Abortion is Not a Single Issue

I have long held that practicing Catholics cannot give their allegiance to either political party. It always amazes me to hear Catholics fall so easily into political propaganda verbiage and leave their Catholic tradition of moral reasoning behind. One such piece of propaganda is the tired old, "You can't base your vote on one issue."

It isn't a matter of one issue. Pro-abortion politicians embrace an entire worldview that is secularist, materialist, and utilitarian. They are willing to arbitrarily define human personhood to fit their agenda. That's dangerous on a number of fronts, not just on the abortion "issue." It is this worldview that is embraced by the Democratic platform, and which Catholics must not support with their votes.

The Republican party does not agree with Catholic standards either, but the disagreement is not at the root of their platform. Neither is the Republican party the only choice for serious Catholics. Catholics who vote Republican (or any other party) must certainly see themselves as Republicans (or members of any other party) first. We must apply serious critical thought and analysis to our voting choices and not be afraid to openly criticize the party or candidate of our choice when they go wrong. In the end, we must vote for the candidate and the party that not only agrees with us on the "issues," but that espouses a worldview and political philosophy as close to the Gospel as we can get.