The latest installment of our continuing Tuesday's Focus series examines the journey of Ruth Andrews:
Ruth Andrews is an ethnic Mennonite. She has always believed the death penalty is immoral.
Ruth’s mother's murder (when she was 16) didn't change that, although it changed everything else. Since the crime was never solved, Ruth couldn't take her anger out on anyone. Instead, she took it out on herself. For the next ten years she lived recklessly and was dangerously self-destructive. It wasn't until Ruth became pregnant that she began to care for herself again.
Another turning point in her healing occurred at a conference on forgiveness, when Ruth asked a murderer to pray for her. On the Journey of Hope in Georgia in 1994, Ruth was paired with a woman who had a son on death row, “The similarities in our experiences were remarkable. I felt closer to her than to the "good" people I'd known all my life. I'm very grateful to belong to the Journey of Hope.“
Links to Ruth’s Journey:
Slaying victim's daughter fights death penalty
Cassopolis woman in Houston in effort to abolish death penalty
Peacemaking, Terrorism and Art: By Ruth Andrews
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