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The mention of Catholics going for Hillary buried in the "Obama is a Muslim" thread got me thinking. I am Roman Catholic, and have never considered for a moment voting for Hillary. I think it's largely personal: I can't stand the woman.
That doesn't necessarily make her a bad candidate for Catholics to throw their support behind. So, I present to you a summary of the main ideas of Catholic Social Teaching. Assuming that Catholics should vote for someone who can make these ideas happen, who would you recommend?
Defend you choice with links as appropriate.
Quotes are taken from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Themes of Catholic Social Teaching.
Here is the summary:
1) Life and dignity of the human person
Covers abortion, euthanasia, cloning, embryonic stem cell research, and the death penaly. Also advocates avoidance of unjust war.
2) Call to family, community, and participation
Emphasizes the importance of marriage and family, and the person's "right and duty" to participate to participate in society for the greater good.
3) Right and responsibility
Every person has a right to life and a right to those things required for human decency. Every person has the responsibility to promote those things for all.
4) Option for the Poor and Vulnerable (sometimes called preference for the poor)
Test society by its treatment of its weakest members. Put the needs of the poor and vulnerable first.
5) Dignity of work and rights or workers
We work so that the economy serves us--we do not serve the economy. Work is a way to make a living, but more importantly to participate in God's creation. If the dignity of work is to be maintained, then the rights of workers must be respected--specifically, "the right to productive work, to decent and fair wages, to the organization and joining of unions, to private property, and to economic initiative."
a whole lot of two party conflict there, eh?
Also, lately this has focused a lot on the rights of migrant workers and the living wage debate.
6) Solidarity
We are one human family. Love your neighbor, locally and globally.
7) Care for God's creation
"We show our respect for the Creator by our stewardship of creation. Care for the earth is not just an Earth Day slogan, it is a requirement of our faith. We are called to protect people and the planet, living our faith in relationship with all of God’s creation. This environmental challenge has fundamental moral and ethical dimensions that cannot be ignored."
Truth be told, I do my best to follow these teachings but sometimes quibble with the details (which I suppose makes me a cafeteria Catholic Social Teaching Follower
) . A good example of this, to me, is automobile unions. Do I support the right of the UAW to bargain collectively for its employees? Yes. Do I support the right of the UAW to screw management and employees alike in a variety of ways, because it can? No. (Please don't turn this into a union debate--I'm more interested in the applications of CST to American politics than unions)
So, who is the best candidate according to Catholic Social Teaching? I'm curious to see what you all think.
That doesn't necessarily make her a bad candidate for Catholics to throw their support behind. So, I present to you a summary of the main ideas of Catholic Social Teaching. Assuming that Catholics should vote for someone who can make these ideas happen, who would you recommend?
Defend you choice with links as appropriate.
Quotes are taken from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Themes of Catholic Social Teaching.
Here is the summary:
1) Life and dignity of the human person
Covers abortion, euthanasia, cloning, embryonic stem cell research, and the death penaly. Also advocates avoidance of unjust war.
2) Call to family, community, and participation
Emphasizes the importance of marriage and family, and the person's "right and duty" to participate to participate in society for the greater good.
3) Right and responsibility
Every person has a right to life and a right to those things required for human decency. Every person has the responsibility to promote those things for all.
4) Option for the Poor and Vulnerable (sometimes called preference for the poor)
Test society by its treatment of its weakest members. Put the needs of the poor and vulnerable first.
5) Dignity of work and rights or workers
We work so that the economy serves us--we do not serve the economy. Work is a way to make a living, but more importantly to participate in God's creation. If the dignity of work is to be maintained, then the rights of workers must be respected--specifically, "the right to productive work, to decent and fair wages, to the organization and joining of unions, to private property, and to economic initiative."
a whole lot of two party conflict there, eh?
Also, lately this has focused a lot on the rights of migrant workers and the living wage debate.6) Solidarity
We are one human family. Love your neighbor, locally and globally.
7) Care for God's creation
"We show our respect for the Creator by our stewardship of creation. Care for the earth is not just an Earth Day slogan, it is a requirement of our faith. We are called to protect people and the planet, living our faith in relationship with all of God’s creation. This environmental challenge has fundamental moral and ethical dimensions that cannot be ignored."
Truth be told, I do my best to follow these teachings but sometimes quibble with the details (which I suppose makes me a cafeteria Catholic Social Teaching Follower
) . A good example of this, to me, is automobile unions. Do I support the right of the UAW to bargain collectively for its employees? Yes. Do I support the right of the UAW to screw management and employees alike in a variety of ways, because it can? No. (Please don't turn this into a union debate--I'm more interested in the applications of CST to American politics than unions)So, who is the best candidate according to Catholic Social Teaching? I'm curious to see what you all think.
) but I'm open for reconsideration if worthy evidence is supported. Mostly I want to present Catholics as a complex group of voters--not a unified bloc that just goes to one candidate because we're told to--and have some discussion.
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