During this time of unpleasantness when the average American must suffer through the biased political advertisements as well as discuss pertinent issues, faithful Catholics must examine everything through the lens of faith. Regarding the issues highlighted in this question, one must keep in mind the governing principles of justice. The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines justice as “the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor” (No. 1807). On one hand, a person has a duty to God, which is called “the virtue of religion”: to pray, to worship, to obey the commandments, to obey the teachings of the church and to love God above all things, even to be a martyr if necessary.
On the other hand, a person has a duty to one’s neighbor: “to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity” (No. 1807). As such, the virtue of justice has three dimensions: general or legal justice, commutative or reciprocal justice and distributive justice. General justice concerns an individual’s relationship to the whole community, e.g., everyone has the duty to obey just laws, such as paying taxes or serving in the military when needed. Commutative justice governs relationships between individuals, e.g, treating each person fairly, fulfilling a contract or helping a neighbor in need.
In the broader spectrum of justice, distributive justice orders the relationship of the community as a whole to its individual members. The community has the duty to promote the common good for each person, not just the majority. Those entrusted with the care of the common good (i.e., the government) must make sure individual members have those basic goods that are their due and support their human dignity, e.g., proper food, clothing, shelter, medical care and education — all basic goods that support the dignity of each person. Special concern must be given to those most vulnerable members — the unborn, the elderly, the sick and the disabled. Distributive justice does not mean everyone should have the same standard of living, but everyone ought to have a basic standard of living.
In rendering justice, a person (or community) must also be mindful of two very important principles: First, the principle of subsidiarity, whereby, as Pope John Paul II taught, “a community of a higher order should not interfere in the internal life of a community of a lower order, depriving the latter of its functions, but rather should support it in case of need and help to co-ordinate its activity with the activities of the rest of society, always with a view to the common good” (“Centesimus Annus,” 1991).
In its pursuit of distributive justice, the government must not be a threat to personal freedom or initiative, but rather act only when necessary. A citizen must ask, “Does the state have to be involved in health care or education when the local government, community or family should be primarily responsible?”
In the history of our country, the local communities or churches provided for the education, welfare and health of the members. The idea of the welfare state — whereby the government provides and controls everything — is an affront to the principle of subsidiarity. The welfare state mentality fosters the attitude, “The government should do something” about this problem or that problem when in justice the responsibility belongs to the local community, even the person himself.
The welfare state mentality also empowers the government to make decisions about health care or education when those decisions should be left to local communities, even families. For example, with the Affordable Health Care Act, the federal government has intruded into the operations of Catholic organizations with total disregard for the church’s teachings.
St. Paul provides a second important principle: “The willingness to give should accord with one’s means, not go beyond them” (2 Cor 8:12). Therefore, to give money to the poor within one’s means is virtuous; but to give to the poor to the detriment of one’s own family or other responsibilities is wrong. The same principle ought to apply to lawmakers who are stewards of their citizen’s tax dollars.
Given these principles, let’s address the issues posed in the question: The federal government should care for the needs of its citizens, but only in conjunction with the state and local government. As far as possible, the government should rely on local communities and organizations, which not only know their needs but also have proven more effective.
The federal government must be a good steward. However, the federal government continually spends more than its revenue. The national debt is $15 trillion, an unfathomable number, and growing daily. This year, American taxpayers will pay $450 billion a year in interest on the debt according to the Congressional Budget Office; moreover, the CBO warned recently that unless measures are taken soon, the country is moving forward to “a fiscal cliff.” In justice, the government has to cut spending. One cannot run a country unlike one runs a household.
Finally, no Catholic — especially a religious sister — should ever say “it’s beyond my pay grade” regarding programs and laws that enable evil acts like abortion. Such programs and laws are unjust. Expressing the consistent teaching of the church, the catechism is clear: “Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person — among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life” (No. 2270). Therefore, in justice, we cannot support laws or programs that promote the evil act of abortion, just as we cannot support unjust laws allowing slavery, segregation, same-sex marriage or euthanasia.
Therefore, Catholics must cut through the political propaganda. St. Paul reminds us, “Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may judge what is God’s will, what is good, pleasing and perfect” (Rom. 12:2). Remember, faithful Catholics must examine everything through the lens of faith.