Being Against the Death Penalty is Pro-Life
"A sign of hope is the increasing recognition
that the dignity of human life must never be taken away,
even in the case of someone who has done great evil."
                                - Pope John Paul II
The new evangelization calls for followers of Christ who are unconditionally pro-life: who will proclaim, celebrate and serve the Gospel of life in every situation. A sign of hope is the increasing recognition that the dignity of human life must never be taken away, even in the case of someone who has done great evil. Modern society has the means of protecting itself, without definitively denying criminals the chance to reform (cf. Evangelium Vitae, 27). I renew the appeal I made most recently at Christmas for a consensus to end the death penalty, which is both cruel and unnecessary.
- John Paul II, Papal Mass, 
St. Louis, Missouri, 
January 27, 1999


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.

-  Cardinal Roger Mahony
Archbishop of Los Angeles
National Press Club
May 25, 2000
 		 Statements by John Paul II on the Death Penalty

Responsibility, Rehabilitation, and Restoration: 
A Catholic Perspective on Crime and Criminal Justice 
A Statement of the Catholic Bishops of the United States
November 15, 2000

Jesuits On the Death Penalty
Greg O'Meara, S.J., Law Professor, former criminal prosecutor and Rector of the Creighton U Jesuit Community offers a clear, passionate and personal look at the Death Penalty and its flaws.

101 Reasons to Abandon the Death Penalty 
Theodore Cardinal McCarrick Archbishop of Washington 
Chair, Domestic Policy Committee  April 18, 2002 

"A Witness To Life: The Catholic Church and the Death Penalty"
Address by Cardinal Roger Mahony Archbishop of Los Angeles 
The National Press Club Washington, D.C. May 25, 2000

Death Penalty Information Center

Catholics Against the Death Penalty

The Death Penalty and the Catholic Church
site of the St. Anthony Messenger: americancatholic.org

Florida's Catholic Bishops
Tell Legislators to say No to Death Penalty at Special Session

Bishops' Statements on the Death Penalty
by State