REfleCTions ON THE DEATH PENALTY
By Idumea
Translated by Gerald D. Woodard
(Original French text at www.idumea.org)
Is the Church’s position on the death penalty compatible with the Declaration of Human Rights?
Is belief in a God of love, life and creation compatible with the death penalty?
1. GENERAL
In the Old Testament, God required capital punishment for anyone who committed murder. God told Noah: “And whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed; for man shall not shed the blood of man” (JST, Gen. 9:12) and He told Moses: “And he that killeth any man shall surely be put to death” (Lev. 24:17).
Therefore, it is clear that, when civil and religious authority are vested in a single person, as was the case in Old Testament times, and when that person is a Prophet of God, He requires capital punishment for murderers.
Today, the situation is different. Civil authority (the State) and religious authority (the Church of Christ) are separate and the right to decide on life or death (death penalty, abortion, euthanasia, declarations of war, etc.) is under the sole jurisdiction of the State (legislative and judicial authority).
Given that situation, in the early days, the Church did not oppose capital punishment, but neither did it demand that governments apply it. In a single revelation (D&C 42) given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, the Lord tells us in verse 19: “thou shalt not kill; but he that killeth shall die,” and ads in verse 79: “…if any persons among you shall kill they shall be delivered up and dealt with according to the laws of the land”, thus leaving it to the State to assume its responsibilities in the legislative and judicial fields, and asking the saints to obey the laws of their country (12th Article of Faith).
In an official declaration dated December 12, 1889, in response to rumours perpetrated by enemies of the Church that the Church was teaching its members that they were not bound by the laws of the United States and that they could kill anyone who did not accept or obey the doctrines of the Church, the First Presidency and Quorum of Twelve Apostles wrote: “…this Church views the shedding of human blood with the utmost abhorrence…”
Other statements by General Authorities complete the view of the Church in this regard. At General Conference in October 1910, Orson F. Whitney stated that: “…to execute a criminal is not murder...” and Bruce R. McConkie wrote: “… man is not authorized, except in imposing the requisite death penalties for crimes, to take the blood of his fellow beings under any circumstances…” (McConkie, p. 257).
The Church therefore views capital punishment as an appropriate sentence for murder. However, that sentence is only acceptable if the murderer is found guilty beyond all reasonable doubt in a public and legal trial, under the authority of civil officers recognized by the constitution.
2. BRIEF HISTORY
The first “death sentence” was pronounced against a man by God himself. It happened in the Garden of Eden, when Adam and Even transgressed by eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (“for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die…”, Gen. 2:17). However, that death penalty was not overly grievous (at least not for us… though it may have been more so for Adam!) because:
1. it was not carried out immediately (God left Adam and Eve 1 day, i.e. 1,000 years, to prepare to die);
2. it was part of God’s plan (receive a physical body to progress, then die and be resurrected);
3. through that transgression, we too were able to benefit from the Plan of Salvation (if Adam and Eve had not transgressed, we would still be waiting our turn to come to Earth).
The second series of “death sentences” were also pronounced on men by God, through a Prophet. This was in the Mosaic Law:
- Anyone who does not keep the Sabbath shall be put to death (Ex. 31:12-17).
- Anyone who uses divination or sorcery shall be put to death (Lev. 20:6, 27; Ex. 22:18).
- Anyone who commits incest, fornication, adultery, homosexuality, shall be put to death (Lev. 20:10).
- Anyone who worships a false god shall be put to death (Deut. 13:6-11).
- Anyone who spills innocent blood shall be put to death (Gen. 9:6; Ex. 21:12; Lev. 24:17; D&C 42:19).
This seems horribly severe, but we must always keep in mind that the Lord was taking a nation of slaves and transforming them into a people of kings and priests. To do this, strict obedience of His divine laws was required. The process also had to be carried out very quickly, so that Israel, once freed from the Egyptians, would not be absorbed by other idolatrous peoples.
The third type of death sentence was pronounced this time by man against a God! Or at least that is what many think Pontius Pilate did. The truth is that no one was or could have been able to put the Son of God to death. It was literally Jesus Christ who sacrificed himself by giving his life. A “death sentence” self-pronounced by someone whose love was such that he was ready to pay for the faults of others to satisfy the requirements of justice.
The fourth type was pronounced by men against other men. This is the use of the second category, not to obey God or to achieve His purposes, but to satisfy their own thirst for power, glory and wealth. This is a system widely used in the middle ages (i.e. the “holy” inquisition) and still applied today in some countries. It must be noted that this type of judgement, condemning people to death for pseudo-religious reasons, is a totally apostate and unjustifiable practice. It is highly likely that the people who have been and who are being judged in this way have never been involved, directly or indirectly, with sorcery, Satanic spirits or any other of the things of which they stand accused. This example is a perfect illustration of how the principles of true religion can be misused by uninspired men to serve, in the end, the adversary’s plan.
The fifth type is the one that concerns us today. The State and the Church are separate. Some States still apply the death penalty, but without literally shedding blood, as is required by the Scriptures, Using injections, electric chairs, etc. Others, in the name of human rights, point at the first and say not to kill. They have found a better system: They lock human beings in "cages" and wait for them to die of "natural” causes over time. Flagrant proof that man’s vision is very limited and that his solutions therefore are as well.
3. doctrine
To understand (and therefore accept) the need for the death penalty, one must understand three major points of doctrine:
3.1. The Plan of Salvation
3.2. Repentance
3.3. The Church’s definition of murder
3.1. THE PLAN OF SALVATION
Reminder:
In God’s plan, commonly called the Plan of Salvation, man, who lived in God’s presence, agreed to come to Earth to progress and become like God. To do so, he must receive a mortal body (essential step in then receiving a resurrected body) and must progress (which takes place when he chooses good over evil). However, two obstacles keep man from returning to God’s presence after this earthly life: physical death (because, being again a spirit, he resembles Satan more than God) and sin (because nothing impure can enter into the presence of God). Aware of these two obstacles, Jehovah, the Firstborn of the Father in the spirit, proposed sacrificing himself. He would become the only Son of God on Earth. A God through his Father, he would be able to take upon himself the sins of the world so that everyone who repented could be purified and, a mortal man through his mother, he could understand our suffering and our weaknesses. By his human nature, he could die on the cross. By his Divine nature, he could take up his life again and open the door to resurrection to all mankind.
After their time on this earth, the good and the bad find themselves in a placed called the spirit world. The first await with joy the next step, continuing to live a life worthy of a disciple of Christ, Preaching the Gospel to anyone who wants to hear it. The latter await in fear, due either to ignorance and thus misunderstanding of God’s plan, or by the suffering caused by the sins for which no repentance was made on earth.
Then comes the day of resurrection and the day of judgement. Based on their works, the just inherit celestial glory (presence of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost), the lukewarm inherit terrestrial glory (presence of the Son and the Holy Ghost), and the wicked inherit telestial glory (presence of only the Holy Ghost).
Each of these glories, including telestial glory, far exceeds any happiness and beauty that we can know on this Earth. Every person who inherits one of these glories is therefore "saved", even though only celestial glory brings eternal happiness, through the constant presence of divinity and the possibility of eternal progression.
3.2. REPENTANCE
“The first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands by the gift of the Holy Ghost” (4th Article of Faith). These are the first steps toward our Saviour, Jesus Christ. However, although baptism washes away all our sins, the flesh is weak and man falls again right away. For us to stay pure and ready to meet our Creator at any time, God provided us with a means of using the atoning blood of Christ (which was shed for all sins, except the sin of voluntarily and knowingly shedding innocent blood [James R. Clark, Messages of the First Presidency, Vol.3, pp. 205-206]), to wash us of our sins as they occur: that means is called repentance.
The steps in repentance:
1. Recognizing what we have done wrong
2. Feeling shame and sorrow
3. Asking for forgiveness from God
4. Asking for forgiveness from the person we injured or offended
5. Making reparation
6. Not doing the same thing again
3.3. THE CHURCH’S DEFINITION OF MURDER
The Church defines murder as the deliberate and unjustified taking of human life. If the death is the result of a lack of attention, carelessness, self defence or the defence of others, or if the situation involves other attenuating circumstances (such as mental deficiency or a state of war), the act may be considered other than murder. In the end, though, God will be the judge.
4. THE MURDERER’S DILEMMA
Contrary to appearance, the murderer is in fact in a much worse position than the person he killed, for the following reasons:
Admitting that he is aware of the horror of his sin and that he truly wants to repent of it (e.g. David), he cannot accomplish all of the steps, even if he wants to. He can feel shame and sorrow and ask for forgiveness from God, but he can never start over, make reparation (bring the person back to life) or ask for forgiveness from his victim (in this life) for having brought an early end to the victim’s progression.
While Christ shed his blood for all other sins, he withheld his atonement for only one: murder. Thus, in addition to the necessary repentance (see previous point), anyone who commits murder (and murder is the only case for this) must personally pay the price through his own suffering, without any help from Christ (for a description of this suffering, see D&C 19:15-19).
5. THE MURDERER’S “SOLUTION”
The word solution is a very heavy word for a murderer because, no matter what he does, he can never feel the Holy Ghost on this Earth and can never inherit the celestial kingdom in the world to come (Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, p. 737). The only thing he can do is “cut his losses” (the scriptures do not say that he cannot inherit the terrestrial kingdom) and minimize his suffering the spirit world. But how?
- By showing that his repentance is so sincere that, if he cannot help the person he killed to continue progressing, he also rejects his own progression.
- By showing that, because he cannot ask the person for forgiveness in this life, he will do so as soon as possible in the next life.
- By showing that, if he cannot make reparation by bringing him back to life, he is remorseful to the point of wanting to give his own.
Seen in this light, the death penalty is thus not inflicted by a third person: it is chosen by the person in question.
It is also important to note that, compared to our progression as spirits, our progression on Earth in our physical body is much faster and much stronger. It is therefore logical that someone who wants to avoid paying for this type of sin on Earth, must do so in the spirit world, but to his disadvantage because, without a body, his suffering will, a fortiori, be longer and more difficult.
6. Conclusion
God’s vision cannot be compared to that of man.
Because man thinks there is nothing after death, he takes extreme lengths to protect life. God says that this life is sacred, but that it is only one step in His divine plan.
Man says that, even for a murderer, the death penalty is the end of life. God says that it is the beginning of repentance.
Yes, the death penalty has its place in a perfect theocratic system. However, since our world has long cut its ties to God and to revelation, we support the current system to avoid errors and deviations.
It is not regrettable that the death penalty has been abolished in our countries. It is only regrettable that a murderer who understood all this, if he wants and requests it, does not have the possibility of giving his life as a symbol of his sincere repentance.
7. SOME FOOD FOR THOUGHT
The death penalty is actually a principle that does not exist for those who love life. It only exists for those who love death.
What death is to be most feared? Physical death or spiritual death, i.e. being deprived of the presence of God?
As horrible as physical death may be, the resurrection can be equally glorious. As horrible as momentary spiritual death can be (sin), the atonement and eternal life can be equally glorious.
If adultery, fornication and homosexuality were punishable by death in Christ’s time, and are not today, does that make these sins any less serious?
Can we only believe the parts of the Bible that we like? Is the Gospel of Christ a pick-and-choose Gospel?
8. REfErences
Ezra Taft Benson. Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson. Salt Lake City, 1988.
Bruce R. McConkie. Mormon Doctrine, p.407.
Encyclopaedia of Mormonism, Vol.1. Capital punishment.
Encyclopaedia of Mormonism, Vol.2. Murder.
Martin R. Gardiner. Mormonism and Capital Punishment: A Doctrinal Perspective, Past and Present. Dialogue 12 (Spring 1979), pp. 9-25.
James R. Clark, Messages of the First Presidency, Vol.3, p.205.
John Taylor. The Gospel Kingdom, p.118.
Joseph F. Smith. Gospel Doctrine, p.202.
Joseph Fielding Smith Jr. Doctrines of Salvation, Vol.2, p.96.
Joseph Fielding Smith Jr. The Way to Perfection, p.236.
Spencer W. Kimball. The Miracle of Forgiveness. Salt Lake City, 1969.
Spencer W. Kimball. Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, ed. Edward L. Kimball. Salt Lake City, 1982.
