Death is always terrible especially when it comes when you are active and able bodied when you are of much use not only to your nearest and dearest but to your community and the society as well. Worst of the deaths that one cannot absorb is the death on the Gallows. Great Sociologists, Social Scientists and Anthropologists oppose the death on the Gallows with the logic and reasoning that State has no right to take your life from you, not even an individual can take away your life. Only God can take away your life and being the almighty God whois the creator of our life he alone can touch our life. The rest none can touch your life.Yet we see the State and governments take away our life when the State’s or Government’s branch known as Judiciary passes its verdict on a criminal who commits a crime by taking away life of somebody. This is called a capital punishment, this type of punishment normally reserved and passed against those who murder or kill other human beings for any relevant or irrelevant reason.
This type of punishment it looks is based on the law of Hamurabi the ancient king of ancient Mesopotamia that currently falls around Basrah and Baghdad in Iraq. It was this King who introduced the first Code of this planet known as “Eye for an eye and Tooth for tooth”. When Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait he was during those few turbulent months taking pride in front of the World leaders who came to meet him, by saying “Iraq is such a civilized land that we had the unique distinction of giving to this World the first known Code” and on the other side to humiliate Kuwait, Kuwaitis and the Kuwaiti Sheikhs, he used to say this with lot of anger: “these Kuwaitis and especially the Sheikhs they know only one thing that is to collect money and girls, besides that they cannot do anything They are a disgrace on Arabs and Islam. It is they who lower the image of Arabs and Islam”.
When death sentence was passed in Kuwait against Francis Araujo in late eighties for murdering two persons as I indicated last week in this forum, we tried all the avenues to commute it, I myself personally tried so much but nothing could be done, even our Indian Embassy refused to involve citing that “we don’t support murderers”. Even the lawyer whom we hired to defend Araujo by paying so much of money remained absent by going to Cairo on the day the final judgment was passed. Only the Maltese Bishop of Kuwait sided with us and made a Mercy Petition on behalf of the Church which the Kuwait government rejected.
When we realized that everything is lost for us, we all joined together and started to pray continuously to give courage to Araujo to face this death boldly and gracefully without making any scene of refusal and disturbance while going to the gallows. Normally these persons refuse to move and shout loudly even giving bad words vomiting all the secrets they know. Araujo told once to his Sister when she went to visit him in his prison cell that he will vomit all the secrets of Kuwait government what they do for them in the prison but last minute he remained silent and carried those secrets to his grave along with his dead body.
When on the day of the hanging of Francis Araujo, Fr. Pinto a Mangalorean priest attached to the Kuwait Church went to him early in the morning with the Holy Communion, he wished Fr. Pinto saying: "Hi Father!! Good Morning. You are come? Welcome. Fr., I am strong and well composed because Jesus is with me". Even at the time of going to the gallows we were in deep prayer and with Jesus with him accompanying him, he climbed the Gallows and faced the death very boldly as none faced before so calmly, as per the jail authorities, even they were surprised.
This same method we all people of God will apply in our life while facing the danger of Corona Virus and this danger will surely disappear. I am positive about it since I have tasted the power of Prayer even at the last minute God accepted my prayer. I will pray on my part and you should pray on your side. And the victory will be ours.
A.Veronica Fernandes.