Sunday, February 24, 2019

Save the date: we encourage all New Hampshire churches to devote their Sunday, February 24, 2019 to preaching, praying, teaching and acting for the repeal of our state’s death penalty. In 2019, the New Hampshire legislature will vote on HB 455 to repeal our state’s death penalty (see the bill here). This is the perfect moment to proclaim our faith in the living God by advocating for the ending of capital punishment.

All ten member denominations of the NH Council of Churches oppose the death penalty. Each denomination has its own statement on the death penalty, but the NH Council of Churches summarizes them in our Anti-Death Penalty Statement 2010: “Because each human being is created in the image of God and therefore enjoys the gift and possibility of redemption, the use of capital punishment is unacceptable; its use and expansion should be condemned.”

Planning Your Death Penalty Repeal Sunday

• Scripture reading: Luke 6:27-38 (“Do to others as you would have them do to you.”)
• Worship planning resources: prayers, sermon notes, hymn suggestions and more

Sample sermons

• Sample sermon – Rev. Bill Exner, St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church-Goffstown
• Sample sermon – Rev. Jon Hopkins, Concordia Lutheran Church-Concord
• Sample sermon – Rev. Susan Langle, Trinity Episcopal Church-Claremont
• Sample sermon – Rev. Michael Leuchtenberger, Unitarian Universalist Church of Concord
• Sample sermon – Rev. Jane Van Zandt, Trinity Episcopal Church-Hampton and Christ Episcopal Church-Portsmouth

Other reflections and statements

• Testimony and Denominational Statements given to the Senate Judiciary Committee (2019)
• Testimony and Denominational Statements given to the House Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety (2019)
• Testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee – Rev. Jason Wells, NHCC Executive Director (2018)
• Testimony before the House Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety – Rev. Jason Wells, NHCC Executive Director (2018)
• Reflection, “Not in My Name” – Rev. Michael Leuchtenberger, Unitarian Universalist Church of Concord
• Reflection – Rev. Jon Hopkins, Concordia Lutheran Church, Concord
• Pastoral Letter – Bishop Rob Hirschfeld , Episcopal Church of New Hampshire (2013)

Postcard Writing Campaign

• Resources for a postcard or telephone campaign to use after worship
• Find your legislators with this link.

Further Resources

• “Not in Our Name: NH Murder Victim Family Members Speak Out on the Death Penalty,” video on YouTube
• NH Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
• Fact Sheets on the Death Penalty from NHCADP