Catholics and politicians

Are you wondering what it means to be a Catholic in today’s political world, and how to apply your Catholic principles to politics? I pose this question to prospective candidates for the next general election.

Candidates should make it clear what they stand for and declare beforehand their stand on issues of fundamental importance such as IVF, embryo freezing, gay marriages, abortion, and so on.

The Catholic way in politics includes a pro-life, pro-family and pro-work position, but it is certainly not limited to that. Cath­olicism is more than just a religion; it is a comprehensive way of life that should encompass every aspect of our being – including and most especially politics.

To understand a Catholic’s duty in the political field, one must first understand the Catholic Church’s position on politics. The Catechism of the Catholic Church and the “Doctrinal note on some questions regarding the Participation of Catholics in Political Life” (Pope John Paul II) would provide the best resource.

Whereas the secular approach to politics calls for a demarcation between Church and State, the trend recently has been for laws and administrative practices to displace God altogether. In an increasingly liberal and amoral world, should Catholics stand idly by as God is pushed aside?

Do Maltese Catholics have a right to have their interests looked after in Parliament?

Politicians now shy away from professing their Catholic beliefs lest they be branded fundamentalists. However, there is a need for a change in this mentality, and we expect to see election candidates who are ready to serve the Catholic faith and preserve morals in the world of politics.

Vatican II exhorts Christians “to fulfil their duties faithfully in the spirit of the Gospel. It is a mistake to think that, because we have here no lasting city, but seek the city which is to come, we are entitled to shirk our earthly responsibilities; this is to forget that by our faith we are bound all the more to fulfil these responsibilities according to the vocation of each... May Christians... be proud of the opportunity to carry out their earthly activity in such a way as to integrate human, domestic, professional, scientific and technical enterprises with religious values, under whose supreme direction all things are ordered to the glory of God”.