U.S. Papal Nuncio Hosts Celebration for Death Penalty Opponents with Awards given to USCCB President Archbishop Coakley and Elizabeth Bruenig
WASHINGTON, Oct. 22, 2026 — More than 200 guests packed into the Apostolic Nunciature last night for Catholic Mobilizing Network’s Justice Reimagined Awards and Celebration to honor leading capital punishment opponents Most Reverend Paul S. Coakley, archbishop of Oklahoma City and president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), and Elizabeth Bruenig, staff writer at The Atlantic. The biennial event also marked the organization’s 17th anniversary, World Day Against the Death Penalty, and Respect Life Month, a time when the Catholics reflect on protecting and defending the sanctity of all human life.
His Excellency Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, personally greeted each guest as they entered and then kicked off the formal program with a few remarks on promoting human dignity.
“The Church really supports your effort,” he said. “And I am very pleased that tonight also an eminent representative of the Catholic Church, the president of the episcopal conference, is also honored tonight meaning that the Church is also doing her best to continue to proclaim the Gospel of life.” A comment that elicited an “amen” from the audience.
He then read a letter from Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, which included, “The Catholic Mobilizing Network and its Executive Director, Krisanne Vaillancourt Murphy, perform an important service by helping the Church and society to consider these difficult issues through the lens of faith and the inherent dignity of human life.”
Next, winner of the 2026 Justice and Mercy Poetry Contest for Young Adults, Kate Letterman Conway, recited an excerpt of her powerful poem “And Still.”
Then Sr. Helen Prejean, CSJ, renowned anti-death penalty advocate and author, captivated the audience with stories of her many decades both accompanying those condemned to death and advocating for the end of state-sanctioned killing.
“Thurgood Marshall, the very first African-American on the Supreme Court, said that ‘A lot of Americans say that they support the death penalty. Bring ’em close, help them to see what it is, how it actually works, and they will reject it.’ And that’s the hope, and I found that to be the hope,” she said. “People are good, they just don’t reflect deeply and how can they reflect unless witnesses come to them? And that’s the work of the Catholic Mobilizing Network.”
Moving into the award portion of the evening, CMN presented the Reimagining Justice Award to Elizabeth Bruenig, a Catholic whose reporting on the death penalty has challenged readers to rethink lethal injection as a painless and peaceful death, and has brought to the fore issues of innocence, intellectual disability, mental illness, and government transparency.
“Our Catholic commitment to respecting human life in every case is a jewel of our shared faith,” said Bruenig in her acceptance speech. “It is easy to ignore capital punishment compared to other life issues, both because prisoners are not always sympathetic, and because executions in the United States are relatively rare compared to abortion and medical assistance in dying. But every execution is a tragedy and a travesty.”
CMN then presented the Archbishop Fiorenza Dignity & Life Award to Most Reverend Paul S. Coakley, archbishop of Oklahoma City and president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). On stage, Archbishop Coakley shared how his own understanding and commitment to respecting life expanded from opposing abortion as a teenager to opposing capital punishment as an archbishop in a state with a high number of executions.
“That gradual awakening and the responsibility that was entrusted to me as an archbishop helped me begin to find a voice and to speak more confidently and boldly about the sanctity of life from conception to its natural end,” he said. “And being in Oklahoma and, in fact, being in the United States of America at this time has turned my attention more toward advocating for the condemned on death row and the need for us as a people, as a Church, as a nation, to recognize the injustice and the inhumanity of what is being done in our name.”
“I am honored to be given this platform this evening but I am particularly grateful for those who have come to this conviction and awareness far earlier than I did,” Archbishop Coakley said. “And I am grateful to Catholic Mobilizing Network and its advocacy and work. I am humbled, I am encouraged.”
The theme of encouragement culminated in remarks from Executive Director Krisanne Valliancourt Murphy. “My dear friends, nights like this remind us why we gather: to encourage one another to reimagine a Gospel-inspired vision of justice, even when it feels impossible,” she said. “As reconcilers and restorers, we travel this journey toward abolition together, accompanying one another as we reimagine something better than capital punishment.”
### Source: https://catholicsmobilizing.org/justice-reimagined-2026/
Headquartered in Washington, D.C., Catholic Mobilizing Network is a national organization that mobilizes Catholics and people of goodwill to end the death penalty, advance justice solutions in alignment with Catholic values and promote healing through restorative justice approaches and practices. For more information and to join the movement, visit catholicsmobilizing.org.
His Excellency Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, personally greeted each guest as they entered and then kicked off the formal program with a few remarks on promoting human dignity.
“The Church really supports your effort,” he said. “And I am very pleased that tonight also an eminent representative of the Catholic Church, the president of the episcopal conference, is also honored tonight meaning that the Church is also doing her best to continue to proclaim the Gospel of life.” A comment that elicited an “amen” from the audience.
He then read a letter from Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, which included, “The Catholic Mobilizing Network and its Executive Director, Krisanne Vaillancourt Murphy, perform an important service by helping the Church and society to consider these difficult issues through the lens of faith and the inherent dignity of human life.”
Next, winner of the 2026 Justice and Mercy Poetry Contest for Young Adults, Kate Letterman Conway, recited an excerpt of her powerful poem “And Still.”
Then Sr. Helen Prejean, CSJ, renowned anti-death penalty advocate and author, captivated the audience with stories of her many decades both accompanying those condemned to death and advocating for the end of state-sanctioned killing.
“Thurgood Marshall, the very first African-American on the Supreme Court, said that ‘A lot of Americans say that they support the death penalty. Bring ’em close, help them to see what it is, how it actually works, and they will reject it.’ And that’s the hope, and I found that to be the hope,” she said. “People are good, they just don’t reflect deeply and how can they reflect unless witnesses come to them? And that’s the work of the Catholic Mobilizing Network.”
Moving into the award portion of the evening, CMN presented the Reimagining Justice Award to Elizabeth Bruenig, a Catholic whose reporting on the death penalty has challenged readers to rethink lethal injection as a painless and peaceful death, and has brought to the fore issues of innocence, intellectual disability, mental illness, and government transparency.
“Our Catholic commitment to respecting human life in every case is a jewel of our shared faith,” said Bruenig in her acceptance speech. “It is easy to ignore capital punishment compared to other life issues, both because prisoners are not always sympathetic, and because executions in the United States are relatively rare compared to abortion and medical assistance in dying. But every execution is a tragedy and a travesty.”
CMN then presented the Archbishop Fiorenza Dignity & Life Award to Most Reverend Paul S. Coakley, archbishop of Oklahoma City and president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). On stage, Archbishop Coakley shared how his own understanding and commitment to respecting life expanded from opposing abortion as a teenager to opposing capital punishment as an archbishop in a state with a high number of executions.
“That gradual awakening and the responsibility that was entrusted to me as an archbishop helped me begin to find a voice and to speak more confidently and boldly about the sanctity of life from conception to its natural end,” he said. “And being in Oklahoma and, in fact, being in the United States of America at this time has turned my attention more toward advocating for the condemned on death row and the need for us as a people, as a Church, as a nation, to recognize the injustice and the inhumanity of what is being done in our name.”
“I am honored to be given this platform this evening but I am particularly grateful for those who have come to this conviction and awareness far earlier than I did,” Archbishop Coakley said. “And I am grateful to Catholic Mobilizing Network and its advocacy and work. I am humbled, I am encouraged.”
The theme of encouragement culminated in remarks from Executive Director Krisanne Valliancourt Murphy. “My dear friends, nights like this remind us why we gather: to encourage one another to reimagine a Gospel-inspired vision of justice, even when it feels impossible,” she said. “As reconcilers and restorers, we travel this journey toward abolition together, accompanying one another as we reimagine something better than capital punishment.”
### Source: https://catholicsmobilizing.org/justice-reimagined-2026/
Headquartered in Washington, D.C., Catholic Mobilizing Network is a national organization that mobilizes Catholics and people of goodwill to end the death penalty, advance justice solutions in alignment with Catholic values and promote healing through restorative justice approaches and practices. For more information and to join the movement, visit catholicsmobilizing.org.
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