Prelates and persuasion

Here’s more encouragement about political responsibility and Catholic social teaching. Only this is from a prelate, to his brother bishops, and it is persuasive.

Bishops should use their authority as church leaders to influence how Catholic politicians form public policy, a past archbishop of Washington, D.C., told Canadian Catholic leaders meeting here yesterday.

“We are not just another constituent or community leader,” Cardinal Theodore McCarrick told the annual meeting of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. “We are their pastors and their teachers.”

McCarrick led a task force of U.S. bishops looking into how to better lobby government and politicians on issues important to the church, including abortion, euthanasia and same-sex marriage.

The group decided the most effective method is for bishops to meet regularly with Catholic politicians from their parishes to remind them of the teachings of the church, and to tell them they have an obligation to uphold those teachings when developing public policy.

Catholic politicians need to be told they cannot call themselves good Catholics if they support policies that go against the church’s stand on the issues, he said.

“Our concern is not politics, nor just particular policies, but their faith and even their salvation. These dialogues are not about winning votes, but saving souls,” he said.

The same message must be passed on to ordinary parishioners, as well, he said, and they should be told to consider their church’s teachings when it comes time to vote.

“No compromises,” said McCarrick, who retired over the summer. “We teach what we teach, but we do it with respect and love.”

Now that’s unapologetic and unafraid. So a respectful, loving reminder might be made to this group, the Catholic Democrat members of the House who answer to their own conscience.

McCarrick rejected the argument of some politicians he has met that they have a duty to uphold the constitution and civil rights of all citizens, so cannot allow their religious beliefs to dictate policy on issues such as abortion.

“I always go back to slavery,” he said, adding that slavery was once considered constitutional in the U.S., and yet no politician now would support it.

But that’s being reasonable, and many voters and politicians are not. They also think Church teaching on receiving the sacraments is a matter of opinion.

McCarrick said the issue of whether to allow Catholic politicians to take communion if they support policies that go against Catholic teachings has been a subject of much debate among U.S. bishops.

But not for Cardinal Arinze in Rome. In an interview with Inside the Vatican, he was asked about that. In his characteristic candid style, Arinze stated what he thought was the obvious.

November 14, 2005

Inside The Vatican: Recently, an issue that has been given a lot of attention are the moral obligations of Catholics during election times. Is it a duty of them to vote for pro-life politicians, and should those Catholic pro-choice politicians be given communion?

ARINZE: You are asking me if a politician says, “I vote for abortion, and I will continue to ask for abortion.” Then you ask should he be given holy communion. So, you are really saying, this politician says, “I vote for the killing of unborn children.” Because we call things by their names. And he calls that pro-choice.

Suppose somebody voted for the killing of all the members of the House of Representatives, “for all of you being killed. I call that pro-choice. Moreover, I am going to receive Holy Communion next Sunday.” Then you ask me, should he be given communion. My reply, “Do you really need a cardinal from the Vatican to answer that question?” Can a child having made his First Communion not answer that question? Is it really so complicated? The child will give the correct answer immediately, unless he is conditioned by political correctness. It is a pity, cardinals have to be asked such questions.

If a person has a way of life which is against the major Commandments, and makes a boast of it, then the person is in a state which is publicly sinful. It is he who has disqualified himself, not the priest or the bishop. He should not go to communion, until his life should be in line with the Gospel.

“We call things by their names.” That’s called clarity.