NEWS & VIEWS
from a CATHOLIC perspective

      DENVER, 22 (NE) A bill filed to institute capital punishment has originated a strong movement of opposition in Massachusetts. If it were approved, Massachusetts would become the 38th State to employ death penalty since it was recognized as constitutional in 1976.

      The Bishops of Massachusetts, Cardinal Bernard Law, Archbishop of Boston, among them, have issued a statement affirming that "death penalty is simply wrong… It solves no problem. We live in a violent culture…. To counter this violence, all of us and especially our political leaders, should be concerned with fostering and strengthening the support of human life. This extends to every aspect of our civil life, even to the just punishment of serious criminals."

      Recalling the message of life given by Pope John Paul II in Saint Louis, the bishops qualified death penalty as "cruel and unnecessary," for "the dignity of human life must never be taken away. Modern society has the means of protecting itself, without definitively denying criminals the chance to reform."