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| Related Pages Voters' Guides Videos (not just for national elections) Fr. Corapi's Pre-election 2008 Video for Catholics (others will find interesting, too) Ending Abortion Voters' Guides for Catholics and Other ChristiansThese voters' guides should be applied to all political races, not just those at the national level. Christian voters should demand the same accountability from candidates who are running for state and local offices as they do from those running for national office. Each voter's guide is also available as a church bulletin insert.
Catholics have a moral obligation to promote the common good through the
exercise of their voting privileges. ... citizens should participate in the
political process at the ballot box. ...
The voter's guide identifies the five non-negotiables: abortion, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research, cloning, and homosexual "Marriage."
These five current issues concern actions that are intrinsically evil and
must never be promoted by the law. Intrinsically evil actions are those that
fundamentally conflict with the moral law and can never be performed under
any circumstances. It is a serious sin to deliberately promote or endorse
any of these actions, and no candidate who really wants to advance the common
good will support any action contrary to the non-negotiable principles involved
in these issues. ... Rank the candidates according to how well their positions
align with these non-negotiable moral principles. ... Give preference to
candidates who do not propose positions that contradict these principles
...
Also identifies issues that are not non-negotiable:
Not all moral issues have the same moral weight as abortion and euthanasia.
For example, if a Catholic were to be at odds with the Holy Father on the
application of capital punishment or on the decision to wage war, he would
not for that reason be considered unworthy to present himself to receive
Holy Communion. While the Church exhorts civil authorities to seek peace,
not war, and to exercise discretion and mercy in imposing punishments on
criminals, it may still be permissible to take up arms to repel an aggressor
or to have recourse to capital punishment. There may be a legitimate diversity
of opinion even among Catholics about waging ware and applying the death
penalty, but not however with regard to abortion and euthanasia (WRHC 3).
The same is true of many other issues that are the subject of political debate:
the best way to help the poor, to manage the economy, to protect the environment,
to handle immigration, and to provide education, health care, and retirement
security. Catholics may legitimately take different approaches to these issues,
and so none are "non-negotiable" in the sense that this guide uses the
term. Back to menu
Christians have a moral obligation to promote the common good through the
exercise of their voting privilege. ... citizens should participate in the
political process at the ballot box. ...
The voter's guide identifies the five non-negotiables: abortion, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research, cloning, and homosexual "Marriage."
These five current issues concern actions that are intrinsically evil and
must never be promoted by the law. Intrinsically evil actions are those that
fundamentally conflict with God's law and can never be performed under any
circumstances. It is a serious sin to deliberately promote or endorse any
of these actions. No candidate who really wants to advance the common good
will support any action contrary to the non-negotiable principles involved
in these issues. ... Rank the candidates according to how well their positions
align with these non-negotiable moral principles. ... Give preference to
candidates who do not propose positions that contradict these principles
...
Also identifies issues that are not non-negotiable:
Some issues allow for a diversity of opinion, and Christians are permitted
leeway in endorsing or opposing particular policies. This is the case with
the questions of when to go to ware and when to apply the death penalty.
The same is true of many other issues that are the subject of political debate:
the best way to help the poor, to manage the economy, to protect the environment,
to handle immigration, and to provide education, health care, and retirement
security. Christians may legitimately take different approaches to these
issues, and so none are "non-negotiable" in the sense that this guide uses
the term. Back to menu
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