On Sunday Pope Francis made his strongest appeal to date to stop the death penalty, calling upon the Catholic leaders of the world to halt its use for a year. "I make an appeal to the conscience of all rulers, so that we can achieve an international consensus for the abolition of the death penalty," Francis said during his speech in St. Peter's Square, reports CNN.
The Pope hoped that Catholic leaders would do away with the death penalty for a year during the Holy Year of Mercy. The Jubilee Year of Mercy was launched by Francis on Dec. 8, 2015 and will continue until Nov. 20.
May the Jubilee of Mercy bring us all closer to God’s goodness and love!
— Pope Francis (@Pontifex) December 8, 2015
The Pope based his request on the premise of the commandment, "Thou shalt not kill."
"In effect, modern societies have the possibility to efficiently repress crime without taking away definitely the possibility to redeem oneself from those who committed," Francis said, opining that "even criminals hold the inviolable right to life," reports the Associated Press.
"All Christians and men of good will are called on to work not only for the abolition of the death penalty, but also to improve prison conditions so that they respect the human dignity of people who have been deprived of their freedom," the Pope said, according to the Huffington Post.
The Pope also asked for better prison conditions during his address.
