God in the public square

Questions of religion and morally informed voices in politics have been debated more frequently in the American presidential elections this year than ever. They’re also being raised in Great Britain.

England’s leading Catholic prelate has warned against pressure to make the nation’s public life a “God-free zone.”

In a lecture delivered at Westminster Cathedral, as part of a series of talks on religion and public life, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor said that he saw an odd situation in Great Britain, in which widespread interest in religious affairs contrasts with a “considerable spiritual homelessness.”

“Many people have a sense of being in a sort of exile from faith-guided experience,” the cardinal said. “They think that even if they wanted to believe, faith is no longer an option for them.”

The problem, Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor suggested, can be traced to “the privatization of religion today.” He explained that too frequently, “religion comes to be treated as a matter of personal need rather than as a truth that makes an unavoidable claim on us.” The problem is aggravated, he said, by “various attempts to eliminate the Christian voice from the public forum.”

And, the cardinal said, by people rejecting a faith they don’t even know. He provoked that thought with an interesting question.

“Have you ever met anyone who believes what Richard Dawkins does not believe in?” he asked the audience. “The God that is being rejected by such people is a God I don’t believe in either.”

Great way to start a conversation with someone who left the Church.

Pope Benedict brought up the issue of religion in public life in several addresses during his US visit. Starting with his first, at the White House.

From the dawn of the Republic, America’s quest for freedom has been guided by the conviction that the principles governing political and social life are intimately linked to a moral order based on the dominion of God the Creator.

The framers of this nation’s founding documents drew upon this conviction when they proclaimed the “self-evident truth” that all men are created equal and endowed with inalienable rights grounded in the laws of nature and of nature’s God. The course of American history demonstrates the difficulties, the struggles, and the great intellectual and moral resolve which were demanded to shape a society which faithfully embodied these noble principles.

In that process, which forged the soul of the nation, religious beliefs were a constant inspiration and driving force, as for example in the struggle against slavery and in the civil rights movement. In our time too, particularly in moments of crisis, Americans continue to find their strength in a commitment to this patrimony of shared ideals and aspirations.

Benedict is keenly aware of the American character and the history of religiously informed principles grounding our laws and public life.

As the nation faces the increasingly complex political and ethical issues of our time, I am confident that the American people will find in their religious beliefs a precious source of insight and an inspiration to pursue reasoned, responsible and respectful dialogue in the effort to build a more humane and free society.

In other words, keep speaking out in public debate about moral issues. And everything is a moral issue.

The preservation of freedom calls for the cultivation of virtue, self-discipline, sacrifice for the common good and a sense of responsibility towards the less fortunate. It also demands the courage to engage in civic life and to bring one’s deepest beliefs and values to reasoned public debate…

Democracy can only flourish, as your founding fathers realized, when political leaders and those whom they represent are guided by truth and bring the wisdom born of firm moral principle to decisions affecting the life and future of the nation.

And this was only the beginning for Benedict to make that point in America. Here’s what he told the US bishops the next day:

America is also a land of great faith. Your people are remarkable for their religious fervor and they take pride in belonging to a worshipping community. They have confidence in God, and they do not hesitate to bring moral arguments rooted in biblical faith into their public discourse.

That’s as much an encouragement (or a prodding) as an affirmation. It is needed.

While it is true that this country is marked by a genuinely religious spirit, the subtle influence of secularism can nevertheless color the way people allow their faith to influence their behavior. Is it consistent to profess our beliefs in church on Sunday, and then during the week to promote business practices or medical procedures contrary to those beliefs? Is it consistent for practicing Catholics to ignore or exploit the poor and the marginalized, to promote sexual behavior contrary to Catholic moral teaching, or to adopt positions that contradict the right to life of every human being from conception to natural death? Any tendency to treat religion as a private matter must be resisted.

In fact, he told the bishops they have a particular and unique role in keeping the public conversation about morality going.

As preachers of the Gospel and leaders of the Catholic community, you are also called to participate in the exchange of ideas in the public square, helping to shape cultural attitudes. In a context where free speech is valued, and where vigorous and honest debate is encouraged, yours is a respected voice that has much to offer to the discussion of the pressing social and moral questions of the day. By ensuring that the Gospel is clearly heard, you not only form the people of your own community, but in view of the global reach of mass communication, you help to spread the message of Christian hope throughout the world.

Clearly, the Church’s influence on public debate takes place on many different levels. In the United States, as elsewhere, there is much current and proposed legislation that gives cause for concern from the point of view of morality, and the Catholic community, under your guidance, needs to offer a clear and united witness on such matters. Even more important, though, is the gradual opening of the minds and hearts of the wider community to moral truth. Here much remains to be done.

That’s a very polite and gentle understatement. But Benedict made his point.

As he did again in his address to Catholic educators. He said “the contemporary crisis of truth is rooted in a crisis of faith”, which impacts a nation and “reverberates” into society.

The Church’s primary mission of evangelization, in which educational institutions play a crucial role, is consonant with a nation’s fundamental aspiration to develop a society truly worthy of the human person’s dignity.

At times, however, the value of the Church’s contribution to the public forum is questioned. It is important therefore to recall that the truths of faith and of reason never contradict one another (cf. First Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Catholic Faith Dei Filius, IV: DS 3017; St. Augustine, Contra Academicos, III, 20, 43). The Church’s mission, in fact, involves her in humanity’s struggle to arrive at truth. In articulating revealed truth she serves all members of society by purifying reason, ensuring that it remains open to the consideration of ultimate truths.

Over, say, consensus. And the relativism of “tolerance”.

Far from undermining the tolerance of legitimate diversity, such a contribution illuminates the very truth which makes consensus attainable, and helps to keep public debate rational, honest and accountable.

Similarly the Church never tires of upholding the essential moral categories of right and wrong, without which hope could only wither, giving way to cold pragmatic calculations of utility which render the person little more than a pawn on some ideological chess-board.

Elegant zingers. Benedict’s addresses are full of them.

I’ve been wondering how much the teachers, or any of his audiences for that matter, really ‘got’ what he was saying. The more you unpack his messages, the more gems you find. Benedict has to be read, over and over.