Saturday, April 2, 2016

Why I won't be voting for Hilary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, or Donald Trump

  Torture is prohibited by the Catholic Church (CCC 2297).  So Trump is out.  Socialism is prohibited, Socialism is prohibited by the Catechism of the Catholic Church, so Sanders is out.  Abortion is *Obviously* prohibited by the Church, so they're all out.  (CCC 2270-2272).  I choose Christ. CCC 2240 Submission to authority and co-responsibility for the common good make it morally obligatory to pay taxes, to exercise the right to vote, and to defend one's country:

Pay to all of them their dues, taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honour to whom honour is due.45
[Christians] reside in their own nations, but as resident aliens. They participate in all things as citizens and endure all things as foreigners. . . . They obey the established laws and their way of life surpasses the laws. . . . So noble is the position to which God has assigned them that they are not allowed to desert it.46

The Apostle exhorts us to offer prayers and thanksgiving for kings and all who exercise authority, "that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life, godly and respectful in every way."47.
Notice it does not give an obligation to vote in a federal election?  By the way, voting in local elections is still voting, but I think like Fr Dwight Longenecker (Patheos.com/blogs/standingonmyhead) calls it the "Amish option".  Jimmy Akin (JimmyAkin.com) said during the election in 2012 that it would be better to sit out of an election in certain circumstances.  Mark Shea (who gets a lot of undeserved hate), at www.ncregister.com/blog/mark-shea/ has given reasons (very good ones) not to vote in presidential elections.  He has done it more than once, so you have to search.  I personally think the two-party system is a problem.  But hey, what do I know?  My grandfather was just a politician, it's not like me and Grandpa didn't talk about this.  

1 comment:

  1. Trump actually ended up being a pretty good president, and the whole torture thing was not actually an issue...we never went to war.

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