Bishop Thomas Wenski Says Defend Life and Marriage: There Can Be No other Legitimate Catholic Position

10/20/2012

(Page 2 of 2)

in the Archdiocese of Miami. He also directed that it be read this past Sunday in every parish.

The Archbishop of Miami knows that it is his duty to instruct the faithful on the major moral issues of our age. The letter, entitled "Vote as faith-filled, faithful citizens" is a model for how such letters should be drafted. Its placement in every bulletin and mandatory reading at every Mass was exactly what is needed in every Diocese and every parish in the nation.

This letter should be downloaded by everyone reading this article and circulated widely. Here is a link to the downloadable and printable PDF version. The letter is presented below:

*****
Dear faithful in Christ:

As we approach a very important general election, I remind those of you who are citizens of this great nation and eligible to vote that voting is not only your right; it is your duty, As scriptures teach us, we are our brother's keeper, and voting responsibly is one way to promote the common good of our brethren in society.

The welfare and future of our nation's communities depend on the people we entrust with public responsibilities. No bishop or priest will tell you for whom to vote - however, as your pastors we do legitimately try to guide our people through the maze of complex moral issues that underline the public policy positions espoused by the different candidates and their party platforms.

For this reason, we make available to you the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops Questionnaire which details where candidates stand on important issues that may come before them. At the same time, while we are not taking a position on the other amendment initiatives, we strongly urge you to support both amendment 6 (Yes) which will enable the legislature to restore rights of parents and prohibit public funding of abortion, and amendment 8 (yes) on Religious Liberty that would protect faith-based groups' freedom to serve in our State. Besides what is available through your parish bulletin, additional information can be accessed on both the Archdiocese of Miami's website, and the Forida Catholic Conference website.

While some may resent this particular exercise of our teaching ministry, I would hope that most Catholics of good will welcome these interventions. All of us need help in making difficult decisions. As Catholics we have good counsel in our Church teachings on our civic responsibility to pursue the common good, as well as in prayer. These are important elements that help one arrive at the best prudential decision.

Our system of checks and balances built into our governing structures by our founding fathers reflected an understanding of the human person founded in our Judeo-Christian tradition.

And whether as citizens or as elected officials, if we are to be faithful to the truth about the human person, we must oppose uncompromisingly policies and laws that undermine the common good precisely because they originate in a defective understanding of the human person.

For this reason, the Church -clergy and laity- while agreeing to disagree on other matters of prudential judgment cannot but oppose the evils of abortion, euthanasia, fetal stem cell research, human cloning and so called same sex "marriage." In these areas, there can be no other legitimate Catholic position.

Beyond these fundamental issues, and closely related to them, is the issue of religious liberty which must be defended from current attempts to undermine it by limiting people of faith's freedom to serve in ways congruent to their faith and morals.

As Catholics, we best contribute to our democratic process by voting as faith filled and faithful citizens; that is, in a way coherent to our Catholic beliefs and teachings. Whether you can vote or not, I ask you to pray; and if you are eligible to vote, then I ask you to do so with an informed conscience.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Most Reverend Thomas Wenski
Archbishop of Miami

- - -

Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: Life, Right to life, Marriage, family, defense of marriage, religious liberty, Archbishop Thomas Wenski, Archdiocese of Miami, Pro-Liofe, Pro-Marriage, Religious Freedom, faithful citizens, voting, campaign 2012, Deacon Keith Fournier

NEWSLETTERS »

Previous Page 1 | 2

Rate This Article

Was this helpful to you? Very Helpful Somewhat Helpful Not Helpful at All

Would you be interested in more articles like this? Yes, I am Interested No, I am not Interested

Rate Article

1 - 10 of 10 Comments

Theresa H
6 months ago
Cody, we never have the "right" to do what is "intrinsically evil" = what is always and everywhere wrong. Abortion and the homosexual life-style are intrinsic evils. The tendency to homosexuality, for example, is not itself sinful, but following through in thoughts and acts are. I know people who say: "God made me this way;" not so, we all inherit the Original Sin of Adam and Eve; God did not "make us that way." Although the Original Sin is removed via the Sacrament of Baptism, everyone (except Jesus and Mary) is born with weaknesses/ tendencies to sin--albeit some people have stronger weaknesses for some kinds of sin, others for other kinds of sin. This is why Job says: "The life of man on earth is a warfare." But all is not lost--if we pray, pray for the "grace" needed to overcome tendencies to sin, and we should never give up when we fall. St. Paul says that God's grace "is power made perfect in infirmity." But the only way that can happen is if/when fall we turn to God for strength to overcome--and go to confession.
John
6 months ago
Bishop needs a reality check, most catholics focus on poverty. See link below.
http://news.yahoo.com/catholics-want-more-focus-poverty-abortion-survey-171515912.html
JoAnn
7 months ago
Cody Laws: Your philosophy is precisely one of the reasons God destroyed Sodom and Gommorah. Read your Bible. God said homosexuality is an abomination. It's easy for people to rationalize when they are either in a sinful relationship or looking the other way. No one hates anyone for anything. But the sin is hated and we are to do God's work and teach them with love Jesus' teachings. Abortion kills a human being no matter how the woman got pregnant. You are saying it's all right to kill a baby. It's their choice. What if I say it's my choice to kill you? Would that be all right? Would you not want someone to stop me? It is impossible to be pro-life while claiming you are pro-choice. God is pro-life. He gave us free will to love Him and keep His commandments or turn away from Him and lead a sinful life. He loves us no matter what, but He will not tolerate killing His children. He does not condemn us, we condemn ourselves by our free choice. I pray that you will come into the light and do as God wants. Jesus told us to go out into the world and make disciples of all people. He did not tell us to go and do whatever we want. The 10 commandments are just that. Commandments NOT suggestions. God bless.
Cody Laws
7 months ago
I am deeply saddened to see the unhappiness that the Church again and again endorses.

If Jesus came down today I find it hard to believe that he would care if homosexuals would want to marry, it's there choice, even if you think they are going to hell. God gave us this great gift of free will, the ability to make our own decisions.

We need to live and let live, love everyone, respect everyone, and give equality and justice to everyone.

And on abortion, I think people don't give the issue proper thought before they make up their minds. I'm Anti-Abortion but Pro-choice and I think that while abortion is morally wrong and unjust, there are some very valid reasons to get an abortion and it never my place to tell someone else what they can or cannot do to something living inside of them.

Again live and let live.

On euthanasia I again see where the Church is coming from, but if I was on my deathbed in extreme pain or discomfort I believe I have the right to make that decision for myself.

And as I read the previous comments I just become so sad with the hate that is spread, people make it sound like liberals and people are trying to destroy the Church or something, when are we going to realize that through our actions we are destroying the lives of homosexuals, women in terrible situations, and people's God given right to make their own choices.
Theresa H
7 months ago
It looks to me like our Bishops are speaking up these days in their dioceses--all over the country. Yes, it should have come a bit sooner, considering that some/many(?) people have already voted. Here in FL, the Bishops have provided us with a comparison of what the President and Romney each have to say on the major issues. If one was not already aware, reading them side by side, one cannot but see the difference on matters that are of major concern--mostly serious moral matters, not just "prudential" judgments. if we think we cannot take either candidate at their word(s), then all the more do we have to look at ourselves and the choices we made in the primaries four years ago--And we'll have to choose the lesser of two evils. In any case, It seems pretty obvious to me that we have a better chance of turning toward the light of Christ in the Founding Values of our Nation--rooted in the Natural Law--with Romney. Even though he is a Mormon, we are, nonetheless, on the same page with the Natural Law!
vance
7 months ago
It's too bad that the Bishop in my diocese isn't like Bishop Wenski. One might think my Bishop is cheering for Obama to win.
Esther Marie Ventura Ferencz
7 months ago
Thanks so GREATLY Archbishop Weinski for this 'common sense', yet so profoundly ignored and disobedient voting . Done by large numbers of Catholics no less! Such a disgrace. A word seemingly NO LONGER in our vocabulary.
Paul-Emile Leray
7 months ago
Thank you for sharing this. It is encouraging. I wish more Cardinals, Archbishops, and Bishops would publically throw their theological and philosophical weight around. While I am not Spanish, a Spanish Jesuit once told me something to this effect: if you worry too much about dogs barking you will never be able to make it to the grocery store to get your food. Let the dogs bark, in other words. Let them bark. These men are some of the brightest guys around, we ought to feel blessed when they shake things up a little. Secular society is often NUTS. What Catholicism has to offer to political economy, public policy, society and culture at large, can not be overstated. Very encouraging.
Paul-Emile Leray
abey
7 months ago
To the word Abortion today, is but to the Ancient Human sacrifices & as it is well known that the basis of Abortion is to population controls, through which we understand that ancient Human sacrifices were also on the same Basis to Population control, but making it Legitimate calling it to be religious worship or Idolatry, whereas to Abortion the law is used for its Legitimacy. Such is the case with the other evils inc. the so called unproductive to destructive same sex marriage, to know these are wrong for all this contradicts the words of God to Man "Be fruitful & Multiply". The Catholic stand against these evils 'Lights" the truth.
Robert
7 months ago
Amen! Now I pray he can convince the other bishops to understand this!

If the liberal priests want social justice they need to understand the it starts with "life" and "true marriage".

I pray for the catholics who have to listen to social justice homilies week in and week out while liberal politicians, theologians, and clergy destroy our Church and our country.

God Bless the clergy who stand up and speek up about faith, morals, and Catholic teachings.

Prev1Next

Comments submitted must be civil, remain on-topic and not violate any laws including copyright. We reserve the right to delete any comments which are abusive, inappropriate or not constructive to the discussion.

Though we invite robust discussion, we reserve the right to not publish any comment which denigrates the human person, undermines marriage and the family, or advocates for positions which openly oppose the teaching of the Catholic Church.

This is a supervised forum and the Editors of Catholic Online retain the right to direct it.

We also reserve the right to block any commenter for repeated violations. Your email address is required to post, but it will not be published on the site.

We ask that you NOT post your comment more than once. Catholic Online is growing and our ability to review all comments sometimes results in a delay in their publication.

Name *

Email *

Comment *

Send me important information from Catholic Online and it's partners. See Sample

Post Comment