A Call to Faithful Citizenship

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A Call to Faithful Citizenship

• Being Politically Responsible in Todays World

Created by Kristen Dempsey, 2008
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What does it mean to be Catholic?

• As Catholics we have
• certain obligations
• Celebrating the Sacraments
• Proclaiming the Gospel
• Performing works of
• Charity and Justice

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Political InvolvementA Moral Obligation

• In the Catholic Tradition,
• responsible citizenship
• is a virtue, and

participation in political life is a moral
obligation. Forming Consciences, no. 13
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Baptism ? Political Action

• This obligation is rooted in our
• baptismal commitment
• to follow Jesus Christ and to bear Christian
  witness in all we do.
• Forming Consciences, no. 13

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What about Separation of Church and State?

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Role of the State

• It is not for the
• state to
• pronounce
• on matters
• of religious
• faith
• John Paul II, Cuba1998

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Role of the Church

• To form peoples consciences
• on issues
• NOT tell them how to vote
• To shape society based solidly on the Churchs
  vision and values
• NOT endorse parties or engage in partisanship
• To respect each persons freedom of conscience

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Our Role as Catholic Americans

• The direct duty
• to work for a just
• ordering of society
• is proper to the lay
• faithful.

Pope Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est, no. 29
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How Do We Know What Political Actions to Take?
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• Catholics have a lifelong and serious
  obligation to form their
• CONSCIENCES
• in accord with human reason and the teaching of
  the Church.
• Forming Consciences, no. 17

CONSCIENCES
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Conscience Formation

• Desire to Embrace Goodness and Truth
• Study Scripture and the Teachings of the Church
• Examine the Facts and Background Information
• Reflect Prayerfully

Forming
Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, no. 18
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1. Desire for Goodness and Truth
AND
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2. Studying Scripture and Church Teaching
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Biblical Foundation Genesis

• Created in the Image of God
• God created man in his image in the divine
  image he created him male and female he created
  them. (Genesis 126-27)
• Stewardship of the Earth
• The Lord then took the man and settled him in
  the garden of Eden, to cultivate and care for
  it. (Genesis 215)

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Biblical Foundation Hebrew Bible

• Against Unjust Laws
• Woe to those who enact unjust
• statutes and who write
• oppressive decrees, depriving
• the needy of judgment and
• robbing

my peoples poor of their rights, making widows
their plunder and orphans their prey! (Isaiah
101-2)
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Biblical Foundation Hebrew Bible

• Freedom from Oppression
• Happy those whose help is in the God of Jacob,
  Who keeps faith forever, secures justice for the
  oppressed, gives food to the hungry. The Lord
  sets captives
• free
• the Lord gives
• sight to the blind. The Lord raises up those that
  were bowed down the Lord loves the just. (Psalm
  1465-10)

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Biblical Foundation New Testament

• All One in Christ
• There is neither Jew
• nor Greek, there is
• neither slave nor free
• person, there is not
• male and female for
• you are all one in
• Christ Jesus.
• (Galatians 328)

Wage Justice Behold, the wages you withheld from
the workers who harvested your fields are crying
aloud, and the cries of the harvesters have
reached ears of the Lord of hosts. (James 54)
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Biblical Foundation The Gospel of Matthew
The Judgment of Nations

• whatever you did
• for one of these
• least brothers of
• mine, you did for
• me. (Matt 2540)

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Catholic Social Teaching Seven Themes

• Right to Life and the Dignity of the Human Person

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Catholic Social Teaching Seven Themes

• Call to Family, Community, and Participation

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Catholic Social Teaching Seven Themes

• Rights and Responsibilities

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Catholic Social Teaching Seven Themes

• Option for the Poor and Vulnerable

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Catholic Social Teaching Seven Themes

• Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers

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Catholic Social Teaching Seven Themes

• Solidarity
• Care for Gods Creation

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3. Examine the Facts and Background Information
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4. Reflect Prayerfully
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Works Cited

• Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship
  A Call to Political Responsibility from the
  Catholic Bishops of the United States.
  Washington, D.C. United States Conference of
  Catholic Bishops, November 2007.
• Online at http//www.usccb.org/faithfulcitizenshi
  p/ FCStatement.pdf
• The Challenge of Forming Consciences for
  Faithful Citizenship. Washington, D.C. United
  States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2007.
• All Bible verses come from the New American
  Bible.
• Thanks to Jennifer Carr-Almon for letting us use
  her 2004 presentation as a model.

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For More Information

• Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship
• Conscience Formation, 17-39
• Catholic Social Teaching, 40-56
• USCCB Website
• www.usccb.org
• Faithful Citizenship Website
• www.faithfulcitizenship.org
• Constitution on the Church in the Modern World
  (Vatican II)

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Catechism of the Catholic Church

• Conscience Formation, 1776-1802
• Freedom (of action conscience), 1730-1738
• Social Justice, 1928-1938
• Common Good, 1905-1912
• CST 1 Dignity of the Human Person, 1700-1715
• CST 2 Human community, 1878-1885
• CST 3 Responsibility Participation, 1913-1917
• CST 6 Human Solidarity, 1939-1942
• CST 7 Creation, 299, 301, 307