8 Florida United Methodist Review Online

Delegates vote to oppose gambling, death penalty

By Michael Wacht

LAKELAND — Delegates to the Dare to Share Jesus 2001 Florida Annual Conference Event approved resolutions declaring that the Florida Conference opposes gambling and capital punishment within the state of Florida and calling for the conference secretary to send the resolutions to state lawmakers.

The resolution titled “Gambling” was “overwhelmingly carried” said Bishop Timothy Whitaker, but the resolution titled “Capital Punishment” caused debate among delegates.

The Rev. Brett Opalinski, pastor of First United Methodist Church, Sebring, and co-sponsor of the capital punishment resolution, said both the Bible and the United Methodist General Conference oppose the death penalty. “Every person can become new in the eyes of God, regardless of past evils,” he said, adding the 2000 General Conference voted 809-15 in favor of a resolution against capital punishment.

Ron Watts, a lay delegate from the Sarasota District and a former police officer, said the death penalty is a deterrent to crime, especially for prison inmates who commit crimes behind bars. “What are you going to do, give them another life sentence?” he said. “Sometimes it takes someone facing death to bring them to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.”

Peggy Diaz, a lay delegate from Miami, said capital punishment is irreversible and when innocent people are executed, they cannot be brought back.

Two other resolutions were ruled out of order by the Committee on Resolutions and were not considered by the conference. One dealt with gambling and did not include cost or a plan of action. The second called for a repeal of former President Clinton’s executive order declaring mandatory multi-lingualism. It was ruled in violation of the United Methodist Social Principles.