Denver, Colo., Jun 29, 2004 / 22:00 pm
The death penalty does not contribute in creating justice, but only feeds a culture of violence and revenge, said Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver in his most recent column, published in the Denver Catholic Register.
The column comes on the heels of a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court last week, which rejected the appeals of more than 100 Americans who were sentenced to death and are awaiting execution.
The archbishop acknowledged that most Americans and American Catholics support the death penalty. He also pointed out that President George Bush and Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry support capital punishment.
“America’s on-going addiction to the death penalty is one of the great signs of our nation’s divided heart about the sanctity of the human person,” wrote the archbishop.