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Questions over Faith and Politics and the relationship between the Church and State are not only some of the most interesting questions that we face, but they go to the root of the Christian faith:
  • ​How do we live out our faith and the teachings of Christ outside the church doors?
  • How does the Church hope to shape and influence the world around us?
  • Is there a “Christian” way of voting?
  • Can a Bishop, or priest, really tell me who I should or should not vote for?

By bringing together Church documents, Papal encyclicals, statements by the U.S. Bishops and scripture, GOD AND WASHINGTON addresses questions over the role of the Church in political life; the purpose and role of government; the responsibility of individuals; the place that matters of faith have in influencing political choices; and questions over political parties, candidates and issues.  Click HERE to Download the table of contents and Introduction.

This work provides an excellent introduction to Catholic Social Teaching and is the perfect resource for parishes, catechetical programs, scripture groups and anyone who is wondering what the Catholic Church has to say and faith and politics.  At the heart is a basic principle and foundation of the Christian life. . .

Introduction:
​Should faith and politics even mix?

“The Church cannot and must not take upon herself the political battle to bring about the most just society possible.  She cannot and must not replace the State.  Yet at the same time she cannot and must not remain on
 the sidelines in the fight for justice.”
-- Deus Caritas Est, God is Love (28)--
    “They handed him the Roman coin.  He said to them,
 ‘Whose image is this and whose inscription?’  They replied, ‘Caesar’s.’ 
 At that he said to them, ‘Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar
and to God what belongs to God’ ” (Mt 22:17-21)
At times, it seems as though we have been trapped by a misconception that faith and politics are competitors, two swords that are locked in a constant battle for the loyalty, hearts and obedience of the people.  The fight between these two giants has sparked some of the most violent events and wars of our history.  And with recent events in the Middle East and throughout much of the Muslim world, we still cannot consign these events into history.  Our world continues to be plagued by the struggle between religions and state, yet when Jesus was asked about this question of loyalty, to whom is our allegiance strongest, he did not enter the fight, responding: “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God” (Mt 22:21).
Jesus’ enemies had come to trap him, to brand him as either a blasphemer or traitor to the state.  He deftly brushed aside the issue, not simply as a way of escaping a volatile subject, but because it is not a question of government versus God, or of removing each party to their respective corners.  Paying taxes is not a question of allegiance because there is no choice between God and Caesar.  We are asked to give our proper loyalty to both.
Here, I have often found great comfort and direction from words of St. Joan of Arc which she spoke at her condemnation trial: “So long as God is first served.”
Everything in creation finds fulfillment and its good in being directed toward God.  No matter what your philosophy of government may be, whether its empirical, democratic, or even communist, Caesar and all governments remain part of creation and so fit into this same mission and service.  It is not so much a divine right to govern, as a divine purpose in governing.  The question then, is:  Where do they find inspiration?  How does the government, and our leaders in government, find direction toward God? 
Beginning to answer these questions is the first goal of this book; to provide an introduction through scripture and Catholic Social Teaching that encourages questions, sparks discussion and spurs a deeper curiosity into the relationship between our faith and the political choices we face.  Whether or not our our faith has a role in government and our political decisions is actually not a very good question to begin with--Faith and politics have to mix! By their very nature, by our nature as human beings, it is actually impossible for our beliefs in God, how He made this world and His ambitions for us, and our beliefs in our government, its purpose, how it is to act and its relationship to the people, not to mix.
There is, in fact, no other way for us to even exist.  To do so would be like suggesting that our country’s foreign policy should be completely separate from any domestic policies, or that whatever faith we may have has no effect on any works we may do for others.  To keep faith and politics separate would be to say that whatever faith we profess in church on Sundays is left at the doorstep and does not effect any of our life throughout the rest of the week.  In this increasingly digital and shrinking world, we know that such isolation is simply not possible:  foreign policies effect oil prices abroad and gas prices at home, economic policies toward China effect the numbers of jobs and even the safety of products we buy here, a law passed in the U.S. to label the national origin of meat effected the lives of thousands of farmers and food prices across the country as Canada places exorbitant tariffs on American meat--it is not in our nature to be completely independent and unaffected by others.  This is a reality that Christ revealed in his response to a question of taxes, and in so many other ways, described a reality in which, for better or for worse, we are united in one body and what effects one part will have some effect on every other.
The second goal of these essays is to gain a better vision of how our actions and the living conditions in this world are an integral part of salvation and the manifestation of God’s Kingdom on earth.  We are soulful and physical beings, created in spirit and in flesh.  This means that our hope for eternal life with God also includes the hope for a better world on earth.  While all remains God’s work, the coming and gift of His Kingdom is not isolated from our actions.
We know this simply by paying attention to the activity of our day-to-day life.  When we smile and treat others with kindness, we increase their joy and kindness; if we treat someone harshly, they become agitated and more caustic in their treatment of others.  While God remains the ultimate Love, love comes into this world through us and our actions with others.  Our expression of love and faith transforms life on this earth toward the promises of heaven and the fulfillment of God’s plan for humanity.
This work of manifesting God’s Kingdom is not found in a government that reflects the precise laws of a church, but through the people who direct the government toward a better society.  Governments remain good so long as they use their unique gifts of governing for the preservation of human dignity and freedom for all people, and pursuit of the Common Good.  Governments are, and can be good in so far as the people who run them express their goodness and virtues.
Finally, Christians, and Catholics, will disagree on candidates and policy choices, not because of their moral values, but because of how we believe they will impact and shape our society.  Our mission through Christ is the same whether we’re talking about the political, economic or social aspects of society:  To bring the love of Christ to others, to seek reconciliation, to embrace and ensure human dignity of all people, to act toward healing and unity, to strive for freedom, justice and peace, to promote life and fight against all that is inherently opposed to life, to reach out to those in most dire need, call out for those whose voices cannot be heard and use the gifts that God’s Spirit has granted to us for the good of His Kingdom.
In the end, we are asked to remember and remind one another that in God we have the promise of eternal life and a Kingdom “that is not of this world.”  Yet He remains relevant to the mundane challenges and complexities of this world, hoping to transcend the conditions of today through the works of our hands, our faith and the fruits of our love for one another.​

Vision of the Church:
What role does the Church serve?

“The Church desires to stir Christian hearts ‘to the cause of justice’ and to a ‘preferential option or love for the poor,’ so that her presence may really be the light that shines and salt that cures.”
—Justice in the World (41)--
​“People today need to turn to Christ once again in order to receive from him the answer to their questions about what is good and what is evil.”  It is not the politician who is responsible for telling us what is and is not a basic human right, the Supreme Court should not be our moral guide, and Congress is not an authority on the ethical treatment of others.
When it comes to defining justice, to setting the agenda for the Common Good, and calling attention to the greatest needs in our society, even the greatest of our political leaders, just like you or I, are merely participants.  We are the people who look to Christ, and to his Church for guidance.  It is our hope that our leaders are inspired by their faith in God to build a better and more just world.
No government has been endowed with a special gift of prophecy, nor does government in general possess a unique insight into the cause of human dignity or the value of freedom.  These are the gifts of the church.  Throughout history, from the time of the Hebrew prophets through the founding of this country and into the present day, the vision of need, morality and human dignity has come through Christ.    Many of us have seen the portrait of George Washington kneeling in prayer, or read his words: “it is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible.”  The prophets of these sacred scriptures were the loyal servants of God who saw the oppression and pain of their neighbors and cried out for a nation to change and renew its ways.  This is the role of the Church today, that she acts as prophet to the nations, sharing her vision of love for one another, of the condition of human living, the fullness of what it means to be human, and call our attention to those in greatest need.
We have heard this prophetic call loudly in Pope John Paul II and Pope Francis.  Yet, between these two socially active popes, many Catholics would be surprised to know that Pope Benedict XVI has written, “The Church cannot and must not take upon herself the political battle to bring about the most just society possible. She cannot and must not replace the State".  This statement does not mean that the Church takes a hands-off approach.  It is not her role to abandon everything political.  Rather, as Pope Benedict goes on to write, “she cannot and must not remain on the sidelines in the fight for justice.”  What he is describing is that the Church’s ambition is justice, not governing, and that there is a difference between these two.  She is not an expert on public policy, on political strategy or in law-making.  When Christ our King handed the keys to Peter, saying “whatsoever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven,” the Church was not given the keys to a political kingdom, but a Kingdom of God that dwells in the actions, hearts and souls of people, one that becomes manifested in the world through our actions of love and faithfulness to one another and to God.
The Church acts as prophet, a voice often crying out in the wilderness, calling for justice, peace and the needs of the poor.  She provides a vision for the value of life, the needs of the human soul and purpose of society.  It is through the people that she becomes a force of social evangelization, helping to lead the people of God into transforming the conditions of our communities and world toward a greater presence of human dignity and freedom. It is the Church who provides a vision of God’s Will for the conditions and hopes of all people.
The collection of this work is what we call Catholic Social Teaching.  These are constitutions, encyclical letters, speeches and other documents written by Bishops, Popes and Councils responding to the social challenges of our times and by connecting our faith born in scripture, to some of the most complex issues we face in the world.  These writings include work on the value of labor, the balance between rights and responsibilities, religious freedom, justice and peace, the dangers of communism and capitalism, on nuclear war, and most recently on care for creation and the environment…everything that touches, inspires or threatens the further realization of human dignity and freedom.  Catholic Social Teaching is the Church’s voice for the fullness of humanity and bringing about social transformation, which includes questions of politics and governance.
Manifesting and bringing this vision into the work of government is the work of the faithful, the people, so that in 2007, we hear the U.S. Bishops say, “we do not intend to tell Catholics for who or against whom to vote.”  As  John Paul II wrote on the one hundredth anniversary of Rerum Novarum, the document that laid the foundation for Catholic Social Teaching, the Church’s “contribution to the political order is precisely her vision of the dignity of the person revealed in all its fullness in the mystery of the Incarnate Word."

The Vision of Bishops and Popes

THE COMMON GOOD
St. Augustine: 
“The turbulent have to be corrected, the faint-hearted cheered up, the weak supported; the Gospel’s opponents need to be refuted, its insidious enemies guarded against; the unlearned need to be taught, the indolent stirred up, the argumentative checked, the proud must be put in their place, the desperate set on their feet, those engaged in quarrels reconciled; the needy have to be helped, the oppressed to be liberated, the good to be encouraged, the bad tolerated; all must be loved.” (Sermo, 340, 3)
Pope Paul VI: 
“To wage war on misery and to struggle against injustice is to promote, along with improved conditions, the human and spiritual progress of all men, and therefore the common good of humanity.” (Populorum Progressio, On The Development of Peoples, 76)

HUMAN DIGNITY AND JUSTICE
Pope John XXIII: 
“Every man has the right to life, to bodily integrity, and to the means which are suitable for the proper development of life; these are primarily food, clothing, shelter, rest, medical care, and finally the necessary social services.” (Pacem in Terris, Peace on Earth, 11)
Pope John Paul II: 
“Whatever is hostile to life itself, such as any kind of homicide, genocide, abortion, euthanasia and voluntary suicide; whatever violates the integrity of the human person, such as mutilation, physical and mental torture and attempts to coerce the spirit’ whatever is offensive to human dignity, such as subhuman living conditions, arbitrary imprisonment, deportation, slavery, prostitution and trafficking in women and children; degrading conditions of work which treat laborers as mere instruments of profit and not as free responsible persons” (Veritatis Splendor, the Splendor of Truth, 80)
U.S. Bishops:
“Catholic teaching about the dignity of life calls us to oppose torture, unjust wars, and the use of the death penalty; to prevent genocide and attacks against noncombatants; to oppose racism; and to overcome poverty and suffering.  Nations are called to protect the right to life by seeking effective ways to combat evil and terror without resorting to  armed conflicts except as a last resort, always seeking first to resolve disputes by peaceful means,  We revere the lives of children in the womb, the lives of persons dying in war and from starvation, and indeed the lives of all human beings as children of God.” (Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, 45)

FREEDOM
Pope Leo XIII: 
“This genuine, this honorable freedom of the sons of God, which most nobly protects that dignity of the human person, is greater than any violence or injustice it has always been sought by the Church, and always most dear to her.  This was the freedom which the apostles claimed with intrepid constancy, which the apologists defended with their writings, and which the martyrs in such numbers consecrated with their blood.”  (Libertas Praestantissimum, On the Nature of Human Liberty, 237-238)

SOCIAL EVANGELIZATION
U.S. Bishops: 
“Nuclear war threatens the existence of our planet; this is a more menacing threat than any the world has known.  It is neither tolerable nor necessary that human beings live under this threat.” (The Challenge of Peace, 3)
U.S. Bishops: 
“We write to share our teaching, to raise questions, to challenge one another to love our faith in the world.  We write as heirs of the biblical prophets who summon us “to do the right, and to love goodness, and to walk humbly with your God” (Mi 6:8).  We write as followers of Jesus who told us in the Sermon on the Mount: “Blessed are the poor in spirit…Blessed are the meek…Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness…You are the salt of the earth…You are the light of the world” (Mt 5:1-6, 13-14).  These words challenge us not only as believers but also as consumers, citizens, workers, and owners.” (Economic Justice for All, 4)
U.S. Bishops: 
​“The evangelizing activity of the church…has as its undeniable objective, the task of revealing the inviolable dignity of every human person.” (1997 General Directory of Catechesis, 19)

What is the Role and Purpose of Government?

"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for 
the United States of America.”

“As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many,
​ so also Christ.”  (1Cor 12:12)
There are those who will argue that governments are corrupt and by their very nature, are ‘evil.’  They contend that a true Christian should have nothing to do with the government, otherwise we corrupt ourselves and become complicitly responsible for our nation’s acts of war, violence and every other form of oppression that we can blame on the government.  This is, most likely, one of the primary roots of the question that was put before Christ.  “Is it lawful to pay taxes?” or by paying taxes do we show our willful support and participate in Caesar’s occupation of the temple and empirical oppression of the people.
Christ’s response clearly indicates that we do not in fact become complicit in the evil’s of government by following the laws and paying taxes.  We do not, in fact, become corrupt by participating in the government, which means that the government is not inherently evil.  The the question: “Is it lawful to pay taxes?” Christ responding that we are to “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God” (Mk 12:17) indicates that there is some good, some proper and appropriate work that government does in which we can also be a part of.  We are not to isolate the government, even one as war hungry, violent and oppressive as the Roman Empire was.  In our love for God, there is room for the government.  Politics and government do have a place in God’s mission to the world.
It is helpful to always remember that our heavenly Father is trying to transform the world and people are called to carry out this promise.  From Sinai, He called on Moses to help lead Israel to freedom.  He touched Isaiah with a message of social change to a falling nation and in 15th century France, sent Joan, a 16 year-old maid, to lead the King and armies of France to liberation from the English.  Through the Hebrew prophets, generations of saints and in particular through parables and the story of the Good Samaritan, holy scripture shows us a history of God’s Kingdom coming into an ever-greater presence through people.
This intimate coming of the Kingdom is a part of what the Church calls salvation history, that is, the history of humanity coming into its fullness and becoming reconciled with God.  It involves the forgiveness of sin and a change of heart, as well as a change in how we live in this world and how we treat the least among us.  Salvation history began with the fall of Adam, when we first fell from our perch o Grace, and will end with the return of Christ.  Throughout this time, our nations grow in their understanding of human dignity and freedom, along with our awareness of what it means to truly love one another as Jesus has loved us.  Governments, just like individual people, step into their own place in this history.  It is in this light that we recall the Apostle’s words:  “There are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit; there are different forms of service but the same Lord” (1 Cor:4:5).  There are different kinds of governments, and different forms, but the same common good and one humanity that every government is called to serve.

The Purpose of Government:
The Common Good

Although it was one act and sacrifice of Christ that is responsible for bringing the gift and even the possibility of salvation to the world, our history is filled with loyal servants who have faithfully acted in revealing more of this mystery and calling people toward the salvation that God has promised His people.  This world has been transformed throughout the centuries by the works and love of the faithful; through the prophets, saints and ordinary people who share the commands of love with one another.   This work is the bringing of God’s Kingdom into an ever-greater presence.  It is a Kingdom of dynamism, as Jesus taught, the mustard seed that has been planted and grows, yet is not fully grown, not yet completely fulfilled.  This building of a society of God, what has been called societas perfecta, is an integral part of reconciling the fullness of humanity with God.
Governments remain good in so far as their gifts are directed for the benefit and good of the people.  Thomas Aquinas described this responsibility as leading people toward greater virtue.  Given our modern climate of church and state, it can be difficult to use this language for fear of blurring the ideas of imposing moral virtue with laws that encourage a better society.  Although our words have to be more careful and in some circumstances altogether different, the goals remain true to Aquinas’ conviction.  All things are to be directed toward God, who is the one True Good.  It is in Him that we find true goodness and are raised from the squalor of life to fulfillment in salvation.  A society that is directed for the good, and virtue of the people, is pointed toward God.  This tells us that the laws and motivations of a good government are not to be primarily directed by a political ideology, like capitalism, communism or socialism, but are responsible first to the good of the people, that is, to the Common Good.  Through this expression of love for one another, our governments equally express the love of God.

The Purpose of Government:
​Gifts for Governing

When confronted by political questions we shouldn’t simply jump at whomever makes the most promises for universal healthcare, better education, lower crime, lower taxes or even world peace.  We must think deeply about what role the government should play in bringing about and inspiring these changes.  How can it most effectively use its resources; what tools are unique to government; and what level of government can be most effective?
National and local governments have authority over a given territory.  As much as we may not like it, the United States does not have authority in Mexico, neither does New Jersey carry authority over Arizona.  Governments also have the ability to tax, to create laws and they own a monopoly on the use of force.  These powers give them unique abilities in the areas of building infrastructures, protecting the a common welfare, dispensing justice, providing security, and managing resources.  Governments are not particularly gifted in manufacturing, in guaranteeing employment, defining morality or teaching on human dignity.  Although the government certainly has a role to play and affects these areas, they are primarily the charge of the economic markets and the churches.
It is important for us to be aware that each of these three partners: Political, Economic and Religious pillars, have unique gifts that coincide with their areas of primary responsibility. “There are different workings but the same God who produces all them in everyone”  (1Co 12:6).  Every part of society, just like every person, is under the two commands to love God and to love one another and has the opportunity to participate in Christ’s mission to the world.  Governments, businesses, schools and even corporations, every part of society is included in this.   “As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also is Christ” (1Co 12:12).  All are intended to serve the good of the body, or in political terms, the Common Good.
Our challenge is that when we come to a question of need; healthcare, immigration, education, marriage, the economy, environment, or any of the endless number of issues our society faces, we must ask the questions: What is the role of the government?  What are the gifts primarily unique to the government?  Does its actions serve the Common Good or some other interest?
In more specific terms, the role of the government is to support the presence of justice, freedom, and the value and dignity of every human person using the tools of law and authority that defines each government.

The Purpose of Government:
​For the People

One of the greater known Catholic theologians of the 20th Century, John Courtney Murray, captured this idea when he said that it is through the people, the common subject of the church and the state, that faith and the commandments of God come into contact with the government.  It is through us that God comes into contact with the world and engages the problems of our society.  So to answer the question: What does Jesus and the history of scripture say about the role, duties and responsibilities of government?  What has Jesus asked of each of us?  “Love one another.  As I have loved you, so also you should love one another”  (Jn 13:34).
It is not enough for us to recognize that governments exists for the good of the people, or that the goal of a good government is to build a better society, not a better government.  We can also take from scripture and the actions of our Lord what it means to have authority over people.  What is the responsibility of ruling authorities toward the people they rule?
When Jesus knelt to wash Simon Peter’s feet, he said to our Lord, “You will never wash my feet.”  Yet Jesus responded, “Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance in me” (Jn 13:7). This image, and so many others from scripture, show us that authority is gained by serving the needs of those we intend to lead.  Much like the sabbath exists for the people, not people for the sabbath, the government exists to serve the people, the people do not exist to serve the government.
We may see this more easily in Jesus’s response when challenged about the laws of the Sabbath, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath,” (Mk 2:27) so that law is made for the good of the people, and governments exist for the good of the people.  People do not exist for the good of the government.  Any society where the burden has shifted to where the weight of serving the government is carried by the people has become oppressive and falls short of the mission of serving the Common Good.  Governments are good when they exist for the good of supporting, serving and promoting the dignity of all people.

Responsibility of the Person

“A well ordered human society requires that (people) recognize
and observe their mutual rights and duties” 
​—Pacem en Terris (Peace on Earth, 20) --

“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt loses its taste, 
with what can it be seasoned.” (Mt 5:13)

In a democracy, the weight of governing and pursuing the Common Good weighs heaviest on the shoulders of the people.  Indeed, we have been commanded toward social action. Christ has said, “As I have loved you, so you should also love one another” (Jn 13:34).  This command is not stagnant, it does not wait every two or four years for another election to cycle around, but demands constant attention and expression.
When the people were hungry Jesus did not send them away, but directed his disciples to share all that they had with them among the crowds (Mk 6:36-44).  When he was criticized for eating with tax collectors and sinners, “he heard this and said, ‘Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do’” (Mt 9:12).  These were not political actions.  Jesus was not a directly political figure.  Scripture does not record a single comment that he directed at Caesar, and yet, the history of the world shows that his actions of social caring and solidarity carried significant political consequences.  So to do our actions of expressed love hold the potential of impacting our political world, even more so because we live in a modern democracy.
We should always be keenly aware of how our laws, our votes and our political leaders shape our cultural and spiritual growth.  This is not a matter of publicly funding churches and encouraging religious education.  Virtually every action of public policy touches and transforms us on some level, whether it’s how we support military action, the death penalty, taxation, welfare, lending laws, environmental development, or how the state defines marriage.  In this way, we can see that our individual responsibility toward the government is intrinsically connected with our personal development.  Our Common Good is interwoven with our individual good and our faith in Christ.  We must allow that faith to encourage and inspire our decisions.
We remember John Paul II’s words, “People today need to turn to Christ once again in order to receive from him the answer to their questions about what is good and what is evil.’”
Christian faith is not just about the symbol we hang on our doors and walls, which day of the week we go to church, how we pray, or what we imagine the afterlife to be.  Our faith in God is not merely a private experience, but drives our vision of the world: What we believe is important to humanity; the values that most benefit a healthy society; our sense of justice and basic human rights; what we believe to be fair and reasonable use of our resources; and how we should act toward our neighbors, as people and as nations.  All of these human questions find their source in how we see God and the world that scripture reveals to us…and they are very political. 
As Christians, we are called to act as Christian in all of our dealings and relationships with people.  There is no political exemption for our actions on election day, meaning that when we enter the campaign or election arena, we are to continue to act with the love of Christ, of one another and desire for the Common Good.  We must allow the values and dispositions that Christ has given us to influence and guide our actions. 
Love does not demand, so much as it is the act of actually being in solidarity with God and with others.  As Ronald Rolheiser wrote in his book The Holy Longing, we are “to radiate the compassion and love of God, as manifest in Jesus, in our faces and our actions.”
  We are called to more than simply be a good person.  Love of God and love of neighbor are so intrinsically connected with one another, that they are the same.  As Mother Teresa witnessed, “when you handle the sores and wounds of the poor, you must never forget that they are the wounds of Christ.”
  Through love, we are obliged morally to come to the aid of those in need.  I could go on, but the point here is that to be Christian is not to merely adopt a set of beliefs, but it is an expression and way of life that builds the real union between souls and truly, in His real presence, brings Christ into this world.  To understand more about how that love manifests in our day-to-day activity, simply go to church, listen to the homily, to the prayers, and especially to the profession of the Creed.  These are the teachings of our faith from the very beginning, the gift and life of the real presence of Christ who descended to the greatest depths of those in need here, that we may then be raised to the Kingdom above.
Our political life and obligations can not be separated from these same principles and values.  The political good is our social collection of ideals and the law provides the governing foundation for any society.  Whether we choose to call it a social contract, or the divine right of kings, the government remains a tool of union for any society and, albeit strange for us to think of it in these terms, the government can be a source of love.  We must allow our beliefs, just as much as any other group, to guide and direct this tool.  As Christ says, “You are the salt of the earth”…but what if that salt loses its flavor?  What if we pull our religious convictions and values out of the discussion and withdraw from the political debate?  What good would we be?
Similarly, shielding ourselves from the hand-to-hand work of helping our neighbors by simply promoting good policies and political candidates does not fulfill our moral obligations.  We must embrace those in need, giving time to the service of the poor and sharing our gifts for the good of the community. This work of serving God through and in the people we meet does not only serve to reshape our society, but living out these commands to love has the double effect of changing the person who expresses that love.
We can begin to see, then, that politics and government do not own a separate set of moral obligations, there is not a separate set of rules where governing is concerned, but it is simply a political expression of our moral character in Christ.

Responsibility of the Person:
​Morally Obligated

If we can say nothing else, it is, as the U.S. Bishops have said, “participation in political life is a moral obligation.”
  In living in a democracy as we have in the United States, every political decision we make has an impact, even if that decision is to not be involved.  By removing ourselves from the conversation, we remove our voice from one of the most significant parts of society.  Can we imagine what it would be like if all Christians chose not to participate?  What voices would be left to listen to?  Who would that leave making our laws, directing our education system and making our foreign policy decisions?  Christ has said that we “are the salt of the earth”, we “are the light of the world,” that is not to be set under a bushel basket, but “it is set on a lampstand where it gives light to all in the house” (Mt 5:14-15).  To alienate the government and remove ourselves from influencing public policy would be to turn our backs on society and isolate it from the vision of Christ’s love and salvation for the world.
We are the conscience of our government, we are the prophets who need to be on the lookout for where government is failing and for those who our society is ignoring. When it comes to the question of politics, public policy, and government, our responsibility is to look at how the gifts we have can most influence and shape our government’s protection of human dignity and freedom for all people, and pursuit of the Common Good.
What is Our Obligation?
“Look at your feet.” I borrow these words from a man I met in Biloxi, Mississippi.  He had been talking to his daughter about the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina and she was wondering how to start.  Where do you begin cleaning things up when virtually every house has been destroyed?  “Look at your feet and start there.”
If you see a person on the sidewalk craning their neck, glancing in seemingly every direction, you should ask if they need help finding something.  If you have a friend whose mother is in the hospital, pay her a visit, or call your friend just to see how they are doing.  If you hear a neighbor beating their child, create an innocuous excuse to knock on the door, or call the police if you need to.
The difficulty with politics is that sometimes that person may be 1,500 miles away.  We know someone is lost, people are starving, that there are children without a family and grandparents with no one to visit them.  How do we help those in need when they are on the other side of the country?  How do we help those who are on the other side of the world?   These are daunting questions, yet the answer remains the same:  “Look at your feet.” 
“Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us exercise them”  (Rom 12:6).  In this country, every adult over the age of 18 can vote.  Some of us have the time to give to a campaign; some to volunteer to work at a polling station on election day; some are gifted writers who can send a “Letter to the Editor” or a short letter to their Congressman; sometimes, we have the gift of strong passion for a particular issue or cause: for the rights of minorities, prison reform, education, children’s advocacy, etc.; a few of us are gifted with the talents for a career in government, working as a staffer or for a public policy firm; and a few of us have the gifts for running for elected office.  Yet all of us have been given a share in the endless variety of gifts and talents from the Spirit for the building of God’s Kingdom and the Common Good.

Virtue Driven Citizenship

There is no single action that we are always obliged through faith in Christ to follow.  We remember the story Jesus told of David’s men eating the bread that had been consecrated for the priests, and the Good Samaritan who broke Sabbath law to tend to the man who had been robbed and beaten.  It is not that all laws are made to be broken.  Jesus did not come to abolish the law, but to fulfill it (Mt 5:17).  All good laws are meant to fulfill a purpose, a good end and are meant to serve the good of humanity.  “The Sabbath (law) was created for man, not man for the Sabbath (law)” (Mk 2:27).
In our political decisions, there are very few, if any, laws that every good Christian must be either in favor of or against.  Even with an issue as intrinsically connected to human life as abortion, it may well be that there are laws other than an outright and immediate ban that would have a greater effect on reducing the number of abortions.  Or perhaps we may consider that the best situation for our country is one in which no specific law is needed that bans abortions, but that we have changed our society in such a way that abortions become more and more intolerable.  Similarly, there may be more effective ways of providing healthcare to the poor, rather than providing universal health insurance.  Responsible Christians can disagree on policies regarding welfare, unemployment, immigration, education and every number of public issues that our governments will have to face.
Of late, the issue of gun control has resurfaced and there are those in the Catholic church who have claimed that “There is nothing more Catholic than requiring background checks because it is, after all, a question of the preservation of life.”  This is a most dangerous statement, not only because of the guilt that we can engender by putting a person’s orthodox belief into question, but also because it presumes the church to be an expert on practical social issues.  There is no doubt that the preservation of life is a very Catholic issue, but there remains the very real question as to whether or not gun control, increased background checks and registration actually reduces the amount of violence in this country.  The U.S. Bishops have made it very clear: “Catholics may choose different ways to respond to compelling social problems, but we cannot differ on our moral obligation to help build a more just and peaceful world.”
What defines us as Christian and what holds us in union with the Church is not any policy proposal that we may either support or oppose, but it is toward what end we are seeking and what values we are driven by.  So long as we remain faithful to the values and disposition of Love; that we carry ourselves with the virtues of prudence, temperance, fortitude and justice; and we believe that our decisions are guided toward the Common Good, toward human dignity and freedom, we remain faithful to the teachings and will of Christ.
It may seem odd for us to think about the cardinal virtues in terms of our political actions.  However, if we truly think of our political activity as the moral expression of our faith, then our virtues become the guide posts and driving force behind our actions.

Virtue Driven Citizenship:
​Prudence and Temperance

Prudence:  Prudence is the use of good reason in making decisions.  To be prudent does not mean having a high IQ, but that we approach questions and our activity in a deliberate and well reasoned manner.  In the political arena, this means that we educate ourselves on the issues and candidates, rather than simply fall prey to fancy campaign strategies and catchy slogans.  It suggests that we are not single issue voters, but that we consider and weigh the entire platform.  To be prudent means that we look at the end results; Does mandatory testing of students actually improve the quality of education, or could it result in teaching to the test instead?  Do campaign finance laws remove the influence of money in government, or could they encourage the creation of third party PACs who run outside of official campaigns?  What are the real effects of term limits, of mandating the purchase of health insurance, etc.?  Acting prudently does not mean that we will always come up with the right answer, but it keeps us attentive to the best solution at hand.
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Temperance:  We may often think of temperance with regard to things like alcoholism or other addictions.  To have temperance is to act with moderation and self-control.  The clearest expression in politics would be to refrain from strong partisan fights and gamesmanship.  Temperance encourages real compromise, not as a weakness of character and conviction, but in the spirit of companionship and understanding.  It also means to act with humility such that we are not afraid to defer to the talents, the skills and wisdom of others.  Contrary to today’s cultural pressures, we do not have to have an opinion on every political matter and question that comes up.  I do not have to be an expert in education policies, foreign affairs drug policies, environmental protection, economics and national security.  Rather, through temperance, I humbly recognize that there are areas I am strong in, and others where it is far better that I defer to the experts and I trust others to prudently make the decisions for me.

Virtue Driven Citizenship:
Fortitude and Justice

Fortitude:  Fortitude is perhaps a virtue that is overly emphasized in today’s political culture.  It is the faculty to persevere and can mistakenly be turned into the strength to never give in and never compromise.  This is the fortitude that it often takes to cause real change and elect candidates that we strongly believe in and in so far as we have the conviction to persevere for God, this is type of fortitude is Good.  Virtuous fortitude, however, also includes having the strength, not only to continue to stand for your faith and beliefs, but to also continue acting justly and fairly in the face of defeat, of disappointment and even the unfairest of treatment.  Fortitude gives us the strength and calls us to live out our Christian values in very non-Christian contexts.  If someone wants to drag us into partisan bickering, we refrain; if we are tempted to say “If you are Catholic you must support...” we refrain; if we are angry and want to spread hateful speech about a candidate or official, we refrain.  The most important aspect of fortitude may be that  while laws may change and be passed that contradict our core beliefs, we continue to believe and not allow the values of our government to define the values of our faith.
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Justice:  If there is a virtue that is self-evident in its importance to any government and our political activity, it is the virtue of justice.  We are called in everything we do, to not only seek a more just society, but to act justly in everything we do and in every way that we treat others.  This holds true even at times when we may be treated truly in unjust ways.  In the face of political gamesmanship, slander, maltreatment and oppression we are called not to cross that threshold.  It here that it is imperative to stand by the conviction that the ends does not always justify the means.  To build a more just society first requires a people to act justly.  It is through us, through our activity and support, that such a society is built.

Values in Politics

“We are called to bring together our principles and our political choices, our values and our votes, to help build a better world.”
—Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship (14) --
Our faith and the teachings of Christ are rich and fluid with attitudes and dispositions that are meant to set us apart from the world. One does not recognize a Christian by how we vote on the most popular issues, but by the values we represent with our actions, the questions we ask, and which issues we hold our political leaders accountable on.  As we often hear accredited to St. Francis, “Preach the Gospel at all times.  Use words when necessary.”
Some have taken the Beattitudes as a guide for dispositions of the Christian heart.  This gives us a good place to begin, but it can remain unclear and even confusing as to how these dispositions may translate into political activity.  What does it even mean to be “poor in spirit”?  How does “mourning” guide a decision in voting?  When Christ says that the meek “shall inherit the earth” does this promote a socialist redistribution of the wealth?  The difficulty is that we most often think about political activity as precisely that, activity, a set of actions that each of us takes.  But Christ is not speaking about actions and activity.  The Beattitudes, and the reason for their effectiveness and centrality to our faith, and the greatest distinction between the Old and the New Testaments, is that Christ’s teaching was not centered on specific actions.  Rather, the true wisdom and power from the sermon on the mount is that it speaks of dispositions of the heart, of qualities in personality and how we look upon and treat others.  The Beattitudes are not the assignment of the Law, but a source four our interpretation, that we may be able to look at any given situation and circumstance, and with this way of thinking, under these principles of guidance, we may choose the specific and particular way to respond.  The Christian approach to healing and helping the world is to develop and cultivate such dispositions as the true moral and practical guide in loving, helping and serving others.
How does this help our question of our obligations and the actions we are to take in the political arena?  It may be a difficult teaching, but it points us to a politics that is based on values and not specific policy ideas or practical proposals.  If one looks carefully at the collection of Catholic Social Teaching, you will find that while a very few specific policy proposals are mentioned, the purpose and intention is to delve more deeply into the political challenges that we face to point out the ways and the types of values that are at issue.  With concerns over socialism Catholic Social Teaching, points out the value of sharing with the poor, alongside concerns over the losses of freedom and the value of individual identity, to the threat of placing the state over the importance and the rights of the people, and even the church.  Similarly, in the past few years Pope Francis has pointed to the benefits of capitalism in honoring the individual freedoms of individuals, yet warned of the dangers of materialism and the exploitation of people.
It is not possible to list through here all of the values and dispositions that would help us in making out political choices.  Here is a list of some of the key attitudes and values that should inform and be expressed through our political choices and relationships.  Just as if we are responsible to the values Jesus gave in the Beattitudes, if we live and hold ourselves responsible to these, the Church is confident that we will make good political choices and decisions:
  • Solidarity (as witnessed in the Eucharist)
  • Local, (also called subsidiarity)
  • Reconciliation (especially in matters of justice)
  • Compassion (Preferential Option for the Poor)
  • Witness (Prophetic Witness)
  • Freedom and Liberty
  • Inviolability of Life
  • Universal Human Dignity and Equality of Life
  • Stewardship (care for the environment and others)
  • Humility and Service (in authority and leadership)
  • Justice
  • Peace
  • Interdependence (unity)

On Political Parties

“We should not let the party transform us.”
—Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship (14) --
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“Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, "I am of Paul," and "I of Apollos," and "I of Cephas," and "I of Christ."
Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?”  (1 Cor. 12-13)
Bumper stickers publicize the slogan, “Jesus was a liberal”; Conservatives claim the Religious Right; Democrats are called baby-killing abortionists and Republicans militant warmongers.  It seems as though every political party claims either to be the keeper of God, or that the other party is the anti-Christ.
Political parties are a good way for people to gather together with similar views on government.  Parties strengthen individual opinions, provide a unified voice for people and help simplify an otherwise impossibly complicated system.  They are a natural part of building a democracy.  Political parties are good.  Loyalty to a party above all others, however, or passing wholesale judgment on a party for either good or bad, is where we enter into dangerous waters.
Once again, we should go to Jesus’ response to the question of paying taxes, “and (repay) to God what is God’s” (Mk 12:17).  Our loyalty belongs first to God, to the service of others, to the good of the country and to the Common Good.  Loyalty to a particular party should follow the same course.  So long as we believe that we are working toward, and providing the best support for the Common Good, it does not matter which party we vote for.  Catholics can vote either Republican or Democrat; Libertarian or Tea Partiers; Christians can be Liberal or Conservative; Progressive or Populist; and there is no requirement, or denunciation of support for “third parties.”  It is worth saying here, because it has become a popular mantra of many: Christ was not a liberal, not only do our political divisions of today not have any historical connection to the Roman Empire, but such claims are used as an attempt to guilt people into an action they would not otherwise support, and place party loyalty over a particular circumstance and question.  Judgment is not based on the party, but on the Goodness and rightness of specific actions and issues.
Partisanship can be good if it is stirred by good motives; a sincere desire and belief for the Common Good, a well formed opinion on the most effective role and place of government and openness to alternative solutions.  It is only far too often that we hear the negatives of partisanship, driven by anger, confrontation, competition and deep prejudices against the other side.
As the U.S. Bishops have said, “Catholics may choose different ways to respond to compelling social problems, but we cannot differ on our moral obligation to help build a more just and peaceful world.”  In every action we take, our allegiance should be toward the end of Loving God, expressed through the love of neighbor, preservation of the dignity of life and freedom of all people.  Allegiances to political parties, lobby groups and specific policy initiatives must be limited insofar as they, in the opinion of our conscience, legitimately contribute to this Common Good.  Or in other words, that we educate ourselves so that we are supporting the best option, not only among the choices we have been given, but also among those that we can reasonably think of.
Likewise, we should treat political contributions the same way that we treat money given to any cause: Is this a responsible use of what God has entrusted to me toward the building of His Kingdom, in helping those in need, improving the lives of those without, and securing the freedom and dignity of all people?
Our relationship to political parties is not only a matter of who we choose to support, but is also a matter of how we allow our Christian values and dispositions to reshape the attitudes of society around us.   Once again, the U.S. Bishops have said, “Unfortunately, politics in our country often can be a contest of powerful interests, partisan attacks, sound bites, and media hype.  The Church calls for a different kind of political engagement: one shaped by the moral convictions of well-formed consciences and focused on the dignity of every human being, the pursuit of the common good, and the protection of the weak and the vulnerable.”
This means that we do not allow ourselves to become primarily driven by motives counter to the teachings of Christ, to greed, power, or evermore frequently, the competitiveness of winning and defeating our opponent.  “We should not let the party transform us.”  Rather, if we continue to be the light and salt for the system, then our work toward political parties is good and we transform the party.  It is the Christian person, not the party, who is the salt of the earth, that gives light to and transform the world.  A measuring stick that is helpful to use is as St. Joan of Arc said at her condemnation trial, “So long as God is first served.”

Candidates and Issues

“The Church expects there to be a diversity of views on complex social questions, even though people hold the same universal moral positions.”
—The Challenge of Peace (12)--
It should already be clear that for the Christian voter and citizen there is not a single platform or defined list of policy proposals and candidates that one must support in order to be loyal to the teachings of the Church and mission of Christ.
Our society is not a simple place where we can answer all of our political questions by simply saying that every Christian should be in favor of prison reform, housing the homeless, immigration protection and healthcare for all.  Surely, all of us would agree with these things.  We all want lower taxes, better education, corporate accountability, lower crime…and it seems as if every candidate and every party makes these promises.  It is not the goal that we disagree on, but how we get there that good Catholics, and all Christians, will regularly disagree on.  And this disagreement is a good thing.  We should have debate, have discussions and diligently choose the path that we believe will lead to the Common Good and protection of the human dignity of all people.
“As Catholics, we are not single issue voters.  A candidate’s position on a single issue is not sufficient to guarantee a voter’s support.”
  It is true that not all issues are of equal concern, that each of us makes choices and there are certain areas that we have a particular concern for: perhaps we know more about an issue because it is related to our career; we may have a family member or close friend who has been directly effected by an issue; or possibly we just have a strong passion for something.  Each of these can be ways that God draws our attention and draws His people into the work of His Kingdom, as Paul wrote of the Spirit: “to each their own place and purpose for the good of the entire body.” (1 Cor. 12:18)  Giving this preference and greater attention to a particular issue is very human and beneficial, and is not what we call single issue voting.
Single issue voting is a problem when we make our voting decisions based solely on one issue and we ignore all other factors.  Because we live in a two party system that has been drawn up by a mixture of political, social and religious factors, where one party favors abortion and the other promotes the death penalty, it is common for candidates to support both favorable and unfavorable policies.  It is rare that we would find a candidate with whom we agree with on all fronts.  Our voting then, becomes a balance sheet, a careful weighing of the sum of all our options and each candidate’s pros and cons.  While we may and should give some issues greater concern than others, in the end, we are asked to look at the total result.
Again, we can visit the story of the Good Samaritan and of David’s men in the Temple (Mt 12:3-4).  It was not that Christ was saying that it was not right for the bread to be consecrated to the priests, but that is was more important that people do not starve.
We are responsible for, and will be asked to account for each of the decisions we make, even those that we disagree with.  As the U.S. Bishops wrote, “There may be times when a Catholic who rejects a candidate’s unacceptable position may decide to vote for that candidate for other morally grave reasons.  Voting in this way would be permissible only for truly grave moral reasons, not to advance narrow interests or partisan preferences or to ignore a fundamental moral evil.”

What does this mean for the issues and candidates that we are facing today?  We are not silent about the choices we make, but have been sent out as witnesses to “make disciples of all nations” (Mt 28:19) and to “every creature of the world” (Mk 16:15).  We should look beyond the simple letter of the law, or promises made by a candidate and look at what is the intention and what are the foreseeable consequences of supporting a law or particular candidate.  We need to keep the Common Good, human dignity and freedom in focus, to work and fight for the solutions we believe will be most affective and most beneficial; and not be too proud to change our mind or too arrogant to not listen to different ideas.  In the tradition of the prophets, we are asked to bring attention to the people in greatest need and the issues that remain furthest on the fringes of society’s consciousness.

Issues Central to the Common Good

  • Rehabilitation of Prisoners/Offenders
  • Fairness of Debt
  • Marriage and Family
  • Care and Protection of Orphans
  • Poverty, Homelessness and Hunger
  • The Inviolability of Life
  • Care for the Earth
  • Education
  • Drug and Alcohol Abuse/Rehabilitation
  • Violence and Abuse (Children, Spousal)
  • National and Local Security
  • Welcoming the Alien (Immigrant)
  • Care for the Elderly
  • Freedom/Liberty
  • Charity and Justice
  • Foreign Relations

To Vote . . . or not To Vote

“The voter may take the extraordinary step of not voting for any candidate.”
—Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship (14) --
While we are morally obligated toward political action, it cannot be said that we are morally obligated to always vote.  Voting is the most frequent and fundamental way of effecting our government, yet it is also just one action amongst many options.  There are elections when the action of not voting may be more effective, or morally sound given the candidates we have to choose from.
In his encyclical The Splendor of Truth (Veritatis Splendor), our holy Father, John Paul II reminds us that if an act is intrinsically evil, then a good intention can only lessen the amount of evil, but can never completely remove all evil.
  Since we know that God will not ask us to do evil, we also know that He will always present us with an option to do good.  This means that in the case when we find ourselves having to vote for “the lesser of two evils” we may be obliged not to vote.  Our good option may be to actively not vote.
If we make the decision not to vote, it cannot be a silent decision, neither through the simple action of choosing not to go to the polls on election day.  There must be an action that outweighs and substitutes for our vote.  The point is that if we do take the “extraordinary measure” of not voting, that we are taking an alternative approach to political action.  Here to, Christ has given us guidance in telling us that, “If your brother sins [against you], go and tell him his fault…” (Mt 18:15-17).
If our candidates, government, and system is failing to such a degree that we are not being presented with a positive option, then they are sinning against us.  By confronting our brother we are hoping to encourage a transformation and change toward God, so to do we hope to bring transformation and change to a democracy that fails to present us with a viable option.  If we were to remain silent, tacitly approving our brother’s actions, how then would we expect him to change?  How would we expect ourselves to change if no one pointed out where we are failing and falling short?  Why should candidates stop using aggressive attack ads, dirty politics and making unfulfillable promises if they continue to win votes?
Do we remember what God told Ezekiel when he was called to be a prophet to Israel: “When you hear a word from my mouth, you shall warn them for me…(if) you do not warn him…that wicked man shall die for his sin, but I will hold you responsible for his death”(Ezk 3:18-19).  We are responsible for the actions that we fail to take and the words we choose not to say.
Our goal must not be to act from anger and retribution, which appears to rule too many of our political debates, but out of love and a desire for human dignity, freedom and the greater Common Good.  Far too often we will fall into the trap of negativity and criticism, only speaking about the hopelessness of our candidates and choices.  While it is true that Christ is the judge who announced the condemnation of a generation who denied him (Jn 12:48), we must also remember that he brought an extraordinary vision of hope and promise.  He did not only act to wither the fig tree (Mt 12:19) or teach us to shun evil, but came as the “Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero, Father-Forever, Prince of Peace” (Is 9:5) performing miracles of healing, embracing love and proclaiming an infinite and eminent vision of God’s Kingdom.  
The theologian Walter Brueggemann captured this energizing role of our prophetic voice in his work The Prophetic Imagination.  This too is one of our hopes if we choose the action of not voting, that we not only criticize and give reasons why neither of the candidates offer a good choice, but that we let it be more loudly known that our vote can be won and what we expect from a good candidate.  In doing so, our hope is to inspire ad encourage others to run who may hear our words, see our actions and know that people want to vote for them.
At this point it may also be helpful to remember the early days of our history and the founding of the United States.  One of the most significant and strongest criticisms against John Quincy Adams was that he actually campaigned for the Presidency, that is, he actually had the gall to ask for votes himself.  Our first generations of political figures relied on others to campaign for them and saw a value in responding not to their own ambitions, but to the call from others.  Now, it is unrealistic to think that candidates today should not themselves campaign.  However, our touch with history should gives us the example and tells us that there is good in calling forth candidates and convincing them to run for office, rather than depending on someone to first convince us that he or she is worthy of our vote.
On the question of voting for laws and referendums, while it may be rare that there is an election when there are no candidates worth voting for, it should never be the case that we make a decision not to vote on a proposed law, ordinance or referendum.  Unlike voting for one candidate or another, this is not a case when both options can lead to evil.  Either the law will pass or it will not and one of these options will always serve society better than the other.
We may say that a person is not under any moral obligation to always vote between two candidates, but because of the nature of our democracy, we are obligated to vote on laws that are brought to vote before the people.

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TO VOTE . . . OR NOT TO VOTE

Entries

INTRODUCTION  
​Should faith and politics even mix?

VISION OF THE CHURCH
What role does the Church serve?

The vision of Bishops and Popes.
THE PURPOSE OF GOVERNMENT
What is the Purpose and Role of Government?
The Common Good
Gifts for Governing
​For the People

RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PERSON
​What is the Responsibility of the Person
Morally Obligated

VIRTUE DRIVEN CITIZENSHIP
Prudence and Temperance
​Fortitude and Justice

VALUES IN POLITICS

​ON POLITICAL PARTIES
​
CANDIDATES AND ISSUES
Issues Central to the Common Good

TO VOTE . . . OR NOT TO VOTE
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Kendall Ketterlin
is a Roman Catholic, preparing for ordination to the Priesthood.  In the years since his work with Hurricane Katrina, he has spent five years in religious life, first with the Missionaries of the Precious Blood and then the Order of Carmelites.

He has continued writing in the areas of both social justice and spirituality, publishing an introduction to Catholic teaching regarding the relationship between faith and politics, God and Washington.  More recently, he has focused his efforts on re-publishing out of print spiritual masterpieces, bringing these hard to find works into modern print and electronic media.

His current writing project is a commentary on the Carmelite Rule, interpreting the wisdom of this quintessential way of life into a contemporary context and adapting its teachings for families, diocesan priests and others living outside the vowed life of the Carmelite Order.
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