Faith and Public Life

After I wrote my last post in which I went through my opinions regarding the use of contraception, specifically hormonal contraceptives, I took quite a bit of heat from a variety of individuals. First, those who critiqued me as being "medieval" in my views, sexist, and trying to control women. Second, those who thought that my post tipped the scales on the border of arrogant and irreverent, since I wrote with a heavy dose of sarcasm and with a shortage of respect for the sensitivity of the subject. To all those comments I have this to say: I am passionate about furthering the respect for all persons and the unique dignity that they possess. While I stand to everything I said, I admit that it did come off with a self-righteous tone and for that I am sorry. In light of all this I went through the post and made some adjustments to ensure that my message and sincerity was clear. My meaning is the same, my delivery...less brash. For the entire post, click here.

As much as I mentioned early in that last post that I would try to leave doctrine out of the argument, the fact remains that I cannot entirely remove my faith from any debate which I undertake. Nor should I. In today's secular-driven world we are told be believe that our faith should be private, that we shouldn't "force our views on anyone else". If this is true, where should our faith be manifest? I, like many others, desire to live my life in a way that mirrors my beliefs in a God-centered worldview. How can I be expected to believe something, then leave that belief behind completely in my public life? Furthermore, why would I? If faith really exists in our life, it's because we truly believe it and desire to draw closer to the will of our God.

This doesn't mean that we intend to shove our beliefs down the throats of anyone within earshot. Those who argue that, by allowing faith to influence our public life we are somehow forcing our beliefs on others, insult the intelligence of everyone. By asserting that individuals cannot determine whether or not they agree with the beliefs of someone else, detractors of faith in public life are basically saying that anyone with genuine faith does not belong in the public sphere or they will subvert the vulnerable masses. There has been particular rancor directed at Catholic and Mormon politicians by those who claim these men would try to force their faith into policy. This narrow view would only have any base in reality if politicians began drafting laws that directly benefited their religion, the faithful of their church, or made a particular religion directly tied to the government. In contrast, people of faith typically realize that faith and the American Constitution share common principles: the welfare and betterment of all peoples, a just society in which all persons live as equals, and where respect for all humans from conception until natural death exists. In this light we see that faith may indeed foster a worldview that benefits all of society, not seek theocratic power for a particular church.

This broad understanding of faith and public life applies to all denominations in America. As a Catholic, I can only offer my own experience of how my faith is misunderstood from the perspective of secular society. For example, many people today view Catholicism as an out of touch, sexist, and controlling institution that seeks to somehow overtake the world. From a practical standpoint, I think that the Catholic hierarchy, and the pope in particular, have a pretty limited ability to actually enforce Church doctrine. I mean, compare them to every elected official. If a Catholic ignores a teaching of the Church, no church official comes knocking on their door to drag them to confession or demand higher weekly donations. Then we have our government officials who are more than willing to fine me, tax me, or even jail me for disobeying their civil decrees. Faith is not a compulsory affiliation; no one's forcing you to agree with doctrine. The common and condemning narrative of "you can't tell me that what I'm doing is wrong" is actually an intentional replacement of the more accurate "don't make me question or feel guilty about my choices". Since many people today have an issue with any kind of authority figure telling them the difference between right and wrong, they begin saying that people of faith are trying to strip them of their free will. I'm tempted to pull out a big "PLEASE..." here, but I won't. Instead, I'll reiterate what my picture above is trying to convey - that faith is voluntary, no matter what religion you ascribe to. Hearing the beliefs of a person of faith can neither coerce you to do something or make you believe. It's time society stopped fearing religion and embraced the positive aspects that faith brings to the public sphere.