Does The Death Penalty Violate The Sixth Commandment?
There are three issues that will invariably divide Christians and the federal, state and local governments that serve them: Abortion, the Death Penalty, and the Separation of Church and State. I recently found myself witness to one of those issues. The county board of commissioners in the county in which I live was approached by People of Faith Against the Death Penalty, an North Carolina-based organization. They were asked to adopt a resolution calling for a moratorium against the death penalty in North Carolina. The group told the local board that the death penalty in North Carolina is unfairly administered and explained that a disproportionate number of felons who are being put to death are poor and/or black. They also explained that two out of every three convictions in the country were overturned on appeal, largely due to incompetent legal representation. The issue here is not whether counties have the authority to stick its nose in a matter that is reserved for state and federal
