Skip to content
Home

  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Writings
February 23, 2016 Catholic Social Thought

Medaille on the Pro-Life/Anti-Abortion Distinction

Over at The Distributist Review John Medaille has a thoughtful article which largely discusses the distinction between being merely anti-abortion as opposed to thoroughly pro-life. Someone who is pro-life, according to Medaille, should also be pro-family wage, pro-natalist, pro-just war, and so forth. Unfortunately Medaille veers a bit off course toward the end with a diatribe against the Republican Party for its limp-wristed approach to pro-life issues, as if the Democratic Party warrants a free pass. While it is true that Republicans have come up painfully short in delivering on their promise to end (or at least curtail) legal access to abortion, let no one forget that Democrats (i.e., contemporary American political liberals) have worked tirelessly for decades to promote abortion in not only the United States, but around the world. The fact that Democrats, by and large, support centralized entitlement programs, transfer payments, and thicker market regulations than Republicans in no way, shape, or form exonerates them from helping to perpetuate one of the greatest horrors in human history.

Although Medaille does not come right out and say it, it is not difficult to read his piece as lending a tacit endorsement for the contestable claim that Democratic policies by and large align with the tenets of Catholic social teaching (CST). (Whether or not Medaille personally holds such a view is not altogether clear, however.) But where in CST does one find direct support for the bloated administrative state and the centralization of power in the federal government? Granted, the Republicans do not do much better on this front, and the more libertarian wings of the party often directly oppose principles of CST such as a just wage and solidarity in the name of “freedom of contract.” At the close of business, it has to be admitted that neither the Democrats nor the Republicans carry the principles of CST deep in their hearts, preferring instead to march to the bloody beat of late-modern secular liberalism.

None of this is to say that Medaille’s instincts are not in the right place. With the election cycle well underway, no doubt many Catholic (and other Christian) voters will be tempted to follow the elephant in the (long) hope of gaining back some of the ground lost in the “culture wars” of the past decade or so. Battling back that temptation, however, should not come at the grave price of supporting a party that has fought vigorously for decades against the most basic tenets of the natural law. Now is the time for all Christians to seriously reflect upon the fact that when it comes to present-day America, we have no political home.

Share:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Post navigation

← Previous Post
Contraception in the Congo
Next Post →
Richard Williamson Back At It
Gabriel S. Sanchez

You may also like

  1. Gregg Contra Corporatism

    October 20, 2022

  2. A Few More Thoughts on Edward Feser’s All One in Christ

    August 24, 2022

  3. Edward Feser’s All One in Christ: Initial Thoughts

    August 22, 2022

Categories

  • Autobiographical
  • Books
  • Catholic Social Thought
  • Church
  • Eastern Catholicism
  • Eastern Orthodox Church
  • Economics
  • Ephemera
  • Humor
  • Integralism
  • Law
  • Liturgy
  • Meta
  • Movies
  • Music
  • Orthodox Social Thought
  • Philosophy
  • Political Economy
  • Politics
  • Reading
  • Roman Catholic Church
  • Sale
  • Spirituality
  • Theology
  • Uncategorized
  • World
  • Wrestling
  • Year of 100 Books

Archives

  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • March 2022
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • January 2021
  • November 2020
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • December 2018
  • October 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
2025 © Opus PublicumTheme by SiteOrigin