Holy See speaks out against death penalty
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=154427&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
(Vatican Radio) Archbishop Ivan Jurkovic, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, on Wednesday reaffirmed that life is sacred from conception to natural death in a meeting at the UN Human Rights Council on the death penalty.“In this regard, one should consider that human justice is fallible and that the death penalty per se is irreversible,” – Archbishop Jurkovic said – “We should take into account that capital punishment always includes the possibility of taking the life of an innocent person. Moreover, we believe that, whenever possible, the legislative and judicial authorities must always seek to ensure the possibility for guilty parties to make amends and to remedy, ...
(Vatican Radio) Archbishop Ivan Jurkovic, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, on Wednesday reaffirmed that life is sacred from conception to natural death in a meeting at the UN Human Rights Council on the death penalty.
“In this regard, one should consider that human justice is fallible and that the death penalty per se is irreversible,” – Archbishop Jurkovic said – “We should take into account that capital punishment always includes the possibility of taking the life of an innocent person. Moreover, we believe that, whenever possible, the legislative and judicial authorities must always seek to ensure the possibility for guilty parties to make amends and to remedy, at least in part, the impact of their crimes.”
The full statement by Archbishop Jurkovic is below
Statement by His Excellency Archbishop Ivan Jurkovic, Permanent Observer of the Holy See
to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva at the 34th
Session of the Human Rights Council – Item 3 – Biennial High-Level Panel on
“The Death Penalty” 1st March 2017
Mr. Chairman,
The Holy See thanks the High Commissioner and the distinguished panelists for their presentations. My Delegation appreciates the ongoing efforts toward the elimination of the death penalty in many countries.
Mr. Chairman,
My Delegation reaffirms that life is sacred “…from conception to natural death,” and recalls the words Pope Francis, that “even a criminal has the inviolable right to life”.
In this regard, one should consider that human justice is fallible and that the death penalty per se is irreversible. We should take into account that capital punishment always includes the possibility of taking the life of an innocent person. Moreover, we believe that, whenever possible, the legislative and judicial authorities must always seek to ensure the possibility for guilty parties to make amends and to remedy, at least in part, the impact of their crimes.
At present, there is insufficient evidence that the death penalty has a deterrent effect on crime. As Pope Francis recently has affirmed, in his letter to the President of the International Commission against the Death Penalty, “for a constitutional state the death penalty represents a failure, because it obliges a State to kill in the name of justice. But justice is never reached by killing a human being”.
My Delegation believes that more humane measures are available to address crime, ensuring the victim the right to justice and giving the criminal the chance to reform. Moreover, this will facilitate the development of a more just and fair society, fully respectful of human dignity.
Mr. Chairman,
In conclusion, the Holy See is strongly committed to the aim of abolishing the use of the death penalty, and we firmly support, as an interim measure, the moratoria established by the 2014 General Assembly resolution. Moreover, we take this occasion to encourage States to improve prison conditions in order to guarantee respect for the dignity of every person without regard for criminal status, and to ensure the implementation of the right of the accused to a fair trial and due process.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Full Article
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&url=10&view=post&articleid=275596&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
A patient at the new Misky María Palliative Care Hospital located on the outskirts of Lima, Perú. / Credit: Asociación de las Bienaventuranzas (Association of the Beatitudes)ACI Prensa Staff, May 4, 2024 / 08:00 am (CNA).In the context of the recent news of the death of Ana Estrada, the first person to request and receive euthanasia in Peru, there is a contrasting story to tell on care for the dying in that country: that of a new Catholic hospital on the outskirts of Lima that provides palliative care, which extends the love of Christ to those in extreme poverty who are in the final stages of their lives.The beginning of the 'Misky María' HospitalIn 2021, Father Omar Sánchez Portillo, a priest known for his extensive charitable work in the district of Lurín (south of Lima) and founder of the Association of the Beatitudes, had the dream of building a center to serve, with the "sweetness of Mary," people in situations of abandonment and extreme poverty who have terminal illnesses...
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&url=10&view=post&articleid=275586&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
President Joe Biden presents the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Jesuit Father Greg Boyle on May 3, 2024. / Screenshot/public domainCNA Staff, May 3, 2024 / 15:30 pm (CNA).The White House on Friday announced that Jesuit Father Greg Boyle, the founder of a prominent ministry dedicated to rehabilitating gang-affiliated youth, will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom alongside 18 other recipients this afternoon. Boyle, ordained a priest in 1984, founded Homeboy Industries in 1992 while pastor of Dolores Mission, a Catholic church and school in an area that at one time had one of the highest concentrations of gang activity in Los Angeles. Today, Homeboy Industries claims to be the largest gang-intervention program in the United States.The successful ministry, which now operates nationwide, offers training and job skills to those formerly involved in gangs or in jail, as well as case management, tattoo removal, mental health and legal services, and GED completion.Wh...
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&url=10&view=post&articleid=275585&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Father Roger Landry, Catholic chaplain at Columbia University, discusses the protests at Columbia University in New York City on EWTN's "The World Over with Raymond Arroyo" on May 2, 2024. / Credit: EWTN News The World Over / ScreenshotWashington, D.C. Newsroom, May 3, 2024 / 17:05 pm (CNA).Father Roger Landry, a Catholic chaplain at Columbia University, said on Thursday that the protests making national headlines at the New York City school are being organized in part by "explicitly communist" outside forces. "There is an instrumentalization of what's going on in Gaza to advance an agenda," he said. "And that is to deconstruct our present world order at which the United States is considered the top of that order."Speaking on EWTN's "The World Over with Raymond Arroyo," Landry said that he had been walking through the encampment nearly daily, conversing with student protesters and other "outside agitators." While he said he believes that many of the protesters we...