Here is the homily I preached this weekend on the election. I added a link to the Maryland Catholic Conference in the text.

Last week, Jesus told a parable that had a tax collector praying in the Temple. Unable to raise his eyes to Heaven, he beats his breasts and begs the Lord to have mercy on him a sinner.  The Pharisee who thanked God that he wasn’t like that tax collector didn’t realize that the tax collector would go home justified. This week, that tax collector, a character in a parable, now comes to life in the person of Zacchaeus. Who could have anticipated his conversion? The Pharisee would never have guessed that such a thing was possible.

What the Pharisee didn’t realize, is that there is a new presence of God in the world. This new presence is manifested in several ways:  along with authoritative teaching and miracles, the repentance and conversion of sinners is one of the signs of the messianic kingdom.

Of course, you are all aware that the election is only eight days away.  In your bulletin is a voter’s guide to help you make your voting decisions. The Holy Father has said “Vote according to your conscience.”  Cardinal Wuerl says “Vote according to your conscious.”  So, I also say “Vote according to your conscience.”  A good way to understand your conscience is simply this:  How would you explain to God your voting decisions?  If you form your decisions through prayer, through the Church’s teachings and a close examination of the candidates, then you will be able to stand before the Lord and give an account of your vote. In fact, you will allow the Holy Spirit to guide you in your voting decisions. While I do not have the authority to replace your conscience I do have a duty to help form it.  While voter guides can be very helpful, they can also be misleading. Not that the information is incorrect, but that all the issues are presented as if they were all equal in weight.

There may have been a time when Catholics voted as one block. The Bishop would endorse a candidate and the Catholic vote would follow. I don’t know if this really happened, but if so, we can safely say those days are gone. Catholics probably vote much the same as their non-Catholic neighbors. The Church has little or no political power these days. The Church cannot endorse a candidate or a party. The Church cannot make political contributions. All the Church can do is witness to what is good and encourage her members, indeed everyone of good will, to vote for what is truly good. This is as it should be. The two most divisive issues you can bring up in a conversation are religion and politics. While the Church has a hard enough time having all of us agree on Religion, we would have an even more difficult time gaining agreement on politics.

Just as the Church has very little political power, as political power is accounted today, so we can recognize another group with no political power:  the unborn. They cannot vote; nor can they make contributions to a political party or candidate. They depend completely on the votes and the persuasive power of those who recognize their fundamental dignity. This lack of power of the unborn coupled with an account of human life that idolizes power and control over one’s own life gives us what St. John Paul II called a “Culture of Death.” This culture of death has tremendous political power. We see it in the strong support for abortion suppliers, in movements to allow assisted suicide and in gender ideology. Of course, its most obvious manifestation is in legalized abortion, even late-term abortion. Its step-children are contraception, which denies the inherent, life-giving gift of human sexuality, and gender ideology which denies that the gift of human life is lived out in accord with God’s plan that made them male and female.

As Catholics we need to be concerned that these idols are being worshiped by our culture. We all need to be concerned that they are being imposed upon us. There is a political movement to separate the Church from its works. The Freedom of Religion guaranteed by the Constitution is being interpreted as Freedom of Worship, meaning that the Freedom of Religion stops at the doors of the Church. The works of mercy that the Church pursues, whether social work or health care, are seen as outside of the protection of the Constitution. Hence, the HHS mandate requiring Catholic organizations, such as the Little Sisters of the Poor, to provide contraception coverage in their health plans; Catholic hospitals are being sued so as to require them to perform abortions; laws have been passed to require Pregnancy Centers to make abortion referrals. Our own Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington had to stop its own adoption program for refusing to place adoptive children with same sex couples.

We may grow discouraged and become resigned to this situation, thinking that they are all done deals. Many tell us that this culture of death is really inevitable progress and the right side of history. But, we have to remember Zacchaeus and the power of God to convert not just individuals but also societies. As the book of Wisdom tells us:   you rebuke offenders little by little, warn them and remind them of the sins they are committing, that they may abandon their wickedness and believe in you, O LORD!

Consider this, also:  for many years the Catholic Church was the sole, public voice for the rights of the unborn. Thanks to our persistent witness, many more Churches are coming to understand the importance of the life issues. In fact, there is evidence that the pro-life position is gaining ground in the public square.

So, we do not hide behind self-righteousness nor do we give in to resignation. As those who belong to God, we seek always to witness to the goodness of human life. Life is the highest good. A healthy society is one that values human life, families, and the goodness of God’s creation. As voters, we need to carefully discern how we should vote, how we can best promote these great goods that God has given us. You can use the voter guide in your bulletin.  You can also do your own research. Look at material from the candidates, themselves. There is a voter guide on line from the Maryland Catholic Conference. Pray about your voting decisions knowing that, as a decision of your conscience, you are making it before the Lord.

If you do that, you can be at peace. There is no need for arguing or acrimony. We need to respect other people and assume that they, too are voting according to their conscience. Above all we need to remember Zacchaeus and the power of the presence of the eternal Son of God, the presence that is now in the world in his Body, the Church.