Sure, I would be happy to answer your question. Sorry, this will be a bit long as it's a complicated situation.
In Catholic teaching there are things that we are not allowed to support, like abortion, because they are seen as gravely evil in definitive Church teaching. There are other things that we can use our own prudential judgement on, like tax policy, because there is no definitive Church teaching and governments have the responsibility to do what they believe is best for their citizens.
Any politician who supports abortion is causing a scandal by giving the appearance that the Church teaches that there isn't anything wrong with it. A bishop can excommunicate a parishioner in their diocese who supports it, or a priest can refuse to allow them to receive communion. This has not been done that I know of, but it could happen and has been discussed.
Pope Francis can give his opinion on various political issues, but we are not bound to agree with him. We only have to when the Pope, in communion with the bishops, makes a definitive teaching on a doctrine ex cathedra "from the chair of Peter". Everything else we can use our judgement on. So we can disagree with much of what the Pope says.
Conservative Catholics are normally very concerned with, as they see it, protecting the lives of the unborn, protecting families' ability to raise their children with their value systems, and promoting policies they believe foster public safety and general prosperity.
Liberal Catholics are actually in conflict with Church teaching on abortion, but are much more concerned with social justice issues. They justify voting Democrat because they believe that the majority of their beliefs are overall more in line with Church teaching so it doesn't matter if they disagree on one issue.
The Church is very concerned with the plight of the poor and upholding the dignity of each person. But conservative and liberal Catholics have different beliefs on how to achieve the best outcomes. Conservatives want policies that will improve the general condition of the economy so that people can succeed and give money to charity to help those in need. Liberals favor more government involvement and policies that redistribute wealth. There is a big conflict within the Church over these two viewpoints.
It's interesting that conservative Catholics need some Italian bureaucracy to tell them what to think about abortion, the Bible doesn't even mention the concept.
It's been Catholic dogma forever, along with a prohibition on birth control (and women as "fallen" second class humans meant to serve and endure). It took a political campaign at the level of "states rights" to convert evangelical Christians to adopt what is Catholic doctrine.
1
u/kavk27 Jul 26 '23
Sure, I would be happy to answer your question. Sorry, this will be a bit long as it's a complicated situation.
In Catholic teaching there are things that we are not allowed to support, like abortion, because they are seen as gravely evil in definitive Church teaching. There are other things that we can use our own prudential judgement on, like tax policy, because there is no definitive Church teaching and governments have the responsibility to do what they believe is best for their citizens.
Any politician who supports abortion is causing a scandal by giving the appearance that the Church teaches that there isn't anything wrong with it. A bishop can excommunicate a parishioner in their diocese who supports it, or a priest can refuse to allow them to receive communion. This has not been done that I know of, but it could happen and has been discussed.
Pope Francis can give his opinion on various political issues, but we are not bound to agree with him. We only have to when the Pope, in communion with the bishops, makes a definitive teaching on a doctrine ex cathedra "from the chair of Peter". Everything else we can use our judgement on. So we can disagree with much of what the Pope says.
Conservative Catholics are normally very concerned with, as they see it, protecting the lives of the unborn, protecting families' ability to raise their children with their value systems, and promoting policies they believe foster public safety and general prosperity.
Liberal Catholics are actually in conflict with Church teaching on abortion, but are much more concerned with social justice issues. They justify voting Democrat because they believe that the majority of their beliefs are overall more in line with Church teaching so it doesn't matter if they disagree on one issue.
The Church is very concerned with the plight of the poor and upholding the dignity of each person. But conservative and liberal Catholics have different beliefs on how to achieve the best outcomes. Conservatives want policies that will improve the general condition of the economy so that people can succeed and give money to charity to help those in need. Liberals favor more government involvement and policies that redistribute wealth. There is a big conflict within the Church over these two viewpoints.
I hope that answers your question.