It is easy and emotionally appealing to cast oneself as a victim, especially in our therapeutic culture of narcissism and self-indulgence. We like to feel good without inconveniencing ourselves too much. This mindset, it seems to me, is something we see too often with Catholic politicians of both parties when voting on divisive matters. The gravitational pull of each party from the base – those who donate time, money, and energy – is strong and out of step with the 80 percent or so of citizens who may vote but don’t care about politics, don’t like politicians, and don’t want to think about difficult public issues. Perhaps they are understandably too busy with properly raising a family – and thank God we writing from places where we are not forced to be concerned with politics because the threat of a literal boot in on your throat is very real.
Can a Catholic vote for a “pro-choice” party, assuming the candidate is not a noteworthy deviation from the norm like Senator Casey of Pennsylvania? What about global warming and poverty? Would “bad” positions on those concerns by Republicans offset the unfortunate grip of some constituencies over the Democrats? I am a conservative turned off by the big government / big business / Wilsonian idealism / loyalty pathology of Bush, but voters, even conservatives, want their “stuff” – one big reason why libertarian ideas will remain in the realm of a small, very smart subset of people, even in a center-right populist friendly country like the United States. Contradictions abound, as we are considering humans who are inherently contradictory by the nature of original sin. It’s enough to make your head hurt.
So what is the responsibility of a Catholic who must represent others on sharply divisive issues like abortion, euthanasia, and cloning? It seems to me that two seemingly contradictory things are true at the same time: Church teaching must inform all votes, and the Sacraments should not be denied unless people are committing the sin of pride by begging the priest to make them an example for the purposes of moral preening. No one knows the heart but God, and there is the possibility of Grace if we receive it in good faith. If one wishes to honestly claim the Church, however, they should vote certain ways – especially on the question of abortion where the issue of human dignity could not be clearer by Church doctrine. Catholic politicians, however, should never whine about tough choices or being the target of criticism. And let us be grateful to be living in places where words like “oppression” have been defined downward so as to be unrecognizable.
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