Vocationem ad Suffragium part 2

In Forming Consciences for Faithful in Citizenship, the bishops address the four principles of Catholic Social Teaching, which serve as “primary and fundamental parameters of reference for interpreting and evaluating social phenomena (Evangelii Gaudium, 221).” These principles form the moral framework to properly forming our consciousnesses and making informed choices in the social sphere.

1. Dignity of the Human Person. Life is sacred and must be preserved. It does not always look like opposing violence (though it does include that); it includes opposing euthanasia (“death with dignity”), abortion (“choice”), in vitro fertilization, racism, human trafficking, and poverty. War is a step of absolute last resort, done to save human lives. Every single person is made in the image of God and deserves life.

2. Subsidiarity. As Forming Consciences for Faithful in Citizenship says, “The human person is not only sacred but also social. Full human development takes place in relationship with others (46).” Showing dignity for a person is more than “all lives matter” platitudes; it includes concern for the person’s families, groups, associations and “for that aggregate of economic, social, cultural, sports-oriented, recreational, professional and political expressions to which people spontaneously give life and which make it possible for them to achieve effective social growth (45).” A human does not exist in a vacuum and concern for her familial bonds and social environment which allow her to be her best person is necessary for giving her true dignity of life.

3. The common good. The common good is “the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfilment more fully and more easily (Gaudium et Spes, 26).” The common good includes a person’s rights to life, food, shelter, education, employment, healthcare, family, and freedom of religion. In exchange, each person has duties to support the common good, such as feeding the hungry, protecting workers’ rights, and caring for creation.

4. Solidary. “We are one human family, whatever our national, racial, ethnic, economic, and ideological differences. We are our brothers' and sisters' keepers, wherever they may be (Forming Consciences for Faithful in Citizenship, 52).” While respecting our cultural, ethnic, or social differences, we first and foremost must see each other as equal in dignity and together in the goal of the common good. Solidarity calls us to promote peace and pursue justice. Solidarity also emphasizes the Church’s (and Jesus’) preferential option for the poor—what helps the weak, vulnerable, and needy must be prioritized.

While the bishops lay these principles out in Forming Consciences for Faithful in Citizenship, they should be applied more broadly than in the voting booth. Are we respecting all life, at every stage, in every condition? Are we actively participating in shaping a society that supports the well-being for everyone? Are we making choices which reflect care for workers and care for the earth? Are we doing charity directed toward the poor, sick, or needy? Our politics should reflect our larger moral framework, rooted in charity and justice. 

Vocationem ad Suffragium part 1

It’s been nasty these past few weeks. There was a blissful time this summer when a global pandemic and economic crash pushed the election from the headlines. But now the pandemic is ignored (as the second wave rises) and the election is days away. And it’s nasty. Not just in the news and online chats. In person. In public. In the pulpit.

I watch as people I respected make excuses for supporting evil. I’m told who is and isn’t a good Christian is defined by their vote. I’m told who is and isn’t Christian at all is defined by their vote. And I don’t understand why we speak so militantly to one another, so self-assured, so confident that the other is not worth compassion or not gaining salvation. It's not changing anyone's politics, but I'm afraid it's losing souls. 

No American party is morally pure. No Catholic can find a candidate who is 100% aligned with Church teachings. Compromises are made. Some denominations found that compromises are inexcusable. It is a strong Anabaptist belief that politics is antithetical to a life devoted to God. God is your sovereign. You may in a world governed by politics, but you are not part of it. You do not endorse candidates that only partially align with your beliefs. Rather than lifting someone up, you make political change with your right actions. You do not fight wars. You do not vote. You nonviolently protest. You feed the poor. You tend to the sick. You love radically.

Maybe it’s the Anabaptist blood in me. But that makes sense. Voting is not a biblical command. We don’t have to do it at all, and most Christians throughout time would never have even considered it a choice, much less had opportunity to use it.

But it is an opportunity. One that men have fought for. One that women have been tortured and starved for. One that communities continue to diligently try to preserve. It is one way of many of having your voice heard, your opinion noted, and, if enough agree, your desires reflected in how the country functions. We are a society, and we can fight to make it a moral one. The Catechism says we have an obligation to our civic duties rooted in our baptismal commitment to bear witness to Christ. “It is necessary that all participate…in promoting the common good. This obligation is inherent in the dignity of the human person…As far as possible citizens should take an active part in public life (CCC 1913-1915).”

The USCCB’s Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship was written to guide Americans in how to make faithful decisions when stepping into the stressful, click-baity, mud-slinging world of political elections. We are called to use our opportunity to represent Christ, to uphold the sanctity for human life in all forms:

“Similarly [to abortion and euthanasia], human cloning, destructive research on human embryos, and other acts that directly violate the sanctity and dignity of human life are also intrinsically evil. These must always be opposed. Other direct assaults on innocent human life, such as genocide, torture, and the targeting of noncombatants in acts of terror or war, can never be justified. Nor can violations of human dignity, such as acts of racism, treating workers as mere means to an end, deliberately subjecting workers to subhuman living conditions, treating the poor as disposable, or redefining marriage to deny its essential meaning, ever be justified (23).” 

Furthermore, respect for life is linked to our human rights and need for safety, justice, and a healthy environment. The document continues, “All the life issues are connected, for erosion of respect for the life of any individual or group in society necessarily diminishes respect for all life. The moral imperative to respond to the needs of our neighbors-basic needs such as food, shelter, health care, education, and meaningful work-is universally binding on our consciences and may be legitimately fulfilled by a variety of means (25).” How we go about achieving those in a society can be different and result in differences of political opinion, but they must always be weighed into how we form our consciences when we vote.

As I said before, often voting leads to compromising, for there is no purity in modern politics. The bishops say this is understood. Our intentions and our goals must remain pure, even if the candidates, party platforms, or election processes are not. We can vote for a candidate to only promises incremental change (32). We can vote for a candidate who promotes an intrinsic evil (such as abortion or racism) as long as we are not voting for that candidate because of that issue but on other moral grounds (34). And, of course, we have the right to not participate and not vote at all (36). If we took so much care to form a moral conscience in our civic duties, maybe we wouldn't fall prey to being weighted down by propaganda and hatred. 

There is rarely moral purity in politics. A democracy is citizens coming together to shape the society they desire. There is power in the vote. There is responsibility. There is debate and compromise and stress. Because we’re human. But we try and fight and hope for something better. Because we’re made by God. We strive for a better world and try to reflect it back on this earth.

St. Adjutor

St. Adjutor was born into a noble Norman family in 1073 in Vernon, France. He served as a knight in the First Crusade in 1095. He was captured by Muslims who tried to force him to recant his faith. He escaped by jumping into nearby water and swimming to safety.

One legend says he swam all the way back to France. Another legend says angels or Mary Magdalene appeared and freed him from captivity and saw him safely home.

However he got there, when he returned to France he spent the rest of his life as a hermit with the Benedictines.

St. Adjutor died on June 30, 1131. He is the patron of swimmers, boaters, and drowning victims. His feast day is April 30.