October 29, 2006

Not everyone in history has had, or has, the precious privilege of electing their leaders and shaping their government. Despite all its defects, the democratic system has been secured for us at great sacrifice over the generations, and vigil must constantly be kept for its integrity. In 1999, the bishops of the United States reiterated the Church’s teaching on voting as a duty: “For Catholics, public virtue is as important as private virtue in building up the common good. In the Catholic tradition, responsible citizenship is a virtue; participation in the political process is a moral obligation.” As another election day nears, I recall a recent instruction on this written by His Eminence Francis Cardinal George, Arch­bishop of Chicago, as he addressed the role of conscience in political matters. Conscience is to be “formed,” which means that it is to be instructed by the moral norms and should not be an excuse for acting irrationally.

Although principles are clear, problems result in their practical application because of confusion of priorities and the temptations of self-interest. In all public considerations, the first interest must be the dignity of every human person and the right to life. As a natural law, this can be understood and affirmed by non-Christians. The Catholic must know, from the Church’s moral system, that Catholic politicians must not compromise conscience under the excuse of not “imposing doctrine on others.” The protection of innocent life is rational and not only doctrinal, although the two go together. For example, the prohibition against stealing as a sin is a doctrinal precept, but it also is rationally understood as an essential element in the common good. Our present legal system is irrational as it protects “stocks and bonds, as well as dogs and cats” more carefully than it protects unborn human beings.

It is offensive to God and conscience to neglect moral principles in order to vote for a particular political party or candidate out of custom. Many politicians advertise them­selves as Catholic, or as friendly to the Church, and then hold Catholic moral principles in contempt. It is only the ignorance or self-interest of Catholic voters that keeps these misrepresentative representatives in office.

Cardinal George writes: “In the long run, God governs creation and the ideals of Catholic social doctrine are therefore possible of accomplishment. In the short run, we have to vote. . . . It’s important to vote in a democratic society, even though much of our life is governed by decisions of unelected bureaucrats and judges and editors and economic players whose names we do not recognize unless there is a scandal of some sort. May each of us do the best we can, using the dialogue between faith and reason that takes place in our hearts, guided by the Church’s social doctrine; and may God protect us and our country.”

Fr. George W. Rutler