Let us rely on the guidance of Our Lord as the hallmark of greatness.
A homily from the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time based on readings from
Exodus 16:2-4, 12-15, Psalm 78, Ephesians 4:17, 20-24, John 6:24-35
These readings are available at the USCCB website.
Additionally, this homily refers to Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship.
Our first reading from Deuteronomy speaks of the greatness of the nation of Israel. Israel is a great nation for two reasons. First, they have the law of God. God loves Israel so much that he personally guides them. Second, they follow that law. The other nations see that and the wisdom in their way of life.
The Greatness of a Nation
Moses identifies Israel’s greatness with its closeness to God. No other nation is as close. He offers as proof of that the Law of God by which they live. Their greatness lies in their relationship with God.
What about our greatness? We are now into the final months of the political campaign season. Now is the time that we form our consciences so that we can vote our consciences in the upcoming elections. I don’t plan to tell you how to vote. I don’t even plan to hint at how you should vote. I will, however, talk about how we can integrate our Catholic faith into the political process. This isn’t easy. I looked at the platforms of both political parties to see which references Catholic teaching. Neither do. In fact, you won’t find the word “Catholic” in either platform. The question becomes, “How do I sort through all of this?”.
Forming Conscience for Citizenship
Our bishops speak for the Church. The U.S. Catholic Bishops have published a document entitled “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship”. It can be found on their website at USCCB.org. The document is helpful in forming our consciences according to Church teaching. It doesn’t tell you how to vote, but it gives you some insight into how Catholic teaching relates to politics. “The Church is involved in the political process but is not partisan.”[1] Why is the Church involved? Because it is important.
Our Church calls us to first form our consciences according to Church teaching. After all, that’s her job. We are to form our consciences, but what exactly is conscience? Conscience is not just a gut feeling. It is not a feeling at all. “Conscience is a judgment of reason whereby [we] recognize the moral quality of a [particular]…act.”[2] “Conscience is not something that allows us to justify doing whatever we want.”[3] Conscience comes from the head, not the heart. In exercising conscience we compare an act to a moral standard.
The Church asks us to consider four important concepts as we determine our vote. The four concepts are (i) the dignity of the human person, (ii) the common good, (iii) solidarity, and (iv) subsidiarity. Let’s look at them one by one.
Dignity of the Human Person
“Human life is sacred. The dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. Direct attacks on innocent persons are never morally acceptable, at any stage or in any condition.”[4] Our opposition to abortion, euthanasia, racism, and capital punishment as well as our desire to overcome poverty and suffering flow from this concept. “The direct and intentional destruction of innocent human life…is always wrong and is not just one issue among many.”[5]
The Common Good
The common good, … can be understood as the social and community dimension of the moral good.”[6] It is “those conditions of social life which allow social groups and their individual members [to easily reach] their own fulfillment[7] Our concern for the common good leads us to recognize the right to life, along with the right to access “food and shelter, education and employment, health care and housing, freedom of religion and family life.”[8] Our concern for our common home and care for God’s creation relate to the common good as well.[9]
Solidarity
“Solidarity highlights in a particular way the intrinsic social nature of the human person, the equality of all in dignity and rights and the common path of individuals and peoples towards an ever more committed unity”.[10] Solidarity with our entire human family leads to our support for a preferential option for the poor and all who are marginalized such as the “elderly and terminally ill, victims of injustice and oppression, and immigrants.”[11]
Subsidiarity
“The principle of subsidiarity reminds us that larger institutions in society should not overwhelm or interfere with smaller or local institutions, yet larger institutions have essential responsibilities when the more local institutions cannot adequately protect human dignity, meet human needs, and advance the common good.”[12] We must remember that “[t]he family – based on marriage between a man and a woman – is the first and fundamental unit of society and is the sanctuary for the creation and nurturing of children.”[13]
Conclusion on Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship
As Catholics we are not single-issue voters.[14] We must be “guided by a well-formed conscience that recognizes that all issues do not carry the same moral weight”[15] We must “take into account a candidate’s commitments, character, integrity, and ability to influence a given issue. In the end, this is a decision to be made by each Catholic guided by a conscience formed by Catholic moral teaching.”[16]
I would strongly encourage you to read the document “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship” on USCCB.org, then spend some time with the issues and use your best judgement in forming your conscience.
Continuing Love and Respect
Personally, I am frustrated by politics. I have a very clear view of what I would like our country to be. No one is offering it. Like you, I have work out the best choice. It is a difficult and unclear decision.
“It is difficult to make predictions, especially about the future.”[17] However, I will go out on a very short limb here and predict that by the end of this election cycle we will have a winner, a group of really excited people, and a group of really disappointed people.
I have a favor to ask.
All of us here this morning are united in our love of the Lord and in our participation in the Eucharist. Through the Eucharist we become more that brothers and sisters in Christ, we become the Mystical Body of Christ. We are one body, many members, with many gifts and one mission.
The favor? Whether you wind up really excited or really disappointed, don’t let the political stuff interfere with the love of God that we all show one another.
The Traditions of Men
Our gospel reminds us that following the law is not a substitute for following the Lord. In our gospel, Jesus rebukes the pharisees for focusing on such on following the law at the expense of following the Lord. Jesus rebukes them saying, “You disregard God’s commandment but cling to the human tradition.” These so-called “teachings of men” were not necessarily bad. They were meant to clarify the law and make sure that we did not violate God’s laws. For example, God said to Moses, “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest[18]”. This was supplemented with the traditions of men that “[t]he main classes of work are forty save one: sowing, ploughing, reaping…”[19] and so-on until all thirty-nine are listed. These are all well-intentioned, but in our gospel today we see how they are used to challenge Jesus. Adherence to these laws has become the goal, even to the point of interfering with the actions of the messiah!
The point is simple. Keep God at the center of everything you do. Let us rely on his law, let us rely on the guidance of his Church, to direct our lives toward Jesus our Lord. Let us rely on his guidance as the hallmark of greatness.
“Let us rely on the guidance of Our Lord as the hallmark of greatness.”
[1]USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶58
[2] Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd Ed. (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1997), §1788 (emphasis added).
[3] USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶17
[4] USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶42
[5] USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶28
[6] USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶47, quoting Gaudium et Spes ¶26 and the Compendium of the social Doctrine of the Church ¶164.
[7] Catholic Church, “Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World: Gaudium Et Spes,” in Vatican II Documents (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2011) §26.
[8] USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶48.
[9] Cf USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶51.
[10] USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶¶51 & 54.
[11] USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶53
[12] USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶47, quoting Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, no. 185. Cf (Centesimus Annus, no. 48; Dignitatis Humanae, nos. 4-6)
[13] USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶45.
[14] USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶42.
[15]USCCB, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship ¶37.
[16] ibid.
[17] Attributed to an unnamed Danish legislator during the 1937-38 parliamentary session.
[18] Ex 34:21.
[19] The Mishnah, trans by Herbert Danby, D.D., (London, Oxford University Press, 1933) Shabbath 7.2.