Criminal Justice and the Catholic Church

Andrew Skotnicki is associate professor of Christian ethics at Manhattan College. He is the author of Religion and the Development of the American Penal System as well as numerous scholarly articles on the theological and moral foundations of criminal justice.

• Part 1 IntroductionPart 2 Chapter One: What is the Prison and Who is the Prisoner?Chapter 3 The PrisonChapter 4 Criminal Justice in the Old TestamentChapter 5 The Image of the Prisoner and its ImportanceChapter 6 The Prisoner as PersonChapter 7 SummaryPart 8 Chapter Two: The Justification of PunishmentChapter 9 The Retributive Dimension of PunishmentChapter 10 The State and the Punishment of OffendersChapter 11 Criminal Justice and Self-PunishmentChapter 12 ConclusionPart 13 Chapter Three: The End of PunishmentChapter 14 Internal ReformChapter 15 Social ReintegrationChapter 16 ConclusionPart 17 Chapter Four: Prison as the Normative Means of PunishmentChapter 18 Penance and the Origins of ConfinementChapter 19 The Prison in the Catholic TraditionChapter 20 ConclusionPart 21 Chapter Five: The Prison and Secular SocietyChapter 22 Secular Justice and the ChurchChapter 23 Secular Justice and Secular PrisonsChapter 24 Catholic Effects on Secular JusticePart 25 Chapter Six: A Catholic Theory of Criminal JusticeChapter 26 Elements of the TheoryChapter 27 The Catholic Church and Contemporary CorrectionsChapter 28 Conclusion

Andrew Skotnicki provides a richly rewarding examination of our penal system that is historically and ethically informed. His overall argument is cogent and important. If you want to understand how Catholic thought and practice both have and should influence penal reform, this book is an excellent place to start.