Voting Your Catholic Conscience --Rep. Jim Wayne

This morning I want to say thanks to a career politician, Kentucky Representative Jim Wayne. He spoke to our cohort at Spalding University a few years ago, and I came away impressed with his presentation of the political vocation as one of public service, one of living out and actively promoting Gospel values in the world.

Rep. Wayne is speaking again, this time at "Theology on Tap" gathering. "The Record" (Archdiocese of Louisville's newspaper) has an article in which he speaks on "Voting Your Catholic Conscience."

I'm going to quote big pieces of it here, because as far as I can tell, it's not online.

"We, as Catholics, are called to be prophets in this world," he told about 50 young adults gathered for the talk. "As prophets we have to go to the polls to choose. I'd like you to consider your prophetic role in the world."

...He urged the young adults last week to embrace their roles as prophets by keeping Christ's teachings and the Gospel message in mind when selecting candidates.

He also warned them that Christ was a radical in his day. And though Christianity has flourished since then, following Christ's call today is no less counter-cultural, he said.

In fact, "Every time we understand the essence of wht Christ was all about, it is revolutionary."

...Wayne recommended that Catholics pass current issues through a filter of the Gospel message and Catholic social teaching. And he highlighted several areas of concern for Catholic voters.

Among them were the consistent ethic of life, globalization, militarization, education and the environment.

"The church has really developed a lot of rich thought on how we address these crises," he said. "Most of us Catholics aren't even aware of it."

For example, "The church emphasizes the common good over the individual," said Wayne.

"We were raised on John Wayne individualism," he said. "But the church says, 'No. You look at what's good for everybody. You protect life at all stages.' We need at all costs to protect it at all levels."

Within that framework, the poor should always remain at the forefront of concern, he said.

"That is the group you address first when you make policy decisions," he said. "The first question you ask is, 'How will this affect the poor?'"

The church also "has been very strong on demilitarization in terms of disarmament," said Wayne.

Under the Bush administration, the defense budget in the United States has risen to $470 billion, Wayne said. Education, which he said has the next highest budget, is allotted $60 billion.

He said health care--including the Medicare and Medicaid programs--receives about $40 billion; the justice budget is about $38 billion; and about $30 billion is allocated for housing for the poor, such as Section 8 vouchers.

"We as a church have to say, 'Is that just?'" he said of the discrepancies in funding. "There were 40,000 kids in the world who died on Sept. 11, 2001 of hunger."

Another concern for Catholics is globalization, which allows corporations to "extract wealth and exploit employees without unions," said Wayne.

"It widens the gap between the rich and the poor," he said. "It cost Kentucky 25,000 jobs in the last three years. And it has devastated family farms."

On the environment, Wayne cited the destruction wrought by mountain-top removal in the coal industry, air and water pollution, the United States' energy policies and other environmental abuses. As a result, "The world is filled with toxins," he said.

Following his talk, Wayne asked young adults to consider what role the church should take in addressing these issues. He noted that "by 'the church,' I mean us."

Wayne asked the crowd to consider issues other than abortion, which he said "we an all agree is a fundamental issue that needs to be addressed."

The popular answer was a belief that the defense budget should be brought more into balance with the education budget. Several teachers mentioned being frustrated by a lack of funding for schools and criticized the "No child left behind" program.

Wayne mentioned the struggle for private school vouchers that would help more children attend Catholic schools. He said the church also should focus its efforts on improving public education.

It seemed the question weighing most heavily on the crowd was, "Can a Catholic vote for a pro-choice candidate?"

In response, Wayne noted that the U.S. bishops are torn on this same question.

"People are really trying to swing voters on this issue," he said. "But legislators in Frankfort really can't do much on this issue. We are limited by the constitution of the federal government."

On the national level, he said, the issue depends on Supreme Court justices.

"In the end, we as voters have to decide," said Wayne. "It is important to weave the other parts of Catholic social teaching into weighing the candidates."

Some bishops have said, "As long as you don't vote for the candidate because he is pro-choice, you can morally do that," Wayne noted.

Catholics may be treading in "dangerous waters" voting solely on the issue of abortion, he added. "We as a church have to be skeptical of politicians who use us and our sacred issues for their benefit.

"You look at someone who says they are pro-life," he said. "There may not be a lot of other issues they're consistent on as far as life. They went against the church on everything else. Look at their records on housing for the poor, on capital punishment, on unions. You have to weigh those issues as you study the candidates."

Asked how he--as a Catholic politician--reconciles his faith with the desires of his constituents, Wayne said that those who vote for him know the Catholic faith guides all of his decisions.

"First, I am Catholic, then I am an American," he said.

---The Record, Aug. 19, 2004