Catholic politics causing division?

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Ah but God considers it also the duty of the government.
Sodom… a city… was destroyed:

Ezekiel 16:49 "Behold, this was the sin of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy.
 
Do priests get into political areas in their homilies? Or in classes of teaching? In other words, how likely am I to run into political disagreements with in a parish? Are all as outspoken as Steve Ray?
 
Was God speaking of the city or the residents? I honestly don’t know… And, the US government tends to give a lot of fish, but not teach too much fishing, to use a common analogy, which results in a huge debt, which is then passed on to the next generation- not too charitable, IMO.
 
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Don’t be concerned with politics or social teaching, be only concerned with the Gospel. And, then politics and social teachings will fall into the proper prospective…
 
As a christian, the gospel is my main focus and in reading it I want to be sure to obey all I see there and in all Scripture concerning helping the poor and needy. I did not want to get into a political debate here… just wanting to know about that priest telling his congregation how to vote and how divisive is politics within the church. If one is a Republican and wanted to be among all Republicans then they would go to a southern Baptist church where Democrats are probably not allowed in.
So I am wondering if both are part of the Catholic Church. Also wondering why churches are even getting so politically involved. Vote? yes of course since we have that privilege but earth is not our home. One side is anti abortion yet demonizes the poor. The other helps the poor but allows babies to be murdered.
No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather works to please his commanding officer. 2Tim 2:4
 
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Whish is where prayerful discernment and not just voting all ‘r’ or ‘d’ comes in- one needs to find the help-the-poor Republicans and the pro-life Democrats in their area, as few as they may be, or even run for office themself.
 
I can’t tell if you’re being sarcastic, but I know a few in my area, and have done my best to assist them during campaigns.
 
Politics causes division, but so does following Jesus. He even said it would. As a convert myself I had a notion on the outside of the Catholic Church being far more uniform than it was. But it is more like the Church gives us boundaries while we are free to go anywhere inside those boundaries.

In reality plenty of Catholics, both clergy and laymen, do sometimes stray outside the boundaries. And the world is full of so much evil that to some extent while staying in the boundaries we’ll end up materially cooperating with evil. We also have difficult prudential judgments which are the application of the moral law to actual situations on which we can disagree.

So the Church is full of division, if you want to look at it like that. But you can also look at it as Catholics in good faith who disagree on details figuring out how to best live the Gospel.
 
You are very likely to find political disagreements within a parish, but hopefully it’s handled with respect and a level head. People take different paths to fulfilling Christ’s message and God’s commandments. Most are probably not going to be as outspoken as Steve Ray, at least not in mixed company.
 
I should add:

In general, with moral issues and societal issues (abortion, euthanasia, LGBTQ issues, etc.) the Republican Party is better aligned with Catholic principles.

When it comes down to certain other issues, especially financial, welfare, and justice (things like foodstamps, immigration, welfare, Social Security, Medicaid/Medicare, prison reform, opposition to capital punishment) the Democratic Party aligns better with Catholic principles.

Other issues, like the military, it really is a situation by situation basis to see which party aligns better with the Church.

I would tend to think of the Democratic Party as being, overall, closer to Catholic social teaching as a whole, and traditionally American Catholics were Democrats.

A LOT of Catholics left the Democratic Party for the GOP however in the 1970’s in the wake of Roe v Wade because the GOP opposed it, and for many Catholics, politically nothing is more important than the issue of abortion.

It seems to me though the pendulum is swinging again and many Catholics now are either Independent, third party, or Democrat, so as to render those who are Republican a definite minority.

I am personally an Independent, and in 2016 I voted for a third party for President, a Republican for Governor, several Democrats and Republicans for other positions, and one Independent and one Libertarian.
 
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Not likely at all; as a non profit the Church cannot endorse any particular candidate or political viewpoint or they can lose their tax exempt status.

You might hear homilies about specific issues, such as abortion but I have only heard even that a time or two in my lifetime. Also you might encounter homilies on assisting the poor if the topic relates to Readings of the day. Homilies I have experienced touch on the Readings of the day often the Gospel reading.

Classes of teaching never include political discussion.

I think you find more debate and discussion regarding such issues of politics here or other forums where World News can be discussed etc. Topics sometimes lend to a political discussion

The Eucharist is the source and summit of our Catholic Faith.

Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraph 1324:
"1324 The Eucharist is “the source and summit of the Christian life.” “The other sacraments, and indeed all ecclesiastical ministries and works of the apostolate, are bound up with the Eucharist and are oriented toward it. For in the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch.”

You can find the Catechism free online via a google search.

Glad you are asking questions here as you discern what Faith you will embrace.
 
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Some of us have walked away from the institutional, corporate parties and joined one that reflects Catholic Social Teaching 🙂
 
As others have said, most priests in my experience sort of tip-toe around the divisive issues, speaking more in generalities during their homilies. You can still figure out where they stand on the issues readily enough, but they are wise enough not to trample legitimate differences of opinion. There are a few, a small minority I think, who are notoriously outspoken and therefore also polarizing, but that would never stop me from becoming or remaining Catholic. Some people think there should be more in-your-face outspoken priests, but only when they agree with whatever the issues are that they hold dear. Myself, I’m glad these kind seem to be in the small minority.
 
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Let’s remember- Steve Ray does not represent the Vatican or the Magisterium- he is a lay person, no more, no less.

If we want to make an NRA debate, make a new thread.
 
I agree as much as i can (not American so I don’t claim to know your politics).

I don’t know if I would vote for a Democrat if she/he supports abortion and wants to make it even more available than it is now, but I don’t think I can bring myself to vote for a Donald Trump either.

It’s too divisive for my liking. Just from reading about politics and such, I can agree with certain Republicans (or at least conservative) positions but at the same time, I don’t really like their views on other stuff either). Which is why I’m eternally greatful to be sitting on the other side of the earth, lol.

I think both democrats and republicans would hate where I live 😂
 
miriam5 said:
So which is it? Is the Catholic church mostly GOP or mostly politically progressive or is the church fighting among themselves?
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The CC cannot be sorted into any government or political party, as she has preceeded them. Catholic values are such that some of them are, in the current political system, considered “left” and some “right”.
miriam5 said:
Do most think we have an obligation to help the poor and needy?
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Every Catholic should feel this obligation. Conservatives who believe in "smaller’ government will want this obligation to be fulfilled through the Church (privately).

“Liberals” or those who believe in “big” government tend to expect the government to participate or fulfill this obligation.
miriam5 said:
Do any think we should stay out of politics?
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Such would not be a truly “catholic” position. Jesus calls us to be light and salt to the world, which necessitates that we be involved in the marketplace, and the legislature.
miriam5 said:
but if I see that one party does more to help people then will I encounter opposition in the church?
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Perhaps, if you are not making that assessment in accordance with the Church TEaching.
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The USCCB 5 "Non-negotiables" revisited Moral Theology
****(From another thread, where a response would have taken it too far off topic) As a review, the five “non-negotiable” Church teachings from the 2008 US election were against: Abortion, Euthanasia, Embryonic stem cell research, Homosexual “marriage” and Human cloning. Thanks, but where does the Catholic Church (Magisterium) identify these issues and only these issues as “the five non-negotiables”? It does not. Consider: murder is always against the teaching of the church. But, murder was n…
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TheLittleLady said:
corporate parties and joined one that reflects Catholic Social Teaching
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IMO, the best of these Parties is the American Solidarity Party.

Their entire platform is based on Catholic teaching.

“We are a party that seeks the common good, on common ground, through common sense. We believe in the sanctity of human life, the necessity of social justice, our responsibility to care for the environment, and promotion of a more peaceful world. We cherish the individual rights and separation of government powers protected by the U.S. Constitution, and recognize the need for social supports and community cohesion. We seek to bridge the bitter partisan divide with principled and respectful policies and dialog.”

https://solidarity-party.org
 
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