Archbishop Charles J. Chaput told a packed crowd of 500 at Saint Elizabeth Church in Chester Springs, Pa. they better vote Nov. 6, reports Catholic Online.
“It’s a sin if you do not vote in the upcoming election,” he said, and he warned them not to vote the party but the policy.
“What if you had to choose between our country and Jesus?” he asked. “What would you choose? He noted that they have not had to make that choice. “Yet”.
He was too polite to call Vice President Joe Biden a liar but did say he was “wrong” about the claims he made during the vice presidential debate regarding the impact the mandates would have on church institutions.
“He should not get away with saying that in the public square,” the Archbishop said.
He said, yes, the mandates could lead to closing of schools and other institutions.
He told the crowd to shun labels.
“I call you as a Catholic, to forget about labels. Be a liberal sometimes, a conservative sometimes, but a Catholic first,” he said.
He then asked for a show of hands as to those who were “more serious about being a Democrat than being a Catholic.” None were raised. He repeated the question for Republicans. Again no hands were raised.
“All of us should be more serious about being Catholic than a Democrat or Republican,” he said.
He made a observation as to why many Catholic clergy are outspoken liberals. He noted that they came of age in the civil rights struggle and remain locked in the era.
“It’s an emotional thing for many (clergy) and this is why you have nuns attacking Paul Ryan”.
He noted that the demand for social justice and human dignity includes a “right to health care but not the right to the government providing health care”.
He noted if a political party is for abortion the attempt must be made to change the party, and that abortion on demand was the rule in America because of the failure to impress pro-life policies on both parties.
He said Jesus was killed “because he spoke the truth”.
Hat tip Cathy Craddock