Posted on 09/30/2007 7:48:01 PM PDT by monomaniac
By John-Henry Westen
TORONTO, September 27, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - An "election guide" by Toronto Catholic Charities published on the website of the Archdiocese of Toronto directs Catholic voters in the upcoming October 10 election to see as their "primary concerns" government funding of programs, affordable housing, and poverty. Conspicuously absent from the list are abortion and euthanasia, deemed by the Vatican to be priorities over other issues when voting.
The document, "Counting on your vote" does mention life issues, not however among its "primary concerns". Apart from its 3 top concerns noted above, the document lists 20 concerns in a "report card" for evaluating candidates. "Fundamental respect for life and human dignity" appears last on the list, just below "HIV and AIDS" which calls for support for those with the disease.
LifeSiteNews.com inquired about the guide with Neil MacCarthy, the Director of Public Relations and Communications at the Archdiocese of Toronto. Employing "seamless garment" language which was popularized by the late and left-leaning Cardinal Joseph Bernardin, MacCarthy noted that the top concerns for Catholic Charities were "life issues".
"Looking at the Catholic Charities Election Guide, the issues of poverty, affordable and supportive housing as well as less money to support programs are life issues, all of which address the need to protect and support vulnerable members of our society at various stages of life," MacCarthy told LifeSiteNews.com.
MacCarthy also drew attention to the third page of the guide which contains a heading in the middle of the page stating "Governments must support life . . ." Under the heading the guide states: "A government worthy of support will favour life rather than abortion and euthanasia, will be supportive of families, will make palliative care a priority, will fight against child poverty and will look for the rehabilitation of those who have become entangled in crime or drugs."
The Vatican however, has suggested that the issues of abortion and euthanasia far outweigh any political concerns for poverty, housing and program funding which would be experienced in Canada, since in Canada they are not nearly life-threatening concerns. Well over 100,000 unborn Canadians are killed each year in Canada and there are increasing reports of vulnerable persons being quietly euthanized in violation of Canadian law.
"Not all moral issues have the same moral weight as abortion and euthanasia," wrote Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger in a note to the Catholic Bishops of the United States just prior to his election as Pope. "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 punishment 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 war and applying the death penalty, but not however with regard to abortion and euthanasia." (see the full document: http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2005/apr/050419a.html )
In addition, another document by Cardinal Ratzinger issued from the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith in 2002 outlined a hierarchy of political concerns "that do not admit of exception, compromise or derogation."
Those concerns were outlined as:
- "abortion and euthanasia"
- "rights of the human embryo"
- "the family" as it pertained to being "based on monogamous marriage between a man and a woman, and protected in its unity and stability in the face of modern laws on divorce: in no way can other forms of cohabitation be placed on the same level as marriage, nor can they receive legal recognition as such."
- "the freedom of parents regarding the education of their children"
- "society's protection of minors and freedom from modern forms of slavery (drug abuse and prostitution, for example)"
See the Vatican document here:
http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20021124_politica_en.htm
See the Catholic Charities Election Guide:
http://www.archtoronto.org/election/pdf/elect07-7.pdf
The Hypocritical Ingratitude of Christian Affordable Housing Advocates
See here
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1863467/posts
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