‘Faithful Citizenship’ still calling
“Faithful Citizenship.” Remember those words? They were the buzz words in last year’s presidential election. They became the rallying cry which reminded Catholics that it is their moral responsibility to vote. They were the title of a document issued by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops which issued priorities for Catholics to consider before voting. These priorities were based on the moral principles of our faith.
This year “Faithful Citizenship” has not received any attention, but here in New Jersey with a key governor’s race about to be decided, we need to talk about it again. First, however, I want to emphasize that I am not going to endorse or oppose any candidate. I am urging you to fulfill your moral obligation to cast your vote on November 8 and pray that, before you do so, you will become informed about the issues in this election about which we Catholics should be knowledgeable.
In The Catholic Spirit, we have included a survey presented to the gubernatorial candidates by the New Jersey Catholic Conference. It includes ten questions you should read before going to the polls.
Four of the questions posed deal with various aspects of the sanctity of life. You know that the Catholic Church opposes abortion. You should also remember that the Church teaches that embryonic stem cell research is morally wrong, and that the death penalty cannot be justified.
Four questions focus on family life. They ask the candidates’ views on marriage as well as education.
Family life is an issue that calls for us to protect marriage as a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman. With regards to education, as the Bishops wrote last year in their document, Faithful Citizenship, “parents have a fundamental right to choose the education best suited to the needs of their children, including private and religious schools . . . Government should help provide the resources required for parents to exercise this basic right without discrimination.” That means we Catholics support such programs as tuition tax credits and education vouchers.
The last two questions on the survey are social justice issues. One asks about housing; the other about health care. Again, I refer you to our Faithful Citizenship document which states, “Affordable and accessible health care is an essential safeguard of human life, a fundamental human right, and an urgent national priority. We need to reform the nation’s health care system, and this reform must be rooted in values that respect human dignity, protect human life, and meet the needs of the poor and uninsured.”
The ten questions on the New Jersey Catholic Conference survey are offered as a guide which can help you in selecting the candidate to be our next governor. I hope you will use it and pray that, even after the election, you will stay informed and work for the major issues facing Catholics today. We must continue to fight every day for the sanctity of life, the sacredness of marriage as a union between a man and a woman, the need for Catholic schools, and social justice especially for the poor and ill. Our government leaders can affect these issues, but so can we with our voice, our vote, and our conviction.
Most Rev. Paul G. Bootkoski
Bishop of Metuchen
*The attached/referenced article was originally published in The Catholic Spirit, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Metuchen, and is protected under U.S. and international copyright law