When it comes to voting this election season, Lincoln Bishop James Conley has set forth a clear and principled position on the issue of abortion.
Sometimes, Catholic voters may wonder whether other important political issues like the death penalty should take precedent over a moral issue. There are sometimes cases where a pro-life Republican on abortion may support the death penalty and a pro-abortion Democrat may oppose it. What should pro-life Catholic voters do in such a case?
In a recent interview the bishop made the case that the Catholic Church opposes the death penalty but he said the church’s teaching against that doesn’t rise to the same level or prominence as its opposition to abortion. He made it clear that although Catholics can disagree on the death penalty abortion is more of an absolute position.
Here’s more from Bishop Conley:
Conley discussed the death penalty referendum during a 12-minute interview last week with Lincoln radio station KLIN, and part of the interview focused on the decision that Catholics will make in Tuesday’s election.
Conley emphasized the Catholic Church’s opposition to the death penalty and the reasons why, and said “through our penal system and through our prisons we can protect the common good, protect people, without resorting to the death penalty.”
Asked whether he gets questions from Catholics about the death penalty, Conley said a lot of people have been forced to think deeply about it.
He said: “It is not one of those teachings a Catholic has to accept, like, for example, abortion. Abortion has clearly been defined by the church as a moral evil, which is never accepted under any circumstances or any justification.”
He then said that “there doesn’t seem to be a situation that would justify the death penalty. … If they’ve thought it through and prayed about it, they can still be a Catholic in good standing and not go along with the bishops on this (death penalty) issue.”
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