Like Every Person, Every Vote Counts

Election Day is drawing near.  While it is both an incredible right and an awesome responsibility of citizenship in our country, voter turnout is expected to be rather low on Tuesday, Nov. 8.  I must admit, especially in terms of our presidential candidates, it is difficult to get excited about the choices for the upcoming election.  None of the candidates – or parties, for that matter – line up real well with Catholic teaching.  Still, as both a Christian and a U.S. citizen, I feel obliged to participate in the election process.  

    It has been said that the Republican party adamantly fights for the right of persons to be born and then basically leaves persons to fend for themselves after birth, while the Democrat party basically operates under the premise of taking care of only those persons who can make it to birth.  Certainly, the behavior of elected officials on both sides of the aisle leaves much to be desired.  Rather than making any credible attempts towards authentic dialogue, each party resorts to demonizing the other.  This is certainly the case in practically all the campaign rhetoric of the current candidates vying to be the next president of the United States.

    So how do we go about choosing the best candidate for public office?  With more than 300,000 churches of various denominations and traditions in America, not to mention the number of mosques and temples, religion plays a crucial role in helping persons to navigate through the discernment process.  There has been much conversation around the understanding of the tax-exempt status for churches, mosques and temples, preventing ministers or religious groups from directly advocating for a particular candidate and/or party.  Some accuse ministers and/or churches of hiding behind the tax-exempt-status argument.  Others want the tax-exempt status to be removed altogether.  While I cannot speak for other religions, whether Christian or non-Christian, it is my responsibility to explain the Catholic position.

    As I mentioned previously, no candidate or party lines up squarely with Catholic teaching.   This includes even those politicians who described themselves as Catholics, especially those who somehow justify divorcing their public positions from their so-called private-life principles.  A basic premise of Catholic teaching is that our beliefs, if authentic, must necessarily be realized in our words and actions.  A person’s Catholic faith cannot be merely relegated to Sunday Mass or worship apart from service.  Thus, regardless of whether tax-exempt status exists, we need to proverbially “keep our eyes on the ball.”  This means that we must remain committed to focusing on the issues rather than a particular candidate or party.  To do otherwise is to risk losing sight of the bigger picture in any particular political race or situation.  There are times, of course, when we are forced to choose the lesser of evils.  Such occasions, however, must not cause us to abandon our key principles of faith.  We must not sacrifice our Catholic teachings and beliefs for any particular candidate or party.  

    Here it is worth recounting the key principles of Catholic social teaching, which should be kept in mind in one’s discernment process for any given election.  The seven key principles include the following:  (1) Life and Dignity of the Human Person (from the moment of conception to natural death); (2) Call to Family, Community and Participation (the person is not only sacred but also social); (3) Rights and Responsibilities (persons have fundamental rights and corresponding duties); (4) Option for the Poor and Vulnerable (Matthew 25:31-46); (5) The Dignity of Work and the Right of Workers (the economy must serve people, not the other way around); (6) Solidarity (we are one human family, brothers and sisters, in pursuit of justice and peace); and (7) Care for God’s Creation (as stewards of creation, we must maintain a fundamental respect for the Creator in caring for the earth).  These are the seven basic principles that should guide the discernment process for each and every Catholic.  These are not meant to be simply private beliefs but principles that govern our lives in all spheres—political, economic and social—of life.

    Closer to home, here in our own country, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops provides a special document to assist in the discernment process for elections.  The document, titled “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship; A Call to Political Responsibility from the Catholic Bishops of the United States,” was first published in 2007.  It is a rather basic document, meant to be somewhat reader-friendly and readily available to everyone.  For a copy of this document and/or other related resources, please review the USCCB website or go to www.faithfulcitizenship.org.  These resources are available in both English and Spanish.

    “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship” outlines particular concerns for voters to take into consideration.  These include concerns related to human life (e.g. abortion, euthanasia, assisted suicide, racism, destruction of human embryos for cloning, genocide and torture), family life (including marriage and children), social justice (e.g. just wages, discrimination, rights of workers, affordable & assessable healthcare, housing, welfare assistance, education, sustainable agriculture, the criminal justice system and care for the earth) and global solidarity (especially with regards to religious liberty, human rights, addressing various forms of injustice, reconciling conflicts, alleviating poverty and building peace).  In particular, when deciding how to cast one’s vote, we should consider where a candidate stands on the issues of protecting the unborn, defending the central institution of marriage, achieving comprehensive immigration reform, helping families and children to overcome poverty, providing affordable health care, addressing various forms of discrimination, and pursuing the common good in pursuit of peace, protection of human rights, safeguarding religious liberty, advancing economic justice and embracing proper care for creation.  All issues are not equal in weight, of course, but no individual or group should impose their agenda on another individual or group.  

    We must not take our participation in the political process too lightly, and certainly we cannot remain indifferent to what is going on in our country and world.  As previously stated, it is the right and obligation of each and every person to participate in the process.  If one is not a part of the solution, one merely remains a part of the problem.  Like every person, every vote counts.  As responsible Christians and citizens, especially as Catholics, as the U.S. Bishops’ document stresses, we must familiarize ourselves with the keys issues at stake in any given election.  Furthermore, we should weigh these issues in light of the key principles of Catholic social teaching.  Where do the candidates stand on the issues related to these principles?  How adverse is any given candidate to a particular concern or principle?  If it is difficult to determine a good choice among the candidates, who might be the lesser one of concern?  The discernment process for voting is not simple and easy.  Yet, it is important to be informed voters.  

    Let us take time to study the issues, familiarize ourselves with the positions of the candidates, pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit and cast our vote when the time comes to stand up and be counted.  God bless our country and all the nations of the world.