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This is the last of four articles on Catholic citizenship.
Click here to read the first article
Click here to read the second article
Click here to read the third article
Last week we offered Questions for Candidates, Part 1 covering the issues surrounding Protecting Human Life and Promoting Family Life. This is the fourth and final article using selections from the pastoral letter by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops regarding faithful citizenship. The bishops wrote to encourage Catholics to become more involved in the political process to promote Catholic values in the formation of our country’s policies. The following questions will allow you to compare a candidate’s position with the Church’s position on a given issue.
Pursuing Social Justice
The Church supports economic justice and the use of judiciously administered affirmative action programs. Does the candidate support policies that provide a living wage, eliminate discrimination, allow workers to organize and exercise these rights without reprisal? Do the candidate’s policies limit the right to private property, economic freedom and initiative? The Church teaches that the pursuit of economic justice is not about confiscation of one’s goods. It is about allowing everyone to grow to their potential for the good of all. What does the candidate propose for welfare reform? Will it mean cuts in benefits or a different kind of support? Will there be access to health care, child care and affordable housing? Will there be tax relief in the form of child tax credits?
Do the candidate’s policies rely heavily on passing the care of the poor to faith-based organizations and other not-for-profits? The Church respects the efforts of faith-based organizations in providing support to families, but in partnership with government efforts, not as a substitute for government action.
Does the candidate support food security for all, including the poorest? Does the candidate have a policy that balances the need for affordable food with the farmers’ need for a living wage? Does the balance include protecting farm workers and the land from which the bounty is produced? The Church’s call for sustainable agriculture includes consideration of all of the links in the chain.
The Church supports embracing immigrants, both those documented and those undocumented. Does the candidate have a humane immigration policy that deals with the root causes of immigration, extends due process of law to immigrants and continues to welcome refugees, asylum seekers and victims of human trafficking? To do otherwise is to victimize the immigrants a second time.
In the words of Pope John Paul II, care for the Earth and for the environment is a moral issue. Is the candidate serious about protecting the land, water and air we share? Does the candidate support the development of alternate, renewable and clean-energy resources? Does the candidate have an effective policy to reduce, reuse and recycle what is already circulating in the economy to alleviate pressure on the natural resources we have yet to exploit? What does the candidate propose regarding global climate change and the U.S.’ role as the leading consumer of the world’s resources?
Practicing Global Solidarity
We must be careful not to define our security primarily in military terms. Economic justice on a global scale can have a positive impact on several issues we may see only in national terms. A more just world is a more secure world.
Does the candidate recognize the interconnectedness and have a comprehensive approach to the interrelated issues of national security, energy policy, immigration issues and U.S. trade policies? What does the candidate propose in the ongoing globalization of trade? The Church recognizes the need to humanize the process, to consider its negative effects on the poorest.
What is the candidate’s position on international intervention in regional conflicts and civil wars? How supportive of the UN and other international bodies is the candidate? The Church believes consistent political and financial support of these bodies is required to allow them to be effective in promoting peace.
More specifically, what does the candidate propose to help in the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Both sides have legitimate claims and aspirations. As Israel’s staunchest ally, the US has a unique responsibility and opportunity to help bring peace to the region. With our ongoing involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq to make things more complicated, we cannot be without a sustainable strategy to promote justice. Any solution must be accepted by the people who will remain after we are gone.
As promised in the beginning, we have no easy answers. Compare the Questions for Candidates, Parts 1 and 2 with candidates’ literature, websites and publicly issued position papers. Sort out what is fluff from what is substantive. Don’t be paralyzed by choice. Vote in the primary. Encourage your friends and neighbors to vote. We’ll rerun some of this information prior to the November elections to help you in that decision.
Learn more about the bishops’ call to Faithful Citizenship by visiting the Faithful Citizenship website.
