| September 8, 2008 | Volume 83, Number 23 | |
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Christians have duty to obey, reader assertsI was pleased to see the letter appearing in The Catholic Virginian from Vince Pishioneri of Virginia Beach in the Aug. 25, 2008 issue. Mr. Pishioneri does us a favor by reminding us of our duty to obey! I’m convinced that if the speed limit were 110 M.P.H., most everyone would burn up their engines doing 115-plus M.P.H.! I believe they’d do so if for no other reason than simply to assert that they are “free” and “won’t be told how to exercise their freedom!” As Christians, we have been taught how to exercise our freedoms. Jesus reminds us that our lives become pleasing to the Father insomuch as we obey His Commands! (I believe) the Scripture Mr. Pishioneri is referring to is found in Mark 12: 28-34, wherein Jesus condenses the Decalogue into (merely) Two Commandments. Passionate Love of God is elevated first-and-foremost; love of neighbor as oneself follows! Mr. Pishioneri rightly connects multiple measures of loving one’s neighbor spread throughout the socio-political kaleidoscope of issues, each issue reflecting a “pastel” of respect for God and for His Creation! Fundamental to every issue affecting human life is protecting each person from the moment God endows them with an eternal soul until their natural death! Whether a human person “arises” through illicit means, or (hopefully) when they are co-created in the conjugal love of husband-and-wife, each person’s first moment of existence forces us to choose to honor God’s Gift, or to dishonor Him allowing (or causing) a human person to be destroyed! It is precisely because each person is formed in God’s image that no Catholic in good conscience can ignore God’s Gift and place them second, third, or otherwise! May Mr. Pishioneri’s plea stir us to hold fast to our Faith in loyalty to Our Lord, despite what political pundits may say to divide us!
Moral relativism cited in lettersIt is with profound sadness that I have read the recent letters to the editor which advocate relativism regarding abortion relative to our upcoming elections. Daniel Bauer and Vince Pishioneri’s letters in the August 25 edition are just the two most recent examples. How have we arrived at a point in time that so many professed Catholics are so confused on what is a bedrock moral and human rights issue in Catholic teaching? I assert that it is a direct consequence of the fact that many of our pastors and most of our Bishops are being AWOL on the issue in their weekly and pastoral duties. When was the last time you heard the term “abortion” even mentioned or discussed from the pulpit in your parish? Or, is the topic something not brought up in polite discussion, when there are so many other “social justice’ issues to discuss? Have you ever heard a sermon regarding church guidance on social issues for faithful Catholics during election seasons? How many of our Bishops have spoken out forcefully and loudly regarding the legions of “committed Catholic” Politicians who brag of their Catholicism on the stump, while also supporting and advocating abortion on demand? The moral authority of the Catholic Church is further weakened by our reluctance to forcefully advocate and speak out for a culture of Life. It is all well and good to have the youth ministry sleeping in refrigerator boxes to empathize with the homeless, and to collect school supplies for students in a third world setting, but what have we done about abortion lately? Eventually we will all be called to account for our time here on earth and unless I have missed an encyclical lately, there is no amount of “fair trade” coffee you can buy, that will offset acquiescence to (much less support of) infanticide for political convenience.
Both political parties said to have baggageI am uncomfortable with the notion Carl R. Huebner espouses that “we sin if we support pro-choice candidates.” He is, in my opinion, usurping the right of God who alone should judge us. Political parties come with baggage — the Democrats have the abortion issue, the Republicans have the NRA (National Rifle Association). I have never seen an article or letter to the editor in this publication about how deplorable the proliferation of gun ownership is in this country and how prevalent and horrible are the many daily crimes committed by them. Are those of us who survived the womb less worthy of protection? Is the abortionist more evil than the gun dealer? Yet the NRA wants fewer and fewer gun control laws. That organization has a powerful hold on the Republican party. You may say, “Oh, but you can buy a gun and protect yourself while a fetus is helpless.” Sorry, that analogy doesn’t wash. We are all vulnerable. If it is a sin to vote for one candidate, then surely it is a sin to vote for the other.
Reader rejects force in abortion issueThe voting issue of abortion appears frequently in these pages and elsewhere. As in all letters, one may infer implicit assumptions that may be false. To challenge one such assumption, I point out that just because an act is intrinsically evil does not mean that one should ask the government to punish the offender; nor if an act is legal should one feel free to do it. I agree that abortion is intrinsically evil, and I would like those in government to declare it so, individually and in legislative resolutions. But, I do NOT want national or state governments to threaten force against those committing abortion, for both moral and practical reasons. Regarding morality, Jesus repeatedly rejected the use of force by his disciples, such as when they asked if they should call down fire on a town which rejected them, and when they attempted to defend Jesus at Jesus’ arrest. Likewise, God could have prevented Herod’s murder of the innocents at Jesus’ birth. Instead he simply provided an escape for Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.
Regarding practicality, outlawing a crime does not prevent it. Rather, it drives it underground. Now that abortion is legal, we can do far more to prevent it than if it were illegal. It is easy to show the consequences to mothers of abortion and birth control. It is easy for pregnancy centers to reach out to mothers considering abortion. Let’s keep it that way. Instead of outlawing abortion, let us work for the day when every mother chooses the way of Christ over abortion. For the past few presidential elections, I have voted for presidential candidates on the ballot who took positions on abortion and other issues, consistent to those I express above. I am not sure that any such candidate will be on the ballot this time. So, I might write in a name.
Changes in text need explanationIt would be a great service to your readers — and a mark of respect for the laity — if reports of changes in liturgical word choices were accompanied by the rationale for specific changes or, short of that, references to sources in which the rationale can be found. I realize that pastors will be instructed to instruct us on the differences. Such instruction, however, leaves us subject to the perspectives of individual pastors which are likely, given time constraints, to be less nuanced of necessity than the rationale of the originators. Absent statements of rationale, some of us feel a bit like yo yo’s, being asked to swing first with one word and then another for unstated reasons. (For example, I understood that the opening “We” of the Creed is “we” rather than “I” because the congregation is articulating the belief of the Church, the People of God. If this isn’t so, why should “I” be saying the creed aloud with others? I’d love to know.) At most liturgies, most of us rattle off words without giving much if any thought to their meaning and to what we’re professing. Although we are in a time when the Church is desperate for ordained clergy in parishes, clergy are nevertheless diverted from pastoral care to serve on commissions working on words. Apparently, those words are thought to be of utmost importance. Surely, then, it’s important that those who recite the words have every possible access to the “why” of it all. We need references, explanatory lectures, and even hand-outs in parishes to keep us true to and reflective about our words. Help us to be attentive to the words with which we communicate with the Word.
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I think that the gospels make it clear that while we are called to witness to Christ’s truth, we are called to be meek and humble, even when those in power commit great evil.