Letter from the Pastor
-
October 15, 2020
We are less than three weeks to Election Day 2020. As Election Day draws nearer, the question may still remain, “Who am I going to vote for?
Taking the lead from Sunday’s Gospel, our Lord does not give us His political philosophy, rather He did give us a life-principle, “Render unto Caesar, what belongs to Caesar, but render unto God what belongs to God.” All things belong to God, all time and seasons, but God shares His power and authority with human beings. And as we live in a community, we need leaders. And in our form of government, we elect our leaders, frail sinful people. Some leaders are better than others because they are more virtuous, or more compassionate, or more empathetic than others.
So what are we to do on November 3rd as Catholic voters? Catholic people who take their faith seriously; people who actually believe what the Catholic faith teaches is true; people who place it first in their loyalty, thoughts and actions; people who submit their lives to Christ the King, to Scripture and to the guidance of the Church. The words of St. Thomas More ring true, “I am the King’s good servant, but God’s first.”
The American bishops offer valuable counsel in their document Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship (available on the USCCB website), and this year especially, they ask us to pray before we vote. Prayer is always important, indeed, it is essential. Prayer is asking and then listening for God’s voice and educating our consciences. And we are to pray for the virtue of Prudence. Prudence enables us “to discern our true good in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1806). Prudence shapes and informs our ability to deliberate over available alternatives, to determine what is most fitting to a specific context, and to act decisively.
For us Catholics, no political or social issue stands in isolation. There are many issues that we as a country are facing: pandemic, religious liberty, Supreme Court nominations, security, education, economy, climate control, immigration etc… But all these pressing issues are not equal in foundational importance or gravity. The most fundamental issue of all issues is the right to life. The right to life undergirds all other rights and all genuine social progress. It cannot be set aside or lumped together in the name of other “rights” or priorities without losing the whole idea of human dignity. All who share in the nature of humanity, human beings are subject to rights.
God created us with an intellect, which always seeks the truth. It follows that He will hold us accountable to think deeply and clearly, rightly ordering the factors that guide us, before we act politically. And yet modern American life, from its pervasive social media that creates a mob mentality, to the relentless news programs on our TVs, seems designed to do the opposite. It seems bent on turning us into opinionated and a distracted mob unable to control our own passions and thoughts. Thinking and praying require silence, and the only way we can get silence is by deciding to step back and unplug.The Immaculate Conception,
patroness of our country
and St. Thomas More,pray for us.