It's weird living through the Trumpian farce. What's weirder is how many people believe his baseless claims. I am confident that there are enough people who grasp the peril the country is facing as a result of this farce and we will pull back from the brink. Clearly, if we're going to maintain anything resembling a healthy democratic republic there needs to be a concerted effort to help people sort facts from fiction and look for reality through all the smoke and mirrors of social media. This effort must include religion. It would be very nice if between now and 2024 the USCCB were to take seriously the title of their instruction on voting: Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship.
At the risk of sounding like a scratched record, this must include a concerted effort at getting across how prudential voting judgments are made by the use of proportional reasoning. When it comes to the "preeminent" issue, what then-Cardinal Ratzinger wrote to the U.S. bishops needs to be grasped: a Catholic should not vote for a candidate because s/he supports abortion. However, when one looks at the issues proportionally one may, in good conscience, vote for a pro-choice candidate. Even when it comes to life, I reiterate that there are several issues: abortion, physician-assisted suicide, euthanasia (which is often followed by the legalization of physician-assisted suicide), access to healthcare, domestic violence, the death penalty, war, and, yes, firearms violence.
It is always a mistake to attempt to make something rather complex simple. Faithful citizenship requires a well-formed conscience. Frankly, the Church in the U.S. has not done a good job of this and, as a result, experiences a lot of unnecessary division and tension. One's eyes should be open to the tendency of both major parties to manipulate voters on certain issues. This is usually described as throwing red meat to their respective bases, telling those who already support them what they want to hear. This is how the country becomes as polarized as it is at present. Everything becomes a zero-sum game. There is no room even for civil discussion, let alone substantial argument, and legitimate compromise.
Each party uses so-called "wedge" issues to gain votes with no real commitment to following through. Following through means surrendering that wedge issue as a means to gain votes. Something about being as gentle as doves and wise as serpents comes readily to mind. From a Catholic perspective, you must vote your conscience. You also must actively form and inform your conscience. One means to this end is reading Mark Shea's new book The Church’s Best-Kept Secret: A Primer on Catholic Social Teaching.
In short, all the non-negotiable nonsense needs to go. Democratic politics is nothing if not an on-going negotiation. This does not and cannot mean surrendering one's principles. As Christians, our commitment to the dignity of each and every person must remain firm. This commitment is much larger than one issue and even bigger than immediate life issues. It extends to things like a just wage, racial and gender equality, environmental protection (which may be the biggest and most important life issue), immigration policy, particularly the humane treatment of immigrants and refugees, the distribution of wealth, the right of workers to organize, etc.
There's a reason that Catholic Social Teaching is called the Church's best-kept secret. Over the next four years, it would be nice for this secret to be more revealed. At the risk of being too frank, I need to note that the only people to whom this sounds partisan are those with a bedrock ideological commitment. Being human, they chafe at being challenged. Especially for those of us who are relatively well-off and comfortable, the Gospel challenges us as much as it comforts us. If you don't agree with that or you simply don't like it, this is not a safe space for you.
It's a sunny but chilly day here along the Wasatch Front. I am feeling my oats today. As a result, our traditio for this Friday is the New York City Virtual Choir and Orchestra with the lovely hymn "How Can I Keep from Singing?"
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