ATLANTA, GA; Religion and political leaders of Christians, Sikhs, Jews, Roman Catholics, Protestants, Muslims and American Indians met at the Martin Luther King Centre here to discuss the abolition of death penalty in the United States.
The meeting was inaugurated by Coretta Scott King Jr., the wife of late civil rights leader Martin Luther King. Those who addressed it included Archbishop Morino of the Roman Catholic Church in Atlanta.
Signers of the statement, “Lightening the light of the conscience” included Dr. William K. Cober of the American Baptist Churches, Isidro Gali of American Indians and Death Penalty, Rev. Mary
Ann Bellinger of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in USA, Mohammad T. Medhi of the National Council of Islamic Af fairs, Rev. Thomas Laird Jones, of Presbyterian Church, Rajwant Singh of Sikh Association of America and National Sikh Centre, Rabbi Eugene J. Lipman of Union American Hebrew Congregations, Rey, Joyce Smith of Unitarian Universalist Association, Rev. Dr. Avery D. Post of United Church of Christ and Bishop L. Scott Allen of the United States Methodist Church. Rajwant Singh the secretary of Gur: Gobind Singh Foundation told the WSN that he felt it was important to take a position on the issues of concern in America, such as the death penalty.
The opposition to death penalty meant that Sikhs do not regard vegenence as a part of punishment.
It does not imply turning the other cheek, in fact Sikhism stresses stopping spread of evil with
active resistance,” he added. A statement issued on the occasion said, “ We are here to light the torch of conscience, to rekindle the religious community’s long-held opposition to capital punishment.”
“We believe that the imposition of the death penalty is inconsistent with our religious values, which include respect for human life, nonviolence, restoration and reconciliation and the message of God’s redemptive love.”
“We believe that each human is created in the image of God, and thus we believe in the inherent worth of human life and the inalienable dignity of the human estate.”
“We believe that capital punishment is not necessary to any legitimate goal of the state. It degrades and brutalizes the society which practices it and it is increasingly rejected by civilized peoples throughout the world. Capital punishment is too often discriminatory in its application. It is cruel, unjust and incompatible with human dignity and self-respect. We cannot isolate ourselves from corporate responsibility for every execution as well as for every victim.”
Article extracted from this publication >> April 28, 1989
