THE CATHOLIC MANDATE POLITICS | KAIROS GLOBAL | JULY 2024

Author: Fr Cedric Prakash SJ

Intro: Fr Cedric Prakash SJ quotes Church documents and papal encyclicals to answer the question, ‘Should Catholics get involved in politics’. 

There has been a debate recently, in some quarters, on the question, ‘Can or should Catholics engage in politics?’ There are, obviously, differences in the responses. For some, politics is anathema, even downright ‘evil’. This response is on expected lines; politics today has become synonymous with those who rule the roost: the infamous politicians. One does not have to go very far to see that many of those who indulge and control politics today, are those without values, ethics or qualms of conscience. For these ‘politicians’, politics is a racket: a means to gain power, to amass wealth. It has nothing to do with the good of the people or of serving them. Sadly, in most cases the ordinary and the selfish citizens fall easy prey to such politicians and succumb to their machinations. 

On the other hand, one needs to look at what politics is all about: what it means and what it should be doing.  The concept of ‘politics’ is first found in the seminal work of Aristotle, Ta Politika Aristotle (364- 322 BC), the Greek philosopher and polymath has contributed significantly to mankind’s thinking over the years. His book is on ‘governing and governments’ which in fact is the basis of what politics is all about. The origins of the word are in the Greek polis which means ‘city’ or ‘city-state’; then we have another related Greek word polites meaning ‘citizen’. In the 14th Century, the French word politique (from the Latin politicus) found greater common usage; it essentially meant ‘citizens of the state’. So, politics in its essence is about people (one needs to pay attention to several other significant words of today from ‘polite’ to ‘police’). Aristotle says, ‘Politics is a noble activity in which men (and women) decide the rules they will live by and the goals they will collectively pursue.’ This correlates with his definition of the state: ‘State comes into existence originating in the bare needs of life and continues to exist for the sake of good life.’ Sadly, this fundamental meaning of politics is long forgotten, thanks to what politicians have made of it and the gross irresponsibility and callousness of many citizens.

Politics is therefore about a value system; is about caring for the ordinary citizen and for our common home; it is about the internalisation and actualisation of the values enshrined in the Constitution of India and its democratic fabric, particularly of justice, liberty, equality, fraternity, unity, pluralism, integrity, the dignity, the rights and freedoms of every single person. All these are gospel values. Politics is about ethics. Mahatma Gandhi used to say that, ‘Politics without ethics is a sin.’ So good governance is about politicians who are honest, who have the sagacity and the sensitivity to transcend the petty confines of corruption, communalism, casteism, criminalisation and consumerism.

That leaves one with the fundamental question ‘Should Catholics engage in politics?’ The answer is an unequivocal ‘yes!’ Jesus himself shows us the way. He takes a stand against every form of injustice; he takes on the powerful and insensitive rulers of his time particularly on the fact that ‘they weigh down people with heavy burdens.’ He upbraids a system which is patently unjust with draconian laws and policies. It is interesting that Christians today easily forget what Jesus exhorts, not all who say Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven… (Matthew 7:21). For Jesus, the will of the Father is powerfully presented in the Messianic Proclamation (Luke 4:14-20), the Beatitudes (Matthew 5: 1-16), the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-36), the Five Foolish Persons (Matthew 25:1-1), the Last Judgement (Matthew 25: 31-46).

Significantly, Gaudium et Spes (Joy and Hope), Vatican II’s Pastoral Constitution on the ‘Church in the Modern World’ spells the role and responsibility of Christians in a very incisive manner. Amongst several other key points the document states, ‘This council exhorts Christians, as citizens of two cities, to strive to discharge their earthly duties conscientiously and in response to the Gospel spirit. They are mistaken who, knowing that we have here no abiding city but seek one which is to come, think that they may therefore shirk their earthly responsibilities. For they are forgetting that by the faith itself they are more obliged than ever to measure up to these duties, each according to his proper vocation… Therefore, acting as citizens in the world, whether individually or socially, they will keep the laws proper to each discipline, and labour to equip themselves with a genuine expertise in their various fields. They will gladly work with men seeking the same goals. Acknowledging the demands of faith and endowed with its force, they will unhesitatingly devise new enterprises, where they are appropriate, and put them into action. Laymen should also know that it is generally the function of their well-formed Christian conscience to see that the divine law is inscribed in the life of the earthly city.’ (#43)

Pope Francis has never tired of exhorting the faithful to read, reflect and respond to the signs of the times. ‘Witnessing’ to the person and message of Jesus in today’s world, is what is expected from all disciples. On 4 October 2020 (feast of St Francis of Assisi), Pope Francis promulgated his path-breaking encyclical Fratelli Tutti. He has devoted a significant section of this encyclical to the realities which seemed to have become the new order of today’s world. He is direct when he says, ‘what is needed is a politics which is far-sighted and capable of a new, integral and interdisciplinary approach to handling the different aspects of the crisis.’

Pope Francis challenges the disciples of Jesus to be authentic witnesses in a world which is becoming more fragmented and dehumanised, he says, ‘for these reasons, the Church, while respecting the autonomy of political life, does not restrict her mission to the private sphere.’ On the contrary, “she cannot and must not remain on the side-lines” in the building of a better world, or fail to “reawaken the spiritual energy” that can contribute to the betterment of society. It is true that religious ministers must not engage in the party politics that are the proper domain of the laity, but neither can they renounce the political dimension of life itself, which involves a constant attention to the common good and a concern for integral human development… “The Church is a home with open doors, because she is a mother.” And in imitation of Mary, the mother of Jesus, “we want to be a Church that serves, that leaves home and goes forth from its places of worship, goes forth from its sacristies, in order to accompany life, to sustain hope, to be the sign of unity… to build bridges, to break down walls, to sow seeds of reconciliation”’ (#276). Earlier, in a 2013 homily, Pope Francis said, ‘Good Catholics meddle in politics, offering the best of themselves, so that those who govern can govern. Politics, according to the Social Doctrine of the Church, is one of the highest forms of charity, because it serves the common good. I cannot wash my hands, eh? We all have to give something!’

On 7 February 2024, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) concluded its week-long XXXVI Biennial General Body Meeting in Bengaluru. The bishops reflected on the theme, ‘The Church’s Response to the Current Socio-Political Situation of the Country and the Benefits and Challenges of Artificial Intelligence (AI)’. In their ‘Final Statement’, besides many other significant things, the bishops pointed to the grim realities which plague the country and of a particular future for the people of India, if there is no political will to address the situation and to remedy things, wherever they can, with urgency. Towards the end the bishops say, ‘The Catholic Church in India firmly reiterates that the path to integral human development lies in promoting justice, equality, truth and freedom as a communitarian effort for the common good’ and in an unequivocal conclusion reiterate, ‘As Pilgrims of Hope, in the spirit of Synodality, the Church in India moves ahead towards the Jubilee Year 2025. Over the years, Christians have served the country with dedication, whether it be in the armed forces, in education and literacy, in health and social services. Our service to the country has been acknowledged by many of our fellow citizens. As loyal citizens of India, we will continue serving our country whatever be the cost, walking in the footsteps of Jesus our Master who proclaimed: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.”’

It is therefore not only essential but also a mandate, for Catholics to actively engage in politics at every level and ensure that politics is at the service of the people and not riddled with the negativities we experience today. Besides, we also need to tell politicians that their duty is not to protect the wrongs or evils being foisted on society by others. The best way to do so is that we the people, mainstream constitutionality today. There are several ways to do so, these include:

• to promote and protect the Constitution in every way; particularly the rights and freedoms of all;

• to study the Constitution: developing an ownership of it in letter and spirit;

• to organise in-depth training in social analysis and advocacy;

• to ensure that all official policies / legislation which are draconian, anti-people, anti-poor and anti-constitutional which go against the democratic and pluralistic fabric of the country be rescinded immediately and unconditionally.

Only when we citizens of India realise and exercise our constitutional mandate, will we be able to guarantee to our beloved nation, the change we want to see! In the meantime, we need to pray in the words of Rabindranath Tagore, ‘Into that heaven of freedom my Father, let my country awake!’

Today, the ordinary citizen of India – particularly, the Adivasis, Dalits, minorities, women and children, the poor and the unemployed, the excluded and the exploited, the small farmers and the indigenous coastal peoples, the migrant workers and the casual labourers – are all subject to many injustices. In Caritas in Veritate, Pope Benedict XVI states, ‘Charity in truth, to which Jesus Christ bore witness by his earthly life and especially by his death and resurrection, is the principal driving force behind the authentic development of every person and of all humanity. Love — caritas — is an extraordinary force which leads people to opt for courageous and generous engagement in the field of justice and peace.’

India desperately needs women and men endowed with the vision and mission of Jesus, who are imbued with prophetic courage, who get out of their comfort zones and are not afraid to speak truth to power; who are truly contemplatives who engage in political action. Do we have the faith and courage to live that prophetic challenge today? 

Fr Cedric Prakash is a Jesuit priest belonging to the Gujarat Province, India. He is a renowned human rights, reconciliation and peace activist. He is also a prolific writer on these issues. He is the recipient of several national and international honours including the ‘Kabir Puraskar’ for the promotion of communal harmony and peace from the President of India and the ‘Legion of Honour’ for his lifetime commitment to human rights from the President of France. He can be contacted on cedricprakash@gmail.com.