ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that faith appeals to Christians must be part of any effective death penalty advocacy. It describes the significant continuing challenges for death penalty abolitionists. The chapter explains the dynamic that makes Christian churches the next key battleground for the American death penalty. It describes authors' own efforts to reach out to death penalty supporters within their faith communities. Pew research reveals that American Catholics both hear more about the death penalty in church and have stronger reservations about that institution than do white Protestants in either Evangelical or mainstream churches. Ms Bishop's work against the death penalty has involved a good deal of preaching to the choir'. Giving speeches at universities and to human rights groups whose audiences already oppose the death penalty may energize people to work for abolition, but it does little to change the hearts and minds of death penalty supporters.
