Showing the Love and Mercy of Jesus Christ
March/April 2002
My dear friends in Christ,
Every Good Friday we hear Pilate demanding that Jesus answer his
question, “Where are you from?” When Jesus remained silent, Pilate
asked: “Do you refuse to answer me? Don’t you realize that I have the
power either to free you or to crucify you?” Jesus answered, “You would
have no power over me at all if it had not been given to you from
above.” The Lord’s reply to Pilate acknowledges that the state does have
the right to mete out the death penalty — a right that comes directly
from God.
Some people question why the church has changed her teaching in such an
important area. As Cardinal Avery Dulles points out in that same
article, the church’s position on capital punishment has been modified,
not reversed. While admitting that the state still possess the right to
execute criminals, today the church says that the state should exercise
that right only if incarceration would be inadequate to prevent the
criminal from inflicting further harm, a situation which is practically
nonexistent in modern society.
In November, I issued a request that signatures be collected in our
parishes for a petition, asking the governor to place a temporary
moratorium on the death penalty. The purpose of the moratorium is to
allow time for a serious study to be conducted on all ramifications of
capital punishment specifically concerning the cases of 373 prisoners on
Florida’s death row. My call for a moratorium received both positive and
negative reactions. For example, someone asked me, “Bishop, let’s say
that someone raped and killed a niece of yours, would you still be
against the death penalty?” My position then would be the same as it is
now. Yes, the authorities would have the right to execute the criminal,
but I wouldn’t want them to. I’d want to show that criminal the love and
mercy of Jesus, who, while being nailed to the cross, not only forgave
his executioners, but even made excuses for them. Furthermore, I’d want
to be sure that the criminal had enough time to realize the terrible
crime he had committed and to ask the Lord for pardon. For that to
happen, much time might be needed.
That was precisely the case with Maria Goretti and her 18-year-old
assassin, Alessandro Nettuno. Though only 11 years old, she courageously
rebuffed his attempts to rape her. In a frenzy, he stabbed her 14 times,
abandoning her in a pool of blood on the kitchen floor. The next
morning, with death just hours away, the parish priest of Nettuno asked
Maria if she forgave her assassin. From her hospital bed, she feebly
replied: “Oh yes, Padre, I forgive him. I want him to be with me in
heaven one day.” At his trial three months later, Alessandro was
unrepentant. He blamed Maria for all that had happened. “She threw
herself at me like a slut. I did it to defend myself!” Since he was a
minor, Italian law spared him the gallows. Sentenced to a 30-year prison
term, he spent the first seven years bitterly angry, cursing the prison
chaplain whenever he approached the cell. Then one night, Alessandro had
a dream: “I saw Maria standing in a field of lilies. She had the most
precious smile I’ve ever seen. Without saying a word, she proceeded to
pick 14 lilies and hand them to me one by one. Then I awoke.” The next
morning, he called for the chaplain to make his peace with God.
July 6th of this year marks the first centenary of Maria Goretti’s
martyrdom. Let’s pray for our youth, that they will treasure their
purity as Maria did. Let’s pray for those in prison, that they will
repent as Alessandro did. And finally, let’s pray for ourselves, that we
may show to everyone who may have committed a heinous crime the
compassion and mercy and love of Jesus.
