Catholics Vote for Women's Health
With all the post-election polling analysis, there are many interesting outcomes that merit some soul-searching -- and not just within the political parties.
Exit polls reveal that 54 percent of Catholic voters supported President-elect Barack Obama, despite entreaties from Catholic leadership to vote against Senator Obama because of his support for abortion rights.
While this may come as a surprise to Catholic bishops who are meeting this week to discuss the election, it is consistent with what we know about the attitudes of Catholic voters.
In a poll commissioned by Planned Parenthood last year, Catholic voters were asked to name their largest concerns around the issues of abortion and family planning.
The number-one response was that there are "too many unwanted children in America whose parents can't take care of them."
Second, they said government was too quick to interfere with people's personal lives and private decisions.
And third, government was not doing enough to provide education and resources to help people make responsible decisions about sexual behavior and pregnancy.
In fact, Catholic voters are more likely to support comprehensive sex education in schools (78 percent) than the general public (76 percent). And 86 percent of Catholics favor launching a major effort to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies by both increasing the availability of contraception for low-income women and by providing teens with comprehensive sex education.
Put simply, Catholic voters, just like the rest of America, want government to focus on solving problems for American families, such as increasing access to affordable health care and helping children stay healthy and safe and not become parents before they are ready.
And that is why President-elect Obama was elected by a majority of Americans -- because he has a commonsense agenda to bring people together, expand health care access, and focus on prevention.
The U.S. leads the world's most developed nations in teen pregnancy rates and last year teen birth rates rose for the first time in 14 years. At Planned Parenthood, we work to prevent unintended and teen pregnancy. We provide more than 2.4 million women each year with family planning services -- but nearly another 15 million go unserved due to lack of affordable access.
It's time all of us, including elected leaders and religious leaders, listen to the voters, and get back to promoting the health of women and young people -- healthy families make a healthy America. One would hope this is an agenda that everyone, regardless of religious beliefs, could rally behind.
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I was greatly disturbed by the Catholic Church saying to its parishoners that they have no right to think for themselves, only follow like sheep. I felt that we will have to examine Catholics carefully when they present themselves for public office to be sure they are not simply following orders. Now knowing that they don't follow blindly I am heartened to see that most Catholics are like the rest of us: Listen to your spiritual leader BUT synthesize what he/she said. Come up with your own opinions and decisions. God did not make us independant thinkers by accident.
It's too bad the press focuses on a few "loose cannon" priests, bishops, and right wing catholic pundits, when in fact the vast majority of bishops and priests don't take sides in public.
Perhaps they really understand that Jesus's message was about personal transformation of the soul and not political power. Jesus didn't seek power or to change governements. When Christianity was grafted on to the Roman Empire about 400 AD, and became part of governement, many in the Church forgot that. The Pope eventually became the Roman emperor figure and the college of cardinals became like the Roman senate.
Do these loose cannon criticise catholic Gov. Swartzenegger for being pro choice or Pope John Paul II for administering Communion to pro-choice Prime Minister of Britain Tony Blair?
It's too easy to be anti-choice, because it costs nothing to have an opinion. When they start adopting the millions of foster children in this country, and house, feed, and provide health care to all they will be putting their money where their mouth is.
Who are the Pharisees of the 21st century?
See Michele Swenson's Profile
It is significant to note that the highest abortion rates have been reported among Catholics and fundamentalist Protestants - those churches most vocally opposed to contraception - per The Janus Report on Sexual Behavior..., Samuel S. Janus, PhD, Cynthia L. Janus, M.D., 1993.
It is signifcant. Sad and significant, if it is true. Let's not forget however, that polls can always be manipulated to verify any preconcieved view, on any subject.
Many so-called liberal Catholics believe in a culture of life that that embraces all life; we also understand a woman's right to choose. In my parish even our Deacon supported Obama.
We are taught to work for peace and social justice and to practice the loving teachings of Jesus.
Recent events (including support for Bush in 2000 and 2004) have been very disappointing for many Catholics but the support for Obama was a step in the right direction.
"The number-one response was that there are "too many unwanted children in America whose parents can't take care of them." "
And that is why in many cases abortion is the best alternative especially if you are not white because it is alot easier to put white babies up for adoption than any others.
And is also why the Anti-Choice people are so messed up and hypocritical because they don't give a rat's a$$ what happens after it is born.
I find the statistics of this post dubious....
Just becuase someone identifies themselves as "Catholic" on a survey does not mean that they practice their faith. A practicing Catholic would not identify with the above listed priorites anymore than any self respecting liberal would push for more oil drilling in the US or a cut in the capital gains tax.
There is no doubt that the Catholic Church has a problem in the western democracies. While the numbers of Catholics appear high...many are Catholic in name only. They hang on to their religious identification like they do their ancestry. The do not go to church, do not participate in their parishes and selectively accept the teaching of the church as it fits their views. Within a generation or two, these people, or their decendents will no longer identify themselves as Catholic. They will fall into that morass of society that believes in God but doesn't really adhere to the tenents of any religion and feel that God is around but pretty much absent from everyday life.
The Catholic Church has been around for 2000 years. It is not perfect as it is a human institution. But it endures and will continue to do so. Better for the church to be smaller and true to teachings of Christ than follow the whim of the "enlightened" progressives.
Well when the Catholic church as well as the other so called Christian churches rid themselve of their sanctimonious hypocrisy, their paternalistic sexism, they may be "true" to the teachings of Jesus Christ. However, this church, and the majority of organized religious are more like the Pharisees that Jesus condemned.....hypocritical elitists who put ritual and rules above the poor, the sick, the weak, the women, the scourges of society whom Jesus championed.
Look around you in any typical Catholic mass on Sunday and I guarantee you that almost all of the practicing Catholic women in that church under the age of 70 have used or are currently using some form of birth control forbidden by the Church. These are the same women who teach the CCD classes, volunteer for Church function, collect food for the food bank, etc. I know this because I've known women like these all my life. Some are pro-choice, some are not. Some are Democrats, some are not. I was taught that the people were the Church. Without the people there can be no Church.
Sounds like you're calling for a "purge" of heretics.
"true to teachings of Christ" - yes! such as a priest who lives in a palace!
I disagree. I believe they were voting their pocket book.
Catholic teaching clearly outlnes our responsibilities--those are to be good stewards of this earth and to take care of each other. No one who follows church teaching can reconcile the republican/neocon agenda with that. I know people try, usually starting out with, "but abortion..." Everything the republicans and neocons stand for is against church teaching. Pro life? Tell that to the mother who can't afford healthcare for her child because republicans torpedoed SCHIP. Tell that to an elderly man who can't afford his hear meds. Our bishops very carefully word their statements at election time. Some come right out and say we must each decide what is most important--voting on one issue or considering how the candidates and their parties actually act. It is clear to me, a life-long Catholic that issues such as protecting our planet, doing our best to make sure everyone has food, shelter and medicine and working against the scourge of war and preservign human dignity FAR outweigh voting for a 'conservative christian' candiate who rails publicly against abortion while knowing full well he/she is not able, nor does he/she intend to anything about it.
Pro life should not end at birth. THAT is Catholic teaching.
I agree wholeheartedly. Pro Life is about quality of life as well as quantity of life. Do the bishops ever look at the declining health care system in America or the lack of health care access for the children that are already born and struggling to survive in abject poverty here in America and make that an issue for the pulpit? Catholic Charities ought to be putting all their resources toward reinventing health care in this country and making it accessible to all its citizens, not just the ones lucky enough to have jobs. Children can't work. There is already a network of Catholic hospitals and clinics in this country that provides excellent care to members of their communities, not just parishioners. Pro-life means pro-health. Catholic hospitals should be non-profit institutions that reach out to communities and target the health care market rather than the disease care market. They should be models to the whole country like they used to be until insurance companies took over and profit instead of service became the mantra for the health care mission. Now that would be Pro Life I could believe in!
there would be no debate around the issue of abortion or gay marriage were it not for the church hierarchy injecting their belief system on the rest of society.they are not succeeding in convincing their flocks so they resort to government to legislate what they are not winning thru rational argument.
your conclusion that we should talk about health care is not really a solution to church /state separation
Excellent post. Even more what we need is to teach our young women to value themselves and not to sell themselves short. Whether they are Catholic or Protestant, our young women need to know and believe they are important for themselves. I believe we need to start the education very early that girls are special because they can have babies and men can't. Therefore, they should believe that whether or not to have a baby is their choice. Just say NO doesn't work, never has. So why not teach young women and young men to value themselves, to be proud of who they are, that they have time to reach their personal educational and work goals, to realize that having a baby is a joyful part of creating a family when you are ready to create a family. Not before you have reached the educational goals you have set for yourself, but later when you can really make a good life for that bundle of joy, sharing it with a partner who shares your dreams and wants what is best for both of you..
This sounds good and promising...but...kinda seems too good to be true(that they are coming around)! One can only hope!
The Catholic Church's official position on birth control is so riddled with fallacies and inconsistencies that any first-year philosophy student could disect it in an instant -- but apparently that involves far more critical thinking that the Church hierarchy is capable of.
Not surprisingly, many, many individual Catholics -- including many priests -- recognize this, and advocate the use of birth control, as long as one doesn't talk about it too publically (grandma and the Pope might get upset!).
Eventually, the Catholic Church is going to have to come into the 21st century, and abandon medieval policies that encourage the spread of disease and overpopulation.
It seems that Catholics are way ahead of church hierarchy. Perhaps a new pope will bring the church kicking and screaming into the 21st century. Right now, the Vatican is trying to weed homosexuals out of the church instead of going after pedophiles. Homosexual does not = pedophile. Who do they think illuminated all of those manuscripts anyway? Homosexuals have always been a part of the Catholic church, mostly to their benefit.
I am not a Catholic but curious as to why you think that homosexuals would benefit a church. I feel certain that since you have such knowledge of church history, you are knowledgable on the Bible as well, which clearly states that for a man to be, even a deacon, he must be a righteous, god - fearing and obeying man. Therefore, since the Bible says that homosexuality is unrighteous, as well as fornication, lying and host of other actions, it is OK to allow them to attend church services, in hopes that they will become repentant to Almighty God and turn from their sin, but nowhere in the Bible does it say that you are required to let them lead or work in the church, just so people think that you are not discriminating. You are also not supposed to let a man who is openly an alchoholic or adulterer, etc......serve in your church. After all, the God of the Bible that the church serves, is very discriminating. Fortunately for you and I, he is bountifully forgiving as well.
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