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May 24, 2005
Hope and its Daughters
Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver delivered a very fine keynote address at the Second Annual National Catholic Prayer Breakfast on May 20th in Washington, D.C. Chaput's comments cover the role of a Catholic in civil society. Although addressed to mostly Catholics, the remarks could have been directed to Christians in general. Here is a sample, but you should really read the whole address:
St Augustine, who had such a deep influence on the mind of our new Holy Father, once wrote that, "Hope has two beautiful daughters. Their names are anger and courage; anger at the way things are, and courage to see that they do not remain the way they are." Are we angry enough about what's wrong with the world -- the killing of millions of unborn children through abortion; the neglect of the poor and the elderly; the mistreatment of immigrants in our midst; the abuse of science in embryonic stem cell research? Do we really have the courage of our convictions to change those things?The opposite of hope is cynicism, and cynicism also has two daughters. Their names are indifference and cowardice. In renewing ourselves in our faith, what Catholics need to change most urgently is the habit and rhetoric of cowardice we find in our own personal lives, in our national political life, and sometimes even within the Church herself. [Hmm, this last part sounds vaguely familiar.]
Chaput's main point is that, as Christians, we have a duty to involve ourselves in the political process and that our participation should be informed by our Christian beliefs. Thus, we are Christians participating in the process, not conservatives, nor liberals, not Republicans, nor Democrats:
What we really believe, we conform our lives to. And if we don't conform our lives to what we claim to believe, then we're living a lie.
Food for thought for all Christians, regadless of your particular political stripe.
Posted by Mark at May 24, 2005 12:19 AM
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Comments
if by abuse stem cells you mean "cure the blind, dying, diabetes, Alzheimer's and spinal cord damage"
i for one can walk again after landing on my neck when preforming a back flip.
the earth is only supposed to support 4 billion people at max, and do you know what happens when it gets more? look at Africa, try living in the projects for a month, and realize that our president was a coke addict. NOW get angry.
Stem cells are a good thing; and they arn't just obtained through abortions either. you can get stem cells from the fluid that comes out during birth as well.
all the "uncivilized" people who get abortions; would get them anyway even if they weren't legal, so why not do something great and wonderful with the cells gotten from it?
Posted by: nic at February 11, 2007 01:53 PM