A Catholic Brief for Obama

I am glad to hear some intelligent discussion about abortion from the Catholic church. I am not Catholic, but I should reiterate a few realities everyone must face,.
1. Reversing Roe vs. Wade will NOT stop abortions. Women with the means will go some place where they can get a medical abortion legally - either in another state or another country. Poor women will resort to back alleys. That was the way it was back when I was a teenager (the early 60's). Back alley abortions even got a mention in the play Raisin in the Sun which premeiered in 1959.
2. The best way to reduce or eliminate abortions is the eliminate unplanned pregnancies. That means family planning. That means ABC sex education (ABstain if you can, Condom if you can't.). It also means making Plan B morning after pill readily available for women and girls who err - or for rape victims.
3. Finally, women who get pregnant and want to keep their child needs a host of support services beyond merely a sermon. That means a lot of the social programs that McCain plans to axe. It also means higher taxes on the wealthy. if pro-lifers or McCain are unwilling to pony up the extra money, then they should make abortions mandatory.

Follow my advice and abortions will become far less common. Look at the stats in other countries with comprehensive sex education and family planning services. You will find that abortion rates in those countries are far lower than those in the US. If you are really serious about pro-life - then your only real option is to vote for Obama and his Democratic allies.

PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE TO BE HELD SUNDAY AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

The Free and Equal Elections Coalition (FREE) and the Columbia Political Union are pleased to announce that a Presidential debate will be held this coming Sunday, October 19th, 2008, on the campus of Columbia University.

ALL SIX of the Presidential candidates who appear on enough state ballots to acquire the 270 Electoral Votes needed to become President are invited. They are as follows (listed in alphabetical order by affiliation):

Constitution Party Candidate: Chuck Baldwin
Democratic Party Candidate: Barack Obama
Green Party Candidate: Cynthia McKinney
Independent Candidate: Ralph Nader
Libertarian Party Candidate: Bob Barr
Republican Party Can John McCain

The Columbia Political Union will present the debate from 8:00pm to 10:00pm in the Altschul Auditorium, located at 417 International Affairs Building. The debate will be moderated by Pacifica Radio's Amy Goodman, the host of "Democracy Now!". CSPAN will cover the debate, and live radio broadcasts are expected.

"The Columbia Political Union is committed to energizing political discourse on Columbia's campus," said Allon Brann, Columbia Political Union Publisher. "As a non-partisan organization, we work to provide students with opportunities to encounter and engage with political ideas across a wide ideological spectrum, and on a wide range of issues."

"It is with these goals in mind that we have organized this Presidential Debate: to give all candidates-- either within or outside of the political "mainstream"-- the opportunity to speak directly to students about their goals on the issues they deem critical for this country."

"We have invited all eligible candidates, and it is our sincere hope that all will participate, to ensure the substance and rigor of the dialogue which we believe is crucial at this time."

Certified letters officially inviting each candidate have been sent to the respective campaigns.

The Free and Equal Elections Coalition and the Columbia Political Union await the response from the candidates. All candidates' supporters are encouraged to contact the Presidential campaigns and urge them to attend.

The Columbia Political Union seeks to enhance involvement in the political process, domestic and international, and draw every member of the campus community into an ongoing discussion of political ideas.

FREE is a coalition of political parties, independent citizens and civic organizations formed to promote free and equal elections in the United States.

http://www.freeandequal.org/events.php?id=7

FREEDOM ISN'T FREE

Wade vs, Roe does not reduce the number of abortions. We have extensive research of the abortion problems in Asia, where two different systems co-existed. We found that, by banning abortion, you merely force the pregnant women to the back alley to be done by unlicensed operators, instead of going to hospitals to be taken care of by licensed doctors. So, Wade vs. Roe is not to reduce abortions, but only to have them done legally and safely.

I believe the religion should stay away from politics. There is a clear distinction between government and religion and catholics should vote for the candidate they feel is best for the country.

I beleive religion should stay away from politics. There is a clear distinction between government and religion and I think catholics should vote for the candidate that they think is best for THE country.

the above article is a fine political, anti McCain piece, having nothing to do with the Catholic teachings regarding abortion. The Catholic church recognizes that the murder of a helpless being is wrong. It is a non argument in accordance with the teachings of the
Church from the Pope on down. If I choose the lives of innocent unborn and newly born human beings to be an overriding influence in who I vote for for president, I am only using the moral guidance of my Church to help me make the decision. If you choose otherwise, then find another faith where you will be more comfortable, but please do not dispute my faith in feeling it is morally wrong and any pol who feels otherwise cannot receive my support.

you simply cannot vote Democratic and call yourself a Catholic, let alone pro-life. That's like a vegatarian claiming they "only" eat chicken.

Good job, trashed the Republican Party and the Catholic Church with some obscure reference from a school that is not friendly to either the Repubican Party or the Catholic Church. There is a difference from voting your opnion (which you have every right to do) and vote your conscience. You are ready for prime time.

Quote: "If one takes the Churchs position that life begins at conception, the m by definition, the the termination of that life is murder. Therefore, under that set of assumptions, abortion is murder."

Not necessarily so. That's an oversimplification. Biological life begins at conception, but does a soul inhabit that potential human being at conception? In the history of the Church there has been a debate over that very question. I'm Orthodox Catholic rather than Roman Catholic, but we have a common early history. St. Augustine didn't believe a soul was present at conception. If the zygote is not inhabited by a soul, it is not murder. Sincere Christians can agree to disagree that we cannot answer this mystery.

Gone are the days when a Republican can manipulate a vote from me with nothing more than a statement of personal anti-legal abortion views. I am personally pro-life but as long as I've been voting (1980) the Republican "platform" has never reduced the incidence or legality of abortion.

If I could design my own candidate he would be perfect in every way (well, probably not), so count another pro-lifer for Obama.

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health recently described an enormous gap in life expectancies based on social factors such as county of residence and income (Murray et al., PLoS Medicine, September 2006). Life expectancy in counties that are best off is about 81 years, but only 48 years in those that are worst off. Socioeconomic status and access to health care are the most important reasons for dying 33 years early. So the economy, taxation and health care policy are a matter of life and death. The Republican party???s position on these is not pro-life. I will vote my conscience ??? for Obama - as the Catholic Church expects me to do.

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health recently described an enormous gap in life expectancies based on social factors such as county of residence and income (Murray et al., PLoS Medicine, September 2006). Life expectancy in counties that are best off is about 81 years, but only 48 years in those that are worst off. Socioeconomic status and access to health care are the most important reasons for dying 33 years early. So the economy, taxation and health care policy are a matter of life and death. The Republican party???s position on these is not pro-life. I will vote my conscience ??? for Obama - as the Catholic Church expects me to do.

I can see how a Catholic can vote for Obama, but not a Pro-Life Catholic.

As a Catholic I completely agree with the points being made here. The Church is officially non-partisan and should remain that way. The author makes the same point that I and many others have made on several occasions, and that is that the demand for abortions is far more damaging than it's legality. The issue is now political badlands due to the backlash politicians would receive from constituents, this makes repealing the law both unlickly and innefective. So many republican Catholics wish to ignore the details, however, and tragically mire the church in a partisan nightmare.

"Using the Eucharist as a political tool", this shows a very limited awareness of how the Eucharist has functioned in transforming the self prior to as well as after the eucharistic consumption of the self. This is not "a political tool" it is the understanding of the Eucharist that abounds in the Fathers, Augustine, Aquinas and maintained, I'm delighted to say, in contemporary voices such as that of Bill Cavanaugh. So many fine arguments in this piece have been undermined by this "political tool" line. Liberal Catholics have so much to offer, we really need though to make sure our theology is sophisticated and literate and this "political tool" shot is neither.

The authors are wrong in many ways. The "faithful"cannot back any pro-choice candidate from either party and still meet the definition of "the faithful". Shame on them for using their credibility to harm the Church for political and personal gain.

As far as my conscience being good or bad, I'll take care of that myself, thank you. And when I am wrong, absolution will come in the confessional, not in the pages of Newsweek. I hoe the authors will return there soon.

The "faithful" cannot back any pro-choice candidate from any party and still meet the definition of "the faithful".

It seems this area may be the Church's last stand in American Society, to the great cheer of many I assume. Shame on the authors for using their credibility to harm the church for political and personal gain.

For those still reading, I would say that like any freedom, freedom of speech comes with responsibility, and the responsibility in this case is to get it right if you are going to advise people morally. The authors are clearly in violation of the Church's teaching, never mind their accomplishments and accolades. They certainly have the right to express an opinion different from the Bishops on abortion; however, they should leave the interpretation of Church law to the Bishops.

As far as a conscience being good or bad, absolution comes in the confessional, not in the pages of Newsweek. I hope the authors will return there quickly.