Pope Leo XIV has posted on his official X account that the Catholic Church holds the death penalty to be “inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person.”
In a post published on Saturday, on the World Day Against the Death Penalty, the Pope noted that justice can be upheld and the common good of humanity can be safeguarded without relying on capital punishment.
He said criminals can be effectively detained in order to protect citizens, while still allowing those who are guilty of the possibility of redemption.
“The death penalty is inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person. The common good can be safeguarded and the requirements of justice can be met without recourse to capital punishment: 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. #NoDeathPenalty,” wrote Pope Leo.
The Pope’s post came a day after Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and the President of the US Bishops’ Conference made statements against the planned public execution of Nidal Hassan.
Mr. Hassan was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 others at Fort Hood in November 2009. A military court sentenced him to death in 2013.
On Thursday, the Pentagon announced his execution by firing squad scheduled for December 3, 2026, although further legal proceedings could delay it.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Cardinal Parolin said plans for a livestreamed execution were unacceptable.
“It is truly incomprehensible that anyone would want to use this method in this day and age,” he said. “I do not know for what purpose. It is certainly unacceptable to turn death into a spectacle. However guilty the person may be, there are other ways.”
He reiterated that the death penalty “is incompatible with human dignity and does not serve as a deterrent.”
Earlier on Friday, Archbishop Paul Coakley, President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, expressed “shock and great sorrow” and urged reconsideration.
“In no way can Hassan’s actions be condoned, but this decision is a barbaric promotion of a culture of death and must be reconsidered,” he told Vatican News.
He warned that a public execution would undermine the nation’s moral fabric and prayed that Americans would always choose life.
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