Even though its been a practice since the dawn of humanity, public executions are really a kind of “death porn” designed to simultaneously shock, pacify, and make a spectacle of someone’s killing for the benefit of power and revenge. We Orthodox Christians have been on the receiving end of such things since the time of the Apostles and I have no interest in joining the “virtual” mob by watching. Whatever your thoughts about the death penalty may be, and I have great apprehensions about it, I hope you consider at least not watching the potential live stream from the virtual coliseum and please pray for this man asking the intercessions of St. Dismas.
