Vote For My Guy Or You're Stupid
Posted by Susie Lloyd in News on Friday, January 27, 2012 9:05 AM
“If you vote for him ... there will be no excuse for you before God.” —Facebook.
Election time is here! That singular moment when Catholics who hold exactly the same values based on faith, hope, and charity, tear each other apart.
Well not literally. But there is talk about sin and hell and who’s a real Catholic, and who isn’t. All based on the vote!
This is nothing new. It happens during every election. It’s a great way to make people get mad and stop listening. So why do we keep falling for it? Because ...
We all feel passionately about the issues—especially:
Human life
Marriage
War
And rightly so. The funny thing is ... we agree about how we want these issues to turn out. Totally and completely agree! We want human life and marriage protected and our military strong.
It’s just how to get those things done that’s gumming us up. Which candidate is the best man to make our dreams come true?
So let’s talk.
So what if we disagree? It’s natural. The founding fathers did and they were more polically savvy than most of us. So there’s no shame in it. We’ve inherited their legacy of debate and resolution. It’s part of governing ourselves and we Americans take the privilege very seriously. As Catholics, we have an obligation to apply Church teaching to the decision.
Let’s compare the candidates and how their positions stack up against Catholic principles. Let’s see how their positions compare to what is stated in the US Constitution. Finally, let’s talk about their tactics and how effective we think they will be.
I’d like to vote intelligently and I believe you would to. If you want to persuade me to vote for your guy, I’ll listen and I’ll try to persuade you to vote for mine. We’ll talk respectfully to each other and hopefully we’ll both learn. In the end, maybe we’ll even vote the same way. But if we don’t, I won’t call you stupid. You have studied the issues and have reasons for your vote. What is stupid about that?
I won’t condemn you. You are trying to create conditions where virtue can flourish. How is that evil?
I’m going to trust that you are a real Catholic. Are you willing to do the same for me?
—Senior writer Susie Lloyd is author of Please Don’t Drink the Holy Water! and Bless Me Father For I Have Kids.
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