U.S. Conference Of Catholic Bishops To Vote On Election Guidelines On Issues Including Abortion, Stem Cell Research

Main Category: Abortion
Also Included In: Stem Cell Research;  Women's Health / Gynecology;  Conferences
Article Date: 02 Nov 2007 - 6:00 PDT

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The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops this month during its fall meeting in Baltimore plan to vote on a draft document of guidelines to assist Roman Catholics in deciding which candidates to support in upcoming elections, the AP/Washington Post reports. The draft document, titled "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship," states that abortion and euthanasia are "intrinsically evil" and "pre-eminent threats to human dignity because they directly attack life itself, the most fundamental human good and the condition for all others." Human embryonic stem cell research and human cloning also are among issues that cannot be justified, according to the 37-page document.

The draft adds that if Catholics were to vote for a candidate who supports abortion rights because of that position, they would be "guilty of formal cooperation in evil." If Catholics were to vote for a candidate who supports abortion rights because of the candidates' position on other issues, it is "remote material cooperation" with evil and only is permitted if there are "proportionate reasons," according to the document. "The direct and intentional destruction of innocent human life is always wrong and is not just one issue among many" that Catholics should consider, the draft states.

According to the AP/Post, the conference for the past 30 years has issued similar guides that were determined by the conference's 50-member administrative board. This year the full body of approximately 300 bishops plan to debate and vote on the document. Bishop William Skylstad, the conference president, said the group is expanding voting on the document to "listen to any of the voices that want input on its final form." Skylstad added that he did not anticipate significant changes to the document because of extensive consultation in drafting the guidelines.

Reaction
Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput criticized the earlier version of the document for not providing enough emphasis on abortion issues. Chaput added that the revised draft "is better and clearer than any version in the recent past" but is not ideal, adding that he would offer suggestions to improve the draft. Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, said that the group is "grateful to the bishops" for the document and for "pointing out that abortion is not just one issue among many; it attacks the very foundation of our rights."

Tom Reese, a senior fellow at Georgetown University's Woodstock Theological Center, said some Democratic candidates will be able to argue that they are consistent with the bishops on most issues, while some Republican candidates can argue that they agree with the bishops only on foundational issues, such as abortion. According to the AP/Post, several independent Catholic groups have distributed voter guides in recent years, including Catholic Answers, Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good and Priests for Life (Gorski, AP/Washington Post, 10/30).

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