I identify as Catholic. I also identify as politically progressive. These two are not mutually exclusive…in fact one should either have little to do with other or everything to do with it.
I believe in reproductive choice. I believe that every baby born should be a wanted baby. I believe that once a child is born it is our societal and civil obligation to ensure that the child has all basic necessities including food, housing, and education. I believe in federally funded programs like WIC and Head Start. I believe that people have the right to believe that life begins at conception. However, I ask those people to support sex education not based on abstinence. I ask them to support national health care, reformation of the education system, and funding of pre-natal programs. I understand that people fight for an embryonic sac but if they are really fighting for life, we must remember that life is not just the promise of a birth, but the insurance of opportunity to have a fair shake in the world.
I was pleased to see during the election that the Matthew 25 Network (“The Matthew 25 Network is a community of Christians – Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Pentecostal, and Evangelical – inspired by the Gospel mandate to put our faith into action to care for our neighbor, especially the most vulnerable.”) came out in support of Obama as the pro-life candidate. And it disturbs me that clergy, believe that they should deny communion to someone because of their politics. I am pro-life, pro-choice and I am catholic
Below is a much more eloquently stated argument on why as humanists and Christians it is important to support Obama as our pro-life President-elect from the site ProLife – ProObama.
Facing an unplanned pregnancy can mean a woman is facing a serious crisis. She needs real help.
Health care for a strong mother and healthy baby. Education – not only well-run preschools but also higher education plans that offer support to mothers – and fathers – who have dreams of supporting themselves and making their own contribution to our economy. Child care programs that respond to the needs of working families.
We could make this happen.
Many pro-life advocacy efforts have focused on the legal status of abortion, rather than addressing prevention of unplanned pregnancy and the needs of pregnant women and families. This has intensified the division and partisanship around this issue, but has little effect at reducing the abortion rate itself.
Making the choice for life possible is a choice we can all make.
And it’s a choice Barack Obama has already made, as he challenges us to live up to the call us to “be our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers,” to join together to help women in difficult situations make the choice for life by providing pre- and postnatal care, income support, parent training and caring adoption programs.
We need a systemic, common ground, common sense approach. Nearly two-thirds of women who have abortions are poor. Almost half are college-age or younger. Two thirds are single.
We can drastically reduce abortions by helping reduce unplanned pregnancies and supporting pregnant women and families that need help.
Senator Barack Obama will fight to make sure that every woman in America has the support she needs when facing an unplanned pregnancy. Senator Obama’s grass-roots, faith-based approach of support for women and families will help them when they most need it, preventing abortions by supporting women and families to choose life.