In November, 2000, the U.S. Catholic bishops issued a pastoral letter about a Catholic perspective on crime and criminal justice, "Responsibility, Rehabilitation, and Restoration." The pastoral addresses the state of criminal justice in the U.S. today and offers directions for reform based on Church teaching. "How can we protect and rebuild communities, confront crime without vengeance, and defend life without taking life?" it asks. It sees crime not simply as a violation of law, but a threat to community. It rejects punishment for its own sake, emphasizing rather its constructive and redemptive purpose.

By affirming the principles of human dignity and community the pastoral bucks the fashionable political trends in corrections. It dismisses "three strikes and you’re out" and "zero-tolerance" for drug offenders as too simplistic and a major cause for the rapid growth of the U.S. prison population, now at two million. It rejects trying a juvenile as an adult, and it deplores the expanded use of isolation units. It calls for the sensible regulation of handguns and the abolition of the death penalty for the violence it inflicts on society. Ultimately the bishops seek a criminal justice system that tempers justice with mercy.

Looking at the major causes of crime, the bishops recognize the link with poverty for spawning gangs, violence and substance addiction. In their words: "Fighting poverty, educating children, and supporting families are essential anti-crime strategies." Drug-related crimes account for at least one third of all convictions, but treatment programs in prisons have been diminishing. Yet, a finding by the California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs indicates that every dollar spent on treating substance abuse problems saves seven dollars through reductions in crime and hospitalization. Simply put, society will need fewer prisons with more crime prevention, addiction treatment programs and poverty reduction.

Prophetically, the bishops encourage the spiritual healing of both victim and perpetrator of crime through restorative justice. The process calls the offender to face the victims and the community for his crime. When a criminal meets the person he robbed, the offender begins to realize the consequences of his actions, accept responsibility, make reparation and finally rebuild his life. The victim most times experiences a greater sense of peace and closure to the personal violation. Restorative justice heals by putting a human face on the process.

The bishops want the $35 billion spent annually on corrections to be reconsidered. Rather than building prisons to warehouse more people, the bishops ask to address the root causes of crime and build a healthier society.