Catholic Standard and Times - Faithful Catholics vote according to issues, not parties

Should a conscientious Catholic be a Democrat or Republican? The answer Catholic voters themselves provided in the presidential election in 2004 is ambiguous at best.

In that election, most of the states with the largest percentage of Catholics backed the Democratic ticket. On the other hand, across the entire nation, 52 percent of the Catholic electorate voted Republican, compared to 47 percent who voted Democratic.

Clearly, the Democratic Party, which could once count on huge Catholic majorities, can no longer do so. Just as clearly, at 27 percent of the electorate, the Catholic vote affects the outcome, and neither party can really claim to control it.

This is as it should be, according to Catholic teaching.

“People have to realize their consciences need to be formed,” Cardinal Justin Rigali said in a November interview with The National Catholic Register newspaper, “and being a Christian is so much more basic to us than automatically following a Democratic or Republican agenda.”

In “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: The U.S. Catholic Bishops’ Reflection on Catholic Teaching and Political Life,” a document issued last November, the bishops examine a number of issues of conscience.

Heading that list is the right to life and the dignity of the human person.

The right to life and the dignity of the human person
“Human life is sacred. The dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. Direct attacks on innocent persons are never morally acceptable, at any stage or in any condition,” the bishops state in their document. “In our society, human life is especially under direct attack from abortion. Other direct threats to the sanctity of human life include euthanasia, human cloning and the destruction of human embryos for research.”

But things are not always simple. For example, how does one vote when all of the viable candidates fail to oppose legal abortion always and emphatically?

The bishops suggest a pragmatic approach: “The voter may decide to vote for the candidate deemed less likely to advance such a morally flawed position and more likely to pursue other authentic human goods.”

Catholic teachings about the dignity of life, the bishops say, also call us to oppose torture, unjust wars and use of the death penalty; to prevent genocide and attacks against non-combatants; to oppose racism, and to overcome poverty and suffering.

A call to family, community and participation
Under their “Call to Family, Community and Participation,” the bishops stress that the family — based on marriage between a man and a woman — is the first and fundamental unit of society, and must be defended and strengthened rather than redefined or undermined by permitting same-sex unions or other distortions of marriage.

Rights and responsibilities
The informed citizen has both rights and responsibilities. The right to life, the bishops say, is “the fundamental right that makes all other rights possible.” Other rights include religious freedom as well as access to food, shelter, education, employment, health care and housing. With those rights comes responsibility to one another, our families and the larger society.

In making decisions on such matters, the bishops tell us: “It is essential for Catholics to be guided by a well-formed conscience that recognizes that all issues do not carry the same moral weight.”

“It’s not just about political issues”

“I’ve read the document and I think it is excellent. It’s not just about political issues. It is a call to the faithful to look at all of the life issues and see their importance across the board,” said Susan Vadas, a former Catholic school educator and principal who is now the director of the archdiocesan Respect Life Office.

“There are many assaults on the sanctity of human life, and the life issues are not just limited to the unborn,” Vada said. “It is really from conception until natural death, and many things can occur in that time. It’s significant that the bishops address the seven themes of Catholic social teaching.”

If anyone has concerns or questions about life issues, Vadas said they may call her office at (215) 587-5661.

Next week: Option for the Poor and Vulnerable, Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers, Solidarity and Caring for God’s Creation.

Lou Baldwin is a member of St. Leo parish and a freelance writer.

Did you know that within the geographic boundaries of the Philadelphia Archdiocese at least 32 percent of the population is Catholic? That means Catholics potentially can have a significant impact on the outcome of an election.

According to figures supplied by Robert Miller, director of the archdiocesan Office for Research and Planning, there were 3,761,421 residents in the five-county area in 2005, the most recent available year for U.S. census data.

In that year, 1,210,135 individuals were registered with parishes. The real number of Catholics is somewhat higher because some Catholics, including transients, students, nursing home residents and others, are not registered with a parish. The best estimate for the actual number of Catholics is 1,460,758, Miller said.

Full data is available through the archdio-cesan Web site: archphila.org/pastplan.

Click here for Part I