Sister helen prejean dead man walking

What did sister helen prejean publish
Dead man walking
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Sister Helen Prejean is known around the world for her tireless work against the death penalty. She has been instrumental in sparking national dialogue on capital punishment and in shaping the Catholic Church’s vigorous opposition to all executions.

Born on April 21, 1939, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, she joined the Sisters of St. Joseph in 1957. After studies in the USA and Canada, she spent the following years teaching high school, and serving as the Religious Education Director at St. Frances Cabrini Parish in New Orleans and the Formation Director for her religious community.

In 1982, she moved into the St. Thomas Housing Project in New Orleans in order to live and work with the poor. While there, Sister Helen began corresponding with Patrick Sonnier, who had been sentenced to death for the murder of two teenagers. Two years later, when Patrick Sonnier was put to death in the electric chair, Sister Helen was there to witness his execution. In the following months, she became spiritual advisor to another death row inmate, Robert Lee Willie, who was to meet the same fate as Son

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Helen Prejean

Helen Prejean is a Roman Catholic nun and an advocate for the abolition of the death penalty.

Prejean was born on April 21, 1939, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She joined the Sisters of St. Joseph of Medaille in 1957 (now known as the Congregation of St. Joseph) and received a B.A. in English and education from St. Mary's Dominican College, New Orleans in 1962. In 1973, she earned an M.A. in religious education from St. Paul's University in Ottawa, Canada. She has been the religious education director at St. Frances Cabrini Parish in New Orleans, the formation director for her religious community, and has taught junior and senior high school students.

Prejean began her prison ministry in 1981. In 1982, she began a correspondence with convicted murderer Elmo Patrick Sonnier, a death row inmate housed in the Louisiana State Penitentiary, and at his request, visited him in prison and agreed to be his spiritual advisor. She turned her experiences into a book, "Dead Man Walking: An Eyewitness Account of the Death Penalty That Sparked a National Debate," that made the 19

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Helen Prejean

Death penalty abolition advocate

Helen PrejeanCSJ (pray-ZHAHN;^[1] born April 21, 1939) is a Catholicreligious sister and a leading American advocate for the abolition of the death penalty.

She is known for her best-selling book, Dead Man Walking (1993), based on her experiences with two convicts on death row for whom she served as spiritual adviser before their executions. In her book, she explored the effects of the death penalty on everyone involved. The book was adapted as a 1995 film of the same name, starring Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn. It was also adapted as an opera by Jake Heggie and Terrence McNally, first produced in 2000 by the San Francisco Opera.

Prejean served as the National Chairperson of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty from 1993 to 1995. She helped establish The Moratorium Campaign, seeking an end to executions and conducting education on the death penalty. Prejean also founded the groups SURVIVE to help families of victims of murder and related crimes.

Early life and education

Helen Prejean wa