A Call to Change the Liturgical Calander
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To be Catholic means to be a member of the Catholic Church. Such membership requires personal adherence to certain beliefs. The word catholic means "universal" (Merriam-Webster).
The Church is catholic in that it possesses the fullness of salvation and is for everyone. The Catholic Church has a definable view of the world, which includes religion and politics.
Religion is the manifestation of the belief in and worship of God in accordance with universal human principles and personal relationship with God (Oxford Languages via Microsoft Bing).
Politics is the activities associated with governance by a government, especially the debate or conflict among parties, groups, or individuals having or hoping to achieve power (Oxford Languages via Microsoft Bing).
Religion is an interpreter of and guide for politics. By knowing God, an individual is able to know life and human beings.
Knowing God is essential to knowing politics. Thus, religion and politics are inseparably intertwined.
Politics, when informed by religion, becomes a way to promote salvation and the public interest.
There are values and moral standards that are common to the human condition in politics. Every human person has an innate desire to love, live in truth, be good, and to be just (based on “The Five Transcendentals”, Fr. Spitzer).
Politics thus becomes a way to sanctify the world and the human person. Politics becomes a way for the religious person to be holy and exercise virtue. Thus, it is a way to grow in the likeness of God in pursuit of unity with God and neighbor.
Politics is a way of religious formation. It is a way to love God above all else and neighbor as self.
America has a unique relationship with God. America witnessed to this unique relationship in the Declaration of Independence.
"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." (“Declaration of Independence”, National Archives and Records Administration.)
God specifically created America as a place in time. Thus, America has its own culture. Its culture does not contradict the truth of universal human principles and relationship with God, but allows for its fulfillment.
American values and moral standards have been linked to God since the founding of this country.
In American life, there are seven key themes in the application of religion to politics. These seven key themes are based on material from Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, pages 12-17 in the first printing of the October 2011 edition.
These seven key themes are as follows:
1. the right to life and the dignity of the human person;
2. call to family, community, and participation;
3. general rights and responsibilities;
4. justice for the poor and vulnerable;
5. dignity of work and the rights of workers;
6. solidarity; and
7. caring for God’s creation.
To be an American Catholic means to be a member of a religious institution and a citizen of a country.
American Catholics exist at a certain place at a certain time. It is through religious knowledge that the person can effectively engage in politics.
Catholics must not impose their beliefs but instead apply them in the political process.
Being a good Catholic will translate into being a good American and political participant.
Stephen Steiniger is a Catholic who is alive in the love of Christ. He desires all who read his writings to benefit in their relationship with Christ. He enjoys religion, politics, and comedy. Stephen possesses an undergraduate and graduate degree from Bowling Green State University. He lives on planet earth with the rest of the human race. Stephen believes this is a good About the Author profile.
