I recently saw this comment on my Facebook page:
“There is no such thing as a pro-choice practicing Catholic. You cannot be pro-choice and a practicing Catholic and those that claim otherwise or try to base their claims on Catholic Social teaching are either terribly misinformed or out & out liars.”
Suddenly in my mind, the Pharisee jumped out of today’s Gospel and spoke: “O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity -- greedy, dishonest, adulterous -- or even like this pro-choice Catholic.” (isn’t it sad that the Pharisee needs to make himself feel better by pointing out someone else’s sin?)
Then I thought to myself, “What a strange way for a person to talk to their friends?” (We’re ALL friends on Facebook, are we not?)
If that person were a real Catholic friend, he or she would drop the name calling, and encourage friends to vote with Catholic moral principles in mind.
Following those principles as we vote would be a good way to respond to our first reading, because many of them reflect God’s concern for the powerless among us.
I would like to share those Catholic morals principles with you now, and I promise not to call you names.
These are not MY moral principles; our U. S. Bishops gave them to us in a document called Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship. I strongly encourage you to read the entire document. What I’m about to share with you is from Part III of the document.
“We urge…all people of good will to use this statement…to shape political choices in the coming election in light of Catholic teaching.”
… (W)e bishops offer the following policy goals… Not all issues are equal; these ten goals address matters of different moral weight and urgency. Some involve intrinsically evil acts, which can never be approved. Others involve… obligations to seek the common good… :
Please notice that there is no mention of a candidate’s name or of a political party in this document. The bishops want us to be aware, before we go into the voting booth, of what God wants for this nation and the world. What goes on in the voting booth is between you, God and your confessor.