DEATH PENALTY BULLETIN ANNOUNCEMENTS

The following announcements may be used in parish bulletins.

Did You Know?

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops writes in Faithful Citizenship: A Catholic Call to Political Responsibility: “In light of the Holy Father's insistence that this is part of our pro-life commitment, we encourage solutions to violent crime that reflect the dignity of the human person, urging our nation to abandon the use of capital punishment.” For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops writes in Faithful Citizenship: A Catholic Call to Political Responsibility: “. . . our nation's increasing reliance on the death penalty cannot be justified. We do not teach that killing is wrong by killing those who kill others.” For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops writes in Faithful Citizenship: A Catholic Call to Political Responsibility: “We also urge passage of legislation that would address problems in the judicial system, and restrict and restrain the use of the death penalty through use of DNA evidence, a guarantee of effective counsel, and efforts to address issues of racial justice.” For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

“If bloodless means are sufficient to defend human lives against an aggressor and to protect public order and the safety of persons, public authority must limit itself to such means, because they better correspond to the concrete conditions of the common good and are more in conformity to the dignity of the human person” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 2267). For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops wrote in A Good Friday Appeal to End the Death Penalty (April 1999): “Increasing reliance on the death penalty diminishes all of us and is a sign of growing disrespect for human life.” For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops wrote in A Good Friday Appeal to End the Death Penalty (April 1999): “We cannot overcome crime by simply executing criminals, nor can we restore the lives of the innocent by ending the lives of those convicted of their murders.” For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops wrote in A Good Friday Appeal to End the Death Penalty (April 1999): “The death penalty offers the tragic illusion that we can defend life by taking life.” For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops wrote in A Good Friday Appeal to End the Death Penalty (April 1999): “We urge all people of good will, particularly Catholics, to work to end the use of capital punishment.” For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In a March 21, 2005 press conference launching the USCCB Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Archbishop of Washington, stated: “We cannot teach that killing is wrong by killing. We cannot defend life by taking life.” For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In a March 21, 2005 press conference launching the USCCB Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Archbishop of Washington, stated: “The Catholic campaign will work to change the debate and decisions on the use of the death penalty: building a constituency for life, not death; calling on our lawmakers to lead, not follow; to defend life, not take it away.” For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In a March 21, 2005 press conference launching the USCCB Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Archbishop of Washington, stated: “This cause is not new. Our bishops’ conference has opposed the death penalty for 25 years.” For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In a March 21, 2005 press conference launching the USCCB Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Archbishop of Washington, stated: “. . . this campaign . . . brings greater urgency and unity, increased energy and advocacy, and a renewed call to our people and to our leaders to end the use of the death penalty in our nation.” For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

As part of the USCCB Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty, you can pray for victims of crime and their families, those who have been wrongly convicted, and those awaiting execution. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

As part of the USCCB Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty, you can learn about Catholic social teaching, U.S. criminal justice policies, and the policies in your state. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

As part of the USCCB Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty, you can educate people in your parish or community about Catholic social teaching and the criminal justice system. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

As part of the USCCB Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty, you can advocate by contacting your elected officials. Discuss Catholic teaching on the death penalty and what steps could be taken at the state and national level to curtail or end its use. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In November 2005, the U.S. Catholic Bishops reiterated their opposition to the death penalty in the statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death. The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “Twenty-five years ago, our Conference of bishops first called for an end to the death penalty. We renew this call to seize a new moment and new momentum.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “Our nation should forgo the use of the death penalty because the sanction of death, when it is not necessary to protect society, violates respect for human life and dignity.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “Our nation should forgo the use of the death penalty because state-sanctioned killing in our names diminishes all of us.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “Our nation should forgo the use of the death penalty because its application is deeply flawed and can be irreversibly wrong, is prone to errors, and is biased by factors such as race, the quality of legal representation, and where the crime was committed.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “Our nation should forgo the use of the death penalty because we have other ways to punish criminals and protect society.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “Under the leadership of our beloved Pope John Paul II, Catholic teaching on the death penalty has been articulated and applied with greater clarity and strength.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “Today, there is a serious re-examination of the death penalty—its fairness and effectiveness, its social and moral dimensions.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “Ending the use of the death penalty would be one important step away from a culture of death toward building a culture of life.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “As teachers, we have the obligation to share our Catholic faith and moral tradition, including teaching on the death penalty.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “As pastors . . . in calling for an end to the use of the death penalty, we do not seek to diminish in any way the evil and harm caused by people who commit horrible murders.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

The scheduled execution of Clarence Hill on September 20, 2006 will be the 61^st in Florida since the reinstatement of the death penalty in 1976. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “No act, even an execution, can bring back a loved one or heal terrible wounds. The pain and loss of one death cannot be wiped away by another death.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “As leaders of a community of faith and as participants in our democracy, we are committed to contribute to a growing civil dialogue and reassessment of the use of this ultimate punishment.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “Our goal is not just to proclaim a position, but to persuade Catholics and others to join us in working to end the use of the death penalty.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “The death penalty appears to be often applied unfairly and influenced by where a crime is committed, the race of the victim and offender, the quality and costs of legal defense, and other social factors.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.

Did You Know?

In their November 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, the U.S. Catholic Bishops state: “The question of the death penalty’s deterrence value remains unproven. States with more executions do not generally have lower murder or crime rates.” The entire statement may be found online at: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/penaltyofdeath.pdf. For further information, please contact the diocesan Respect Life Department at 1-941-484-9543.