Government Authority

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retniw18

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In what areas does the government have the right to legislate? Is the government allowed to legislate divine law or is it to stick to natural law?

This question comes from thoughts about homosexual civil unions. Does the government even have the right to legislate on an issue?

I guess my real question has to do with how much should we seperate church and state? Just because we know something is morally wrong does that mean that the government should legislate to prohibit it? Or should the government only legislate to prohibit things that go against natural law and leave individuals to choose not to break divine law?
 
retniw18 said:
In what areas does the government have the right to legislate? Is the government allowed to legislate divine law or is it to stick to natural law?

This question comes from thoughts about homosexual civil unions. Does the government even have the right to legislate on an issue?

I guess my real question has to do with how much should we seperate church and state? Just because we know something is morally wrong does that mean that the government should legislate to prohibit it? Or should the government only legislate to prohibit things that go against natural law and leave individuals to choose not to break divine law?
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Civil unions yes, Sacramental Marriage no.

I would recommend another term be used for a civil union apart from marriage, so as not to blur the lines between the two states.
 
Then how can the vatican take a stance against civil unions? It seems like it is the government’s job to rule on this issue then, right?

This conversation started with a friend of mine when he said that the government shouldn’t rule based on one religions beliefs because right now the majority are Christian but if that were to ever change we need to be sure that they cannot force their false morals on us.
 
retniw18 said:
Then how can the vatican take a stance against civil unions? It seems like it is the government’s job to rule on this issue then, right?

This conversation started with a friend of mine when he said that the government shouldn’t rule based on one religions beliefs because right now the majority are Christian but if that were to ever change we need to be sure that they cannot force their false morals on us.
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The Vatican has the duty to take a stance against any moral wrong like abortion or same sex union. This fact, however does not affect the authority of the state to endorse and encourage these practices. This situation simply makes the Church firm in it’s stance against sin and the state moving further into depravity.
 
Does this mean as Catholics we are expected to vote against things that are morally wrong? It doesn’t seem right to vote for something you think is morally wrong because you believe the government doesn’t have the authority to tell people what to do regarding that issue.
 
One of the best collections of essays on government is “The Federalist Papers”.

Get a copy and read it.
 
retniw18 said:
Does this mean as Catholics we are expected to vote against things that are morally wrong? It doesn’t seem right to vote for something you think is morally wrong because you believe the government doesn’t have the authority to tell people what to do regarding that issue.
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Things that are intrinsically evil such as abortion and sexual acts between same sex partners should never be condoned by Catholics and yes we have the responsibility to vote against any legislation that would encourage these types of things.

The authority of the state, however, is a different matter. Note that authority can be abused and misused, so just because the state allows for evil to be perpetrated, does not change the fact that the state used it’s authority, however wrongly, to do so.
 
Many people see this as the government legislating on our morals. Isn’t this risking that if ever Christianity was not the majority in our country then the government may be able to force us to do things morally wrong?
 
retniw18 said:
Many people see this as the government legislating on our morals. Isn’t this risking that if ever Christianity was not the majority in our country then the government may be able to force us to do things morally wrong?
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Morality is a personal issue, one acts in a moral manner of their own accord. The government may allow for immoral actions to be lawful but does not have the authority to make people act against their morals.

A good book on Catholic morality is Morality The Catholic View by Servais Pinckaers
 
So should the government make all things immoral illegal? If not how do they decide which ones?
 
retniw18 said:
So should the government make all things immoral illegal? If not how do they decide which ones?
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From a Christian point of view this would be a good use of state power. However, I do not think that this, especially in the secular nature of our times, is something that would happen. In the past the Judeo-Christian morality has led the way in the governance of much of Europe and North America but it seems that secularism and the culture of the “almighty ME” has prevailed.
 
Why is the government involved in marriage at all? What is the point of a civil union but to be granted a tax break? If the government had never been involved in marriage, would gay marriage be an issue?
 
retniw18 said:
In what areas does the government have the right to legislate? Is the government allowed to legislate divine law or is it to stick to natural law?

This question comes from thoughts about homosexual civil unions. Does the government even have the right to legislate on an issue?

I guess my real question has to do with how much should we seperate church and state? Just because we know something is morally wrong does that mean that the government should legislate to prohibit it? Or should the government only legislate to prohibit things that go against natural law and leave individuals to choose not to break divine law?
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Where does this “Rule of Law” originate and derive its power?

Have you read the Declaration of Independence? It is not just a historical document. It is an unchanging document that holds the key to our freedom. We have lost sight of this document and have put our freedom into the precarious hands of the so-called “majority.”

I compare the Declaration of Independence to the articles of incorporation of a company, and the Constitution to the by-laws of a company. The moral laws of right and wrong are contained in the Declaration of Independence, not the Constitution.

The source of the “rule of law” goes back to Divine Law. The Declaration of Independence uses the words, the “equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them.” What do these words really mean?

The ideas of the source of legitimate law were being formulated by the Catholic Church before the Magna Carta. Truth always goes back to the source of truth, which is public revelation, commonly known as the Holy Scriptures.

ANY CIVIL LAW IN TRANSGRESSION OF DIVINE LAW IS INVALID! An unjust law is no law at all! Such laws are to be defied because they do not exist. There is no basis for them. A recent example is Spain’s “laws” on marriages and adoptions. Pope Benedict has ordered citizens of Spain who work in adoption agencies to defy Spain’s new laws of illicit marriages and adoptions. Workers in adoption agencies are to refuse to fill out any paperwork or grant adoption of children to illicit and unnatural marriage unions. Spain’s new law disobeys natural law. NO HUMAN LAW AGAINST NATURAL LAW IS VALID!

I repeat myself again. There is Divine Law, Natural Law and Civil Law, in that order. Man only has control over civil law. Each type of law is separate and you cannot substitute one type of law for another type of law.
 
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