Posted on 07/20/2004 11:52:59 AM PDT by patent
How to Vote Authentically Catholic
Fr. Frank Pavone, President, Priests for Life
Justice Joseph Nolan, Ret. Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Justice
Marc Balestrieri, canon lawyer, expert in defense of Church doctrine
30 million voting Catholics have the power to transform our country. We can make it more supportive of life, families, and the poor. But, “voting Catholic” does not mean voting for "Catholic" politicians who oppose Church values on abortion, marriage, and human dignity. Now is the time for faithful Catholics to make their voices heard!
· Hear from Catholic leaders how to truly vote consistent with moral principles of the faith
· Join and rally with other faithful Catholics and support the pro-life, pro-family positions of candidates for local and national office
· Get valuable tools for local voter education efforts
Re-energize your commitment to participate in political life, and come away with an action plan to help make our state and nation more welcoming to life, traditional families, and more effective in helping the poor and marginalized. People of all faiths are invited!
For driving directions, see: http://web.mit.edu/dining/catering/mitfacultyclub/directions.html
To RSVP, please contact: catholicoutreach@comcast.net
For media contacts or additional information: John@VoteCatholic.org
Paid for by Vote Catholic and by Authentic Catholic Vote 2004. Not affiliated with any candidate.
Bump.
Father Stephen Torraco, Ph.D. wrote a book "A Brief Catechism for Catholic Voters" that can be purchased from EWTN. My pastor and I have purchased 500 of them to distribute in our parish.
Deacon Francis
BUMP!
I'll make it easy, and free:
Vote Republican.
Democrats support government-paid abortion on demand and same sex marriage. They vilify Christians and The Jews. Catholics should flee from the Democrat party, or switch faiths, that simple.
See, that was EASY!!!
(I'm almost afraid to bump this thread...they already threw it out of breaking news, lets hope "they" don't exile this to the ghetto too.)
Of course they did, it mentions Catholics! I never understand why they pull posts like this out, but when it seems to be Catholic they yank it.
The Pope could excommunicate Kerry and the Kennedys and they wouldn't let that sit in breaking news either.
patent
I'll make it easy, and free: Vote Republican. Democrats support government-paid abortion on demand and same sex marriage.So do some Republicans. Rudy Guiliani, Arnold Schwarzenegger, George Pataki, you know, pretty much everyone speaking the convention. Well, except for the Democrat they invited. So much for Vote Republican. See, not so easy.
patent
A perfect example of Lay people taking up the cause.
This is what it's like to be a true Catholic.
Bump.
*PING*
Two different organizations I guess, looks like a good conference to attend if you live in the area. If you go, take notes and report back, thanks.
http://www.votecatholic.org
http://www.catholicvote.org
Maybe they should combine resources.
It SHOULD be that easy, but it's not. Too many RINO's, who will talk the talk but are lying when they do. Some are the usual suspects - Snow, Collins, Chaffee, et al. Others are the new true believer liberal Republicans in liberal venues, like Guiliani and Schwartzenegger, who have never claimed any other beliefs, but have cast their lot with us on other issues because of their relative importance. If we reject them totally, we will return to permanent minority status, when we accomplished little or nothing on our agenda.
We must instead present our conservative case at the grass roots, and recruit our candidates within the party, where we have a chance to win the battles, instead of wasting ourselves in splinter groups and third parties that will NEVER control the levers of power.
RIGHT NOW, NOT NOVEMBER, is the most important political season of all, and it is nearly over. Many primaries have already been held, and many more have already been decided by the nature of candidates already recruited and the effectiveness of campaigns already conducted. Your vote is merely the period at the end of the sentence. To accomplish anything, you need to imagine the ideas, think the thoughts, and write the words that precede it. It is not a sentence without the period, but good writing - and good citizenship - require much more from you.
ProLife Ping!
If anyone wants on or off my ProLife Ping List, please notify me here or by freepmail.
Thanks for the bumps, appreciate it. Anyone who has the means, send them money, they seem to need it.
patent
Polly ain't with us anymore.
Thanks, I'd heard that on another thread today too. Here today, gone tomorrow.
patent
wonder what happened?
Supporters' view at odds with faith, Brunett says
Tuesday, July 20, 2004
By CHRIS MCGANN AND CLAUDIA ROWE
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTERS
Seattle Archbishop Alex Brunett joined a growing chorus of U.S. bishops Monday and warned Catholic politicians that it's impossible to keep the faith and support abortion.
Brunett said those who support abortion have adopted "a morally untenable position and are choosing a path that leads them away from the church." And those "who suggest that they can disassociate totally their political actions in principle from their Catholic faith are laboring under a dangerous moral delusion."
Catholic politicians who back abortion rights, including Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, said that despite Brunett's proclamation, they were free to govern as they see fit.
Kerry is "100 percent pro-choice," and Brunett's assertions will not significantly affect the campaign, said Sam Rodriguez, Washington state director of the Kerry campaign.
"Like John F. Kennedy, Kerry has maintained the separation between church and state," Rodriguez said. "In 1960, Kennedy made it clear that he was running for president and he just happened to be a Catholic. Similarly, Kerry has made it clear that he is running for president of the United States, not for pope.
"It's amazing that 44 years later, this debate remains. When you are running for president of the United States, regardless of individuals' religious faith -- you are president of everyone, of all faiths; that's what makes this country so incredible."
State Attorney General Christine Gregoire, the leading Democratic candidate for governor, said she does not see a conflict between her Catholic faith and protecting abortion rights, said Morton Brilliant, her press secretary.
Gregoire is "deeply faithful and also strongly committed to a woman's right to choose," Brilliant said. "And she believes a woman's right to choice is a fundamental right."
Directly bucking Brunett's edict, he added that Gregoire does not believe abortion is immoral.
"(Gregoire) does not see her role as governor as requiring her to impose her faith on the entire state," he said. "Washington is clearly a pro-choice state, Gregoire will not shy away from that belief and will not waver in her support of that right."
Brunett's statement echoed those of other Catholic bishops who have become active in the abortion debate as it relates to politics.
Last month, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said that lawmakers who consistently support abortion rights or euthanasia were "cooperating in evil," but that individual bishops could decide whether the politicians should be denied Holy Communion.
The bishops' declaration drew national attention after Archbishop Raymond Burke of St. Louis said he would deny communion to Kerry. Some abortion opponents have been pressuring other bishops to follow suit.
Brunett instructed ministers in Seattle not to deny the Eucharist to anyone based on their political views. But Catholic politicians who support abortion should "voluntarily withdraw from Eucharistic sharing without the need for formal action by the church," he said.
Radio talk show host Dave Ross, a Catholic who is running for Congress in the 8th District, said he would continue to receive communion. Ross, a Democrat, said he considers his support of women's right to choose whether or not to have an abortion different than personally supporting abortion.
Ross said that Brunett has left the decision "up to individual conscience." Though he supports women's right to choose and would uphold laws that keep abortion legal, he does not think he is at odds with the archbishop.
"I've always supported keeping the government out of personal matters," Ross said.
The abortion issue may become important in the 8th District race because Ross' two Democratic opponents, Alex Alben and Heidi Behrens-Benedict, are trying to establish themselves as abortion rights supporters and Ross as an abortion opponent. Ross is simultaneously trying to sell himself as pro-choice and against abortion.
Other Washington politicians who are Catholic were guarded yesterday.
Mike Spahn, press secretary for Democratic Sen. Patty Murray, said Murray believes in the line separating church and state. On the campaign trail, Murray will focus on serving her constituents and resolve issues of faith in private.
Brunett said the Catholic Church does not support political parties or candidates.
"To do so would be divisive," he said.
"Her personal religion and faith are and will remain just that -- personal," Spahn said.
To Brunett's assertion that "Catholic politicians find themselves faced with a crisis of conscience," leaders of local pro-choice groups suggested that it was the church itself -- which has been hamstrung by a global sexual abuse scandal -- that is in crisis.
"It's astounding that even in liberal Seattle the archbishop is saying this," said Karen Cooper, executive director of the National Abortion Rights Action League in Washington. "We're supposed to have a separation of church and state, and for the church to, in effect, be trying to throw people out of church for their political beliefs is unprecedented in American political history."
Despite the strong and differing views about abortion, a recent poll commissioned by Catholics for a Free Choice suggested that few Catholic voters consider abortion an issue of primary importance in the elections.
About 27 percent said they would "definitely vote against" a candidate for president if he or she had a different position on abortion from theirs; 38 percent said they would "maybe vote against" such a candidate; 34 percent said the candidate's position would not change their vote.
The June poll, conducted by Washington, D.C., firm Belden Russonello & Stewart, surveyed 2,239 Catholics. It had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.1 percentage points.
Seattle Catholics' opinions varied yesterday but few saw Brunett's position as particularly salient in terms of other important issues.
Debbie Stover, a scientist working in immunology, said she had grappled with the issue herself -- how to be a Catholic and still support abortion rights -- and didn't appreciate the archbishop's unsolicited moral advice.
"It's difficult to go against the church on those views, but I still consider myself a practicing Catholic and a good Catholic," she said. "And it probably won't change who I vote for."
P-I reporter Chris McGann can be reached at 206-448-8169 or chrismcgann@seattlepi.com<p
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