Here is a Catholic Answers Q&A on the 5 non-negotiables voter’s guide:
Q&A on the Voter’s Guide
I can’t download the actual non-negotiables because my computer won’t let me. Can someone give a safe link?
Cradle:
My riding’s Conservative candidate would support abortion if it came to a vote, although (so his campaign team says… dunno if I trust them) he would oppose it if most of his constituents asked for it.
Yes, that sounds like the party line. I understand your quandary.
The Christian Heritage Party is the only party – to my knowledge – which includes in its platform a position against abortion. Is there a CHP candidate in your riding?
In my riding there are candidates for the Conservative Party of Canada, the Liberal Party, the New Democratic Party, the Green Party, the Marxist-Leninist Party, the Communist Party of Canada, the Communist League, and the Animal-Environment Party.
None of these candidates will revisit the question of the legality of abortion nor of the other non-negotiables.
Given that, we are then free to consider other Catholic concerns. But I didn’t give up.
The Conservatives have dropped the social-conservative agenda from their platform. Many of them are madder than hek about that. So my friend held our candidate’s feet to the fire. Feeling the sweat on his brow he compromised. He agreed to oppose any attempt to give Henry Morgentaler the Order of Canada.
This is a concrete productive step in a morally licit direction.
Another request which can be reasonably made is that your candidate initiate legislation on the Right of Women to Know. The Right to Know includes knowledge of health risks which right now are withheld from women and suppressed in the news. It also includes an ultra sound which clearly shows the fetus to be a living being.
We are going to make gains by never giving up on the unborn and by dismantling the opposition chunk by chunk legally just like the American courts have done.
Cradle:
Now, this guy is really my only choice, and if I don’t vote for him then I can’t vote. And a missing vote for the Conservatives is in a way a vote for the Liberals.
I so know whereof you speak. I went to the all-candidates meeting in my riding last week. I thought I had everything researched and then when I actually met these people I was so deflated. Could I really trust any of them? And the crowd was raucous and hateful. I decided not to vote.
Then I went to my class. One of my student’s parents were voting for the first time and there was great excitement in the class. How could I throw away something which was so precious to so many? So I will vote.
On the Harper thread, there is a quote from Fr Pavone of Priests for Life. He acknowledges that we will not have perfect candidates. I think we must hold our candidates’ feet to the fire and do the best we can with an appalling situation.
And then we must hold our bishops’ feet to the fire as well.
You are not alone. There are a whole bunch of Canadian Catholics on this forum. We so know how you feel.
Cradle:
What do you guys think I should do? Should I vote for this guy? Should I abstain?
Vote for this guy, but make it clear to him that your vote is conditional on his making some kind of reasonable compromise in order to respect the largest religious group in Canada which is us Catholics. And then hold his feet to the fire. Remember those babies and be firm.
). What do you guys think I should do? Should I vote for this guy? Should I abstain?