I'd like to note that since Roe v. Wade, there have been at least 50 MILLION death penalties on innocent people.
Also, how do these Catholic theologians reconcile themselves with the fact that then-Card. Ratzinger wrote in July 2004: While the Church exhorts civil authorities to seek peace, not war, and to exercise discretion and mercy in imposing punishment on criminals, it may still be permissible to take up arms to repel an aggressor or to have recourse to capital punishment. There may be a legitimate diversity of opinion even among Catholics about waging war and applying the death penalty, but not however with regard to abortion and euthanasia.
How do they reconcile themselves with the fact that Pope Pius XII said that the death penalty's validity is not subject to cultural variation in Acta Apostolicae Sedis 47 (1955) 81-82: We also note that the Church in theory and in practice has kept the two forms of capital punishment (medicinal and vindictive) and that this is more in line with what the sources of revelation and traditional doctrine teach about the coercive power of legitimate human authority. One does not give a sufficient answer to this assertion, noting that the above-mentioned sources contain only thoughts that correspond to historical circumstances and the culture of the time, and that therefore one cannot attribute to them a general and always durable value." [Translated from the Italian]
Can 2000 years of consistent Catholic teaching on a state's right to capital punishment suddenly change in the past ~45 or so years?
And I received an email explaining their censoring this comment:
Thank you for taking the time to read and to respond to our post/statement. If you would take some time to browse our website, you'll see several posts concerning abortion, as well as other life issues. Indeed, a good number of the theologians who signed this statement are on record as opposing abortion. Given that so many theologians from across the theological spectrum have more or less agreed on this issue of capital punishment (which the Vatican and the US bishops are clear on lately), perhaps this will set the stage for further efforts down the road on other more controversial issues. At least this is my hope.
At liberal Catholic websites, if you don't tow their line, they call you a troll and delete your comment. They broker no dissent, no discussion. It is their way and nothing else. I find that very disturbing. Their sites are "rah-rah" sites.
3 comments:
Since what I posted there has been censored, I re-post it here:
I'd like to note that since Roe v. Wade, there have been at least 50 MILLION death penalties on innocent people.
Also, how do these Catholic theologians reconcile themselves with the fact that then-Card. Ratzinger wrote in July 2004:
While the Church exhorts civil authorities to seek peace, not war, and to exercise discretion and mercy in imposing punishment on criminals, it may still be permissible to take up arms to repel an aggressor or to have recourse to capital punishment. There may be a legitimate diversity of opinion even among Catholics about waging war and applying the death penalty, but not however with regard to abortion and euthanasia.
How do they reconcile themselves with the fact that Pope Pius XII said that the death penalty's validity is not subject to cultural variation in Acta Apostolicae Sedis 47 (1955) 81-82:
We also note that the Church in theory and in practice has kept the two forms of capital punishment (medicinal and vindictive) and that this is more in line with what the sources of revelation and traditional doctrine teach about the coercive power of legitimate human authority. One does not give a sufficient answer to this assertion, noting that the above-mentioned sources contain only thoughts that correspond to historical circumstances and the culture of the time, and that therefore one cannot attribute to them a general and always durable value." [Translated from the Italian]
Can 2000 years of consistent Catholic teaching on a state's right to capital punishment suddenly change in the past ~45 or so years?
See Steven A. Long's "EVANGELIUM VITAE, ST. THOMAS AQUINAS, AND THE DEATH PENALTY" and ""Goods" Without Normative Order to the Good Life, Happiness, or God: The New Natural Law Theory and the Nostrum of Incommensurability." Cf. also Romano Amerio's chapter on the death penalty from his book Iota Unum and Antonin Scalia's First Things article "God’s Justice and Ours."
And I received an email explaining their censoring this comment:
Thank you for taking the time to read and to respond to our post/statement. If you would take some time to browse our website, you'll see several posts concerning abortion, as well as other life issues. Indeed, a good number of the theologians who signed this statement are on record as opposing abortion. Given that so many theologians from across the theological spectrum have more or less agreed on this issue of capital punishment (which the Vatican and the US bishops are clear on lately), perhaps this will set the stage for further efforts down the road on other more controversial issues. At least this is my hope.
At liberal Catholic websites, if you don't tow their line, they call you a troll and delete your comment. They broker no dissent, no discussion. It is their way and nothing else. I find that very disturbing. Their sites are "rah-rah" sites.
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