Can you be a Christian and support the death penalty?

Question

I know this question has been asked before, but my father and I are debating this topic and I'd like to hear from you.

thank you.

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Personally, I struggle.
If it had not been for a death penalty, then Jesus wouldn't have died on the cross, He would have died in jail. It was because there was a death penatly in place that He was able to fulfill that prophecy.

Just to add about the comment made about the woman who was caught in the act of adultry.
The town people brought her before Jesus, as a test.
If He said, Yes...stone her, then He would had broken the law because Jewish people could not enforce such a law.
If He said, No...don't stone her, then He would have broke Mose's law.
He was being tested. He never gave a clear answer as to what to do. He said, he without sin, cast the first stone.
So to me, He didn't dimiss the death penalty at that time.

Answer 1

Hey hello...First with your struggle...Roman Soldiers werent Christians they had death penalty because nobody told them to Love even their enemies.

So I think you can be a Christian and support the death penalty as there are Christians who contradict Jesus in many other ways.

Answer 2

I have to say that I am against the death penalty for many of the reasons stated. The mandatory appeals make it a very expensive and drawn out procedure at taxpayers expense, and morally there are too many cases where later evidence proves that a condemned person was innocent. I live in a state that had so many condemned people exonerated that the death penalty was done away with as a parting gesture of a former Governor who is now under indictment for fraud regarding mostly our DMV. That might be the only thing that crook did right. It has since been reinstated. I may wrestle a bit as to the morality of capital punishment, but I know that it is not worth the death of one innocent person. Also, the poor and the minorities are over-represented on death rows.

Answer 3

Many people, whether or not they are Christians, struggle with this one. Apart from the teachings of your faith, you don't have to condone brutal crimes or want the criminals who commit them to avoid a harsh punishment to ask whether the death penalty prevents or even reduces crime and whether it risks killing innocent people.

124 people on death rows have been released with proof that they were wrongfully convicted. DNA is available in less than 10% of all homicides and isn’t a guarantee we won’t execute innocent people.

By the way, you can read the position statements for many religions at www.religioustolerance.org. On the left side of the homepage scroll down to hot topics and click on death penalty.
The death penalty doesn't prevent others from committing murder. No reputable study shows the death penalty to be a deterrent. To be a deterrent a punishment must be sure and swift. The death penalty is neither. Homicide rates are higher in states and regions that have it than in states that don’t.

We have a good alternative. Life without parole is now on the books in 48 states. It means what it says. It is sure and swift and rarely appealed. Life without parole is less expensive than the death penalty.

The death penalty costs much more than life in prison, mostly because of the legal process which is supposed to prevent executions of innocent people.

The death penalty isn't reserved for the worst crimes, but for defendants with the worst lawyers. It doesn't apply to people with money. When is the last time a wealthy person was on death row, let alone executed?

The death penalty doesn't necessarily help families of murder victims. Murder victim family members across the country argue that the drawn-out death penalty process is painful for them and that life without parole is an appropriate alternative.

Problems with speeding up the process. Over 50 of the innocent people released from death row had already served over a decade. If the process is speeded up we are sure to execute an innocent person.

Answer 4

Well I used to be christian, but i saw the light lol.
Now if I remember right, there is something about fallowing the laws of the land, Eye for an eye. A bunch of other stuff. How do I word this right? If someone is a killer and we dont stop him, he will kill again right? Now how is locking someone up for life any better than death. Now he is basically an animal. Some would say that he will now regret and learn his lesson, but think of the abuse he will have in a lifetime of jail. Now we will have been the reason for beatings, rape, mental abuse, a man who cant live a life really. Christians would then be hypocrites (like 90% of them) If they say he at least will have learned a lesson. What happens the? He dies after many years of trying to survive the jail life. Do i make sense here? An easy way is what is better? death...or a slow torture. No one goes to hell. A loving god...a father would never condem his kid no matter what, if he has true love for his child.

Answer 5

As a Christian I can support the death penalty for many reasons...
1) GOD prescribed death as punishment for several offenses
2) I am to support/respect my elected and appointed officials/leaders-including following the laws that are of my society

Thou Shall Not Kill is a poor translation, Thou Shall Not Murder is closer to what is intended. If the word was "kill," then soldiers, police officers and others that are responsible for the safety of society would be limited. I don't think GOD desires that we take the life from someone, but he recognizes that sometimes there are no other options.

Answer 6

If you pull the trigger, flick the switch, drop the gallows, or inject the poison I would say you support the death sentence. Now if you do that, and someone calls you a Christian and you think that's the right name for you well I guess for you two you are. Anything beyond those scenarios to me seems mostly conjecture. If you study what Jesus says in recorded scripture, I would think one could get a better picture of what could be good stance could be on the subject.

Answer 7

Yes.
Romans Ch 1,
29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips,
30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents;
31 they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless.

32 Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

Some people don't change, sadly.
And The Bible says man is without excuse.

Answer 8

The death penalty is supported many times in the Bible. I'm not a Christian so I don't know off the top of my head but there are stories of capital punishment in the New and Old Testaments for certain transgressions.

Answer 9

I agree that serious deterrents are necessary for serious crimes. Death penalty? That's not one of them.

What if the person IS actually innocent?

What thoughts have you for the soul/spirit/well being of the person who does the work of an executioner?

What's the word about providing the opportunity for repenting?

I'm not into barbaric penalties. But let me tell you about my friend. Accused and convicted of brutally attacking a pedophile who was left at the local landfill to die. My friend was set free on appeal. I am very happy for him but I felt nothing for the pedophile. Is that so horrible of me? My friend was clearly innocent, by the way... in case you were wondering, that is, my beauty my love.

Answer 10

I think a defense of the death penalty can be made from a Christian perspective, but I think the traditional Catholic perspective against the death penalty is a better option. People of good conscience can disagree.