Democrats Again Try to Claim Religious Faithfulness

“When we Christians behave badly, or fail to behave well, we are making Christianity unbelievable to the outside world.” C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Once again, in a brazen attempt to convince themselves and others, a group of thirty self-professed pro-choice Catholic Democrat representatives have written a letter claiming to be “making real the basic principles at the heart of Catholic social teaching.” In it they invoke the Catechism of the Catholic Church as supporting their following their consciences which tell them that they must support unrestricted abortion throughout the land. In a similar vein two years ago a group of 60 Catholic Democrats (I know, to those who truly follow the teachings of the Church that seems like an oxymoron) made similar claims when they feared that the US Council of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) would take some ecclesial action to prohibit them from receiving communion due to their unwavering pro-abortion stance. Nothing of that sort was going on this time, only the one-year anniversary of the Dobbs decision which ruled that Roe v Wade was erroneously decided. So why did they feel it necessary to claim to be following their faith this time? To paraphrase Shakespeare, methinks they doth protest too much.

There are numerous difficulties with this letter. To begin with, they try to perpetuate the lie that the Dobbs decision “stripped women of their right to abortion” which, as the court decided, is nowhere to be found in the Constitution, but only in the minds of activist judges who created it out of the shadow (penumbra) of the opaqueness of the Constitution. The legality and management of abortion was rightly returned to the states, the majority of which still allow abortions, and all have exceptions for health of the mother.

They also resort to the overworn claim to systemic racism within the country. If one takes a realistic look, the US is probably the least racist country in the world. We have an abundance of interracial marriages. According to Pew Research, 17% of newlyweds in 2015 were interracial and that number had been steadily increasing since 1967. Furthermore, according to Pew Research, only 14% of nonblack adults say they would be opposed to a close relative marrying a black person. This same report also notes that the percentage of non-whites intermarrying is significantly larger for those born in the US than those born abroad. A further indication that “systemic” here racism is a myth.

It seems to me that a review of the Catechism is in order. First, while they may not be following Church teaching, according to the Catechism, if they were properly baptized in the Church, then regardless of their apostasy or heretical stance, they bear the permanent seal of the Holy Spirit and, as such, are Catholic (this goes for their fearless leader, Joe Biden, as well). “… Baptism seals the Christian with the indelible spiritual mark (character) of his belonging to Christ. No sin can erase this mark, even if sin prevents Baptism from bearing the fruits of salvation.” (CCC 1272, underlining added.)

Their letter goes on to say, correctly, “our faith unfailingly promotes the common good, prioritizes the dignity of every human being, and highlights the need to provide a collective safety net to our most vulnerable.” This statement comes right after one which says, “63 percent of (the pro-choice Catholic majority) think abortion should be legal in all or most cases.” They want to imply that they are supporting the dignity of every human being even though they just denied it.

Next they delve into the issue of conscience and how the Catechism states that “A human must always obey the certain judgment of his [or her] conscience.” (CCC 1790) However, by focusing on this statement, they have neglected or ignored all of the discussion of conscience that precedes it. A few examples follow:

• 1780: “The dignity of the human person implies and requires uprightness of moral conscience.” 
• 1783 – Conscience must be informed and moral judgment enlightened. … The education of conscience is indispensable for human beings who are subjected to negative influences and tempted by sin to prefer their own judgment and to reject authoritative teaching.
• 1785 – In the formation of conscience the Word of God is the light for our path.
• 1787 – [Man] must always seriously seek what is right and good and discern the will of God expressed in divine law.
• 1789 – One may never do evil that good may result from it. [As in killing babies to make someone’s life easier or more pleasant.]
• 1791 – [Ignorance of moral conscience] This ignorance can often be imputed to personal responsibility. This is the case when a man “takes little trouble to find out what is true and good, or when conscience is by degrees almost blinded through the habit of committing sin.” (Emphasis added)
• 1798 – A well-formed conscience is upright and truthful. It formulates its judgment according to reason, in conformity with the true good willed by the wisdom of the Creator. Everyone must avail himself of the means to form his conscience. (Emphasis added)

And their pro-abortion stance completely neglects other critical teachings in the Catechism. For example:

• 2270 – Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception.
• 2271 – Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable.
• 2272 – Formal cooperation in abortion constitutes a grave offense.
• 2273 – The inalienable right to life of every innocent human individual is a constitutive element of a civil society and its legislation.

Consider the words of our own Declaration of Independence, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

As if their warping and neglect of key aspects of the faith as specified in the Catechism weren’t enough, they then try to invoke the words of Pope St. John Paul II, in his Apostolic Exhortation, Christifideles Laici using that as a basis to claim to be “creating a more just America and world.” Here are some tidbits from that important document that they seem to have overlooked:

• Para 4: “Adversely affected by the impressive triumphs of continuing scientific and technological development and above all, fascinated by a very old and yet new temptation, namely, that of wishing to become like God (cf. Gen 3:5) through the use of a liberty without bounds, individuals cut the religious roots that are in their hearts; they forget God, or simply retain him without meaning in their lives, or outrightly reject him, and begin to adore various “idols” of the contemporary world.” (Emphasis added)
• Para 5: “Once again we find ourselves before many persons, …, whose fundamental rights are being violated, owing to their exceedingly great capacity for endurance and to the clear injustice of certain civil laws: the right to life and to integrity …” (Emphasis added)
• Para 38: “In effect the acknowledgment of the personal dignity of every human being demands the respect, the defence and the promotion of the rights of the human person.”
• Also para 38 and most important: “The inviolability of the person which is a reflection of the absolute inviolability of God, finds its primary and fundamental expression in the inviolability of human life. Above all, the common outcry, which is justly made on behalf of human rights-for example, the right to health, to home, to work, to family, to culture – is false and illusory if the right to life, the most basic and fundamental right and the condition for all other personal rights, is not defended with maximum determination.” (Emphasis added)

And again, directed at politicians, from Pope St. John Paul II: “John Paul II, continuing the constant teaching of the Church, has reiterated many times that those who are directly involved in lawmaking bodies have a grave and clear obligation to oppose any law that attacks human life. For them, as for every Catholic, it is impossible to promote such laws or to vote for them.” Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), Doctrinal Note on the Participation of Catholics in Political Life, 4.

I wonder how many of these politicians relied on their being “devout Catholics,” like Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi, to help them get elected while at the same time they were raking in donations from the likes of Planned Parenthood?

I think St. Augustine hit the mark precisely when he said, “You ought to say plainly that you do not believe in the gospel of Christ. For to believe what you please, is to believe yourselves, and not the gospel.” St. Augustine, Contra Faustum, 17:3. The only ones they are fooling are themselves. God sees into the human heart and God puts people first, even in the womb. “Thus says the Lord, who made you, who formed you from the womb…” Is 44:2

And, as some Democrats like to quote scripture to justify their actions, they need to remember (Ecc. 12:13-14), “… Fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.” (Emphasis added.)

Basically, this letter is one of equivocation and obfuscation – an attempt to try to show consideration for Christ’s teachings without actually following them. Remember, it was the Democrat party that took God out of their platform.  It was the Democrat party that stated that religions would have to modify their positions. And it is the Democrat party whose policies fly in the face of nature’s and God’s laws.

“Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.” (Eph 5:11)