'Bishops ask Mark Green to
reverse position on death penalty'
That's the headline I was expecting to see this morning, now that the Catholic Bishops of Milwaukee and Madison have decided to plunge into politics.
Wednesday, they asked Gov. Jim Doyle, a Catholic, to rethink and revise his position on the use of embryonic stem cells for research. It made front-page news.
The next logical step, in continuing to speak up for a "culture of life," would be to ask Rep. Mark Green, also a Catholic, to rethink and reverse his position in favor of the death penalty.
"I supported the death penalty. And I support the referendum on the ballot," Green said on Wisconsin Public Television last weekend.
The death penalty advisory referendum on the November ballot will be there because of Republican scheming, with the direct support of Mark Green. Republicans put it on the ballot hoping it would bring out anti-Doyle voters, and moved it from September to the November ballot for purely partisan political gain.
The Catholic Church has consistently argued for the universal abolition of the death penalty. In a declaration to the first World Congress on the Death Penalty held June 21-23, 2001 in Strasbourg, France, the Vatican termed the death penalty "a sign of desperation" for a civil society. The church declared:
The death penalty advisory referendum on the November ballot will be there because of Republican scheming, with the direct support of Mark Green. Republicans put it on the ballot hoping it would bring out anti-Doyle voters, and moved it from September to the November ballot for purely partisan political gain.
The Catholic Church has consistently argued for the universal abolition of the death penalty. In a declaration to the first World Congress on the Death Penalty held June 21-23, 2001 in Strasbourg, France, the Vatican termed the death penalty "a sign of desperation" for a civil society. The church declared:
It is surely more necessary than ever that the inalienable dignity of human life be universally respected and recognised for its immeasurable value. The Holy See has engaged itself in the pursuit of the abolition of capital punishment and an integral part of the defence of human life at every stage of its development and does so in defiance of any assertion of a culture of death.Closer to home, bishops in the U.S. also have taken a strong stand and have actually launched a campaign to end the death penalty:
Where the death penalty is a sign of desperation, civil society is invited to assert its belief in a justice that salvages hope from the ruin of the evils which stalk our world.
The universal abolition of the death penalty would be a courageous reaffirmation of the belief that humankind can be successful in dealing with criminality and of our refusal to succumb to despair before such forces, and as such it would regenerate new hope in our very humanity.
While the U.S. Catholic bishops have been calling for an end to the use of the death penalty for 25 years, this new Campaign was launched in March of 2005. The first comprehensive U.S. Catholic bishops’ statement on the topic issued in 1980. This campaign, the bishops renew their call in order to seize a new moment and a new momentum. This is a time to teach clearly, encourage reflection, and call for common action in the Catholic community. To that end the bishops have written a new pastoral statement that will clarify Church teaching and assist the numerous individual bishops and state Catholic conferences have issued similar calls to end the use of the death penalty.
Given the Bishops' willingness to wade in to current matters of public policy that are inconsistent with the Catholic Church, isn’t it time they sent a letter to Mark Green about his public support for the death penalty? That would seem appropriate, since the Bishops' spokesman says,"We're not trying to influence the election in any way." When the Bishops agree with Doyle and Green is on the "wrong" side, don't they have an obligation to say that, too?
E-mail the Bishops and encourage them to be consistent. They'll be happy to hear from you.
Bishop Robert C. Morlino
rmorlino@straphael.org
Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan
archbishopdolan@archmil.org
15 Comments:
1) All of a sudden YOU care about the teachings of the Church?
2) The Bishops have not only a right, but a DUTY to speak out on issues with grave moral implications and/or content.
Don't like that? Red China doesn't like it either. You may wish to consider a move.
You must agree, then, that they have a duty to speak out about the death penalty as a moral issue.
Or should they just speak out selectively when it helps your candidates?
Stem cell research is a grave moral issue, but the death penalty is merely a trifle? Xoff's just looking for a little consistency here.
The bonus Commie Pinko reference is real classy, too.
Xoff is right on here. After all, "What Would Jesus Do?" is (and should be) the rallying cry for all people who want some morality mixed in with their politics.
And JC's position on embryonic stem cell research is a lot less cut and dry then where he'd stand on the death penalty.
Or on antipoverty programs. Or health care for the poor. Or improving education. Or fairness for minorities including gays.
I may not agree with every edict of Popes JP II and Benedict XV but at least they are consistent.
These bishops seem to pick their fights for political reasons. With all due respect, gentlemen: "WWJD?"
NFN
Don't forget that if the embryo used for stem cell research is really a "person", what about the hundreds of thousands of little people tossed aside during the In Vitro Fertilization process? Surely these "people" are entitled to action by the Bishops. Can we expect the Bishops to march into the Capitol next January and demand that all of the IVF clinics in the state be shut down? The arguments are the same, folks. Or are the Bishops shameless hypocrites? Time will tell.
If we completely ignore the incongruity of the issues (innocent unborn life, compared to evil murdering thugs), then, presuming we even have a death penalty in Wisconsin, lets do a little tally, shall we?
How many death row inmates would actually put to death in a given year in Wisconsin? Answer: Somewhere between 0 and 2.
Anybody want to guess how many embryo’s would be destroyed?
How does this even compare. Get a grip XOff. Shameless..? you sure seem to be.
"Anybody want to guess how many embryo’s would be destroyed?"
Hey, Xout -- How many embryos will be destroyed? ALL of them!
This research uses fertilized eggs which the couples do not want and no longer need. The fertilized eggs either get frozen to death or burned at the stake. They will be WASTED unless the researchers use them. And that's the Governor's point -- it's much better to advance science than simply destroy them!
If you think this is a sin, then ask your legislators to BAN IN VITRO FERTILIZATION!
But you folks won't do that, will you, because you are shameless hypocrites!
Why not be intellectually honest about this debate at long last!
Most likely, X, you and I agree about the Death Penalty.
HOWEVER, the Church's teaching remains that 'the State may use..the death penalty.'
JPII strongly suggested that in the West, we are affluent enough to imprison really bad guys for life, rather than kill 'em.
I agree w/JPII.
Ted, the Church is unequivocally opposed to in vitro and you've identified one of the reasons: the leftovers.
Goes to show you should simply ascribe to all the Church's teachings.
Makes your life more simple.
Sorry Dad29, I am not a Catholic. By birth I landed on the right side of the Reformation.
I'm a little surprised the death penalty has not surfaced as a campaign issue in the gov's race...I presume Doyle opposes it, but maybe Xoff can say for sure. With the issue being on the ballot with the election in November, I hope we can actually have a debate on the culture of life, and the realization that if we mean what we talk about in respecting the lives of the unborn, then we should respect all life.
And yes, that even means the lives of murderous thugs who do not deserve to live. Last I checked, none of us deserve to live, so some guy named Jesus was sent to die in our place.
Xoff, on the issue of stem cell research, have you considered this issue before God? Is this an issue to be brought before God, in your opinion?
republican vigilante, the major Christian religions are not of one mind on the issue of embryonic stem cell research. The Catholic Church is against it most certainly, but the Bishops have no more a monopoly on morality than they do on child abuse.
That's not a logical response. For you to bring up the problems of the Catholic Church is simply an effort on your part to avoid the real issue here. The real issue here is whether or not a fetus should be used to produce new lines of embryonic stem cells. The answer is no. Can we at least establish that once a fetus is conceived, it is indeed a life?
If you choose to response, please respond with a yes/no.
I'm not sure who you were asking, but I will answer:
No, an embryo is not a fetus.
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