United Methodist News Service

Church exec opposes McVeigh execution, cites church's view

The top executive of the social action and advocacy agency of the United Methodist Church is calling for prayer for all people affected by the Oklahoma City bombing, including "a community that insists on the death penalty as a remedy to violence" and convicted bomber Timothy McVeigh.

Jim Winkler, chief staff executive of the Board of Church and Society, begins his statement issued May 29 with sympathy for those who lost so much in the April 19, 1995, bombing - the victims, their families, the local community and all who were affected by the horror of the event.

Among these people, he notes, is Anne Marshall, an executive with another church agency, who lost her husband, Raymond Johnson, in the bombing. "For Anne, the survivors and the other murder victims' family members, we express our deepest sympathy and regret," Winkler says.

But he goes on to say, "The call of the church is to be in ministry to all." He interprets this to mean a response with "prayers, presence and support for the victims, the offender(s), and the community."

Winkler couples the call for prayers for McVeigh and his family with those for the victims' and their families but also with a "need to pray for a community that insists on the death penalty as a remedy to violence. The execution of McVeigh will only increase the acceptance of violence and vengeance in our society," Winkler asserts.

"The United Methodist Church for more than 40 years has stood in opposition to the death penalty. We continue to oppose capital punishment in McVeigh's case as in all others," Winkler states.

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Full text of Winkler's statement follows:

May 29, 2001

The General Board of Church and Society Continues to Oppose Capital Punishment

This is a statement of GBC S General Secretary James Winkler. The General Board is directed to "speak its convictions, interpretations, and concerns to the Church and to the world."

On April 19, 1995, 19 children and 149 adults - 168 innocent people - were killed in an incredible tragedy: the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. Collectively we pray for the victims, the victims' families, the local community and all who watched in horror as the rescue scene unfolded.

We are also praying for one of our own, Anne Marshall, Associate General Secretary of the General Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns (GCCUIC). Anne's husband, Raymond Johnson, was killed in the bombing. For Anne, the survivors and the other murder victims' family members, we express our deepest sympathy and regret.

For all those who have lost loved ones and can still hardly believe that such a tragedy has happened, what is the church's response? We are called to respond with our prayers, presence and support for the victims, the offender(s), and the community. The call of the church is to be in ministry to all.

That means we also need to pray for Timothy McVeigh. We need to pray for him and his family, and we need to pray for a community that insists on the death penalty as a remedy to violence. The execution of McVeigh will only increase the acceptance of violence and vengeance in our society.

The United Methodist Church for more than 40 years has stood in opposition to the death penalty. We continue to oppose capital punishment in McVeigh's case as in all others.

The Social Principles of The United Methodist Church condemn the "torture of persons by governments for any purpose" and asserts that it violates Christian teachings. The church, through its Social Principles, further declares, "We oppose capital punishment and urge its elimination from all criminal codes" (Para. 164A).

Only the General Conference Speaks for the entire denomination. The General Board of Church and Society is the international public policy and social action agency of The United Methodist Church.