June 18, 2004 – U.S. Bishops’ Panel Calls for Focus on the Common Good In U.S. Elections
In testimony submitted to the Democratic and Republican Party platform committees, U.S. bishops have called for “a new kind of politics—focused on moral principles not on the latest polls.”
Such politics should focus “on the needs of the poor and vulnerable, not the contributions of the rich and powerful, and on the pursuit of the common good, not the demands of special interests,” the prelates said in a statement published this week.
“The central question should not be ‘Are you better off than you were four years ago?'” the bishops declared. It should be “How can ‘we’—all of us, especially the weak and vulnerable—be better off in the years ahead?” The Bishops reasserted their calls for an option for the poor and a deep compassion for those is poverty who do not have adequate food, health care, housing, educational opportunities and employment possibilities.
Declaring that “our nation has been wounded,” the bishops suggest the reality of war and economic stress has “taught us that no amount of military strength, economic power, or technological advances can truly guarantee security, prosperity, or progress.”
“The most important challenges we face are not simply political, economic or technological, but ethical, moral and spiritual,” the statement said. “We face fundamental questions of life and death, war and peace, who moves ahead and who is left behind.”
The testimony submitted to the party platform committees is the text of “Faithful Citizenship: A Catholic Call to Political Responsibility,” the bishops’ quadrennial political responsibility statement, which reminds Catholics of their obligations as citizens to participate in the public life of the nation.
The bishops’ testimony is being submitted to both parties as they begin this month the process of drawing up new party platforms in preparation for this summer’s conventions.
The Bishops were also in the news as they decided not to take a single position on denying the Eurcharist to certain politicians. Bishop McCarrick of Washington, DC, as head of the task force on this issue, has stated that the altar is not an appropriate place for confrontation on politics; the bishops agreed to disagree about this and will set policy diocese by diocese.
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Discussion Questions
Catholic Social Teaching promotes an option for the poor and a commitment to the common good. How do these values mesh with and/or oppose values in American culture?
The Bishops spoke with a united voice on the importance of ensuring that everyone in all communities have access to all that is necessary for a life of dignity. Is this voice being heard in the U.S.? How can this message get a wider hearing? How can we promote this message in our own communities?
