September 30, 2008 8:42 AM
Can a Catholic be a Democrat?
Can a Catholic Be a Democrat: How the Party I Loved Became the Enemy of My Religion
by David Carlin
For Catholics who - because of their ethnic background and family heritage - have remained loyal Democrats, I'd just like to suggest that while loyalty is good, your party left you behind long ago. If you need proof, just dig up any old JFK speeches and compare to today's Republican party - not much difference. In the meantime, the Democrats have continued their long march to socialism - one election at a time.
Let's face it: Catholic Democrats are now just another taken-for-granted voting bloc for the Democrat Party - a party comprised of disparate voting blocs which either thrive from government financial support or seek to overthrow traditions like marriage and caring for the least of these. Do you really have anything in common with these other groups?
Are you Democrat out of habit? Are you Catholic out of habit?
Catholics in high places - like Pelosi and Biden - bring shame on our church with their hypocrisy and misrepresentation of the Church's teaching on the issue of life, family, and marriage.
The Catholic Church does not offer a smorgasbord where Catholics can choose which teachings they agree with and which they don't agree with. They may choose not to obey certain teachings. But I'll tell you what: I would not want to be in the shoes of any of those power-hungry Catholic politicians who've squandered their chance at conscience-driven leadership when their final reckoning occurs. Better a millstone. . . .
I left the Democrat party in 1988 when I came to believe that abortion was murder and there was no way to justify it. Saying "I personally would never have an abortion, but I believe in a woman's right to choose" is just - excuse me for not mincing words here - ludicrous. Like saying, I would never murder/steal/rape, but I believe in choice. Abortion is either right or wrong, not right for some people and wrong for others.
Since I have been a conservative for some time - and therefore my arguments might not seem so compelling to those still identified as Catholic Democrats - for those who are feeling at least a little uncomfortable with the balancing act required to support the most radical pro-abortion candidate in history, I'd like to recommend a new book by a lifelong Democrat David Carlin:
In recent years, the conflict between his faith and the policies of his party has grown so marked that author Carlin, a cradle Catholic, lifetime Democrat, and longtime Democratic legislator, now feels compelled to consider in his new book whether, in good conscience, it's even possible to be both a faithful Catholic and a Democratic true believer.But Can a Catholic Be a Democrat? isn't partisan.
It's Catholic.
By considering the changes that have taken place in his own party these past fifty years (and that some would now bring about in the Republican Party, too), Carlin identifies the fundamental policies that we as Catholics must support, and the ones that we Catholics must never abide -- so that, regardless of our party affiliation, we can prudently work for (and will have the opportunity to vote for) policies consistent with our faith.
***
What about the Democrats?
Carlin, a veteran sociologist, philosophy professor, and author of The Decline and Fall of the Catholic Church in America, shows that his party and his religion have now taken opposite sides in the Culture War.
He argues that on issues of human life, sex, faith, morality, suffering -- and the public policies that stem from them -- the modern, secularist Democratic Party has become the enemy of Catholicism; indeed, of all traditional religions.
Carlin shatters the excuses that Catholic Democratic politicians employ in a vain attempt to reconcile their faith and their votes, and then, with what he calls the "political equivalent of a broken heart," he examines his own political conscience. As a faithful Catholic and a Democrat approaching his seventieth year, must he now leave the party he's called home since birth?
David Carlin's arguments challenge all religious voters to ask themselves the same question.
You can read more and order at Sophia Institute Press (yes, I did name a daughter Sophia because it means "wisdom") or Amazon (reading the reviews there is pretty instructive, too).
Posted in Campaign 2008, Catholicism, Church Issues, Pro-Life Issues | Permalink
Comments
It is critically important for all pro-life voters to vote only for Republican candidates for President, House, Senate and all state and local offices.
The only way we can hope to stop or reduce the killing of unborn children is by electing a pro-life Republican President and solid Republican majorities in Congress. The Democratic Party has been taken over by anti-life forces and does not deserve the support of any pro-life voter.
Posted by: Joe | September 30, 2008 12:06 PM
I like the line, "But Can a Catholic Be a Democrat? isn't partisan. It's Catholic." More and more I see the need to for me to base my political (and life) choices ONLY on Christianity -- not along party lines, not even on Christianity-based philosophies like Quiverfull (or the Christian Feminists I recently found online).
You are so right that the Democratic Party simply does not line up with Christianity. Sadly, often the Republican Party doesn't either, but they are closer. We need to stand up for God's ways -- respect for life and family, help for those in need, kindness and generosity to all.
Posted by: Michelle | September 30, 2008 2:23 PM
Greatly appreciate your thoughts here, Barbara...and interested in reading the book at some point in time.
I attended Catholic school for nine years (though essentially a heathen at the time and lost as lost could be) and could never reconcile how the community in which I was immersed from 4th through 12th grades could be so adamantly Democratic (*and* pro-"CHOICE") and yet so determinedly Catholic...where was the respect for LIFE?!?! I attended Sen. Biden's alma mater (son Hunter in my graduating class and son Beau the year ahead of me) --- the community (students, parents, teachers alike) would jump up and down in support of Biden all. the. time... But my seeking heart and questioning mind could never get around the issue of LIFE. Did they or did they not value LIFE?!
Posted by: Kari | September 30, 2008 2:44 PM
This all makes me so sad to read. I've been a Catholic my entire life (58 yrs.) but quit going to church 4 years ago because of the church's treatment of John Kerry and it's participation in the gay bans in Michigan and Ohio. I won't donate to a church that spends my money to pass laws that prevent gays from visiting one another in the hospital. I don't think being punitive and vengeful is the answer and I will not participate in it. But, most of all, I am Pro Choice in the same vein as Kerry, Hillary and Biden. I don't want our church to participate in creating laws that put mothers and doctors in prison for not following our religious beliefs. That isn't the way to share God's message of love. I'm ProChoice because I don't want women and doctors being sent to prison after an abortion. I don't want to put parents and neighbors and spouses and friends in the position of having to turn the women in their lives over to the authorities if they find out they've committed the crime of abortion. I'm ProChoice because I spend my time, money and effort to prevent abortion and I vote for the candidates whose policies lead to fewer abortions. Which has been Democrats for as long as I've been able to vote. I'm sad to see that I won't be returning to church anytime soon and I've had many a meltdown over it but I can't come face to face with others like you who write and say the things you do. I surrender.
Posted by: Josie Phylpin | September 30, 2008 11:18 PM
Dear Josie -
I think you've made an honorable choice.
People who don't believe in the tenets of the church shouldn't pretend.
These are straw man arguments:
*putting women who've had abortions in prison
*banning gays from visiting each other in the hospital.
It is also a false characterization that pro-lifers are vengeful or punitive.
The church and individual Catholics continue to reach out with love and practical support to unwed mothers and to homosexuals.
But we cannot support abortion on demand - including Obama's infanticide protection - or gay marriage. Our rights don't come from the state, but from God - and He has not granted us these so-called "rights."
When you say it is me and people like me who have made you feel you need to leave the church - we have done nothing to drive you out other than embrace the official teachings of the church, which are based on God's Word.
Posted by: barbara | October 1, 2008 6:07 AM
Why don't Catholics be quiet and mind their own business?
Posted by: Ben | October 23, 2008 1:39 PM
