IN
THE SHADOW OF DEATH
WORDS Jessica Gadd
It is usually battle-scarred soldiers who confront death as part of their job description, but Sr Helen Prejean is a warrior of a different sort.
Death Row spiritual adviser, Sr Helen Prejean, has held the eyes of six human beings as they were killed.
She relates her experiences in her two books, Dead Man Walking, made into a film of the same name (starring Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn), and more recently, Death of Innocents, about the execution of innocent people on death row.
Witnessing what she describes as government-censured torture and killing galvanised Sr Helen for action.
'After watching the first death I knew I had to tell this story', she says. 'Patrick was killed with only a few witnesses in the middle of the night. I thought if more people knew about this they would not want it to happen.'
Sr Helen met Patrick Sonnier at his invitation after an exchange of letters. He was on death row in Louisiana for the killing of two teenagers.
'When I accepted his offer I did not expect that he would actually be killed, as at the time there had not been an execution in Louisiana in over 20 years', she says. 'Patrick was one of the ones who was genuinely remorseful for his crimes. He used to pray for his victims every night.
'In the hours leading up to the execution, Patrick kept asking if I was OK. At one point I replied “I have the strength of four lions”—I don't know where that came from! But inside I was praying for him to keep it together, because if he lost it, I knew I would too.'
She describes watching Patrick's execution as a second baptism, an 'unleashing of grace'.
'His last words were of love and thankfulness ... It left an indelible mark on my soul, one that committed me to pursuing the gospel as it relates to poor people and the quest for justice.'
Sr Helen's 20-year battle against the death penalty began that night in April 1984. She fights because she believes that violence does as much damage to the perpetrator as the victim, because the person being executed may actually be innocent, but ultimately because she believes in the dignity of all human life.
It was on this point, the dignity of life, that Helen sought to engage the attention of Pope John Paul II. She had heard through unofficial channels that he had seen and been touched by Dead Man Walking, and noted his interest in some high-profile death penalty cases in the US. Hopeful that the Catholic Church would take a principled stand on the issue of capital punishment, Helen wrote to John Paul II in January 1997.
Her letter argued that even those who have committed terrible crimes deserve the human person's right to dignity, and pointed out that the origin of the church's position was based on self defence and the protection of society. Today, there were suitable alternatives such as life imprisonment.
John Paul II had already written Evangelium Vitae, the Gospel of Life, where he stated the death penalty should be a rare or non existent practice, used 'only in cases of absolute necessity'. Sr Helen pointed out in her letter that this phrase gave people a loophole that meant the Pope's words could be quoted in defence of the death penalty.
'Within a week of my sending the letter, Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) announced a significant change to the Latin version of the catechism. They cut the clause on 'grave and grievous', which in effect changes the position to mean that there are no exceptions in which the death penalty is justified.
'When the official announcement came on the eighth of September 1997 it changed 1600 years of Catholic teaching.'
When she first commenced her journey as a nun Helen would never have envisaged her actions having such an impact on the Catholic Church. Neither could she have envisaged the personal impact that her ministry has had in her own life.
'Being involved in this journey has given me a huge thirst and focus for life. It cannot be trivialised. The heart of Jesus' message is that all of us are worth more than our worst act', Helen says.
Currently Helen is walking with two prisoners who are on death row, both of whom she believes are innocent.
'It means so much to them that you care. These people get 1000 signals a day that they are worth nothing, so presence is everything. The first question you ask is “who is your lawyer,” the second “how is your case going?” Then you just do whatever love demands.'
Love also demands compassion for the families of the victims. Sr Helen now embraces this side of her ministry, which she calls the other arm of the cross, though it took a little time for her to realise she could be of help to the victim's families also.
'The presence and suffering of loss is huge. Sometimes only God can touch that suffering. I'm glad I discovered that I could be of some help though. Many people stay away from grieving families because they don't know how to handle the pain.'
Sadly, as many as 70% of families also endure a marriage break-up after the loss of a child. 'Whatever cracks were there to begin with can quickly widen. It's partly to do with different ways of grieving. No parent ever feels as though they've loved their child perfectly. All we can give these people is love.'
Sr Helen believes that the death penalty allows politicians to look tough on crime without actually dealing with the causes of crime, such as poverty.
'Politicians say that capital punishment is to help the victim's family heal, that it honours the loved one. Families have to wait
10-20 years to sit in the front row and watch the killer's death. It's morally bankrupt and legalised vengeance', Sr Helen says.
She relates the story of one of the victim's fathers, Lloyd LeBlanc, who underwent a long journey to forgiveness.
'It's not about condoning the crime. Lloyd would never condone. Every birthday is the loss experienced all over again. But he will not let hatred overcome him; he says that though they killed his son, they're not going to kill him. He knows that he can honour his son by loving more.
'Jesus tells us to forgive—and forgiveness takes strength.'
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