Bishops at odds on church campaign role

As polls in the presidential contest between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump narrowed, two prominent US prelates found themselves at odds over how bishops should engage with the political debate.

Last month, Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput dedicated two of his weekly columns in his diocesan newspaper to musings about the political contest. “My column this week is a collection of personal comments,” Chaput wrote, “thoughts from a brother in the faith, rather than teachings from an archbishop.”

He went on to chastise the current vice-president Joe Biden and the Democratic vice-presidential nominee Senator Tim Kaine because they “seem to publicly ignore or invent the content of their Catholic faith as they go along”. Mr Biden is opposed to abortion personally, but does not consider he has a right to impose these views on others. “Abortion is always wrong,” he said before the Pope’s visit to the US last year. “But I’m not prepared to impose doctrine that I’m prepared to accept on the rest of [the country].” Last month he officiated at the gay wedding of two White House staffers.

Tim Kaine (pictured) personally opposes abortion but supports “freedom of choice”. At the national dinner of the Human Rights Campaign last Saturday, he assured his audience of his “full complete, unconditional support for marriage equality”.

He acknowledged that this position “is at odds with the current doctrine of the Church that I still attend” but went on: “I think that’s going to change, too.”

For his part, Washington’s Cardinal Donald Wuerl last weekend published an essay in his diocesan newspaper insisting that bishops should not be too politically engaged, and that doing so usurps the role of the laity in civic life. “The idea that somehow priests or bishops should be the primary ones addressing public issues and the framing of laws, and advocating for specific public policies, is too narrow a vision of the Church which would leave out about 99 per cent of its members,” the cardinal wrote. “Yes, bishops and priests have a very distinct and important role. They are the teachers of the faith, they pass on revelation and received tradition.” Citing the Second Vatican Council, he urged the laity to bring the values of their faith into the public square. “Sometimes, I fear there can be a temptation to substitute sharing our political and ideological preferences for the very demanding and challenging role of teaching by word and example the principles of our faith. I believe our efforts to preach and persuade are more credible and effective than proclaiming our own political opinions,” Wuerl wrote.

Meanwhile, the latest polling continues to show the Catholic vote tilting towards Mrs Clinton, and while the polls have narrowed, she continues to hold a significant lead in decisive swing states such as Florida, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Mrs Clinton took a break from the campaign last weekend after a medical incident during a 9/11 commemoration. Her doctor disclosed she had pneumonia.