“If Catholics were really acting on a proper understanding of their faith, Barack Obama would never have been elected” – Austin Ruse (President of the Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute)
Exit polls suggest that Obama captured the majority of overall Catholic votes - if Ruse’s logic, and the initial polls are right, then this majority vote must be seen as grand failure for the Catholic Church.
The past few months has seen tumultous public debate on the candidates, especially centered on the issue of abortion. The USCCB document on ‘Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship’ put itself forward as a guide to key issues relevant to Catholics, in order to help form consciences in accordance with God’s truth.
The document was quoted by many Catholics, both by supporters of Obama, and by those who believed that they would be going against basic Church teachings by voting for a pro-choice candidate. We then saw the breakup of Catholics into groups based on their opinion – voters who claimed to be Catholic, but still wanted to support Obama.
The Catholic Church is hierarchal, and if it is accepted that the bishops carry God’s truth, and that is to say that abortion is an intrinisic evil – and that by placing your vote with Obama, your conscience cannot be fully formed.
If the final figure reflect the exit polls, and show that the majority of Catholics gave their vote to Obama – then surely there has been a huge malfunction somewhere along the line. If these voters went against the Church teaching on issues, and formed their own consciences (which, in past posts we saw can be erroneous) then can these people still be considered as true Catholics?
Thursday, November 6th, 2008 and is filed under The Church, Thoughts & Questions, Views on News.
Responses are currently closed
Frank Says:
To me the language from the Catholic hierarchy always seemed to be quite vague. There seemed to be a lack of clear and to the point guidance i.e. a statement of “do not vote for Obama as he supports abortion”.
Was this the case, or was there in fact a clear message sent out?
November 6th, 2008 at 3:33 pm
Ann Says:
‘A quarter of America’s bishops have said that the most important issue for voters in the forthcoming presidential election is abortion.
Some 50 out of the nation’s 197 active bishops have published articles or given interviews during the run-up up to the election urging abortion as the key issue on which voters should decide which way to vote.’
(28 October CI news)
Only a quarter!
Surely the purpose of a pastoral letter is to encourage the flock in the practise and nurturing of the faith, to affirm, to lead by example and to inform consciences.
I can’t see then how a bishop can fulfil the duties of his office and not write to his flock at such a crucial time.
Now I know there will be those who will say that pastoral letters may not be read by all church-goers, but that is beside the point, the letter should never the less be written and the subject addressed.
Is that not what bishops are for?
November 6th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
Dave Says:
Thanks for your replies Ann and Frank.
Ann, I noticed that article the other week – under the headline ‘US election is about abortion: 50 bishops’. While it seems impressive at first, the number was very low.
This could also just as easily be written as ‘US election is not about abortion: 147 bishops’.
Frank – from the USCCB site: ‘The Church does not support or oppose any candidate, but seeks to focus attention on the moral and human dimensions of issues.’
Because the Church is playing an impartial political role, the language can be ambiguous. You then have people using guides such as the USCCB Forming Consciences as a reason why Catholics must oppose a pro-choice candidate, but also for reasons why voting for a pro-choice candidate is acceptable.
This line of thought was battered out in an earlier discussion.
Lmaher, in that discussion, summed up the situation aptly when they said
‘if a person…knows the Church’s teaching and makes a decision to reject that teaching it probably makes the person somewhat obstinate. If the person is a cleric or religious responsible for some level of Christian formation the problem becomes deeper and probably involves scandal and difficulty with vows/promises’.
They go on to say:
‘Vatican II’s teaching is clear and we keep finding ourselves to be returning to it – assent must be given to the ordinary and extraordinary magisterium (obsequium religiosum) (LG 25) in matters of faith and morals. That seems to be one thing that separates a Catholic in union with the Holy See from a separated Christian’.
This links back to Ann’s comment – because if Catholic Magisterium dictates that moral issues must be addressed or opposed accordingly – then that was not done by the majority of Bishops.
Are they to blame for the communication breakdown that resulted in so many Catholics going against Church teaching?
If you will forgive a trite analogy: rugby, american football, soccer…the thing that seperates playing any one of these sports from simply fumbling about in the mud is a set of rules. If you are to disregard the rules, then you are no longer playing that game. Even if you just change part of the rules, you still would not be playing the original game, but a tweaked or amended version of it.
So, if what Austin Ruse says is correct (that a proper understanding of Catholic fate means not voting for Obama) – and if the poll figures are correct – (that most Catholics voted for Obama) then the Church is going to have to face up to something very serious.
If we accept that by tweaking or amending or completely disregarding the rules, then you make yourself seperated from communion with the Holy See – we could be looking at a situation where the majority of US Catholics (including Bishops) have seperated themselves.
If this proves to be the case, then why would they still be considered Catholic?
November 7th, 2008 at 10:50 am
The Dempsey Family Says:
As a Christian living in America, I can relate to your thoughts. Christians who voted for Obama need to rethink what it means to be Christian.
Jesus Christ would not support a man who stated that the first thing he would do when he became President would be to overturn abortion laws in America.
Please pray for America. The actions from this new President over the next 4 years are going to be unsettling to Christians.
Please pray for Obama. God loves him and we should pray over his life, family and decisions.
Thanks for letting me put in my two cents. My family hopes to visit Ireland one day. What a beautiful country…my husbands ancestors came from Ireland!
Blessings!
November 7th, 2008 at 8:41 pm
Ann Says:
Dave, You ask: Are they ( bishops) to blame for the communication breakdown that resulted in so many Catholics going against Church teaching?
I thought this excerpt from a letter written by Michael D O’Brien might provide some answers. I’m including the link because the letter is quite long but makes very interesting reading.
Of course, the blindness is not due to the failure of pastors alone. The Ministry of Disinformation (by which I mean most modern media) has played a major role. There is also the erosion of truth in the education systems, combined with the gradual confusion and weakening of conscience through our addiction to the “soma” drugs supplied by the entertainment industry. Other factors may be the war in Iraq, or Republican economics, or the Bush administration, or the structure of Capitalism itself, or any number of prudential questions in the sociopolitical order, all of which are presently tangled nests of moral dilemma. But why do they not see that these questions are secondary to the fundamental issue of life itself? Why would they replace one reigning oligarchy with another kind of oligarchy — moreover, one that would kill vast numbers of its own citizens?
“I call on heaven and earth today to witness against you: I have set before you life or death, blessing or curse. Choose life, then, so that you and your descendants may live….” (Deuteronomy 30:19)
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/nov/081103a.html
[edit: added italics to make quote clearer - Dave]
November 7th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
Dave Says:
Thanks again Ann,
The link provided an interesting read. But by writing such a rollicking polemic, it does tend to overshadow the facts and questions. Such wild finger-pointing can cause one to lose track of what has actually happened.
Michael O’Brien refers to ‘certain’ US bishops as ‘excellent apostolic Bishops…who teach the truth without compromise’ – he says nothing of the other Bishops (the majority) that did not make such a great effort – instead he goes on to point the finger at various committees (’who have absolutely no authority’), who apparently use theological loopholes to warp the minds of Catholic voters.
The only reference he makes to the matter being a failure of the Church is ‘the blindness is not due to the failure of pastors alone’- in the same breath then launches into the quote you gave above…the ministry of disinformation, ’soma’ drugs, war in Iraq, the structure of capitalism etc etc.
It seems that he is lambasting everything but the failure of the Church.
The facts remain the same – if we accept that a fundamental element to being a Catholic is to oppose an intrinsic evil, then we have to accept that the vast majority of Catholics did not do this.
If we accept that the role of a Bishop involves educating people about intrinsic evils, then we can also say that the vast majority of Bishops failed in this regard.
Are the list of reasons given by O’Brien really valid here? Or are they just a way to distract and divert attention and enquiry away from what looks like a catastrophic failure?
November 8th, 2008 at 1:25 pm
LMaher Says:
In my mind Catholicism is more similar to Judaism than is Protestantism. I think this way because just as there are many non-practicing Jews who are not in any way “religious” (who do not observe the law) while there are also many Orthodox Jews who do practice their faith. In our faith there are also many non-practicing Catholics who live outside the Church but who are still considered to be Catholic though baptism while also being lapsed. These lapsed Catholics seem to be the Catholics who voted for Obama in the greatest numbers.
Polls report that it was infrequent Mass goers (shall we say lapsed Catholics), who favored Obama 58 to 40 percent.
But weekly churchgoing Catholics, that is those who practice the faith and keep their Sunday obligation, preferred John McCain over President-elect Barack Obama, by 50 percent to 49 percent.
In Pennsylvania – white Catholics were the only demographic that Obama did not win.
Considering the fact that the Democrat party has traditionally been the home of American Catholics the 50% practicing Catholic majority that voted for McCain is remarkable.
November 8th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
Ann Says:
Dave,
If you were to ask me outright do I think that those bishops who did not address the issue of abortion failed their flock and were failing in their duties, I would say Yes, absolutely.
If you were to ask me if I thought those bishops were solely responsible for the electoral result I would say, No, definitely not. ( because this doesn’t explain all the Obama votes in dioceses where the flock were addressed by bishops)
You mention Michael O’Brien’s finger pointing – but not yours or mine.
At the end of the day, Dave, God is never going to ask me why a bishop neglected his duty but I am most certainly going to be asked what I did.
Have I spoken out about abortion, have I supported those groups whose role it is to support those who find themselves pregnant and without support? Have I supported those groups who help heal those directly affected by abortion? Have I turned a deaf ear to abortion statistics here at home?
The more questions I direct toward myself the less finger pointing I’m inclined to do.
I am shocked by what has happened. And from what I have read the possibility of FOCA being rolled out across all America is very real.
Shock is maybe what I needed to waken up to this awful reality, and now that that has happened it is I who will be neglecting in my duty were I to do stand by and do nothing, which basically is what I’ve done up until now.
But whatever practical actions I might undertake, I would still consider prayer to be the most powerful of all. For it is only with the help of God and the intercession of Our Lady that things can be changed, relying on men and women is never going to be enough.
November 8th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
matthew Says:
some excellent post election analysis was done on the EWTN show the world over. you can watch it for the next week at http://www.ewtn.com/audiovideo/index.asp#VOD
There were failures on every level. inside and outside the church. Catechesis has been very poor. And many priests have not been speaking up about it.
Priests for life do great work in supporting priests in speaking up about it. Their website can be found at http://www.priestsforlife.org.
So if you’re eager to do something consider supporting them
But as Mother Teresa said, if abortion isn’t wrong what is? If priests can’t speak up against it then what sin can they speak against? And if the Church isn’t here to renew the face of the earth with regard to murder then what can it really renew?
We do all have blame in this. But the good news is that we have 4 years to remind those who supported Obama of the mistake they made and to guide more people intot he light of Truth. Because if he gets elected to a new term, we could be looking at a whole generation before Roe v Wade is overturned. And that’s just not worth thinking about.
November 11th, 2008 at 3:40 am
matthew Says:
*doesn’t bear thinking about
November 11th, 2008 at 3:41 am