We reproduce here the mail some readers sent to us on the interpretation of the Catholic moral doctrine on the lesser evil or double effect applied to tomorrow's election. We have already presented our opinion on the topic - expressing what it is primarily at stake is Socialism. We also agree with the Pro-Life argument, which sees abortion as a crucial issue in tomorrow's election.
We want to encourage our readers to vote and help them to make their best choice for the glory of God and preservation of the conservative values the United States still represents before the world - TIA correspondence desk

Dear friends,

Someone has forwarded to me the comments below from Fr. Scott. I pass them along for your interest. (Fr. Scott gave his permission for this to be circulated.) It is edited it a bit since there were some paragraphs which were not relevant to the question below.

     Annie



J.M.J.   October 30, 2008

Dear Mr. *****,

I thank you for your message, along with the exchange of e-mails.

I have been aware of some time of your strong opinions concerning the McCain campaign. It is not for us, as priests, to make particular determinations in these matters that are much more within the competence of lay Catholics dedicated to Catholic action, but rather to lay out the principles of a Catholic response.

Some refuse the principle of casting one's vote for the lesser evil, which is nothing other than the application of the indirect voluntary. I see that you accept this principle, but simply dispute its application in this particular case. You have every right to do this, since you invoke very strong arguments in favor of this, demonstrating that McCain is not really the lesser evil that he is made out to be by many conservatives. Not only do you, rightly I believe, question that McCain really is pro-life, but you bring into play his many other policies, which are none other than those of the Judaeo-masonic establishment, whose greed has created this terrible economic crisis and the deadly and unjust war in Iraq. Consequently, you have good reason to dispute that he is any significantly lesser evil than Obama.

Although it is true that it can be a moral obligation to vote, this can only be when the candidate is worthy of a Catholic vote. Neither major candidate is. Hence there is no obligation to vote for either. It can never be obligatory to vote for the candidate who is considered to be a lesser evil, for it is a material evil to do so, which cannot be obligatory, but rather a fallible judgment of prudence. No priest can place you under a moral obligation to vote for a particular candidate in this case, nor criticize you, as apparently has been the case, for highlighting the dangers of the so-called "lesser evil". I am sorry to hear that Americans in general are unwilling to accept this. It is because of the deep-seated patriotism, and love of the conservative values of their country. Europeans see much more readily through the plot of conservatism as a vehicle for the revolution.

     Yours faithfully in Christ our King and Mary our Queen,

     Fr. Peter R. Scott

No obligation to vote????

Never has is been more crucial to cast a vote for life!! What is at stake is a super majority - all three branches of the government controlled by one party (the Democrat-Socialists.) Also, several Supreme Court Judge appointments will most likely be made in the next four years. The ramifications of this election will be felt for decades.

The extreme-left, Obama supporting media would like nothing more than for you to stay home on Tuesday. In fact, they are counting on it so much that they are already reporting it!

As a Roman Catholic I will be casting my vote bright and early on Tuesday morning.

I won't only be voting for John McCain and Sarah Palin but I will also be voting AGAINST

• a man who was voted most liberal senator in 2007
  
  
• a man who promises to destroy, with the passage of the Freedom of Choice Act, all of the small victories the pro-life movement has won
  
  
• a man so anti-life he supports partial birth abortion and refuses medical aid to abortion survivors
  
  
• a man who supports homosexual "marriage"
  
  
• a man who believes the state knows what is best for my children and will limit my rights to homeschool
  
  
• a man who will use our tax dollars to pay for abortion, embryonic stem cell research, human cloning and will increase government support of Planned Parenthood

NO OBLIGATION TO VOTE?????? Here is a list of Roman Catholic Bishops who are speaking out on the importance of voting for life in this election:

The list of U.S. Bishops who have spoken out on the priority of the life issues in this election is now over 100. The list now contains 70 individual bishops and three joint statements (InsideCatholic.com).

1. Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver
2. Bishop James Conley, auxiliary of Denver
3. Archbishop Donald Wuerl of Washington, D.C.
4. Justin Cardinal Rigali of Philadelphia, chairman of the Committee on Pro-Life Activities
5. Bishop William Lori of Bridgeport, chairman of the Committee on Doctrine
6. Edward Cardinal Egan of New York
7. Bishop Samuel Aquila of Fargo
8. Bishop David Zubik of Pittsburgh
9. Bishop Michael Sheridan of Colorado Springs
10. Archbishop Jose Gomez of San Antonio
11. Bishop Oscar Cantu, auxiliary of San Antonio
12. Bishop William Murphy of Rockville Centre
13. Bishop Edward Slattery of Tulsa
14. Bishop Kevin Farrell of Dallas
15. Bishop Gregory Aymond of Austin
16. Sean Cardinal O'Malley of Boston
17. Bishop Thomas Wenski of Orlando
18. Archbishop John Nienstedt of Saint Paul/Minneapolis
19. Francis Cardinal George of Chicago, President of the USCCB
20. Bishop Robert Vasa of Baker
21. Bishop Jerome Listecki of La Crosse
22. Bishop Richard Lennon of Cleveland
23. Bishop Ralph Nickless of Sioux City
24. Archbishop George Niederauer of San Francisco
25. Bishop Glen Provost of Lake Charles, LA
26. Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio of Brooklyn
27. Bishop Joseph F. Martino of Scranton
28. Archbishop Raymond Burke, Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura
30. Bishop Peter J. Jugis of Charlotte
31. Bishop Michael F. Burbidge of Raleigh
32. Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City, KS
33. Bishop Robert Finn of Kansas City-St. Joseph, MO
34. Bishop Robert C. Morlino of Madison, WS
35. Bishop Ronald Gilmore of Dodge City, KS
36. Bishop Paul Coakley of Salina, KS
37. Bishop Michael Jackels of Wichita
38. Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito of Palm Beach
39. Bishop Kevin W. Vann of Fort Worth
40. Bishop Rene H. Gracida, retired, of Corpus Christi
41. Daniel Cardinal DiNardo of Houston
42. Bishop Paul S. Loverde of Arlington
43. Bishop Francis X. DiLorenzo of Richmond
44. Bishop William Murphy of Rockville Center
45. Bishop Robert McManus of Worcester
46. Bishop Arthur Serratelli of Patterson
47. Bishop Robert Herrmann of St. Louis
48. Archbishop Edwin O'Brien of Baltimore
49. Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted of Phoenix
50. Bishop Thomas D. Doran of Rockford
51. Bishop Joseph A. Galante of Camden
52. Bishop Robert J. Baker of Birmingham
53. Archbishop Alexander J. Brunett of Seattle
54. Bishop J. Peter Sartain of Joliet
55. Bishop John M. Smith of Trenton
56. Bishop Earl Boyea of Lansing
57. Bishop Leonard R. Blair of Toledo
58. Bishop Frances J. Dewane of Venice
59. Bishop W. Frances Malooly of Wilmington
60. Bishop Robert Morlino of Madison
61. Bishop John Yanta , retired, of Amarillo
62. Bishop James V. Johnston of Springfield- Cape Girardeau
63. Archbishop John Vlazny of Portland
64. Bishop Blase J. Cupich of Rapid City
65. Bishop Lawrence Brandt of Greensburg
66. Bishop Dennis M. Schnurr of Cincinatti
67. Bishop Larry Silva of Honolulu
68. Bishop Paul Swain of Sioux Falls
69. Bishop Michael J. Sheehan of Santa Fe
70. Bishop Eusebius Beltran of Oklahoma City
71. Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Harrisburg
72. Joint Statement by the bishops of New York State (22 bishops)
73. Joint Statement by the bishops of Pennsylvania (16 bishops)
74. Joint Statement by the bishops of Kansas (4 bishops)
75. Joint Statement by the bishops of Florida (9 bishops)

Also, check out www.catholicvote.com

May the Holy Spirit fill us all in these next few days so that we are strengthened to defend the most innocent of lives!

     Mary Flores

Dear Friends,

When it comes to the issue of pro-life in this election, I am rather shocked that people would not vote for John McCain. While it is true that he is not 100% pro-life, he is a much better alternative than Obama. For those of you who are struggling with the decision whether to support John McCain or not, I URGE YOU TO PlEASE CLICK ON THE TWO LINKS BELOW. These links will show you what is at stake this election for the future of the pro-life movement in this country. It is literally a choice between life and death.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AR1RD2-fabA

http://americaschoicenow.com/

Should Barack Obama become President, there will virtually be no limits on abortion. He has already promised that he will sign the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA). Additionally, he will once again open up taxpayer funding to Planned Parenthood here and overseas. There will be more funding to international population control and abortion groups. Obama is in favor of partial-birth abortion. I don't know about you, but I could not sleep at night knowing I allowed a man who believes in such a barbaric procedure to become President.

In contrast to Obama, who won't say when life begins, McCain believes that people have rights from the moment of conception. He has gone on record saying that he will appoint justices such as Alito to the Supreme Court. You can bet that Obama has a pro-abortion litmus test for his choice of judges.

Bottom line, no candidate is perfect, but do you want a president who will try to reduce abortions or increase abortions? Do you want more of your taxpayer money to go to Planned Parenthood or not? Do you want partial-birth abortions to be legal or not?

Is pristine philosophy more important to you than trying to reduce the amount of abortions?

     Michael Fairman

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