Grace, mercy, and peace to you!
1 Timothy 1:2
Dear Friends,
As election day draws near, we may struggle to understand what the Catholic Church officially offers about the electoral process and voting. The most helpful information available is the statement from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops: “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: A Call to Political Responsibility.” This is a document updated every four years by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to assist American Catholics in discerning electoral choices.
The key to understanding the approach of the Church in these areas is found in the title itself: “forming consciences.” What does that mean? The U.S. Bishops offer this helpful explanation:
“This statement highlights the role of the Church in the formation of conscience and the corresponding moral responsibility of each Catholic to hear, receive, and act upon the Church’s teaching in the lifelong task of forming his or her own conscience. Foremost amongst those teachings are the four basic principles of Catholic social doctrine: the dignity of the human person, the common good, subsidiarity, and solidarity (Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, no. 160). With this foundation, Catholics are better able to evaluate policy positions, party platforms, and candidates’ promises and actions in light of the Gospel and the moral and social teaching of the Church in order to help build a better world…. In this statement, we bishops do not intend to tell Catholics for whom or against whom to vote. Our purpose is to help Catholics form their consciences in accordance with God’s truth. We recognize that the responsibility to make choices in political life rests with each individual in light of a properly formed conscience, and that participation goes well beyond casting a vote in a particular election.”
The American bishops reflect longstanding church tradition on the role of faith in the political order. They rightly state much more is involved than casting a vote, as privileged and principled as voting is. Our responsibility as faithful disciples does not begin, or end, in the voting booth. Rather, we are to continually examine how these values influence how we can best respond, socially and politically, to the questions of our time. As faithful disciples, we seek to make these choices not as strict partisans, but rather based in principles formed by faith. This approach to political action is substantively different than actions based in partisanship. The Church seeks to affirm where justified and critique where needed all partisan political processes in the light of faith, and not to allow the inverse, wherein faith is used as a means to advance partisan political goals. To faithfully evaluate political movements, issues, and candidates, the Church offers overarching principles that stand beyond the norms of typical political categories. In his encyclical message Deus Caritas Est, Pope Benedict XVI reiterated and clarified the Church’s self-understanding in this regard:
“The Church's social teaching argues on the basis of reason and natural law, namely, on the basis of what is in accord with the nature of every human being. It recognizes that it is not the Church's responsibility to make this teaching prevail in political life. Rather, the Church wishes to help form consciences in political life and to stimulate greater insight into the authentic requirements of justice as well as greater readiness to act accordingly, even when this might involve conflict with situations of personal interest. Building a just social and civil order, wherein each person receives what is his or her due, is an essential task which every generation must take up anew…A just society must be the achievement of politics, not of the Church. Yet the promotion of justice through efforts to bring about openness of mind and will to the demands of the common good is something which concerns the Church deeply.”
Pope Francis has continued in this line of reflection, stating that: “Jesus wants neither selfish Christians, who follow their egos and do not speak with God, nor weak Christians, without will: “remote-controlled” Christians, incapable of creativity, who always seek to connect with the will of another, and are not free. Jesus wants us free, and this freedom—where is it found? It is to be found in the inner dialogue with God in conscience. If a Christian does not know how to talk with God, does not know how to listen to God, in his own conscience, then he is not free. So we also must learn to listen more to our conscience. Be careful, however: this does not mean we ought to follow our ego, do whatever interests us, whatever suits us, whatever pleases us. That is not conscience. Conscience is the interior space in which we can listen to and hear the truth, the good, the voice of God. It is the inner place of our relationship with Him, who speaks to our heart and helps us to discern, to understand the path we ought to take, and once the decision is made, to move forward, to remain faithful.” (Angleus Address, June 30, 2013)
The Pope’s distinction between ego and conscience helps to clarify the meaning of “conscience.” Conscience is never a means of self-justification. It is, as the American bishops tell us, a lifelong spiritual process. Forming conscience is an act of faith, requiring our commitment to continual prayer, study, discernment, faithful action, and a willingness to engage in examen, that is, a process of honestly evaluating our actions by the values of the Gospel. To ignore that sacred process, or to allow strictly partisan values to replace our duty to form the gift of conscience, is an abdication of our higher responsibility to faithful discipleship. Especially in difficult times, we may desire that someone or something else tell us what we should do, or how we should vote. We may even desire that someone or something else determine how others should (or should not) act or vote. This may be alluring and simple it its own way, but it is a false solution, and is not what the Church is asking from us. Rather, we are to seriously exercise our duties of citizenship with faithfully formed conscience.
What the Church is asking is that we consider how we can most effectively bring to bear with wisdom and reasoned judgment those attributes most frequently found in its doctrine on conscience. These attributes include: the human dignity of every person, the human person in his or her totality, truth, solidarity, freedom, justice, liberty, the common good, love of God, love for neighbor, subsidiarity, peace, discernment. These are some of the tools at our disposal as we not only exercise our right and privilege as voters, but also as we continually act within society as faithful citizens/faithful disciples.
We pray then to use these gifts wisely, and we pray for all those who present themselves as candidates to serve as elected representatives. A prayer the American bishops offer in their document expresses the call to commit ourselves first and foremost to faithful discipleship through prayer. Please join me in offering this prayer each day as we prepare for our elections, and in the days and months that will follow:
Merciful Father,
Thank you for inviting each of us to join in your work of building the kingdom of love, justice, and peace. Draw us close to you in prayer as we discern your call in our families and communities.
Send us forth to encounter all whom you love: those not yet born, those in poverty, those in need of welcome.
Inspire us to respond to the call to faithful citizenship, during election season and beyond.
Help us to imitate your charity and compassion and to serve as models of loving dialogue. Teach us to treat others with respect, even when we disagree, and seek to share your love and mercy.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen
Finally, in light of the contentiousness that characterizes our present moment and the questions some of you have asked regarding how to manage these challenging times, I wish to share the timeless wisdom St. Paul offered to the Christians of Galatia:
“Brothers and sisters, you were called to be free: do not use your freedom as an opening for self-indulgence, but be servants of one another in love, since the whole of the law may be summarized in the one commandment: You must love your neighbor as yourself. If you go snapping at one another and tearing one another to pieces, take care: you will be eaten up by one another. Instead, be guided by the Spirit…for the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, trustfulness, gentleness, and self-control; no law can touch such things as these. All who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified self with all its passions and its desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let our behavior be guided by the Spirit, so as not to be provocative of one another.” (Galatians 5:13-16, 22-26)
Bringing the virtues of the Spirit to bear in how we conduct ourselves in our personal and social communications during and after this election will help to develop a more respectful, peaceful society. Our feeling for or against particular policies or candidates may be strong, but that is no reason to speak or act contrary to the Spirit we claim to be alive in our hearts. As faithful disciples of the Lord of Peace, we should by our conduct personally contribute to realizing the effects of this peace even now.
Fr. Joe
Pastor, Church of St. Timothy