Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops have been working for years now to end the death penalty, replacing it with life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. True life imprisonment is a reality here in my home state of California -- it was established in the 1970's, I believe, and there are about 2000 people serving this sentence -- and not one has ever been released. So for those of you concerned about public safety, life imprisonment without the possibility of parole is a real alternative that works.

And then there's the little issue about if you capture, convict and execute the wrong guy . . . you can recover from mistakes with life imprisonment.

There is also a fairness issue -- 12 States in the USA do not have the death penalty, Texas and California execute the most people, and gosh, if you are poor and a man of color, you are headed for death row, but if you are rich and/or white . . . you almost never end up on death row. And let's not even talk about the errors and potential for corruption.

All of this is solved by simply not executing people -- life imprisonment works, protects society, allows recovery from mistakes, is cheaper, etc.

What can you do about the death penalty?

1. Pray for victims of crime and their families, those who have been wrongly convicted, and those awaiting execution.

2. Learn about Catholic social teaching, criminal justice policies, and California policies.

3. Educate others.

4. Advocate by contacting your elected officials, and urge them to replace the death penalty with life imprisonment without parole.

For more information, go to: http://www.usccb.org/deathpenalty/

"Ending the death penalty would be one important step away from a culture of death and toward building a culture of life.” -- A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2005

The Holy Father calls recourse to the death penalty “unnecessary” and painfully reminds us that our “model of society bears the stamp of the culture of death, and is therefore in opposition to the Gospel message.” (Pope John Paul II, World Day of the Sick, Washington, DC, February 2003)

Busting the Over Population Myth: Catholic Scientist Sets Record Straight

The Catholic Laboratory podcast is a wonderful program put on by a Catholic scientist.

In episode 24, Ian Maxfield systematically and logically refutes common myths about over-population. This is important for Pro-Life because all of these over-population myths are used as arguments for abortion and infanticide the world over.

http://www.catholiclab.net/TheCatholicLaboratory/Podcast/Entries/2009/12/17_Cathlab24_-_Dear_Sir_David_Attenborough_....html

Did you know that we have enough clean drinking water and food and living space on planet Earth? The key is the distribution. First world over-consumption and food waste play their part, as well. And don't forget oppressive regimes and their human rights abuses.

Ian Maxfield provides a detailed and careful analysis of this complex issue -- don't take my word for it -- go listen to episode 24 of "The Catholic Laboratory" podcast.

Walk for Life in San Francisco: 40,000 Despite the Rain!

The West Coast Walk for Life in San Francisco last weekend was amazing! Imagine 40,000 people standing in the rain to listen to speakers championing life, and then walking 2.5 miles along the San Francisco waterfront -- parents with children in strollers, elderly men and women, Roman Catholic Christians, Evangelical Protestant Christians, Jews, Mormons -- everyone celebrating and praying for life.

The purpose is to stand up and say: human life is sacred and must be defended from conception to natural death.

We are supportive of mothers, of fathers, and of babies. No one was there to condemn a woman with an unexpected pregnancy. Everyone was there to help mothers, and to help fathers, and to help babies -- to give a voice to the voiceless.

Everyone was praying, singing, laughing or just quietly walking. The only frowns were from tiny knots of counter protesters, a strange mix of atheists, pro-choice advocates, and random advocates for who knows what (this was San Francisco after all).

The leaders of the procession held signs like this: "I regret my lost fatherhood", "I regret my abortion", "Women deserve better than abortion".

Some of my favorite signs read: "As a former fetus, I oppose abortion", "A person is a person, no matter how small. Dr. Seuss", "Jesus heals".

The speakers included: a woman who deeply regrets killing her baby, a former abortion clinic worker who had a conversion and now is a Pro-Life advocate, an Evangelical Protestant minister, a Pro-Life advocate from France, a Roman Catholic priest -- really inspiring.

What can you do? Please write your Congressional representative to keep abortion funding out of health care reform. I recommend this easy to use site by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops:

http://tinyurl.com/StopAbortion

Also, keep an eye out for people collecting signatures for a change to the Constitution of the State of California to change the definition of a human being to include a fetus.

US Bishops Ask Us to Write Congress: Stop Abortion Funding in Health Care Reform

Here is a message from the Social Justice Coordinator from my own bishop's office:

Stop Abortion Funding in Health Care Reform:
Protect Conscience - Ensure Affordable Health Coverage - Allow Immigrants to Purchase Private Health Insurance

As long-time advocates of health care reform, the U.S. Catholic bishops continue to make the moral case that genuine health care reform must protect the life, dignity, consciences and health of all, especially the poor and vulnerable. Health care reform should not advance a pro-abortion agenda in our country.

WHAT YOU CAN DO NOW: Contact your Representative and Senators today by e-mail as soon as possible. It took me less than 5 minutes today. To send a pre-written, instant e-mail to Congress go to www.usccb.org/action.

To read a nice summary of the US Bishops' position, go to: http://www.oakdiocese.org/pastoral/SocialJustice/

6th Annual Walk for Life, January 23, 2010, San Francisco

Mark your calendars!

Make a New Year's Resolution!

Make a stand against abortion -- and take a walk!

The West Coast Walk for Life in San Francisco is January 23, 2010. Learn more at: http://www.walkforlifewc.com/

On the east coast, join the March for Life in Washington, D.C., on January 22, 2010. Learn more at:
http://www.marchforlife.org/content/view/13/26/

Last year, I joined two busloads of people from my parish of St. Michael. The rally at the start was incredible -- so many stories of women who bitterly regretted their abortions, men who regretted their lost fatherhood, and heartwarming stories of women who kept their babies and were so happy they had done so! I found the walk quite relaxing -- just strolling along the San Francisco waterfront with 32,000 of my best friends -- praying the Rosary, chatting, looking at the bystanders looking at us. There were only a handful of counter-protesters.

The walk is strenuous because you end up on your feet for several hours -- from the rally to the walk to the rally at the other end. If you cannot join the walk, please pray for the Walk and the March.

Wonder What Our Bishops Say About ProLife?

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops have a website on ProLife activities: http://www.usccb.org/prolife/issues/cappunish/index.shtml You'll see that ProLife includes respecting life from conception to natural death. Cruise around in the website to learn about the issues and what you can do.

The Catholic position is essentially based on two basic principles:

(1) human life is sacred because we are each made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis Chapter 1), and
(2) God bestows the human soul at conception.

Given these two principles, it is straightforward to logically deduce the Catholic position on a myriad of respect life issues.