Thursday, September 25, 2008

Catholic Vote 2008 (Updated)

So... I wasn't going to link to this video, which has been floating about the Internet for a couple of weeks now. I have and will try to continue to refrain from talking about politics in this blog. I don't recall where I first saw it posted, and quite honestly I was a bit apprehensive to watch it because I expected it to be advocating voting one-sided, one-issue, one particular candidate but it was actually more objective than I thought. I've seen it on various religious and lay people's blogs. The Dominican Nuns at Moniales posted it recently and have taken a lot of flack in their comments about posting it. I agree with most of the comments that support them however.

The Catholic Church is always going to teach that abortion is morally wrong, intrinsically evil and the killing of human life. It's taught that since its early days, but the Church also teaches and insists we must help the poor, help promote all life-- from cradle to grave-- not just the unborn.

There is so much to think about this November and we can't get caught up in one issue. I will admit I don't agree with this video 100%, this video seems to show that a bit more objectively than I've seen or heard so far. Yeah, it's got some cheesy footage and there are strong images, it's not that far removed from the homily I heard recently at Mass by one of the priests at my parish.

After reading a comment in the sister's blog, it seems it was made by a conservative group which supports McCain, however, despite that the video still seems to recognize that there are other issues of importance to consider in this election, the economy, the war, healthcare, poverty, equality issues, immigration and so on and so on. For those reasons-- I can see why some people are struggling with their conscience and how they will vote this November. I'm not struggling-- I know how I will vote. I just hope it makes a difference no matter what.

Also, if you're undecided and still thinking about whom to vote for, there are resources on the Internet to help you decide. The US Bishop's Guide to Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship is one place to start. That's a link to the whole document and it should help you weigh your own conscience should you be having troubles. Here is the pastoral letter from the Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe. I was looking for a really good link- non-biased- I'd heard on the radio but can't find it. I am looking for one that is neither pro-Republican nor pro-Democrat. Here's the League of Women Voter's homepage. And an Election and Voting information site.

I'm not guaranteeing any of the links above. I'm just finding things that I might think are useful.

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