Three Days.

As we learn in the book of Genesis, Abraham gave his beloved son, Isaac, three days to live. Abraham had Isaac journey high into Jerusalem’s mountainous region. Abraham had forced him to carry the physical burden of the sacrificial wood; the very wood Isaac was to be murdered upon. Then, when they had reached their destination, Abraham bound the limbs of Isaac’s helpless body to the altar.

The weapon was prepped… but the Lord intervened! Isaac, who was the fruit of God’s covenant with Abraham, did not die. His life was spared. He, who was made in God’s Image and Likeness, was freed from his bounds and given the chance to grow old. His date of execution – an act that would have been performed by the hands of a human – had been halted and indefinitely postponed. On the mountain top, God chose life. The scripture goes on to tell us that even Isaac himself did not know the day for which his body was to die. This is the driving verse of the ISAAC STATEMENT. This is the Truth that affirms what God has put on my heart: that the death penalty – an ongoing instance of humans ending the lives of other humans – does not align with Catholic teaching and therefore must be treated by Roman Catholics as impermissible at all times.