Sr.Helen Prejean captivates crowd with peaceful message

“Probably one of the best speakers ever hosted by Cabrini,” was among many of the compliments overheard in crowds of students filing out after Sister Helen Prejean’s incredible speech. Relayed through a thick, Southern accent, Sr. Helen captured the attention of the audience and refused to release until her message was conveyed.

Working for social justice, Prejean arrived at Cabrini to promote her literary works, “Dead Man Walking” and “The Death of Innocents.” Proceeds of the books are being utilized to gain funding for her moratorium campaign against the death penalty.

Sister Helen’s message was simple and convincing in a world so complex and pessimistic. She followed the words of Jesus and interpreted the actions He performed. “The poor who endure will be poor no more” is the belief that sparked the light within Sr. Helen to participate in working for social justice.

As Prejean began to investigate the lives of those in poverty, she started to see what she called, “the back-side of the tapestry,” in reference to the lives of the impoverished many of us never see.

The fact that the leaders of our country are losing touch with the way people in America live was frightening, yet true. Poverty is rising in our country while the rich are receiving tax cuts; this truth stings the conscience of a morally intact individual. Avoice is needed for the people suffering in this great country.

Sr. Helen has been that voice for the voice-less. And who in the world has less of a voice than an inmate on death row? In a country that is so quick to remove an eye for an eye and resort to vengeance, Sr Helen Prejean has lead a crusade over the years fighting the forces that claim to act within the words of Jesus.

“Taking Jesus hostage” was the term used by Sr. Helen when she described the relationship between Jesus and the leaders of our country. We must remember, however, that resorting to violence and taking away the dignity of another human is not the way of the Lord, no matter how many references to the Bible our government may spit out.

With the Catholic Church, Amnesty International and United Nations’Convention Against Torture in her corner, Prejean hopes to change the death row process and eliminate capital punishment.

The trouble is that no matter how much support a leader like Sr Helen may garner, the United States is a country deep-rooted in using force to get a point across. The process to change such a controversial practice like the death penalty can be excruciatingly slow and frustrating.

The task may appear daunting, but the efforts by peaceful visionaries such as Sr. Helen will never cease. Whether or not one supports the death penalty, Prejean’s message was extremely convincing. All she asked is that we act in response to her words and remember the human dignity that is deserved in each one of us.

The hope behind Prejean’s campaign is to create the spark within members of her audience, similar to the spark that was lit in her heart years ago.