Yahoo! News: “Ecclesiastical lines have been drawn over the fate of Texas death row inmate Steven Nelson, with one church saying his sentence for killing its pastor is justified and another clergyman saying the state violates a foundational principle of Christianity.
Nelson, 37, was convicted for the 2011 murder of the Rev. Clint Dobson at NorthPointe Baptist Church in Arlington, just west of Dallas. He’s scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on Feb. 5.
The Rev. Jeff Hood, a death row spiritual adviser and anti-death penalty activist based in Arkansas, has spearheaded a clemency campaign for Nelson, holding a protest at NorthPointe’s sister church First Baptist Arlington, reaching out to news media for attention on the case and trying to open a dialogue with First Baptist.
“What is at stake is the very faith that they proclaim, that I proclaim,” Hood told USA TODAY in an interview. “If First Baptist Arlington is able to turn Jesus into an executioner, then they are able to rewrite the faith however they choose.””