As you all know, we have elections coming up. The Bishops are encouraging us to vote, and as we vote, they ask us to keep in mind the following Catholic themes:

• Dignity of the Human Person (Sanctity of Life)
• Safeguarding the Institution of the Family
• Safeguarding of Basic Human Rights
• Solidarity with the Poor and Vulnerable
• Dignity of Work/ Rights of Workers
• Promotion of the Common Good
• Responsible Stewardship of Creation

We understand up front that no one candidate or party will completely encompass this collection of themes. The idea is that we should pray for wisdom [see the Book of Wisdom, chapter 9], and then vote with a sense of “proportion.” In other words, we should vote in such a way that the greatest proportion of good will be brought about. We will likely have misgivings, because no one party or candidate captures the Catholic worldview in a complete way. But hopefully we will leave the voting booth confident that we made the best choice that we could make. And it should be emphasized that we must continue to pray for our elected leaders, even if we did not vote for them [see 1st Timothy 2]. They occupy positions of responsibility, and they will be in need of Heavenly support. For more information, you can consult the webpage for the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops ( www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/faithful-citizenship). You can also refer to the Michigan Catholic Conference ( www.micatholic.org/advocacy/election-2018). May God bless all of us as we endure this highly charged political atmosphere.