SOCIAL ISSUES IN THE SUMMER A BIBLICAL VIEW OF RIGHT AND WRONG SUMMER 2020 CAPITAL PUNISHMENT I. UNDERSTANDING CAPITAL PUNISHMENT A. What is capital punishment? Capital punishment is ​putting someone to death for a crime that person committed. B. What does the law say about capital punishment? 1. Views of Justice a. Rehabilitationism:​ the purpose of justice is to rehabilitate and not to avenge b. Restitutionism: ​the purpose of justice is to help the one harmed receive restitution c. Retributionism: ​the purpose of justice is to punish 2. US Law a. Modern capital punishment was established by the first U.S. Congress through the Crimes Act of 1790​. b. However, capital punishment in the US is limited under the Eighth Amendment to cases of ​homicide, crimes against the state, high-level drug trafficking and crimes against humanity committed by mentally competent adults​. c. In the ​1972 Furman v. Georgia​ trial, the Supreme Court ruled against the death penalty on the grounds that it constituted cruel and unusual punishment. d. But in the ​1976 Gregg v. Georgia​ trial, the death penalty was reinstated. e. Today, it is usually only applied where ​aggravating circumstances​ exist, including aggravated murder, felony murder, and contract killing. f. The death penalty is currently a legal sentence in ​29 states ​and in the federal civilian and military legal systems. g. Methods of execution and the crimes subject to the penalty vary. The most common method of execution in recent decades has been ​lethal injection​. C. What does the Bible say about capital punishment? 1. Life is a gift from God and is to be valued (Gen 1:27; Ps 139:13-16). 2. Murder is prohibited by God (Exod 20:13; Deut 5:17). 3. God allows for capital punishment by governments in cases of murder (Gen 9:6; Rom 13:1-7). 4. There are examples of capital punishment in the Bible for crimes other than murder (Exod 21:15; 22:18-20; Lev 24:16; Num 15:32-36). II. QUESTIONS A. Is capital punishment mandatory? B. What crimes are punishable by capital punishment? C. If capital punishment is to be practiced, what methods are acceptable? D. Does belief in capital punishment contradict a belief that euthanasia and abortion are wrong? E. How does the command to “love your neighbor” apply to criminals? F. How should we think about apparent racial inequities or errors in the criminal justice system? III. SUMMARY A. Capital punishment is permissible for governments in cases of murder because life is a gift from God. In other cases, the government has the right to bear the sword but must use its discretion. B. We should not rejoice in the death of criminals, but rather pray for them and seek their good. C. As Christians, we can rejoice in the fact that we deserve capital punishment for our sins, but God showed us mercy and grace through Jesus Christ! .