|
I see the Walk for Life on the Catholic religious channel.
They’re down in Washington protesting and all this crazy
stuff. One priest is saying about political ideas for 2010 how
they should campaign. I thought church and politics should be
separate. If Catholics want to be in politics, why don’t
they elect the Pope? They should have to vote for one. They should
keep their mouths shut and pray to God that people will make
the right decision. They’re making themselves look like
fools.
Pottsville
THIS NUGGET OF UNWISDOM appeared in the 08 February THUNDER / ENLIGHTNING feature
of the Pottsville Republican.
(What would we do and where would we be without T / E? Life would
be so dull!)
What can we say in reply?
Here is “Pottsville’s” main point: He thinks that
“church and politics should be separate”.
It is amazing how often we hear people say those words (or words
quite similar). It is a cliché that has embedded itself
in the brains of a great many persons. I want to refute that
heresy and say, flat out and to the point: THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
CANNOT, SHOULD NOT, MUST NOT AND WILL NOT SEPARATE HERSELF FROM
POLITICS. SHE NEVER HAS, DOES NOT NOW AND NEVER WILL.
If anyone wants a religion that separates itself from politics,
I suggest that he or she join the Amish branch of the Mennonite
community or else the Seventh Day Adventists or the Branch Davidians
or, better yet, the Jehovah’s Witnesses. All of these heretical
communities see Christianity as a refuge from the wicked world.
They view “the world” as an entity handed over to Satan
and ultimately irrelevant to “the community of the saved”
also known as “the elect” or “the saints”.
We Catholics see the world as the battleground between God and
Satan. We Catholics want to join Jesus in the great task of winning
the world back from Satan in order to restore it to God the Father.
We Catholics see ourselves as the leaven that is kneaded into
the loaf, as the salt that is meant to savor the earth, as the
lamp that is to be placed on the lamp stand, not hidden under
the bushel basket.
We Catholics do indeed endorse the principle of “separation
of Church and State”. By doing so, we are supporting the
principle that the State must not try to suppress nor control
the Church. At the same time, we support the principle that the
Church must not subvert the lawful authority of the State.
But the Church has every right to work within lawful parameters
in order to influence the State to respect the dignity of human
life, to enact and enforce just laws and to repeal unjust laws.
What does “Pottsville” think about the Abolitionist
movement of the 19th century, which was, by and large, a movement
of devout Protestants? Does “Pottsville” think that
the Church should have shut its mouth about the enslavement of
our African-American brothers and sisters? Does “Pottsville”
think that Bishop von Galen and Cardinal Faulhaber should have
shut their mouths when the German government was pushing Jews
into boxcars in order to take them to the gas chambers?
Why did yours truly and about 300,000 other persons go to Washington
DC on 22 January 2010? We did so in order to lobby for the sovereignty
of God and for the lives of unborn children.
We do NOT intend, despite the suggestion given by “Pottsville”,
to keep our mouths shut.
We will shut our mouths only when: (a) we are dead or (b) when
abortion is no longer legal in the United States of America —
whichever comes first. If “Pottsville” thinks we are
making ourselves look like fools, so be it. Come to think of
it, “fools” is precisely what we are, fools for Christ. |
Saturday,
13 February