Single, Several and Universal Issues
American politics is a long history of single-issues arising from the most famous several-issue political ideal: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness." Derived truths include "No taxation without representation," "Abolition of slavery," "Women’s right to vote," "Equal rights for women," "Civil rights for all," and "Respect all innocent human life."
All of the above derived truths except "Respect all innocent life" are universally accepted. From 1983 to the present, Catholic episcopal leadership in America has insisted that "we are not single-issue voters." ("Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship" USCCB, 11/14/07, #40 & 42) This recognizes the many elements of Christian wisdom in politics, and assumes that voting on one or several issues will result in neglecting other important issues. Is this factually true of the above issues? Is it true of all single and several-issues, even those that express universal and absolute human rights?
For single-issues are of two radically different kinds: non-negotiable, absolute or universal principles that always apply, such as "Thou shalt not kill," "Respect the right to life of all innocent human beings" or "Civil rights for all." If right to innocent life is an absolute or universal prerequisite or foundation of all other rights, that alone necessarily justifies voting against a candidate who violates that right. Since all the Democratic Party Platforms since 1980 support legalized abortion on demand, voting for anyone following that part of the platform, or anyone else who is pro-choice to kill the unborn makes such voters accomplices in the Culture of Death for the unborn.
The second kind of single-issue is quality of life issues such as "everyone should have food, clothing, shelter and well-being." These must be honored, but do not call for specific policies or implementation, for they are well realized in many different ways by prudential judgments. Hence they don’t justify single-issue voting.
To sum up, all human conduct is ruled by natural and divine law. Natural law begins with: "Do good and avoid evil." Divine law begins with: Love God with your whole heart, whole soul, whole mind and with all your strength; and "love your neighbor as yourself." (Mk 12: 30 & Dt 6: 4-5) Genesis begins with God creating man as an incarnate spirit. The being, actions and greatest achievements of incarnate spirits are never purely material or purely spiritual, but always incarnations of the spirit. The New Testament begins with and centers around the Incarnation, the Son of God becoming the God-Man, i.e., remaining God while becoming fully man. Jesus invites humans to participate in his perfect Incarnation of the Spirit.
To relate material/temporal and spiritual/eternal goods well, we must respect their natures: material goods cannot be both fully shared and retained; spiritual goods must be shared in order to be retained. While we often love material goods too much, we cannot love God too much. In choosing to vote, let us first fervently love and adore Jesus, then ask him to help us incarnate his Spirit in our lives.
Dr. Michael Meaney, Ph.D, April 2008.