Student questions the death penalty
Divine inspiration and discernment lead student to organize campus
pro-life
group, "Image of God."
PAMELA SAVOIA | FLORIDA CATHOLIC CORRESPONDENT
Published:09.28.07
The death penalty was the topic recently at the Bethany Center in Lutz for Susan Recinella and her husband, Dale, who spoke about their experiences ministering to death-row inmates. The couple stands on either side of Pamela Savoia, a student at Saint Leo University and founder of a pro-life group there.
COURTESY PHOTO
"The issues of life and death are something I take seriously,"
LUTZ | I am a 19-year-old student attending Saint Leo University who has a double major in religion and psychology and I live in the freshmen dorm as a student chaplain. I am also a Catholic with the responsibility to love the sacred image of God and to see Christ in every person. This is why I felt it was important to attend a conference called “Understanding the Culture of Life and the Death Penalty,” Sept. 15 at the Bethany Center in Lutz.
As a young adult, I never knew of the deep suffering that so many go through when dealing with the death penalty. When a person is murdered, his/her family has to go through a very painful process. What I didn’t know is that the family of the criminal also experiences that same pain when their loved one is punished with the penalty of death.
I am glad that I went to the conference because I have always questioned why it is wrong for a person to murder someone, but OK to sentence a person to death. I learned that all killing is wrong, and that the death penalty is committing murder. The speakers, Dale and Susan Recinella, both of whom have worked with inmates on death row, helped me to gain a sense of what it is like to experience the horror of the death penalty and that no one deserves to have their life taken from them. As Pope John Paul II said, “The death penalty is cruel and unnecessary.”
The issues of life and death are something I take seriously, and I can pinpoint the exact date — Jan. 22, 2006 — when God began calling me to participate in the pro-life movement. I was in high school and did not know how he wanted me to accomplish this goal, so I decided to pray and ask for his guidance. Shortly after, God began to speak to my heart. He instructed me to start a pro-life group at Saint Leo University and to call it Imago Dei (which means “image of God”). The Lord went on to explain the reason for choosing this name. He said, “The group shall be called Imago Dei because you are going out to protect my image that gets destroyed every day.”
Imago Dei is a peaceful pro-life group founded on Jesus Christ. It is based on God, peace and prayer, because these are the most powerful tools against the culture of death. The group is starting its second semester on Saint Leo University’s campus as an organization that respects every stage of life. I am hoping Imago Dei will aid Saint Leo to reach its goal of having an increase in Catholic identity on campus.
I am thankful that I was able to attend the death penalty conference as it has greatly inspired me. Every life is sacred and must be respected. By attending the conference, I realized that the themes of mercy and peace also play a huge role in this moral issue. Jesus suffered from the death penalty as he died on the cross so that every human being could have peace. Susan Recinella said, “There is no one, no matter what they have done, who is excluded from the mercy of God.” She went on to say, “Peace comes with forgiveness.”
Peace and mercy are so very important. Maybe, as Christians, we can spread this message of Christ’s mercy with love so one day our world may find peace and will no longer have to worry about abortion, euthanasia and the death penalty.
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