Our national election is coming up next Tuesday. I am sure a lot of you have voted already in the early voting here in Mississippi. I would be remiss if I did not address the election in terms of our responsibility as Catholics. I want to start with a quote from a document promulgated by the Second Vatican Council in 1965: Guadium et Spes, which is the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World: “Catholics are called to participate in promoting the common good and, as far as possible, to take an active part in public life. Indeed, “by fulfilling their civic duties, guided by a Christian conscience, in conformity with its values, the lay faithful exercise their proper task of infusing the temporal order with Christian values.” (paragraph #36).
The Diocese of Jackson and I as a Catholic priest are not called to enter into supporting nor condemning any particular party or candidate. Instead, it is our role to provide information to the faithful about Church teachings related to the issues to allow the faithful to make their own determination through thoughtful reflections around those teachings in making and informed decision in the way they vote.
“The consequence of this fundamental teaching of the Second Vatican Council is that the lay faithful are never to relinquish their participation in public life.” (Doctrinal Note on Some Questions Regarding the Participation of Catholics in Political Life, #1). To fulfill this calling to participate in the public life in the community in which they live, Catholics have the responsibility to be informed, active, and responsible participants in the political process. They must be knowledgeable about the political process and have a grasp of the moral dimensions of issues that face us as a society. To do so, Catholics are called to understand the role of government in society, to be aware of their political rights as citizens, and to know how to influence public policy so that they may work within the political structure to effect change. They need to know about current social issues, to understand the Church’s teachings about their moral dimensions, to form their consciences in light of their faith, and to act out of their moral convictions.
This month of October is Respect Life Month. You have heard me and the Church talk about issues that are important to us in the respect for human life. That is something to consider when voting in this upcoming election and in deciding what candidate to support.
Another important point for us Catholics to understand is that not all election issues carry the same weight. Here is a quote from a document issued by the US Bishops entitled: Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: “In making these decisions, 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 and that the moral obligation to oppose policies promoting intrinsically evil acts has a special claim on our consciences and our actions. These decisions should take into account a candidate's commitments, character, integrity, and ability to influence a given issue. In the end, this is a decision to be made by each Catholic guided by a conscience formed by Catholic moral teaching.” (paragraph #37).
As we vote in the upcoming election for our elected officials, I pray that God grant us wisdom and prudence in making our choices. Let us pray that we may choose elected leader who, despite their imperfections, we can deem in good and informed conscience closest to being decent, hard workers, committed to the common good, respectful of human life and dignity, devoted to truth and justice, knowledgeable of the important issues we face as society, and able to work with other elected officials in our country, both on the local and national levels. My prayers are with all of you as we vote in the upcoming election.
No comments:
Post a Comment