The other day at a Catholic school where my sister teaches, a student prayed “for the conversion of all liberals.” My sister asked after prayer, “Why on earth are you praying for the conversion of all liberals?” The student replied, “because they are in danger of hell.”
My sister was exasperated when she told this story to me. I got a laugh out of it because we were raised in a similar background to that student. It has taken our adult lives to figure out where Faith is and Politics ends. Like other Catholics, we will probably spend the rest of our lives trying to figure out the best way to live out our faith in an imperfect political world.
As a Junior High student, I was called by God to join the pro-life community and spread the word that human beings deserve more than abortion. I call it a “calling” because that is what it was. My family, prior to my involvement, was not actively involved, though they voted pro-life. However, my parents raised me with a strong sense of justice. I grew up reading about the Holocaust, the Civil Rights struggle, the struggle in Latin America, the problems with Communism and whatever issue came to mind. Our dinner table was a place of heated debates over the best way to solve the world’s problems.
One of the sad realities I learned while working in the pro-life community and later in the broader human rights community is how segregated many Christians are from each other. When I am with the pro-lifers, most of them are politically conservative to down right far-right conservative. When I am with my pro-immigrant rights friends they are passionately hostile to conservatives. The interaction between the group is close to non-existent and the suspicions of each other run high. The question I have always had was “where do I fit in if I am in both groups?” The answer to that, of course, is the Catholic Church.
I am pleased that a blog such as Vox-Nova exists. If anything it will demonstrate how diverse Christians are while still being faithful and loyal to the Church.
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