Christians Killed Kelly Gissendaner

1.75 million Southern Baptists forced her down the hallway. 619 thousand United Methodists strapped her to the gurney. 596 thousand Roman Catholics pushed the needle in. 566 thousand Evangelicals assured everyone that this was God’s will. As the poison started going in, there were millions of Georgia Christians participating in the homicide. Within minutes, Kelly Gissendaner died and Christians were the ones who killed her.

Upwards of 85% of Georgians identify as Christians. When Gissendaner was prosecuted, Christians pushed for the death penalty. When Gissendaner was sentenced, a jury of Christians sentenced her to death. When Gissendaner sat in prison, it was Christians who imprisoned her. When Gissendaner’s final appeals were denied, it was Christians who pushed her to the execution chamber. When Gissendaner was executed, it was Christians who did the deed. Make no mistake…Christians killed Kelly Gissendaner.

There are some who might contest my categorizations with the fact that Christians are the ones who’ve been most involved in trying to save Gissendaner’s life. I would argue that some of these persons are the ones most responsible for her death. What if this type of energy had been put into Gissendaner’s case a decade ago? What if this type of energy would’ve been put into abolishing the death penalty altogether? I believe Kelly Gissendaner would still be alive. Christians love trying to save someone at the very end. What would happen if Christians started getting involved in the beginning? Over the next three months, there are 18 people facing the death penalty around the nation. Will they be on our minds? I hope so.

Amen.