By Matthew Gambino -- Associate Director, Office for Public Affairs (May 2004)
If you've already heard enough about the presidential election – and we have six months to go – get ready for a long summer and fall of speeches, talking heads and ads everywhere you go.
Last month's primary election, of course, decided who will run in the November 2 election, even if the two presidential campaigns have long been under way.
In the general election we'll vote, in addition to president, for U.S. Senate and House seats, plus statewide races and many state Senate and House seats. As in the race for president, get ready for an avalanche of political campaign flyers, ads and promotions of all kinds.
The primaries not only showed who will run in the fall, but they also provided some lessons to remember before the general election. Even though Congressman Pat Toomey lost his bid for U.S. Senate to incumbent Sen. Arlen Specter, Toomey showed how to run a campaign: start with a set of principles in which you firmly believe; attract a grass-roots following of citizens who share many of those principles; organize them across the district you represent (in this case, the state); mobilize them to spread the word; and turn out the vote.
Toomey's pro-life stand resonated with many Catholics, as did other candidates' positions in other races. Those Catholics and other supporters worked very hard to promote the candidate they backed.
This caused a bit of a problem for some parishes. While individual Catholics can shout a candidate's cause from the housetops, the Catholic Church must add a more nuanced voice. There is more to consider than the candidate's character or stand on policy issues.
The Church does not promote any one candidate for office. One reason is the legal limitations placed on organizations by the Internal Revenue Service. The tax code contains an absolute prohibition that forbids tax-exempt groups to "participate in or intervene in (including the publishing or distributing of statements) any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office."
Violating this absolute prohibition risks jeopardizing the Church's federal tax-exempt status; therefore doing so might hamper the services that the Church provides to its members and to society at large.
The more fundamental reason, is reason itself: people are encouraged to make their own choice for whom they will vote. A properly formed and informed conscience – through which a person understands the issues as fully as possible, and upon reflecting on objective truths comes to a decision -- not only helps one cast a vote, it helps one understand the issues on which the candidate, if successful, will act on when in office.
A vote as the result of an exercise of conscience is the first way for people to engage in our country's political life, and through it change our culture into one that honors human life and respects the truth.
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia educates Catholics on how to vote, not for whom to vote. The archdiocesan Office for Public Affairs publishes candidates' questionnaires in a variety of means, including in parish church bulletins. Parish pastors are notified of the office's intentions to distribute approved materials months or weeks in advance.
The materials always have the same goal: inform Catholic voters by presenting a non-partisan, objective presentation of a candidate's position on questions of interest to Catholics. Candidates answer specific questions in their own words.
Some voters guides not approved by the Archdiocese nonetheless support the goal of educating voters by presenting Catholic teaching on issues relating to abortion, euthansia and cloning, to name a few.
Other voters guides produced by various organizations have a laudable goal, to further the pro-life movement. But distributing a guide that labels a candidate "pro-life" or "pro-abortion," and does so in a way that advocates one over the other, violates the prohibitions of the federal tax code and the fair, non-partisan approach of approved Archdiocesan materials.
The Church speaks as it does and publishes information before an election to foster the faithful exercise in society of a properly formed Christian conscience. This approach to advocacy differs from a "do as I say" voters guide.
The latter is easier, but the former is a challenge for Catholics to understand better the range of policy issues we face, and vote for a candidate who best addresses those issues according to the faith and teachings to which we cling.
Regardless of ads or advocacy, we citizens of faith seek the truth of the gospel. We possess it in heart and mind. And we assist Jesus in the work of transforming our society for the good of all.