Federal election: A Catholic guide

Each week up to the Oct. 21 federal election, The Register will examine a different issue of interest for Catholic voters.

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Human Dignity

Speaking of the profound inherent dignity imbued in each of us, St. John Paul II said, “dignity does not come from the work (we) do, but from the persons (we) are.” This view of human dignity must be kept firmly at the heart of our moral vision of society — particularly as we discern our vote in the Oct. 21 federal election.

This fundamental dignity is being threatened from multiple directions. Western society’s culture of consumer waste extends even to our view of human life. In 2017 alone, approximately 94,000 abortions were legally performed in Canada, and in 2016 nearly one out of every five Canadian pregnancies ended in abortion. Canada is among the few nations in the world with no legal restrictions on abortion and not one major party has committed to legislating any aspect of abortion if forming the next government.

Meanwhile, since euthanasia and assisted suicide were legalized for consenting adults under certain conditions in 2016, more than 7,000 people have been killed by injection. The conditions for euthanasia could well be expanded: a review of the legislation which legalized euthanasia is required by June 2021, at which time a decision will be made whether to expand medically induced death to mature minors, to those who have made advance requests for euthanasia and to people who are not terminally ill but are afflicted with a mental disorder.

These are challenging issues that informed Catholics are called to consider when casting their ballot. Voters must study party platforms to understand the extent to which candidates and parties will defend human dignity. That can be particularly challenging when the general trend in politics is towards showing less respect for life at all stages from conception to natural death.

Yet Catholics are called at election time to strive to create a culture of dignified and compassionate care for life, especially as it pertains to abortion and euthanasia but also in the area of palliative care. As Catholic voters we must consider how our vote will impact the dignity of life, and to what extent aspects of party platforms undermine that dignity. Then choose prudently with a view to serving the common good.

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Foreign Policy

Pope Francis has advocated for international co-operation, particularly between wealthy countries such as Canada and countries struggling with issues like poverty, climate change, corruption and economic abuse by their own governments and multinational corporations. He has also warned against the resurgence of isolationist nationalism.

A nation “cannot be regarded as absolute and an island,” he said. “It cannot provide its people with the common good” while meeting “the great contemporary challenges of climate change, new slavery and peace.”

In its social teachings, the Church has stated explicitly that “foreign aid is not simply an optional commitment; it is a moral responsibility to protect human lives threatened by hunger, disease, crushing poverty and conflict, and to assist the least of these.”

Canada is among the wealthiest countries on Earth — and just as individual Christians have a responsibility to serve the poor and vulnerable, so too does a nation have responsibilities toward children of God around the world.

That means Canadian Catholics are called to be advocates of a nation that behaves globally in the same ways individuals are expected to behave: to love the people of other nations as brothers and sisters, part of one human family, and assist them personally and monetarily on their individual paths toward God.

Catholic teaching encourages nations to: ban nuclear weapons; do their part to combat climate change; advance policies to alleviate the conditions of poverty and war which lead to forced migration, while at the same time welcoming displaced persons; end the sale of arms to countries; meet international commitments regarding foreign aid, and eliminate the use of financial aid to promote abortion.

Canada’s political parties have taken widely varying stands on these issues.

Catholics are encouraged to become informed about the issues and consider the positions of parties and candidates through the lens of the relevant teachings of the Church. They should reflect soberly on all these matters and vote prayerfully.

Doing so is a small but important part of our duty to love our neighbours as ourselves.

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Economy

Next year, Pope Francis wants to assemble young business leaders and change-makers at Assisi, Italy, to map out “a different kind of economy: one that brings life not death, one that is inclusive and not exclusive, humane and not dehumanizing, one that cares for the environment and does not despoil it.”

The Church takes a clear position on the economy: it should serve people by providing the means to maintain a continuous search for God — especially in a search for God in our families and in each other. In the Pope’s vision, the economy “favours the integral development of the world’s peoples, a just distribution of the Earth’s resources, the guarantee of dignified labour and the encouragement of private initiative and local enterprise.”

Canada’s economy brings both blessings and challenges. Most Canadians have access to the necessities of life — food, clothing, basic education, transportation and housing, and perhaps a bit more. Yet many Canadians go without nutritious food, a roof over their heads, opportunities to dignified employment and more. For many, it is difficult to find stable, full-time employment capable of supporting a satisfying family life. This is particularly true for young couples, many of whom struggle to participate in the economic life of society and to share in the hope for a brighter future.

The federal election offers a wide variety of choices in economic policy. Some parties propose relatively minor changes, in areas like tax policy, to improve but not substantially alter the status quo. Other proposals offer more fundamental changes, which include: shifting the tax burden more substantially away from middle-income earners and towards wealthier Canadians; implementing government-sponsored work programs; initiating basic and guaranteed income and even launching a new “well-being index” to replace gross national product as a measure of national cultural health.

As Catholics consider the proposals, they have a duty to prayerfully discern their vote through their faith and reflect on how Church teaching calls us to consider the common good of the community and the dignity of our neighbours. We should contemplate Pope Francis’ vision for what the economy must become: a system that puts people at the centre, ensuring a dignified life for all, and where our God-given talents can be used to strengthen society.

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Environment

Pope Francis recently stressed that when it comes to climate change, “time is running out.” A recent United Nations study warns that “catastrophic” effects are coming unless carbon-reduction targets set by the Paris Agreement are met within a decade.

The crisis “threatens the very future of the human family,” said the Pope, who has urged immediate changes in both economic and personal attitudes that drive human activity.

Many Canadians tend to be complacent about climate change, possibly because a relatively small population means Canada produces fewer greenhouse emissions than most industrialized nations. But the statistics are misleading. On a per-person basis, Canada ranks among the planet’s worst offenders.

The election campaign is an opportunity to take stock of that situation, both nationally and globally, and assess the environmental platforms of the political parties. Each proposes a very different approach to the environment.

Some parties endorse higher taxes on corporate polluters or on consumer goods such as gasoline and plastics items that are derived from fossil fuels. Others propose incentives which will encourage commercial enterprises to develop new green technologies. And others insist the onus is on individuals to start making better choices, with government support to do so.

The proposals, which tend to place the burden of ultimate cost on different shoulders, each have merits and the potential to make a difference. The Church has not indicated its preference, insisting only that governments and voters become educated and address the matter with urgency.

Amidst this, a large segment of society continues to dispute the scientific consensus about the onset of climate change, arguing that if indeed the climate is undergoing significant change the causes are natural, not man made. The Church, however, has made up its mind, affirming unequivocally that the environment has been greatly harmed by detrimental human activity.

“Radical change” is needed, the Pope said, in order “to save our common home” and “to avoid perpetrating a brutal act of injustice towards the poor and future generations.” A culture of materialism and consumerism has led to lifestyles in the industrialized world that are unsustainable and “can only precipitate catastrophes.”

Catholic voters cannot evade their share of responsibility for the future of God’s creation. They are called to question candidates, listen to their proposals and then make prudent choices on election day.

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Good citizenship

Pope Francis calls politics “one of the highest forms of charity because it serves the common good. A good Catholic meddles in politics,” he said, “offering the best of himself.”

So how are Catholics called to meddle in politics as Canada goes to the polls on Oct. 21? By becoming informed on the issues and candidates, volunteering, voting and serving as a “shining example,” in the words of Gaudium et Spes, through our “dedication to the common good.”

One of the essential duties of a Catholic citizen — a duty inspired by our love for our neighbours — is to cast an informed vote. For Catholics, voting can and must be an act of moral discernment and imagination. Voting should be a gift to our community.

If voters educate themselves on the candidates and issues, viewing them through the lens of Catholic social teaching, and then discern their vote prayerfully and thoughtfully through a well-formed conscience, voting can become an act of vision and a means to inspire social justice.

God-given dignity is often trampled beneath the great injustices of the 21st century — greed, pride, materialism, weakening communal ties, disrespect of life and our natural environment and more. Regardless of political affiliation, Catholic voters should be voices for virtue, healing and decency in politics — and demand these graces from our leaders.

Pope Francis says political leaders must ask themselves two questions: “Do I love my people in order to serve them better? Am I humble and do I listen to everybody, to diverse opinions in order to choose the best path?” Canadians deserve no less in their leaders.

Political strategists often talk about so-called ballot questions — the questions voters ask themselves as they cast their votes. For Catholics, our ballot questions should be: Is my vote contributing to the enrichment of God-given dignity and justice for every Canadian? Am I casting a vote for a candidate who has displayed the virtues of humility, integrity and respect for the dignity of all, a candidate who will enable and encourage the pursuit of the truth which ultimately is God?”

That is how the Pope calls us to meddle in politics.

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(Courtesy of Catholic Conscience, a lay organization dedicated to promoting the Church’s social teachings and encouraging civic participation: www.catholicconscience.org.)