The Death Penalty- Basic Reasons: pro and anti

http://www.religioustolerance.org/executb.htm
I found this website to be particularly interesting because it actually gave reasons behind why some religious people are against the death penalty and some are for it. In terms of pro-death penalty, the Bible cites many reasons when the death penalty is necessary; most of which are not applied in today's society. Even so, "Bible passages are still used to promote the retention of capital punishment for murderers" and "some advocate that homosexuals also be executed." The Bible should have nothing to do with capital punishment, and one problem that I really have with religion is that people do not recognize that society changes- homosexuality may not have been accepted at the time the Bible was written, but society has changed and become far more tolerant than it ever was at that time, and people should be able to recognize the change that has occurred in society. There are many other religious reasons for the death penalty, but that is the one that struck me as most interesting. In terms of anti-capital punishment, the one I found most interesting said almost exactly what I believe without any religious backing in it- that many Christians feel as though they are not chained to the rules of the Hebrew scriptures anymore since society has changed and become far more tolerant. I personally do not even know which side I am on- I think that a lifetime spent in jail is a far worse punishment than the death penalty, but in terms of the ethics behind it, I am not sure.