Pope Leo XIV has declared the death penalty “inadmissible” as the United States considers livestreaming the firing-squad execution of Nidal Malik Hasan, who was convicted over a 2009 shooting at Fort Hood.
In a message marking the World Day Against the Death Penalty, the American pope quoted Catholic teaching revised under Pope Francis, saying capital punishment attacked the inherent dignity of human beings.
“The common good can be safeguarded and the requirements of justice can be met without recourse to capital punishment,” the post on the Pope’s official account said. “Effective systems of detention have been developed that protect citizens while at the same time do not completely deprive those who are guilty of the possibility of redemption.”
The message ended with the hashtag #NoDeathPenalty. Pope Leo did not refer directly to the planned execution, although it was published shortly after the Vatican’s secretary of state described the proposed livestream as unacceptable.
Vatican condemns execution livestream
Cardinal Pietro Parolin said it was “truly incomprehensible” and unacceptable to turn death into a spectacle, adding that the Catholic Church was totally opposed to capital punishment.
“The Church’s position is one of total opposition to the death penalty; it is incompatible with human dignity and serves as no deterrent…,” he said in comments carried by Vatican News. “It is truly incomprehensible that anyone would want to use this system today — I don’t know for what purpose. It is certainly unacceptable to turn death into a spectacle; even if the person is guilty, of course, there are other methods.”
The US Defence Department announced that Hasan’s execution, scheduled to take place at Fort Hood on December 3, would be livestreamed. Hasan was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 others in the shooting at the military base.
US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he would ultimately decide whether the execution was livestreamed.
Archbishop Paul Coakley, head of the US bishops’ conference, said he was shocked and deeply saddened by the Pentagon’s plans.
“In no way can Hasan’s actions be condoned but this decision is a barbaric promotion of a culture of death and must be reconsidered,” he said. “The public execution even of one who has done grave harm will only further undermine the moral fabric of our nation and be a blight on the conscience of its people.”
Catholic teaching on capital punishment
Pope Francis amended the Catechism of the Catholic Church in 2018 to state that capital punishment was “inadmissible” in all circumstances.
The previous teaching did not rule out the death penalty if it was the only effective way to defend human lives against an unjust aggressor. Earlier popes had supported that position, although St John Paul II increasingly urged an end to the practice and emphasised the dignity of guilty people as well as the innocent.
Like Francis before him, Pope Leo has made prison visits a prominent part of his travels, offering inmates a message of hope and stressing the possibility of redemption. During a visit to Bata prison in Equatorial Guinea in April, he told prisoners: “If any of you fear being abandoned by everyone, know that God will never abandon you, and that the church will stand by your side.”
