Sacred Necessity
The mood in Philadelphia is tense in the days leading up to the 2022 midterm elections. We Philadelphians braced for one last round of vicious attack ads, desperate fundraising efforts, and large-scale campaign rallies. Just like in 2020, Philadelphia—one of America’s “poorest big cities”—and the state of Pennsylvania are essential for safeguarding our democracy.
The stakes are greater now. In November 2020, we didn’t foresee a violent insurrection on the Capitol and a strategic yet baseless movement to invalidate the presidential election results. Nor did we foresee countless politicians backing a former president who remains under both federal and Congressional investigation.
Violence not only continues but intensifies. Most recently, we witnessed a physical assault and attempted kidnapping of Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul, at their San Francisco residence. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops condemned the attack, and Archbishop Cordileone, who forged his own politically motivated crusade against Speaker Pelosi earlier this year, released his own statement with prayers for the Pelosi family. However, the bishops have stopped short over the last two years of fully condemning this violence—or confronting their possible role in instilling fear and mistrust in millions of Catholics.
The U.S. Catholic hierarchy continues to drill legal opposition to abortion care in the minds of Catholic voters, using Catholic politicians such as Pelosi and President Joseph Biden as examples of dangerous radical Catholics who are misleading their flock. In late October, Archbishop Lori, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, accused Biden of “single-minded extremism” in his plan to codify Roe v. Wade as federal law.
What are we to do, as Catholics, during this fraught time?
Our friends at NETWORK have encouraged U.S. Catholics to discern the upcoming midterm elections as “Francis voters”—that is, to focus on issues beyond abortion rights. NETWORK urges voters to view every issue as “equally sacred.”
To be sure, access to legal and safe pregnancy terminations is a sacred issue. I’m reminded of Dr. Bhavik Kumar, an ob-gyn serving South Texas, who said on a conference call with reporters in January that “abortion happens in context.” Legislation making it harder to access affordable healthcare in your community—whether abortion, contraception, gender-affirming care, or simply a procedure that doesn’t further jeopardize your livelihood—also happens in context.
As Dr. Kumar and his colleagues emphasized earlier this year, the same states that have passed these draconian health measures are also the states that have rolled back voting rights and other civil liberties; expanded protections for gun use and ownership; slashed funding for social benefits; and shuttered medical facilities, including maternity wards. Most of these states also have politicians running for office accused of participating in the insurrection or backing baseless conspiracy theories.
As Catholics, we understand that this “single-minded extremism” extends beyond abortion. We are fighting to protect ourselves and our communities from Christian nationalism, which breeds both systemic and interpersonal violence. We don’t need to look very far these days to see that this violence is here and thriving. It's in our communities that are pushed to the margins; it's in our statehouses; it's at our legislators' front doors; and it's in our churches, from the pulpit to the pews.
When I first sat down to write this, I asked: How much longer will we let this violence continue? On revision, I realized the question is now:
How much longer will we survive?
In 2022, our Catholic vote is not only one of compassionate action, but also one of sacred necessity.
