By CatholicVote | Created at 2024-10-30 03:11:08 | Updated at 2024-10-30 05:30:22
2 hours ago
CV NEWS FEED // The National Catholic Reporter this week published an article from a Boston College professor making the case for Catholics to vote for the Democratic Harris-Walz ticket as the “most Catholic” political option.
Thomas H. Groome, an Irish theologian and professor in theology and religious education at the Jesuit-run Boston College, wrote in the op-ed published by the Reporter that he accepts “the pro-life teaching of my church,” but “some 80% of Americans favor allowing abortion, at least in certain circumstances.”
“Even as I embrace the position of being pro-life, I must respect the moral discernment of those who are pro-choice,” Groome argued. “[Until] a majority agrees, I cannot insist on my minority view as if it is the will of the people.”
Groome is a critic of the Catholic Church’s stance on clerical celibacy and a champion of women’s ordination.
“Faithful Catholics who take a traditional position on abortion,” the Irish professor argued,
“should not allow this alone to decide our vote.”
“On the contrary,” he wrote, “we must vote for the ticket most likely to promote a dignified quality of life for all and the works of social justice throughout our society. In such a broadened view, this Catholic, at least, must vote for the Harris-Walz ticket.”
The Boston College professor argued that although Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris “speaks repeatedly of reproductive rights, her policies, in keeping with the Democratic platform, will also mirror an array of reproductive responsibilities.”
The core of Groome’s argument encouraging Catholics to vote for the Democratic presidential ticket was that “beyond family focused issues, the social commitments we can expect of a Harris-Walz administration amply reflect core Catholic values and moral principles,” and that diocesan programs of Catholic social services throughout the country will therefore “be far better supported by the social ethic of Harris-Walz than the rich-favoring policies of another Trump administration.”
“Speaking from the depths of my own soul, not only may I vote for Harris-Walz, but I believe I must do so,” Groome concluded. “To do otherwise would be contrary to my Catholic conscience.”
The Irish professor made no reference to Harris’ well-documented record of hostility toward American Catholics, including her opposition to religious exceptions for a national abortion bill and her repeated statements that members of the Knights of Columbus should be allowed to serve as federal judges due to the Church’s teachings on marriage and the sanctity of life.
CatholicVote reported Monday on a new instance of Harris’ hostility toward Catholics. In a recently unearthed video, the Democratic presidential nominee can be seen celebrating with a longtime member of the anti-Catholic drag troupe the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence (SPI) at the San Francisco Pride parade in 2019.
The SPI has been described as an anti-Catholic hate group and has a documented history of heinous acts mocking Catholicism and desecrating sacred symbols. Numerous bishops have denounced SPI, including Bishop Robert Barron, who once said of the group’s public performances: “For Catholics, it’s hard to imagine anything more offensive.”
