God Says No to the Death Penalty

In the last few days at daily Mass we heard the story of Creation from the Book of Genesis,  followed by the story of the first sin, original sin, by Adam and Eve.  We heard of the punishment prescribed by God.  They were thrown out of the Garden.

Following their expulsion from the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve had two sons, Cain and Abel.   Today’s first reading tells what happened between them.

There was sibling rivalry between them.  Cain became envious of Abel.  God cautioned Cain against his envy, calling it a “demon lurking at the door.”

Cain became consumed by his envy.  So much so that he killed his brother Abel. 

God says to Cain, “The LORD then said: “What have you done!  Listen: your brother’s blood cries out to me from the soil!”  Notice that when God says, “What have you done,” there is no question mark but rather an exclamation point. 

There is no question mark because God knew exactly what Cain has done.  God is everywhere.  God was present when Cain killed his brother Abel just as He is present whenever we sin.

There was no need for a trial.  Not only did God see for himself what Cain did, He knew what was in Cain’s heart.  He knew the envy that burned within Cain.

God then punished Cain.  Cain had been a farmer, a tiller of the soil, but no more.  The soil would no longer bear its produce for Cain.  Cain became a “restless wanderer.” 

What God did not do was execute Cain.  If one goes by an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth(Leviticus 24:20), one would say Cain deserved execution but that is not God’s way.  An eye for an eye was not a command by God to do but rather a limitation on human beings against crimes.

Even in Cain’s sin, God saw Cain’s life as precious.  God chose not to execute Cain. 

When Cain killed Abel, not only did God not execute Cain, He put his mark on Cain so that no one else would kill him.

God said no to the death penalty.

Peace,

Fr. Jeff