Denver Catholic

11 DENVER CATHOLIC | JANUARY 31-FEBRUARY 6, 2015 W hat would it be like to su« er a "massive amnesia?" The question is troubling, but it is one that the encyclical Lumen Fidei invites us to ask. There Pope Francis and his co-author Benedict XVI alert us that the "question of truth"—the great question of our day—is a "question of memory," even of "deep memory." Every Christian knows instinctu- ally how crucial the memory is to the spiritual life. In the fi rst place, there is our memory of the saving deeds and su« erings of Jesus Christ: his passion, death, resurrection and ascension. These events defi ne our sense of space and of time. The holy city of Jerusalem is the center of the world's attention, the altar the focal point of our churches, and the crucifi x the symbol that makes a Catholic house a home. The rhythm of our weeks and years is also built upon our memory of Christ, with each Sunday marking the Lord's resurrection, and the cycle of Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter and Pentecost marking the seasons of our year. Without our "deep memory" of Christ, we would be lost in the cosmos. It is astonishing to think that it was over two centuries ago that the French Revolution tried to do away with Sunday by instituting a 10-day week. We asso- ciate such iconoclastic secularism with our own age's relentless opposition to the lowly manger scene and the humble Holy Family. Yet we must not be sur- prised by cultural forces that would like to see us forget Christ and the saints. Christ himself mourned that his people had forgotten the words of Moses and of the prophets, and the psalms again and again portray a grateful memory of God's saving deeds as the soul of piety. God is Truth, but we know him through his deeds, and so hold upon truth depends upon our "deep memory" of how the Father's love for us was "manifested" by Jesus Christ (1 Jn 4:9). Yet, as Benedict XVI liked to say, we meet Christ in the Church, for the Church gives us the Scriptures and the sacraments in which we encounter Christ. And so, as we prepare for the season of Lent and consider ways we might come to know Christ better, one practice that we may wish to consider is reading the lives of the saints. Why the saints? The answer is simple. If we want to know what a football team is, we know where to look: not to unsportsmanlike and self-absorbed players, but to those who consistently put the team fi rst and value their own personal achievements less than they prize the team's victory. It is the same way with the Church. A dreary litany of sinners and scandals in the end tells us nothing about the Church other than that she is made up of fallen human beings. The same sins and scandals can be found the world over. Holiness is what sets the Church apart, and holi- ness we fi nd in the saints. An e« ective way to heal the massive amnesia from which we su« er today and to draw a little closer to Christ is by learn- ing about his friends the saints. A good place to start are the Wednesday General Audience addresses given by Benedict XVI between 2006 and 2011. They are all available from the Vatican website. Some of my favorites are Christ and the Church, St. Therese of Lisieux and St. Francis de Sales, but with 12 dozen from which to choose, there are paths to the sanctifi cation of memory for each of us. F or decades the Catholic Church has called for the abolition of the death penalty. Despite the Church's position, various polls still show U.S. Catholics split 50/50 on whether the death penalty is morally acceptable. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that jurors who would not vote for a death sentence because of their beliefs are excluded from jury service in capital cases. As a result, half of all U.S. Cath- olics are ineligible to serve on capital juries. I am an attorney and for the vast majority of the last 28 years I have been called upon to represent men facing the death penalty. It is my hope that by sharing my experiences it provokes thought in Catholics who still believe in the death penalty and might someday be called upon to sit as a capital juror or vote on abolition. In capital cases, the overwhelming emotion that is felt by all is the su« ering of the victims. The anguish, the loss, the enduring sadness and the deep, deep pain these good people su« er is palpable and ever so real. In my experience, in every capital case each defendant either endured unspeakable neglect as a child, was a victim of physical or sexual assault, had brain injuries or abnor- malities, or su« ered from a toxic mix of untreated mental health disorders. Absolutely all of them could have led productive lives if family or society had stepped in and suª ciently helped them. Despite the horrible crimes they com- mitted, all of these capital defendants also had good qualities and you could fi nd in each one of them their humanity and the opportunity for redemption. As a capital defense attorney there are very few rewards but having the opportunity to see the light of God and humanity in those that are called "the worst of the worst" is a wonderful experience. It is this portrayal of the contrast in su« ering, that of the defendant and that of his victims, which plays out in the courtroom and from which jurors form their ultimate opinions on capital punishment. But there are several other groups who su« er from capital punish- ment that you never hear about. There are the family members of defendants who have done nothing wrong but who are indirectly sentenced to years of agony waiting to fi nd out when their loved one will be put to death. It is torturous and cruel to ask a parent or any person to wait and plan for the day when the state puts their child or loved one to death. There are the school teachers, coaches and neigh- bors who knew the defendant before he did anything wrong and who are pained by the death penalty drama, the goal of which is to end the life of someone they fondly remember. I have seen judges and their sta« lit- erally age decades because of the great weight and responsibility placed on them to preside over capital cases. I have seen prosecutors, defense attor- neys, investigators and sta« su« er signifi cant medical and psychological injuries and seen marriages crumble as a result of the stress of the capital punishment process. Years and years shaved o« lives of people who were called upon to play a role in the death penalty process. Jurors also su« er. After a death verdict many jurors have nightmares, experience regret and have deep sorrow for what they were asked to do and all are indelibly changed forever. Some victims of the crimes for which a death sentence is sought also later su« er when a death sentence is executed. Some may think this is a small minority but the national group, Murder Victims Family for Reconcilia- tion, which opposes the death penalty, has thrived for more than 35 years and has members throughout the country. The rest of the citizens also su« er due to millions being spent pursuing the death penalty which could be used for worthy causes which can actually reduce violent crime such as mental health screening and treatment or pro- viding assistance to families in crisis. Since the death penalty was renewed in 1976, Colorado has spent millions and has executed one person. Any other state program that had a single result in 39 years at such a cost would be quickly scuttled by a bipartisan legislative initiative. Why is the death penalty an exception to fi scal sanity? Hopefully these are additional matters that all Catholics will think about if they are called upon to cast a vote on capital punishment either on a ballot or a ver- dict form. James Castle, a criminal defense attorney in Colorado, received the St. Thomas More Award from the Catholic Lawyer's Guild this month. Guest Column JAMES CASTLE Christopher Blum is academic dean of the Augustine Institute in Greenwood Village, www.augustineinstitute.org. Guest Column CHRISTOPHER O. BLUM, PH.D. Sanctify your memory The forgotten victims of capital punishment BOOK Christopher O. Blum is co-author with Christopher Shan- non of "The Past as Pilgrimage: Narra- tive, Tradition & the Renewal of Catholic History" | Christen- dom Press, 2014 as According to Dec. 28 were left cartoon Lethal injection room at San Quentin State Prison. Photo courtesy of California Department of Corrections/Wikimedia Commons

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