Politics and Homilies
I have received second-hand feedback that sometimes my homilies are too political when it is not the right time or place to bring up certain issues. Therefore, I decided to explain my thinking and open myself to critique on its faults, weaknesses and/or strengths.
As in any discussion or debate, I find it very helpful to begin by defining terms. Let’s start with the big one: politics. My critics might have other definitions, but those I find best are quite broad: the assumptions or principles relating to power and status in a society; achieving and exercising organized control over a human community (often a country or municipality). Most generally, politics is the process of making decisions that affect members of a group. By these definitions, it is hard to imagine much that is not political.
Too broad? I don’t think it is for this context, because I think anything more specific can be inappropriate for a homily. A homily should be scripture, tradition, and church teaching based. While it can present guiding principles based on those elements, it should never take sides in endorsing a specific candidate or ballot proposal. While one may infer for oneself what vote or advocacy might flow from basic principles or teachings, the Church has no business instructing members on how to vote.
The principles of Catholic Social Teaching (Life and dignity of the human person; rights and responsibilities; option for the poor and vulnerable; the dignity of work and the rights of workers; solidarity; care for God’s creation) are often seen as too political, even among Catholics themselves. Yet they are as much a part of essential Church belief as are any other established teachings. It is hard to imagine any of them outside of a political context.
For example, the Church is adamantly pro-life. However, when homilies include but speak beyond the single issue of abortion, Catholics who consider themselves pro-life might find themselves getting uncomfortable. They should! Life includes many more issues! Calling for action to eliminate school shootings, lessen the income gap, effect prison reform, care for the planet, feed the hungry… - all have political implications and are not to be avoided in proclaiming the Good News of the Gospel.
When public policy ignores Christian core values such as humility and empathy and care for the poor, it is irresponsible not to say so and to call the congregation to action, in my opinion. This is not to say that politics must be consistent with Catholic values but when it is not, preachers and teachers must point that out and those who profess the faith must consider those factors when making their political decisions.
Of course, I need to know what critics consider too political and cannot know what modifications I need in my preaching unless they tell me. But I do hope these reflections might begin such conversation.
Steve Newton, CSC
Dear Fr. Newton,
ReplyDeleteTo start off I will admit that I am not a person of any consequence, I'm just a person who happens to come across your Facebook posts often. I hope that you won't be offended if I share a few thoughts with you. The truth is that the federal government is not a business. It does not 'make' any money. $0. As a matter of fact right now we are operating under a very large federal deficit, which means in order to continue in operation, the federal government must 'borrow' money (at interest) from the federal reserve bank. Where does the fed get the money to lend? They print it. When this money is put into circulation it thereby decreases the purchasing power of the money already in circulation. This impact is felt most severely by the elderly, and anyone who has money in savings, mainly those trying to live within their means. (Inflated money is cheap to borrow, but expensive to save.) This form of increasing debt is a very subtle, but well documented form of theft. As Vladimir Lenin observed, "There is no subtler, no surer means of overturning the existing basis of society than to debauch the currency. The process engages all the hidden forces of economic law on the side of destruction, and does it in a manner which not one man in a million is able to diagnose." You may argue that the CPI is only around 2% per month, but this rate can be greatly softened by changing the 'basket of goods' that are used to gauge inflation, as the federal statistical agencies often do. The federal debt level is the real tell, as economists like Alan Greenspan will attest. So, as a priest it is your job to remind people of their very grave obligation to feed the hungry, and you can ask them to give their money to do that, but there the Catholic Church must stop. Whether a person gives minimally, heroically or not at all must be up to them. When the Catholic church begins to lobby for federal funds to feed the hungry, that is where the debate begins. After that it becomes a question of whether or not the Church is advocating the theft described above through the mechanism of inflation. If there were a federal surplus, then there might be room to argue for the use of federal funds for charitable programs, but as long as there is a federal deficit, I am not surprised that a legitimate debate arises. So, in my very small, inconsequential opinion, I would agree that your posts are often too political, not because the subject matter falls outside the perview of the Catholic church, but because there is room for legitimate debate about how we go about solving these types of social problems. Dr. Jay Richards, has a great talk online called "Ending Poverty in 10 Tough Steps" and he's also written a book called "Money, Greed and God, Why Capitalism is the Solution and Not the Problem" if you'd like to learn more about why it is that people might oppose what you have to say. Thank you so much for your time. Your daughter in Christ.
Thank you for your comment, which does not offend me at all. It is certainly worthy of consideration. But allow me to make a distinction that might or might not be useful: my own comments in the referenced blog were in relation to my homilies--not my facebook posts. I assure you, I post things on facebook that I would never say in a homily. For example, while on facebook I might advocate for policies and legislation which help feed the hungry, I would preach that we have an obligation to make sure the hungry are fed, but not tell folk to vote for person x because he or she is the pro-hunger candidate.
DeleteMany of my facebook posts and comments are, indeed, very political. I post and comment as a private individual--not from my position as a priest. Maybe maintaining that position in the eye of the reader of my facebook comments is unfair and impossible to maintain. Frankly, I had never thought of that before reading your comment. You have given me cause for reflection, and for that I thank you.
Thank you for sending this information. I have to tell you I agree with the tasks described here. Others may need further review. But I see your team.
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