A friend of mine was killed last month. It's not the fact that he is dead that rankles me. Sometimes death may be better than life, especially for those of us who believe that Christ has gone to prepare a place for us. The feeling I am having is because this was a totally senseless thing to happen.
Jim Lowery was executed 22 years after the crime he was charged with was committed. The person they killed was no more the person who committed the crime than I was. Here was a man who lived in compassion and concern for those around him.
I know well many of the men who live on death row. I have been visiting those here in Indiana since 1986. Never once have I heard anyone say anything negative about Jim. Those men live in close quarters and tempers flare at times, but they didn't flare at Jim. I wonder how many of us would get that kind of report from the people around us? He obeyed all the rules. He caused no troubles.
I'm sure some of you who are reading this are fuming because it took 22 years to kill him. Many want executions to take place right away. It can't be done that way simply because the criminal justice system is so often unjust. We have layers of law in this country, and too many times how you are dealt with is determined by how big your wallet is and how high a price you can pay your lawyer. We all saw this happen with the O.J. Simpson trial. Things like the color of your skin and whether or not it is an election year determine the outcome of cases. There would be few appeals if mistakes weren't made in the first place.
Jim would have been an asset to society if he could have lived and served out his time. A number of men I have been a friend and pastor to have had their sentences overturned. They are living productive lives--working, getting their education and helping others.
I've gone to several graduation services, both high school and college, for men who were formerly on death row. At their programs, I saw these men not only receive diplomas, but also receive honorary plaques for all kinds of services they had done at this prison. They taught young prisoners how to read, worked and organized the library, ran computer programs, counseling and on and on. These were men the state wanted to kill.
I work at pastoring these inmates and I work against the death penalty because I cannot in my wildest thought imagine that Christ would condone it. I've heard every argument anyone can present and it all comes down to the fact that the person who is a champion for the death penalty is still rooted in the pit of revenge and unforgiveness.
Many dear people who have suffered the loss of a loved one to crime are encouraged to believe that if the guilty one is killed they will find closure. Real closure, which is peace with God, will not come in any way except by forgiveness.
Jim Lowery has been executed, and what have we proved? We have proved nothing except that we have lowered ourselves to the exact same level as the most heinous murderer.
Wanda Callahan
Goshen, IN
July, 2001
This statement was first published in the Letters to the Editor columns of the Elkhart Truth and the Goshen News. Used by permission.
Comments about this article may be e-mailed to: John Fisher, johnjf@goshen.edu
HTML editing by Lon Sherer, lonhs@goshen.edu
SFP published: 7/01
SFP Homepage