Election season is here, and to support you and your commitment to be a Catholic engaged in the betterment of our community, we will be doing a weekly article until November 6 on issues that are important to consider as you decide for whom you will vote. We’ll be drawing heavily from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ document, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship (www.faithfulcitizenship.org), and we invite you to check out the full document and the many helpful supporting materials.
Last week, we looked at issues surrounding care for creation. In this week’s article on forming our consciences for the upcoming election, we look at the issues around a just economy.
Economic decisions and institutions should be assessed according to whether they protect or undermine the dignity of the human person. Some current ideologies inhibit the state’s obligation to provide for the common good. Social and economic policies should foster the creation of jobs with decent working conditions and just wages. Barriers to equal pay and employment for women and those facing unjust discrimination must be overcome. As Pope Francis said, “To sustain a lifestyle which excludes others, or to sustain enthusiasm for that selfish ideal, a globalization of indifference has developed. The culture of prosperity deadens us; we are thrilled if the market offers us something new to purchase. In the meantime all those lives stunted for lack of opportunity seem a mere spectacle; they fail to move us.” (Evangelii Gaudium, 53-54)
