A Call to Faithful Citizenship: A Parish Dialogue
“I am pro-life, but I also believe that those who commit serious crimes like murder should receive the death penalty.”
“I see the other side as misguided and ignorant of the facts, so how do I develop a conversation?”
“The reason God gave us two ears and one mouth is that we might listen twice as much as we speak.”
These are a few of the comments from a parish dialogue on ways to build communication in an increasingly polarized society. The event was sponsored by the St. Ignatius Parish Council. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has expressed concern that some of the faithful are guided first by political affiliation and only second by their faith. Over the past thirty years, our popes have issued papal teachings on the importance of Catholic participation in the public sphere. According to Pope Benedict XVI, “it is also the duty of the laity to participate actively in public life, in a manner consistently in accord with the Church’s teaching.”
After a welcome and opening prayer by Pastoral Associate Jean Santopatre, nearly two dozen parishioners and friends set out to reflect on the tensions in our political discourse and the need to develop mutually respectful conversation. Dolores Troy-Quinn, a member of the Parish Council and Catholics in Communion, a nationwide nonpartisan initiative rooted in the Gospel call to uphold human dignity in our society, served as convenor.
Fr. Mark Hallinan gave the group an overview of the seven tenets of Catholic Social Teaching derived from the Gospels and articulated by the USCCB. After Parish Council member Laura de Boisblanc set ground rules for respectful conversation (“Share the Air,” “Be curious, not defensive!”), group facilitators Father Hallinan, Father Tunney, and parishioner Terry Quinn led small-group conversations on the complex social and political issues that have divided our country in the last several years.
Although opinions differed, Father Hallinan reminded the group that “our goal is to break down walls of polarization and actually listen to each other. … We are not here to tell you how to vote, but we ask that you open your mind and your heart to listen.”
According to participant Anne Melanson, “The facilitators kept the focus on the issues and deftly used the comments and perspectives of each to lead into new territory. Most importantly, everyone felt engaged and heard, and I think we all learned. It was great to have civil conversations even if there were some different points of view.”
— Terrence Quinn