Catholics constitute at least 25 percent of voters in national elections. By their votes, these millions of Catholics have the power to make our country a better nation, more welcoming to life, more supportive of families, and more effective in its programs to help the poor and marginalized. "Issues for Catholic Voters: 2012 Edition" is a timely addition to the conversation about Catholic voters' responsibilities in the voting booth.
This concise guide introduces the general principles of Catholic moral and social teaching and how they apply to specific issues facing voters in the next election, including health care, immigration, the economy, education, and religious liberty. Catholics will come to understand the difference between principle and prudential judgment, as well as why some issues are more important in political thinking than others—dispelling the myth, for example, that caring about the protection of unborn life makes one a “single-issue” voter.
Pope John Paul II and, more recently, Pope Benedict XVI and the United States bishops have called on Catholics to renew their participation in American political life. That participation means, above all, taking the moral and social principles of the Catholic Faith into the voting booth. With the help of this book, Catholics can affirm that their participation in the political process is not an imposition of their faith on others but rather a service to the common good that is shared equally by all human persons.
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