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Pentagon's Plan to Livestream Execution Draws Religious Leaders' Condemnation
Confirmed
In Short: The Pentagon's announcement to livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan, who killed 13 people at Fort Hood in 2009, has drawn strong condemnation from religious leaders across the country.
The Pentagon's announcement to livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan, who killed 13 people at Fort Hood in 2009, has drawn strong condemnation from religious leaders across the country.
Rev. Robert Jeffress, senior pastor of First Baptist Church Dallas, supports the livestreaming, stating it aligns with biblical prescriptions for public executions.
However, many religious leaders disagree, including Bishop Joe S. Vásquez of the Diocese of Austin, who said, 'The public execution even of one who has done grave harm will only further undermine the moral fabric of our nation and be a blight on the conscience of its people.'
Josh Howerton, senior pastor of Lakepointe Church in Rockwall, Texas, also voiced support for public executions but criticized the livestreaming as 'Sick. Childish. Petulant. Stupid. And dark.'
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and other religious leaders have joined in condemning the Pentagon's proposal, with USCCB head Archbishop Joseph Kurtz calling it a 'barbaric promotion of a culture of death.'
Rabbi Jonah Dov Pesner of the Union for Reform Judaism added, 'These kinds of public executions we’ve seen in other countries, whether it’s Iran or Afghanistan…can constitute a form of cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, or punishment.'
The United Nations also weighed in, with spokesperson Stephane Dujarric stating, 'A government executing someone in public, or in front of live cameras, frankly, is abhorrent.'
New Zealand’s Classification Office noted it would not have the authority to block internet users from accessing the livestream, emphasizing that 'distressing as content may be, it is not always unlawful.'
The last government-sanctioned public execution in the U.S. took place in Kentucky in 1936, highlighting the rarity of such events.
The Pentagon's decision to livestream the execution has sparked a new ethical and moral debate among religious leaders, with many questioning the morality of broadcasting such an event.
The Pentagon declined to respond directly to the USCCB’s statement, only confirming that the execution will be livestreamed and that details are forthcoming.
What this adds
The Pentagon's plan to livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan has drawn widespread condemnation from religious leaders, with many questioning the morality and ethics of such a move.
Background
The Pentagon announced it will livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan, a move that has sparked bipartisan backlash.
The Pentagon's plan to livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan, convicted of killing 13 people at Fort Hood in 2009, has sparked bipartisan backlash.
What's confirmed
- “The word of God exhorts us: ‘do not repay anyone evil for evil' (Romans 12:17),” Coakley said, quoting the New Testament of the Bible.
- A DOD official declined to respond directly to the USCCB’s statement, only confirming the execution will be livestreamed and that details are forthcoming.
What's still developing
- In his post on X, Howerton went on to say: “Some are misinterpreting this as me saying the government is always commanded to do this, or that it is always wise,” he said.
- Related: From prominent pastors to JD Vance, GOP leaders are centering Christianity in their get-out-the-vote messages Josh Howerton, the senior pastor of megachurch Lakepointe Church in Rockwall, who has built a large online following, said in a social media post he “hesitantly” points out that executions in the Bible “were performed publicly before ‘all the assembly,’” and quoted the Book of Leviticus.
- In the past century, Catholics and mainline branches of Protestantism have questioned the death penalty, said D.
- “We undermine our own humanity when we treat another person’s death as something to watch, celebrate or use for entertainment,” Murphy said in a statement.
- “I don’t think there’s any way that you can follow Christ — the Prince of Peace, the one who blessed the merciful and interrupted an execution by saying ‘let the one who is without sin cast the first stone’ — and then champion executions,” said Claiborne, an evangelical Christian.
- This undated photo provided by the Bell County Sheriff’s Department shows Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist. (Photo from Bell County Sheriff’s Department) If the Pentagon goes through with plans to livestream the killing of Hasan, the U.S. will join Iran and Saudi Arabia as one of very few countries that still conduct public executions.
- “We’ll make sure that people are able to watch it,” Hegseth said Thursday.
- “Showing it live is tantamount…to it being public, and could be a violation of the prohibition against torture,” he said.
- Meanwhile, New Zealand’s national censor said on Friday it would not have the authority to block internet users from accessing a livestream of the execution of a former Army major planned by the US, as rights groups pressed governments to protest.
- “The suggestion that an execution by firing squad should be livestreamed for public viewing is an appalling disregard for human dignity,” said Kyinzom Dhongdue, a campaign manager at the rights group.