Humanity's first murderer, the man who brought blood letting into the world, was spared by the God of justice. May that same merciful God, Creator of us all, grant us the grace to withstand this test of our convictions. Simply put, we believe that every person is sacred, every life is precious - even the life of one who has violated the rights of others by taking a life. Human dignity is not qualified by what we do. It cannot be earned or forfeited.
Human dignity is an irrevocable character of each and every person.
The Catholic Bishops of the United States join with Pope John Paul II in a recommitment to end the death penalty. We will work not only to proclaim our anti-death penalty position, but to persuade others that increasing reliance on capital punishment diminishes society as a whole. In addition, we recommit to work with our community of faith to combat crime and violence, to turn our prisons from warehouses of human failure and seedbeds of violence to places of rehabilitation and recovery. We will stand with victims of crime and seek real justice and accountability for them and their families. Simple solutions rarely address difficult problems.