Your Vote and Catholic Social Teaching
Are we not our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers?
For those who were raised with Catholic values, there is more than a single issue at stake in the upcoming midterm elections. The Roman Catholic Church has elevated the abortion issue as the single most important issue in any election. With the midterm elections right around the corner, there are so many other urgent and “equally sacred” considerations.
By focusing on one single issue at the ballot box, we are neglecting an entire body of wise and equally sacred Catholic teaching that calls us to cooperate with God to protect the poor, the vulnerable, those on the margins, and all of creation.
The Church’s own Catholic Social Teaching has developed over the course of the last century and requires a more expansive and nuanced stance than a single issue vote. Pope Francis has declared that all of the issues invoked in the Catholic Social Teaching are “equally sacred” and must be protected.
This teaching gives us a solid and essential foundation to vote for candidates who are concerned about the protection and flourishing of all humans and of the earth. We are called to be agents of change in society; not merely resisting unjust structures and arrangements, but actively undertaking to reform them.
Please review this checklist prepared by the Network of Advocates for Catholic Social Justice:
MEDDLE IN POLITICS
Pope Francis encourages all of us to “meddle in politics” in order to uphold the “gospel mandate to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked and care for the ill and imprisoned with compassion (cf. Matthew 25:31-46).” It is critical for all of us to exercise the right and responsibility to vote for candidates and issues that support the common good and concern for the most vulnerable people in our society.
PROTECT THE RIGHT TO VOTE
One of the basic tenets of Catholic Social Teaching demands that all people have access to voting to participate in the community. Be aware of the many attempts to deprive people of their right to vote, especially people of color, through voter suppression laws that impose restrictions on voting by mail or illegal gerrymandering.
PROTECT THE DIGNITY OF ALL LIFE
Catholic Social Teaching requires us to be concerned about and protect the dignity of all humans created by God, as well as all of creation.
The dignity of all humans include women who have been sidelined and denigrated in the acrimonious debates and disastrous consequences around abortion rights.
The dignity of all humans include LGBTQ+ folks whose basic rights and same sex marriages are in danger of being overturned by Supreme Court justices who promise to continue to overturn and reject many of our hard-earned civil rights.
The dignity of all humans include immigrants who are fleeing violence in their homelands. Jesus was an immigrant! Using immigrants as human pawns in an abhorrent political game degrades them and disrespects their human dignity.
The dignity of creation includes the whole earth, the streams and lakes, the air and land, and all animals, plants, and humans whose very existence depends on its vibrant survival.
OPTION FOR THE POOR AND VULNERABLE
Catholic teaching proclaims that a basic moral test of our society is how our most vulnerable members are faring. Look at the voting records and policy pages on the websites of the candidates on your ballot. What are they saying about protecting the poor and vulnerable? God hears their cries. Are we listening? Will we answer those cries with compassion?
CONCERN FOR THE COMMON GOOD
I strongly encourage you to vote in these midterm elections for candidates who are concerned for the common good. The “common good” is reached when we work together to improve the wellbeing of people in our society and the wider world. Our individual rights must be balanced with the needs of the disadvantaged and dispossessed. Investigate where the candidates on your ballot stand on the issues and determine whose needs are being met, and whose are left behind.
Can we continue to ignore the call of the poor and vulnerable for whom God weeps?
Dig deeper with into these issues with the following resources:
A fascinating and alarming discussion about the rise of Christian Nationalism:
Contemplation and Political Action: An Ignatian Guide to Civic Engagement
https://www.jesuits.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/CivicEngagement-v10.pdf
10 Key Principles of Catholic Social Teaching
https://www.cctwincities.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Key-10-Principles-of-CST-1-pager-2017.pdf
Voting is an Act of Love according to the Ignatian Solidarity Network
https://ignatiansolidarity.net/blog/2020/08/06/ignatian-solidarity-network-voting-as-an-act-of-love/
Find more on voter suppression laws here:
https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/5-egregious-voter-suppression-laws-2021
Not sure how to contact your elected representatives? Click here for all the details: