EDITORIAL

Next Tuesday, November 8, is Election Day, and we are reminded of our civic duty to vote.

Just as importantly, we are well reminded that it is our duty as Catholic Americans to vote responsibly. For our votes — the choices we will make in this year’s local elections, in candidates and in the governing philosophies they represent — will impact not only ourselves, but all with whom we live in community, in our villages, our towns and our counties. And so it will not do to simply meander down to our local polling place next Tuesday, and cast a perfunctory vote, with little forethought or knowledge about the candidates or the issues.

Rather, both our civic and our Christian duty require us to cast an informed vote. That means spending some time over the next few days, if we have not done so already, informing ourselves — about the local offices to which we will be electing people, and the functions and responsibilities of those offices; about the issues challenging the town and county government leaders we will be choosing; and about the various candidates for those offices, their governing philosophies, and their proposed responses to those issues.

We are called to inform ourselves as to the principles of Catholic social teaching,  and then, using our best prudential judgments, to evaluate competing candidates, political parties and philosophies in light of those principles.   

Most importantly, we are called to weigh the impact of our votes not only on ourselves, but on the common good. Amid these trying economic times that families, communities, and government at every level are struggling with, it is not wrong for us to bear in mind the needs of our own families as we make our political choices. But in doing so, we should be cognizant of the need to seek systemic solutions that in our judgment offer the best hope for improving the lot of all who are struggling — particularly those who may be worse off than we are.  

We might, for example, be inclined to vote against a candidate whose policy proposals might demand from us some difficult sacrifice, such as a tax increase on one hand, or a decrease in our public benefits on the other. But will our avoiding that painful sacrifice result in even greater hardship for others — loss of jobs, perhaps, or rejection of an economic growth strategy that could help others get off the unemployment roles?  

“Strange, isn’t it,” the angel Clarence says in Frank Capra’s “It’s a Wonderful Life,” “how one person’s life touches so many others.” That is certainly true in our political system, where each of our votes potentially affects all our fellow citizens.  

A sobering thought — and one which should motivate us to cast our votes  responsibly, guided by an informed mind and an informed conscience.