Catholic and confused

I read this posting from Carl Olsen over at InsightScoop the other day and didn't get a chance to pass it on.

A cranky response to a confused Catholic apologia for voting Democrat

Alright, alright, I admit it: I'm a bit cranky today. No reason, really. After all, the new Dwight Yoakam CD, Dwight Sings Buck, is excellent, we've had three days of sunshine in a row here in western Oregon, and the Oregon Ducks still have a shot at the national title (yeah, I know. Just let me dream the impossible dream for another day or three).

It didn't help my mood too much to read an opinion piece, published in today's Idaho Statesman, titled "When I weigh all the issues of importance to me as a Christian, I must vote Democrat" and written by Will Rainford, LMSW, Ph.D., who is "the legislative advocate for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Boise." As regular readers of this blog know, we try to avoid much discussion of politics just for the sake of politics. That isn't one of the objectives of Insight Scoop, and we know that good Catholics can and do disagree on a host of touchy political issues (i.e., welfare reform, the war in Iraq, the music of Bob Dylan, etc.). But this op-ed begs—cries out!—for a little bit of fisking, for at least two reasons: it is irrational and it is condescending. And (okay, three reasons) it is written by a Catholic who really shouldn't be embarrassing himself like this in public. That said, here goes:

While perusing the net one can find ton's of Catholic website and sometimes it's hard to distinguish if their views follow true Catholic teachings or if they don't. One should always compare those views with what the Church's actual teachings say (including this website).

I'm passing on this posting from Carl because I believe that some Catholics (not all) seem to be justifying their voting positions minus the teachings of the Church. This posting from Carl is just one example. I've read postings on another catholic website that supported pro-choice and same sex marriages (I'm not linking them. I'm sure one can find them on your own).

To do this I relay on checking with the experts (see my links on this page). I've learned plenty from these sites. In the link above Carl consults the Catechism of the Catholic Church. That's always a good place to start.

I'm not a scholar or a Catholic intellectual. Just another Catholic trying to follow the Church of Jesus Christ, the Catholic Church, as closely as possible. I pray that my postings don't mislead others away from the true teachings of the Church. If anyone does find something, please post your concerns and I will correct any errors.

If you have any good Catholic websites you'd like to recommend please forward them.

WestCoastCatholic