My dear Parishioners,
Peace! There are thirteen (13) "In Brief" articles in the Catechism of the Catholic Church addressing the Fifth Commandment of the Decalogue, ‘You shall not kill.’ The following is a reflection on CCC 2320.
The Fifth Commandment "You shall not kill" is an explicit condemnation of murder. The Oxford English Dictionary defines "murder" as follows: the unlawful premeditated killing of one person by another. The Hebrew word haragh, often rendered as "murder" also means "to smite, destroy, kill, slay (cf. Psalm 10:8; Hosea 9:13) while the Hebrew word racah besides meaning "murder" also means to dash to pieces and to kill especially with premeditation (cf. Numbers 35:16; Job 24:14; Psalm 94:6; Jeremiah 7:9; Hosea 6:9). The Greek words phoneus, phoneuo, phonos, pheno translate as criminal homicide, to kill, slay, respectively. The Greek word anthropoktonos is translated as manslayer, murderer, it identifies both Satan and those who hate their brother (cf. John 8:44; 1 John 3:15). Different sorts of murder have specific names such as matricide (Greek metraloas cf. 1 Titus 1:9) and fratricide (Greek adelphoktonos cf. Wisdom 10:3), the killing of one’s mother or brother respectively. Parricide and infanticide are likewise forms of murder which are likewise condemned by the Fifth Commandment (cf. 21:15,17; Matthew 15:4).
Biblically, the punishment for murder, is capital punishment (cf. Genesis 9:6; Exodus 21:12, 14; Leviticus 24:17; Numbers 35:16, 18, 21, 31 ). The need for at least two concurring witnesses in any capital cases is also part of biblical patrimony (cf. Numbers 35:19-30; Deuteronomy 17:6-12; 19:12, 17). While recourse to the death penalty is not excluded by the Church when the identity and responsibility of the guilty is certain, if there are other ways to defend human life without killing an unjust aggressor, these should be taken (cf. Evangelium Vitae, 56; CCC, 2267). Pope Francis has even asked Christians and people of good will to fight "for the abolition of the death penalty" and life-long incarceration which he calls "a hidden death penalty" (Address to the International Association of Penal Law, 23 October, 2014).
Murder is gravely contrary to the dignity of the person. The Good God has given each of us the gift of life, born and unborn, aged or otherwise. As persons made in the image of Almighty God, a Trinity of Persons, each human being has been willed by God into existence. A murderer preempts God and His Providence and disallows any further contrition or repentance on the part of the innocent victim of murder.
Murder is also gravely contrary to the holiness of the Creator God. Because the gift of life comes from the Lord of Life, God, murder is gravely contrary to the holiness and honor due to God our Creator who is also the Creator of the murder victim. God will call us to His judgment seat when He is good and ready. While murders disregard God’s sovereignty over life and death, no one should rush this event.
God bless you!
Father John Arthur Orr