When Pope Benedict XVI met with the U.S. bishops in Washington, D.C., this past April, he talked about a special problem that Catholics face in this country — “a growing separation of faith from life.”
What he means is that a lot of us have accepted the terms dictated by our secular society. Our society says it’s ok for us to pray and worship and believe what we want to believe about God. But we’re not allowed to “impose” our private beliefs on issues of politics, economics, or culture.

The result is the separation of faith from life that Benedict talks about. Many of us go to church on Sunday and profess one thing and then spend the rest of the week promoting political policies and business practices that ignore or contradict the beliefs and teaching of our church.

But the Catholic faith is more than private prayer and personal devotion. Your faith must illuminate everything you do — from how you love your spouses and raise your children, to how you run your businesses, to the kind of policies and politicians you support.

That’s why I strongly recommend that in this election year each of you read the U.S. bishops’ statement, “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship.” It is available on the Archdiocese of San Antonio Web site (www.archsa.org) and on a special Web site set up by the bishops, which also contains many of the bishops’ statements on social issues (www.faithfulcitizenship.org).

In this document, the bishops don’t try to tell you how to vote. Instead, we offer principles and considerations for helping you to form your consciences so that you see the world in light of God’s truth.

This formation of conscience is an important duty for all of us. We have to watch out that we don’t fall into an individualistic notion of our faith. We are called to love and, as St. John of the Cross says in words quoted by the Catechism, “At the evening of life, we shall be judged on our love.” (no. 1022) Jesus told us that our love for God, our striving for holiness, can never be separated from our love for our neighbor. 

The church’s social teaching is an effort to translate the commandment to love into practical principles for evaluating policy positions and candidates’ promises and actions in light of the Gospel. To that end, “Faithful Citizenship” is very helpful. It articulates seven basic principles of Catholic teaching and offers constructive perspectives on many of the issues we face.

The bishops rightly say that “all issues do not carry the same moral weight and the moral obligation to oppose intrinsically evil acts has a special claim on our consciences and our actions.” (“Faithful Citizenship,” 37)
That means that our number one priority must always be to promote the sanctity of human life and the right to life — especially for the unborn, the aged and the sick. Unless the right to life is protected, all other rights in our society are at risk.

I urge you to study the church’s social teaching and to promote that teaching in your work, in your communities and in our political system.

Studying this teaching will draw you closer to the mind and heart of Jesus. And it will make you more faithful citizens of this great country.