U.S. Archbishop Timothy Broglio called on Catholics who are members of the country’s armed forces not to take part in the planned public executions by firing squad, saying they violate church teachings.
Broglio issued a strongly worded statement Monday raising a series of concerns about the U.S. military’s plan to livestream the execution of Nidal Hassan, a former Army major who killed 13 people in a 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas.
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“Catholics assigned to firing squads have an obligation to request exemption from this action, which is contrary to the teachings of the Church,” Broglio said.
He also asked whether the United States wants to “imitate terrorists around the world and publicly display the savage killing of our adversaries.”
Plans to livestream the execution on Dec. 3 were announced last week by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who characterized the spectacle as a deterrent.
“We’re going to make it public so people can watch it, because people need to understand that there are serious consequences to this type of event,” Hegseth told the right-wing outlet Real America’s Voice.
But the proposal has sparked a backlash from lawmakers, rights groups and critics, who warn that public broadcasts of killings are not only unethical but could be used as anti-American propaganda.
Hasan, 56, was shot and killed by police during the 2009 Fort Hood attack and is currently confined to a wheelchair. Critics fear that livestreaming Hasan’s death could make him a symbol of militant groups potentially hostile to the United States.
Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, the archbishop of Chicago, also condemned the plan to livestream the execution in a social media post on Monday, questioning its potential to set an example for children.
“The death penalty is unacceptable under any circumstances,” he said. “Broadcasting plans to take back lives by firing squad is nothing short of staged barbarism. Do we want the children who will inevitably watch it to be exposed to pornography of state-sponsored killings?”
Hegseth said he would like to see the execution take place at the same time and location as the 2009 mass shooting, which he said used military personnel.
“We haven’t seen anything like this since World War II,” Hegseth said of the firing squad. “Well, I like the winning mentality of World War II.”
The last man executed by the U.S. military was Eddie Slovic, who was accused of desertion in 1945. He was the only American soldier to receive such a sentence for neglect of duty.
In a statement Monday, Broglio also questioned the reason behind showing military personnel on camera carrying out Hassan’s death. He suggested that it could damage the image of the U.S. military overseas.
“The U.S. military generally enjoys a good reputation around the world,” Broglio wrote. “Is it really worth broadcasting the execution of a man in a wheelchair to the world and putting them on the same level as terrorists?”
Pope Leo also issued a statement Saturday condemning the death penalty, although he did not specifically mention Hasan’s case.
“The death penalty is unacceptable because it is an attack on human inviolability and dignity,” he said in a social media post.
“It is possible to protect the public interest and meet the demands of justice without resorting to the death penalty. Effective detention systems are being developed that protect the public and, at the same time, do not completely deprive those who commit crimes of the possibility of redemption.”
President Donald Trump, who oversaw an unprecedented surge in federal executions during his first term in office, authorized Hasan’s execution.
Still, on Saturday, he indicated he had not decided whether to proceed with the livestream.
“The idea is twofold: don’t show it, and show it, because if you show it, maybe other people won’t do the same thing that you did,” Trump told reporters. “I’ll make the decision.”
Since taking office for his second term, President Trump has pushed to expand the use of the federal death penalty. In April, it approved additional methods of execution, including firing.
President Trump has floated the death penalty in the past as a punishment for crimes ranging from drug trafficking to mayhem, and has invoked the term against political opponents.
