty is inadmissible,” he added, “no matter how serious the crime committed. It is an offense against the inviolability of life and the dignity of the human person, which contradicts God's plan for man and society, and His merciful justice, and impedes the penalty from fulfilling any just objective. It does not render justice to the victims, but rather fosters vengeance.”
People of many religions – and many without any religion at all – don’t agree with that position. To them and you, I offer John 8:7 and the simplest of suggestions from Jesus: “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” That translation is from the Second Catholic Edition of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, which is used in the Didache Bible I reviewed a few weeks ago.
Here is the Didache commentary on that passage: “While the sin of adultery is always grave, the infinite mercy of God is sufficient to forgive any sin where there is repentance and purpose of amendment.”
Further, consider the end of John 8:11. After Jesus asked the adulterous woman whether anyone had condemned her, she responds that they had not. He says, simply, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and do not sin again.” The Didache commentary on that line is, “The mercy of God does not condone sin but rather compassionately recognizes repentance and grants forgiveness.”
Today, acknowledge that you are in no position to “be the first to throw a stone.” Acknowledge that none of us is.
Thank God for sending His only Son to suffer the death penalty for us. And spend some time praying about whether such a sentence should befall anyone else … ever.
