Faithful Citizenship
The purpose of this web page is to give the St. Francis community a starting point to information on important legislative issues. The St. Francis Parish Peace & Justice Committee members invite you to take action on specific legislative issues that are of interest to us as Catholics. During the months prior to an election, each of us must make decisions as to how we will vote, and, we seek to consider the important issues before voting.
The Catholic Church in the United States does NOT endorse candidates or political parties. It speaks only on issues. The official positions of the Church concerning the election are stated in the document Forming Consciences for Faithful citizenship and in documents issued by the Michigan Catholic Conference. All other documents and statements that you may come across are the opinions of individual Catholics and groups and may or may not represent the official teaching of the Church.
The Church has important wisdom to share on the issues, and, offers reflections on the various issues. These are the official positions of the Church. They are given to help you better form your consciences and to make decisions regarding the elections. We encourage you to read these articles. Ultimately, each person must make their own decision and vote as their conscience informs them. Hopefully the articles will help you in making those decisions.
Please see links below from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and other sources. For more information contact the Parish Service + Justice Ministry Office, Scott Wright at swright [at] stfrancisa2 [dot] org or 821-2121.
Resources
Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: A Call to Political Responsibility
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB)
Legislative Advocacy Networks
The Michigan Catholic Conference (MCC) - Catholic Legislative Advocacy Network
Catholic Charities USA - legislative issues (Choose Advocacy then AdvoFax)
Voting by Conscience by Father Brian Bransfield
