Mid-Term Elections and "Gaudium et spes"

As another election cycle comes to an end here in the US, I thought it would be a good time to post something from the Second Vatican Council on the subject of politics.  Shortly after I started this blog I posted something about the possibility of deacons serving in political life, and that drew some interesting reactions, often negative, suggesting that deacons could or should never serve in politics.  I'll get back to that later. 

For now, here are a couple of citations from the wonderful document Gaudium et spes from Vatican II.  This document, although promulgated in 1965, could easily have been written this morning.  Among five issues raised which the bishops of the world considered of "special urgency", politics and political life are included.  Consider the following:

"The political community exists, consequently, for the sake of the common good, in which it finds its full justification and significance, and the source of its inherent legitimacy. Indeed, the common good embraces the sum of those conditions of the social life whereby men, families and associations more adequately and readily may attain their own perfection.  Yet the people who come together in the political community are many and diverse, and they have every right to prefer divergent solutions. If the political community is not to be torn apart while everyone follows his own opinion, there must be an authority to direct the energies of all citizens toward the common good, not in a mechanical or despotic fashion, but by acting above all as a moral force which appeals to each one's freedom and sense of responsibility (#74).


"It is clear, therefore, that the political community and public authority are founded on human nature and hence belong to the order designed by God, even though the choice of a political regime and the appointment of rulers are left to the free will of citizens" (#74).

"According to the character of different peoples and their historic development, the political community can, however, adopt a variety of concrete solutions in its structures and the organization of public authority. For the benefit of the whole human family, these solutions must always contribute to the formation of a type of man who will be cultivated, peace-loving and well-disposed towards all his fellow men" (#74).

"All citizens, therefore, should be mindful of the right and also the duty to use their free vote to further the common good. The Church praises and esteems the work of those who for the good of men devote themselves to the service of the state and take on the burdens of this office" (#75).

"Citizens must cultivate a generous and loyal spirit of patriotism, but without being narrow-minded. This means that they will always direct their attention to the good of the whole human family, united by the different ties which bind together races, people and nations" (#75).

"All Christians must be aware of their own specific vocation within the political community. It is for them to give an example by their sense of responsibility and their service of the common good. In this way they are to demonstrate concretely how authority can be compatible with freedom, personal initiative with the solidarity of the whole social organism, and the advantages of unity with fruitful diversity. They must recognize the legitimacy of different opinions with regard to temporal solutions, and respect citizens, who, even as a group, defend their points of view by honest methods. Political parties, for their part, must promote those things which in their judgement are required for the common good; it is never allowable to give their interests priority over the common good" (#75).

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Back to the question of deacons and politics: Perhaps deacons could help us move away from a "politics as partisanship" modality.  Does politics in the US have to be a matter of raw partisanship?  I don't know, but I am an idealist and an optimist: I believe it could be.

Finally, a word on Gaudium et spes.  As anyone who knows me will already realize, I am a "Vatican II" guy.  I was in high school seminary during the Council, and in college seminary during the early years of its implementation.  All of the various ministries I've been involved with over the years, and my own graduate studies, have all been influenced by the study of the Council.  This December we will celebrate the 45th anniversary of the solemn closing of the Council, and the jewel in the crown of the Council's documents is Gaudium et spes.  Perhaps we could all benefit from an intense re-examination of the teachings of this powerful document and its agenda for reform.