Though many, due to some illness or disease, may be aware that their death is very near, by and large, I suspect they still are not sure of the exact day or hour when the Son of Man will come for them (Mt. 25:13). Here in my home state of Missouri, 47 year old Martin Link knows the day and the hour, but he’s not sick. In a little over an hour he will be put to death for the kidnapping, rape and murder of 11-year-old girl in 1991.
I can’t imagine what goes through the mind of a person who is not just facing certain death, but knows the exact day and hour when he will meet his maker – especially one who has committed such an unspeakable crime. So tonight my little votive candle is lit for Martin Link, for the conversion of all criminals, rapists and murderers and that we all may learn to overcome evil with love.
This, of course, also has me contemplating the hour of my own death and praying that I may be like the wise virgins (Mt. 25:1-13) and appear before Jesus with my lamp filled with the oil of faith and hope and burning with the pure flame of charity. Fr. Kenneth Baker has a beautiful editorial on the importance of thinking about death each day.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church on capitol punishment:
2267 Assuming that the guilty party’s identity and responsibility have been fully determined, the traditional teaching of the Church does not exclude recourse to the death penalty, if this is the only possible way of effectively defending human lives against the unjust aggressor.
If, however, non-lethal means are sufficient to defend and protect people’s safety from the aggressor, authority will limit itself to such means, as these are more in keeping with the concrete conditions of the common good and are more in conformity to the dignity of the human person.
Today, in fact, as a consequence of the possibilities which the state has for effectively preventing crime, by rendering one who has committed an offense incapable of doing harm – without definitely taking away from him the possibility of redeeming himself – the cases in which the execution of the offender is an absolute necessity “are very rare, if not practically non-existent.”
The New Theological Movement has the excerpt from her autobiography in which St. Therese of Lisieux recounts how prayed for the soul of a condemned rapist and murderer who was sentenced to death – one of her first apostolic endeavors when she was just fourteen years old.
Related: Pro-Life is Whole-Life
8 Comments on “Martin Link Knows the Day and the Hour”
Good riddance.
Sorry, that’s the most charitable thing I can think to say.
God riddance? The man’s been locked up for well over a decade. He was off the streets and no threat to society. There was nothing gained by his execution. As Catholics we should seek justice (which this execution was not) while also loving and hoping and praying for the conversion of all sinners – however heinous their crimes were.
My middle daughter is 11.
I can see how that might make you more sensitive to these things, but that doesn’t excuse you from the call to love sinners. St. Maria Goretti’s mother is an excellent example for parents in these circumstances: http://reflectionsofaparalytic.com/?p=770 (Maria was also 11 when she was murdered)
I hope your votive candle was also lit for his victims, especially the family members of that 11 year old. How much information did you search out regarding them?
Too often when asked for details regarding the victims, opponents of the death penalty are clueless. They know quite a lot about the felon to be executed, almost zippo about those most impacted by his actions. That includes the names of the murdered victim, the names of the family members, how they’ve fared since the crime, any show of support for them outside of our own self-generated grief groups.
Yes, I’m personally familiar with this problem. Pardon my apathy towards any murderer.
So for those of us dealing with the aftermath of a murdered loved one it’s a slap in the face to hear of the supposed wrong being done to the felon. The cries for mercy fall silent when we ask for equal consideration. Our lives are altered forever without any culpability of our own, yet the loudest voices heard for compassion are for those responsible for the holes left in our hearts.
The Beatitudes say, “Blessed are they who mourn for they shall be comforted”. Guess we’re just supposed to be satisfied with that as a promise for the hereafter, our fellow Catholics certainly don’t seem concerned with it.
They’re too busy holding candlelight vigils against the death penalty meted out to those who slaughtered our family members.
Noted.
The trouble is, if you don’t execute him, some chucklehead is going to work overtime to release him to the community. At that point, the odds favor some other little girl losing her life.
Life in prison, in America, no longer means life in prison.
Furthermore, too many of these deadly criminals put the lives of the jail employees and other prisoners at risk. What crime have those people done that leads to their death?
I will pray for his soul. But, I will also acknowledge that he needs to be executed, for the safety of this society.
Subvet –
Of course I grieve for the victim and her family!
I am sorry for your loss, and I am sorry if my post touched a nerve, but I will not apologize for caring about the soul of a condemned sinner. It is the distinguishing mark of the children of God that we love and pray for even those who persecute us and wound us deeply – that we follow the example of Christ who sat down with tax collectors and sinners because the sick are in most need of the Divine Physician (Matthew 9:12, Luke 5:31). That doesn’t mean we don’t care about innocent victims and their families.
No, I have never had to deal with a loved one being taken away from me, thank God, and I can’t imagine the pain and loss that you feel. But I hope and I pray that if I ever do, I will have the strength and the grace to follow the example of my Lord and Savior and open my heart to love and forgiveness.
Chelsea, thank you for your response to my comment.
I also pray for the condemned and those living in sin. Should have made that clear. Nor do I seek an apology for your concern over the souls of murderers. We should all share a concern for those firmly in the grip of evil. I’ve felt a very slight version of that grip and honestly would not wish it upon anybody at all, not the men responsible for my brother’s death, not Martin Link or anyone else.
Those who oppose the death penalty would gain a lot more adherents in the way of folk like myself if they kept the victims of violence in mind to the same degree as death row inmates. You do keep those victims in your prayers and that last isn’t directed against yourself, I’m just making an observation. I HAVE run across many people, both in and out of the Church, who would marginalize the pain felt in order to justify their own agenda (one of the more interesting ones was a 2nd Amendment zealot who told me “sacrifices must be made for the greater good”. I doubt you want to know my response.)
I’m rambling and will cut this short. I respect your committment to the prolife cause, keep up the good work. I’ll keep you in my prayers. May God bless you.