Sunday, October 29, 2000

Defending the gospel... in the ballot box

By FATHER KEVIN PEEK

Some time back, a wayward political philosopher coined the term "separation of church and state" to describe a policy geared to rid the political arena of all church influence and direction, and then tried to pin the theory behind it on Thomas Jefferson.

Though he did speak on relations between the two, Jefferson was actually seeking to keep the state from meddling in the affairs of the church, not the other way around. The people of the budding nation of America recognized the preeminence of God in a government meant to organize and protect His children, while they revolted against a government that tried to dictate how that God would be worshipped.

This historical distortion of the principle expounded by Jefferson has made it difficult for any priest, pastor, rabbi or minister from any religious sect to comment on the campaign and election for any public office, from local insurance commissioner to president of the United States, without being accused of violating this standard of separation. A violation of this statute is punishable by loss of tax-free status for the church of the offender, and many have been intimidated into silence by fear of such a fate.

Well, that is, until now. You see, I realize that the right to vote for one candidate or another is part of the freedoms we enjoy in living in this incredible democratic republic, but to truly be free one must be informed of the implications of one's choice, including the moral and spiritual implications. Therefore I do not attack or support any candidate in particular, but rather lay out moral principles that should inform our voting decisions.

First, we Christians have an obligation to vote. Society is a good thing, a natural outgrowth of the family. When we have a clear and present option to contribute to the preservation and development of society in a spirit of truth, justice, solidarity, and freedom, we have an obligation before God and our neighbor to do so.

We should be knowledgeable on the issues and the candidates, and vote as believers, knowing that the precepts of God are true for all His children, not just those who acknowledge His fatherhood of their lives. We cannot be two different people, one inside the ballot box and one outside. The eyes that read the word of God are the same eyes that look upon the ballot, the hands that are lifted up to God to say "amen" to His teachings are the same hands that pick up the stylus to mark the ballot.

Secondly, the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ calls us, in essence, to be a people who defend the honor and dignity of every human person. "Whatsoever you do to the least of my people, that you do unto me," "Thou shalt not kill," and "I came that they might have life, and have it more abundantly" are fundamental principles upon which He established His kingdom, the kingdom He calls us to continue to build with His grace.

Here we see many pressing issues that must be carefully reviewed: the protection of human life from conception to natural death; the promoting of family life; the equal opportunity to quality education; the increase in social justice in jobs, housing and health care; the developing of sound agricultural policies; the safeguarding of the environment; the increase of concern for the rights of immigrants; and the reassessment of the use of capital punishment.

This list is long and diverse, though hardly exhaustive, and it will be difficult or even impossible to find a candidate of any party who would commit to defending all of the above.

Yet not all of these issues are of equal importance. Life is the most primitive and fundamental human right even the Declaration of Independence, upon which this great country is forged, tells us as much. Without life you cannot have liberty, and you cannot pursue happiness.

Now of the issues that directly touch on the existence of life itself, abortion is the pre-eminent issue of human rights, as it involves the taking of a completely innocent human life in its earliest stages. The death penalty is certainly horrific in its potential for error and needless destruction of human life, but at the very least one could argue that these individuals, as all of us who have lived a few decades, are at least guilty of something, no matter how small.

The baby in the womb has done nothing but exist, and that only by the will of God, the creator and giver of all life.

Abortion therefore is a direct act of violence against an innocent human being and against the creator of that person God. Now one need not be a Christian to understand that a direct act of violence that takes the life of another human being is against the laws of our country, not just our God. So we are not speaking here of imposing alien religious beliefs by law, but rather about defending a value which is as fundamental to the state as it is to the church.

The law rightly prohibits any church from trying to introduce the killing of children as part of its worship service, no matter what it may "believe" about those children. Such a prohibition does not violate the separation of church and state. Should, then, the church be silent when the state allows the killing of children by abortion?

Thirdly, the teaching of the Catholic Church is that it is morally wrong to cooperate with an abortion in any way. That can include speaking out in favor of abortion, or participating in efforts to protect or advance the practice of abortion, which obviously includes the choices made in the voting booth. And no public official of any party or religion can responsibly take a "pro-choice" position on abortion, for to be pro-choice is to allow the murder of the innocent to continue while attempting to wash one's hands of the responsibility for it.

Finally, we understand that many women resort to abortion for various and difficult reasons, and carry the pain and shame for years to follow. For those who may be in the throes of such a decision, I ask that you stop by our church, or a similar one near you, and we will see to it that you and your child receive all the help you need. For those who suffer in the aftermath, I say peace be with you; the doors of the church are open with the mercy and love of God to help find the forgiveness and healing you seek.

These principles are completely nonpartisan. Both of the major parties have candidates and voters with a wide range of positions on the abortion controversy and may at any time change those positions. But no matter what happens, our message remains the same.

Therefore there is no endorsement of any particular individual here; my message is not to control the way you vote. Rather it is a call to integrity: do not claim to be a believer and then not act like one, and do not claim to be a member of the Catholic Church and then misrepresent her teachings.

Stop being a scandal to the gospel of Jesus Christ; you are not free before God to do that.

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