Thursday, November 09, 2006

Put not your trust in princes

J. Peter Nixon has a decent analysis of the elections from a Catholic perspective, over at dotCommonweal . And some very wise words:
My last point is that we need to place politics in its proper place within the apostolic life to which we are called. I believe deeply that Catholics are called to collaborate with all men and women of good will to achieve a more just and well-ordered society. But I don’t believe that the fundamental transformation of society to which Christians are called is something that is primarily accomplished through the coercive power of the state. Our primary focus must be Christian formation rather than political mobilization, trusting that well-formed Christians will have the virtues necessary to contribute effectively to the common good.
[As an aside, Fr. Isaac Hecker, the founder of the Paulist Fathers, also had a similar perspective, if I've correctly understood all that we've been reading in the novitiate. After his youthful involvement in reform politics in New York, he grew disenchanted with the ability of politics to make society more just. His belief, a core evangelical belief, it would seem, was that it was transformed people who then changed the world around them. And that is what, Catholic evangelization, at its broadest, is about.]

1 comment:

Steve Bogner said...

Nixon and Hecker make a lot of sense with this. Thanks for posting it.