Archive for year: 2016

In last month’s column, I raised the question: What happens in a race where Christians are faced with two morally problematic choices like we are faced with this year? When both candidates are not good, then who should I vote for?

The question hasn’t changed as we get closer to November 8. In fact, it seems that as each day brings us closer to Election Day, additional negative material on both candidates surfaces in the media. I can’t help but think, “How much worse can it get?” It is hard to believe that our country has reached this point where the two choices we have as presidential candidates are so deeply flawed. Certainly God is the only one who can judge the human heart, and I am sure they both are personally well intentioned, but each in their own way, seriously put forth defective ideas and policies when it comes to Catholic Social teaching.

Written in the USCCB document “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship” are these words: “As Catholics, our focus is not on party affiliation, ideology, economics, or even competence and capacity to perform duties, as important as such issues are. Rather, we focus on what protects or threatens human life and dignity.”

The month of October is Respect Life Month with the theme “Moved By Mercy.” There are many life issues to consider for reflection which speak clearly of the dignity of human life in its many stages. Some of these issues are written into the platforms of the two major political parties and are major concerns in this election year. Human life issues, religious freedom issues, immigration issues and education issues are some of those which are at the heart of the Republican and Democratic Party Platforms. These platforms are presented in this issue of the West River Catholic, on pages 3-4. Please take the time to view them before you vote.

Even though there are many issues in which to consider in any election, Catholics should view them within the context of the hierarchy of truths in Catholic Social teaching which begins with defending innocent human life. There is a vast difference on life issues between the Republican and Democratic Party Platforms — one of life and one of death.

This year’s Democratic Party platform calls for the overturning of the Hyde Amendment, a provision that both parties have voted to include in the federal budget and on other spending bills for many, many years. The Hyde Amendment prohibits federal taxpayer money from being used for abortion. The platform is aggressively pro-abortion, not only in funding matters, but in the appointment of judges who support abortion. It also supports the repealing of the Helms Amendment, which states that “no (U.S.) foreign assistance funds may be used to pay for the performance of abortion as a method of family planning or to motivate or coerce any person to practice abortions.” Conversely, the Republican Party platform is supportive of the Hyde Amendment and has strengthened its support for life by calling for the defunding of Planned Parenthood, banning dismemberment abortion and opposing assisted suicide.

People may say that the life issue isn’t the only issue to consider. That is true. The Catholic Church proclaims that human life is sacred and that the dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. This belief is the foundation of all the principles of our social teaching. Therefore, I believe the life issue is the first issue to consider. The right to life is the first and most fundamental principle of human rights. Without life, none of the other rights matter.

Many of the other issues can legitimately be debated by Christians, such as the best and most effective policies in caring for the poor, the immigrants, taxes, etc. In voting, it is not an either/or scenario. All issues need to be considered. But all issues are not equal. The direct killing of innocent human life must be opposed always by every follower of Jesus Christ.

The health and holiness of our country and our world depends on a deep respect for human life at all its stages from the moment of conception until natural death. The future of our society depends on how we protect that right.

In this Year of Mercy, we are called to be merciful as our heavenly Father is merciful to us. How will we be moved by mercy if we are not first moved by mercy for the unborn?

October

Karol Wojtyá was born May 18, 1920, into a devout Catholic family in Wadowice, Poland. His early life was marked by suffering and loss. When he was eight years old his mother died, and three years later his older brother. With the instruction and example of his father, Karol drew close to Our Lady and found solace in prayer. His father died in 1941 and at the age of twenty Karol was left alone in the world. Karol excelled academically and attended the prestigious Jagellonian University in Kraków; however, his studies were interrupted by war and the Nazi occupation. He went to work as a manual laborer in a quarry where he was known to sing and lift the spirits of those around him. Wojtyá entered the seminary in secret in 1942.

Pope John Paul II blesses the crowd of about 40,000 gathered for Mass in the central city of Santa Clara, Cuba, Jan. 22, 1998. He presided over a two-hour liturgy during which he urged Cubans to turn to Christ to bolster family life. (CNS photo/Reuters)

After the war ended, he resumed his studies and was ordained a priest in 1946. As a priest he spent much of his time ministering to young adults, often going on camping trips with them, and later taught philosophy at a Catholic university while earning his doctorate. In 1958, he was ordained auxiliary bishop of Kraków, then installed as archbishop of Kraków in 1964. While bishop, he attended all four sessions of Vatican II and worked to undermine the tyranny of Soviet communism. Wojtyá was named a cardinal in 1967 and then elected pope on October 16, 1978.

God’s mercy was a central theme of John Paul’s pontificate. In his famous homily at his inauguration Mass, John Paul exhorted the world: “Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors for Christ.” Having witnessed the atrocities wrought by war and hate in his own country he knew well the depth of sin and evil; yet, he knew that God’s mercy was deeper still. Later, he wrote the encyclical Dives in Misericordia in which he emphasizes Jesus’ message of mercy to those who suffer: the poor, the outcast and the sinner, holding up the parable of the prodigal son as a “simple but profound” illustration of the “reality of conversion.”

John Paul not only spoke and wrote about mercy but he lived it. One of the most notable examples is when he visited Mehmet Ali Agca, his would-be assassin, in prison and forgave him. Another powerful example is the story of a priest who while visiting Rome stumbled upon a man begging outside a church who looked strangely familiar. Upon asking the man, the priest learned that they had in fact studied and been ordained together. The man related that after several crises he had renounced his priesthood, been stripped of his priestly faculties and was reduced to a homeless beggar. Later that day, in a private audience with the pope, the priest quickly blurted out the story of his encounter with the beggar. The priest received word from the Vatican that he was to dine with the Holy Father and was instructed to bring the homeless man. Though reluctant, the homeless man accompanied the priest. After dinner John Paul asked to be alone with the homeless man. After fifteen minutes, the man emerged from the room in tears. The priest eagerly asked the homeless man what happened. He recounted that John Paul had asked him to hear his confession. When he protested that he was a beggar and no longer a priest, John Paul replied saying: “once a priest, always a priest!” and “I too come before the Lord as a beggar.” After asking if he desired it, John Paul reinstated his priestly faculties and the beggar priest heard the confession of the pope. John Paul then sent him forth, instructing him to return to the parish where he had sat outside begging, that he was to be an associate pastor there and minister to his fellow beggars. With the love of the merciful Father, he welcomed his lost sheep back into the flock then sent him out to go and do likewise.

Near the end of his pontificate, John Paul canonized St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, the Polish nun to whom Jesus revealed the Divine Mercy image and chaplet, and he established Divine Mercy Sunday as a feast for the whole church. He brought this message of Divine Mercy to the world as he travelled to 129 countries while pope. After suffering from Parkinson’s disease for several years, John Paul died April 2, 2005 on the eve of Divine Mercy Sunday. He was canonized by Pope Francis on April 27, 2014. In his homily at John Paul’s funeral Mass, then-Cardinal Ratzinger said: “Our Pope — and we all know this — never wanted to make his own life secure, to keep it for himself; he wanted to give of himself unreservedly, to the very last moment, for Christ and thus also for us.”

Prayer to St. John Paul II

O Holy Trinity, we thank you for having given to the Church Pope John Paul II, and for having made him shine with your fatherly tenderness, the glory of the Cross of Christ and the splendor of the Spirit of love.

He, trusting completely in your infinite mercy and in the maternal intercession of Mary, has shown himself in the likeness of Jesus the Good Shepherd and has pointed out to us holiness as the path to reach eternal communion with you.

Grant us, through his intercession, according to your will, the grace that we implore, in the hope that he will soon be numbered among your saints. Amen.

In a culture which is becoming more and more secular each day and the moral values on which this country was founded are in steep decline, this upcoming election is one of the most important elections of our lifetime. I urge all Catholics to take seriously their obligation as citizens to engage in the political process, beginning with exercising the right to vote. All Catholics have a moral obligation to this responsibility.

More than any other time in history, our country is facing political challenges that demand urgent moral choices. This current presidential campaign and upcoming election provide an important opportunity to help Catholics and non-Catholics alike understand the magnitude of acting in the political arena with a properly formed and informed conscience.

Neither I, nor any bishop, can tell people which candidates for whom to vote. But the U.S. bishops state in The Challenge of Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship (www.faithfulcit izenship.org) that voting “is a decision to be made by each Catholic guided by a conscience formed by Catholic moral teaching.” The role of bishops is to help form the consciences of Catholics in the light of church teaching so they will make sound moral judgments.

In the Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph #1777 states: “Moral conscience, present at the heart of the person, enjoins him at the appropriate moment to do good and to avoid evil. It also judges particular choices, approving those that are good and denouncing those that are evil. It bears witness to the authority of truth in reference to the supreme Good to which the human person is drawn, and it welcomes the commandments. When he listens to his conscience, the prudent man can hear God speaking.”

In the context of the political process, forming our conscience takes place when we seriously examine the issues and are open to the truth and what is right according to Catholic teaching. It requires the study of sacred Scripture and the teachings of the church, especially in regard to Catholic social teaching. Then we must examine the facts and background information about various choices and prayerfully reflect and discern the will of God. The prudent advice and the good example of others help support and enlighten our conscience. The authoritative teaching of the church is an essential element as well as the gifts of the Holy Spirit in helping us to develop our conscience.

In voting for a candidate for public office, we must be guided by our moral convictions, not any self-interest or attachment to a political party or interest group. It would irresponsible to vote for a candidate because we have always voted for that particular political party. The USCCB document The Challenge of Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship states: “Catholic voters should use Catholic teaching to examine candidates’ positions on issues and should consider candidates’ integrity, philosophy, and performance. It is important for all citizens “to see beyond party politics, to analyze campaign rhetoric critically, and to choose their political leaders according to principle, not party affiliation or mere self-interest” (USCCB, Living the Gospel of Life, no. 33).”

But what happens in a race where Christians are faced with two morally problematic choices? When both candidates are not good, then who should I vote for? This is a question on the minds of many people in this election cycle. In reality, very few candidates or political parties advocate policies which line up completely with Catholic Social Teaching. That being said, all political issues are not equal. Some parties and candidates have policies and planks within their platforms which promote serious mortal sin. This is a cause for grave concern. Human life issues, religious freedom issues, immigration issues and education issues are just some of the major concerns in this election year. But there is a hierarchy of truths in Catholic Social Teaching. Defending innocent human life, protecting the sanctity of marriage and concern for the poor lead the way.

Again as stated in Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, “As Catholics, our focus is not on party affiliation, ideology, economics, or even competence and capacity to perform duties, as important as such issues are. Rather, we focus on what protects or threatens human life and dignity.” Therefore, a formed conscience, enlightened by the teachings of Christ as it comes to us through the church’s moral teaching, must be our guide for all of the issues. If you would like to know more about the Seven Themes

of Catholic Social Teaching, this

website will be of value. http://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/catholic-social-teaching/seven-themes-of-catholic-social-teaching.cfm.

Through voting and involvement in the political process, Catholics help shape the moral character of society. It is the church’s role to help build and shape a society that animates the love and charity which the Gospel demands. This is a requirement of our faith and part of the mission of Jesus Christ that has been given to each member of his body. Our faith offers us the opportunity to make a unique contribution in our society through our efforts to advance the common good for all in building God’s kingdom. Therefore we must carefully discern which public policies are most sound in accord to Gospel values and vote for the candidate which most likely will embrace those policies.

At times Catholics may choose different ways to respond to social problems, but we cannot differ on our obligations to protect human life and help build a more just and peaceful world through a lens of Catholic morality.

In the words of Mark Twain: “A Christian’s first duty is to God. It then follows, as a matter of course, that it is his duty to carry his Christian code of morals to the polls and vote them … If Christians should vote their duty to God at the polls, they would carry every election, and do it with ease. … It would bring about a moral revolution that would be incalculably beneficent. It would save the country” (Colliers Magazine, September 2, 1905, pg. 17).

Let us pray that the Lord will give each of us the wisdom, guidance and moral prudence needed as we go to the polls on November 8. Come Holy Spirit!