Criminal Justice and the Catholic Church

(Paperback)

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The Catholic Church has had a dramatic impact on both the structure and understanding of criminal justice up to the present. This book surveys the history of the church to suggest that despite demonstrable abuses, a humane and redemptive theory of criminal justice can be constructed that is harmonious with biblical sources, tradition, and current normative emphases in Catholic social thought.

Reviews

Andrew Skotnicki provides a richly rewarding examination of our penal system that is historically and ethically informed. His overall argument is cogent and important. If you want to understand how Catholic thought and practice both have and should influence penal reform, this book is an excellent place to start. -- Kenneth Himes, Boston College, past president of the Catholic Theological Society of America
By looking at the "Catholic" roots of the penal institution, Andrew Skotnicki invites us to consider how we can work toward the full social restoration of today's prisoner. There is a great deal of needed humanity, wisdom, and hope in these pages, especially at a time when those in prison live lives completely estranged from our own. -- James F. Keenan, SJ, Boston College
Drawing richly upon historical testimony, Criminal Justice and the Catholic Church is a splendid, lucidly written assessment of the theological and ethical implications of incarceration. Skotnicki's ground-breaking retrieval of the image of Christ as prisoner offers a powerful, and all too timely corrective to prevailing retributive practices. -- William R. O'Neill, Jesuit School of Theology
Andrew Skotnicki... has done a great service by producing in this book a carefully articulated and historically grounded Catholic theory of criminal justice.... A careful, concise, and accessible survey.... Skotnicki writes clearly. The book is full of historical and theological insight, andmost importantly it gives a much-needed rationale for injecting American criminal justice practices with a strong dose of humanity.... A well argued, and engagingly written book. Other fruitful questions, too, will arise for each of its (hopefully many) readers. -- Ted Grimsrud * Modern Theology *
Rich in its history and stark in its implications, Criminal Justice and the Catholic Church illustrates the tragic distance between intent and effect in our contemporary practice and culture of incarceration. -- Mary Ellen Dougherty, SSND, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

Author Bio

Andrew Skotnicki is associate professor of Christian ethics at Manhattan College. He is the author of Religion and the Development of the American Penal System as well as numerous scholarly articles on the theological and moral foundations of criminal justice.