This morning a fellow with whom I attended Sunday School as a teenager was executed by lethal injection in the state of Ohio. I've been pondering this today, recognizing that my opposition to the death penalty now has a personal face.
His is a sordid story of religious zealotry gone grievously awry. He was the leader of a small fanatical cult with familial and historic connections to the denomination we once shared. Sixteen years ago he murdered a family of five people, including three children, claiming God had commanded him to do so.
At that time I was on the staff of the denomination and was thereby involved in media relations around this crime, which had widespread national coverage. As a result his story intersects with mine at two points--as young teenagers in the blissful innocence of church campfires and Sunday School, and then later as adults when he was descending into the darkness of his psychological delusions.
There is plenty to be said about the cultural and theological underpinnings of a case like this. It has been examined in books and essays that attribute it to such things as twisted religious teachings, an abusive childhood, or criminal manipulation of weak people for personal gratification. Whatever the cause, Jeffrey Lundgren's crimes lead understandably to the position that if anyone deserves the death penalty he does.
I can't argue with that, which is the problem all of us who oppose capital punishment face. It is one thing to rally to the cause of someone believed to be innocent. It is quite another to generate energy on behalf of those who have butchered children or killed police officers, who have no remorse for what they have done, and who leave grieving families with a lifetime of pain and loss.
But this is an issue where one must keep an eye on the principle and not dwell on the particular. In the United States the death penalty is undeniably applied disproportionately to the poor and to people of color. Despite popular assumptions, it is far more costly to execute someone than to place them in prison for life. It is capricious and arbitrary in its implementation, there is absolutely no evidence that it is a deterrent, and there is no question that innocent people have been executed. Many useful facts can be found on the website of the Death Penalty Information Center.
All of those are compelling reasons to abolish the death penalty, but there is one more that trumps them all for me. When a state takes the life of a human being, whatever the reason, the result is to brutalize the state and by extension to brutalize each of us as individuals. I do not think we can overestimate the blot that places on the soul of our society. Revenge does not heal.
Jeffrey Lundgren was not a friend, but he and I walked in the same orbit of influence when we were young. I do not know what took him down the dark path that ended today at 10:26 a.m. His deluded mind led him to an incomprehensible and brutal act.
Now, in response, we have done the same. I feel no peace.
Technorati tags: Capital Punishment Jeffrey Lundgren Death Penalty
Have you stopped writing this blog?
ReplyDeleteThanks for asking. No, I've not stopped writing the blog. I guess I've just been a bit preoccupied. I plan to resume posting this week.
ReplyDeleteA very good friend sent me the link to your blog. I have sent it to my brother, and will post it on my blog. Thank you. Thank you for putting your thoughts out there and letting us ride along with you. tinybutterfly
ReplyDeleteGrant,
ReplyDeleteIt's been a month since you've posted on the blog...Are you done?
Sorry, I've been neglectful the past few weeks and haven't posted as frequently as I'd like. I've chastised myself and thereby feel duly scolded. I expect to get back to posting this week.
ReplyDeleteThanks for checking. Since this is mostly for my own amusement, I sometimes forget that others are spending time logging on to see if there are fresh posts. I'll try to be more sensitive. :-)
WHAT AN INSENSTIVE RESPONSE TO SOMEONE WHO WAS ACTUALLY INTERESTED IN YOUR BLOG....OF COURSE PEOPLE CHECK TO SEE IF YOU'VE WRITTEN ANYTHING...ISN'T THAT THE PURPOSE OF A BLOG? TO SHARE IDEAS? IF THIS IS ONLY FOR YOUR OWN AMUSEMENT, WHY DO IT? WHY BLOG IF IT'S ONLY TO aMUSE YOURSELF? SEEMS PRETTY SELF CENTERED AND SELF SERVING....
ReplyDeleteSorry to seem insensitive. My point is only that I started this blog as a venue for collecting some of my thinking about various issues. I have been gratified, and a bit surprised, that others found it to be of sufficient interest that they stop by to read or comment.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I have not promoted the blog at all, and certainly did not intend to instill in myself or others a sense of obligation or expectation as to the frequency of posts. I have enough other things in life to feel guilty about. No need to add one more.
That having been said, I have found the exercise of writing these pieces to be personally rewarding. I appreciate those who use a little slice of their life to read or comment. Perhaps I need to honor that small gift by being more responsive.
Thanks for grumbling at me. I probably am not prepared to agree that doing a blog for my own amusement is unduly self-centered, but I can accept that it is self-serving. That's actually my point. :)
But, like it or not, I now feel just a tad guilty. See what you've done. Woe is me!
Grant, I have long opposed Capital Punishment, but had a similar experience of going to Sunday School with a kid that as a young man was sentenced to die. Though my personal preference opposed the action, it helped me to have a good understanding of the opposing view and respect it as much as I wanted my view respected.
ReplyDeleteJB