Catholics and Politics: The Dynamic Tension Between Faith and Power
edited by Kristin E. Heyer, Mark J. Rozell and Michael A. Genovese
Georgetown University Press, 2008 Paper: 978-1-58901-215-8 | Cloth: 978-1-58901-216-5 Library of Congress Classification BX1407.P63C37 2008 Dewey Decimal Classification 261.708828273
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC
ABOUT THIS BOOK
Catholic political identity and engagement defy categorization. The complexities of political realities and the human nature of such institutions as church and government often produce a more fractured reality than the pure unity depicted in doctrine. Yet, in 2003 under the leadership of then-prefect Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI), the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a "Doctrinal Note on Some Questions Regarding the Participation of Catholics in Political Life." The note explicitly asserts, "The Christian faith is an integral unity, and thus it is incoherent to isolate some particular element to the detriment of the whole of Catholic doctrine. A political commitment to a single isolated aspect of the Church's social doctrine does not exhaust one's responsibility toward the common good." Catholics and Politics takes up the political and theological significance of this "integral unity," the universal scope of Catholic concern that can make for strange political bedfellows, confound predictable voting patterns, and leave the church poised to critique narrowly partisan agendas across the spectrum.
Catholics and Politics depicts the ambivalent character of Catholics' mainstream "arrival" in the U.S. over the past forty years, integrating social scientific, historical and moral accounts of persistent tensions between faith and power. Divided into four parts—Catholic Leaders in U.S. Politics; The Catholic Public; Catholics and the Federal Government; and International Policy and the Vatican—it describes the implications of Catholic universalism for voting patterns, international policymaking, and partisan alliances. The book reveals complex intersections of Catholicism and politics and the new opportunities for influence and risks of cooptation of political power produced by these shifts. Contributors include political scientists, ethicists, and theologians. The book will be of interest to scholars in political science, religious studies, and Christian ethics and all lay Catholics interested in gaining a deeper understanding of the tensions that can exist between church doctrine and partisan politics.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Kristin E. Heyer is Bernard J. Hanley Professor of Religious Studies at Santa Clara University. She is the author of Prophetic and Public also published by Georgetown University Press.
Mark J. Rozell is professor of public policy at George Mason University.
Michael A. Genovese holds the Loyola Chair of Leadership at Loyola Marymount University.
REVIEWS
-- J. Christopher Soper, Pepperdine University
-- Stephen Schneck, director, Life Cycle Institute, The Catholic University of America
-- Voice of Reason
-- Theological Studies
-- Clarke E. Cochran, Covenant Health System
-- American Catholic Studies
-- Timothy Byrnes, professor of political science, Colgate University
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Kristin E. Heyer and Mark J. Rozell
Part I: Catholic Leaders in U.S. Politics
1. The Politics of the U.S. Catholic Bishops: The Centrality of Abortion
Margaret Sammon
2. Political Marriage of Convenience? The Evolution of the Conservative Catholic¿Evangelical Alliance in the Republican Party
Mark J. Rozell
3. One Church, Many Messages: The Politics of the U.S. Catholic Clergy
Gregory A. Smith
4. Catholics in the Political Arena: How Should Faith Inform Catholic Politicians and Voters?
Kristin E. Heyer
Part II: The Catholic Public
5. Between Church, Party, and Conscience: Attitudes Concerning Protecting Life and Promoting Social Justice among U.S. Catholics
Mark M. Gray and Mary E. Bendyna, RSM
6. The Myth of a Distinct Catholic Vote
Matthew J. Streb and Brian Frederick
7. Latino Catholics in U.S. Politics
Adrian Pantoja, Matthew Barreto, and Richard Anderson
Part III: Catholics and the Federal Government
8. Catholics in Congress: Abortion and the Emergence of the Culture Wars
William D¿Antonio, Steven Tuch, and John Kenneth White
9. Catholics and the Supreme Court: From the ¿Catholic Seat¿ to the New Majority¿
Barbara A. Perry
10. White House Outreach to Catholics
Thomas J. Carty
Part IV: International Policy and the Vatican
11. The United States¿Vatican Relationship: ¿Parallel Endeavors for Peace,¿ Competing Visions of Justice
Paul Christopher Manuel
12. Reforming the Vatican: The Tradition of Best Practices
Thomas J. Reese, SJ
List of Contributors
Illustrations
Tables
2.1 Catholics, the Christian Right, and the GOP
2.2 Support for the Christian Right by Religious Tradition
2.3 Mean Evaluations for Specific Persons
2.4 Sources of Support for the Christian Right among Catholics: Logistic Regression Analysis
2.5 Christian Right Republicans and Issue Positions
2.6 Catholics and Non-Catholics in the Christian Right: Differences in Issue Positions
3.1 Parish and Pastor Information
5.1 The Stability of U.S Catholic¿s Attitudes on Social, Political, and Moral Issues,
5.2 Consideration of Church Statements and the Importance of One¿s Own Conscience
5.3 Factor Analysis, Rotated Component Matrix
5.4 Regression Models
5.5 Demographic Comparisons
6.1 Ideological Breakdown of Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1972¿2004
6.2 Logit Model Predicting Democratic Party Identification in 2004
7.1 Latinos and Church Activity in Political Issues
7.2 Political Activities of Church in Last Five Years
7.3 Religiosity of Latino Catholics
7.4 Determinants of Support for Religious Involvement in Politics among Latino Catholics
8.1 Number of Votes Cast in the House and Senate on Abortion Related Issues
8.2 U.S. House Votes on Abortion, 1979¿96
8.3 U.S. Senate Votes on Abortion, 1979¿96
9.1 Catholic Supreme Court Justices
Figures
5.1 Party Identification and Ideology of U.S. Catholics, 2006
5.2 Church Attendance and Ideology of U.S. Catholics, 2006
5.3 In general do you think of yourself as . . .
5.4 A Model of U.S. Catholic Political Decision Making, 2002 and 2006
6.1 Catholics as a Percentage of the Electorate, 1956¿2004
6.2 Percentage of the Vote for the Democratic Presidential Candidate among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
6.3 Percentage of Catholics and Non-Catholics Voting for Democratic House Candidates, 1956¿2004
6.4 ANES Democratic Party Identification among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
6.5 ANES Republican Party Identification among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
6.6 Mean Feeling Thermometer Rating of the Democratic Party among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1978¿2004
6.7 Mean Feeling Thermometer Rating of the Republican Party among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1978¿2004
6.8 Mean Number of Things Respondents Liked About the Democratic Party among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
6.9 Mean Number of Things Respondents Disliked About the Democratic Party among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
6.10 Mean Number of Things Respondents Liked About the Republican Party among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
8.1 Catholics in US House, 92nd to 110th Session
8.2 Catholics in US Senate, 92nd to 110th Session
8.3 U.S. House Votes on Abortion, 1979¿2004, by Party Affiliation
8.4 U.S. Senate Votes on Abortion, 1979¿2004, by Party Affiliation
8.5 U.S. House Votes on Abortion, 1979¿2003, by Party and Religious Affiliation
Catholics and Politics: The Dynamic Tension Between Faith and Power
edited by Kristin E. Heyer, Mark J. Rozell and Michael A. Genovese
Georgetown University Press, 2008 Paper: 978-1-58901-215-8 Cloth: 978-1-58901-216-5
Catholic political identity and engagement defy categorization. The complexities of political realities and the human nature of such institutions as church and government often produce a more fractured reality than the pure unity depicted in doctrine. Yet, in 2003 under the leadership of then-prefect Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI), the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a "Doctrinal Note on Some Questions Regarding the Participation of Catholics in Political Life." The note explicitly asserts, "The Christian faith is an integral unity, and thus it is incoherent to isolate some particular element to the detriment of the whole of Catholic doctrine. A political commitment to a single isolated aspect of the Church's social doctrine does not exhaust one's responsibility toward the common good." Catholics and Politics takes up the political and theological significance of this "integral unity," the universal scope of Catholic concern that can make for strange political bedfellows, confound predictable voting patterns, and leave the church poised to critique narrowly partisan agendas across the spectrum.
Catholics and Politics depicts the ambivalent character of Catholics' mainstream "arrival" in the U.S. over the past forty years, integrating social scientific, historical and moral accounts of persistent tensions between faith and power. Divided into four parts—Catholic Leaders in U.S. Politics; The Catholic Public; Catholics and the Federal Government; and International Policy and the Vatican—it describes the implications of Catholic universalism for voting patterns, international policymaking, and partisan alliances. The book reveals complex intersections of Catholicism and politics and the new opportunities for influence and risks of cooptation of political power produced by these shifts. Contributors include political scientists, ethicists, and theologians. The book will be of interest to scholars in political science, religious studies, and Christian ethics and all lay Catholics interested in gaining a deeper understanding of the tensions that can exist between church doctrine and partisan politics.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Kristin E. Heyer is Bernard J. Hanley Professor of Religious Studies at Santa Clara University. She is the author of Prophetic and Public also published by Georgetown University Press.
Mark J. Rozell is professor of public policy at George Mason University.
Michael A. Genovese holds the Loyola Chair of Leadership at Loyola Marymount University.
REVIEWS
-- J. Christopher Soper, Pepperdine University
-- Stephen Schneck, director, Life Cycle Institute, The Catholic University of America
-- Voice of Reason
-- Theological Studies
-- Clarke E. Cochran, Covenant Health System
-- American Catholic Studies
-- Timothy Byrnes, professor of political science, Colgate University
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Kristin E. Heyer and Mark J. Rozell
Part I: Catholic Leaders in U.S. Politics
1. The Politics of the U.S. Catholic Bishops: The Centrality of Abortion
Margaret Sammon
2. Political Marriage of Convenience? The Evolution of the Conservative Catholic¿Evangelical Alliance in the Republican Party
Mark J. Rozell
3. One Church, Many Messages: The Politics of the U.S. Catholic Clergy
Gregory A. Smith
4. Catholics in the Political Arena: How Should Faith Inform Catholic Politicians and Voters?
Kristin E. Heyer
Part II: The Catholic Public
5. Between Church, Party, and Conscience: Attitudes Concerning Protecting Life and Promoting Social Justice among U.S. Catholics
Mark M. Gray and Mary E. Bendyna, RSM
6. The Myth of a Distinct Catholic Vote
Matthew J. Streb and Brian Frederick
7. Latino Catholics in U.S. Politics
Adrian Pantoja, Matthew Barreto, and Richard Anderson
Part III: Catholics and the Federal Government
8. Catholics in Congress: Abortion and the Emergence of the Culture Wars
William D¿Antonio, Steven Tuch, and John Kenneth White
9. Catholics and the Supreme Court: From the ¿Catholic Seat¿ to the New Majority¿
Barbara A. Perry
10. White House Outreach to Catholics
Thomas J. Carty
Part IV: International Policy and the Vatican
11. The United States¿Vatican Relationship: ¿Parallel Endeavors for Peace,¿ Competing Visions of Justice
Paul Christopher Manuel
12. Reforming the Vatican: The Tradition of Best Practices
Thomas J. Reese, SJ
List of Contributors
Illustrations
Tables
2.1 Catholics, the Christian Right, and the GOP
2.2 Support for the Christian Right by Religious Tradition
2.3 Mean Evaluations for Specific Persons
2.4 Sources of Support for the Christian Right among Catholics: Logistic Regression Analysis
2.5 Christian Right Republicans and Issue Positions
2.6 Catholics and Non-Catholics in the Christian Right: Differences in Issue Positions
3.1 Parish and Pastor Information
5.1 The Stability of U.S Catholic¿s Attitudes on Social, Political, and Moral Issues,
5.2 Consideration of Church Statements and the Importance of One¿s Own Conscience
5.3 Factor Analysis, Rotated Component Matrix
5.4 Regression Models
5.5 Demographic Comparisons
6.1 Ideological Breakdown of Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1972¿2004
6.2 Logit Model Predicting Democratic Party Identification in 2004
7.1 Latinos and Church Activity in Political Issues
7.2 Political Activities of Church in Last Five Years
7.3 Religiosity of Latino Catholics
7.4 Determinants of Support for Religious Involvement in Politics among Latino Catholics
8.1 Number of Votes Cast in the House and Senate on Abortion Related Issues
8.2 U.S. House Votes on Abortion, 1979¿96
8.3 U.S. Senate Votes on Abortion, 1979¿96
9.1 Catholic Supreme Court Justices
Figures
5.1 Party Identification and Ideology of U.S. Catholics, 2006
5.2 Church Attendance and Ideology of U.S. Catholics, 2006
5.3 In general do you think of yourself as . . .
5.4 A Model of U.S. Catholic Political Decision Making, 2002 and 2006
6.1 Catholics as a Percentage of the Electorate, 1956¿2004
6.2 Percentage of the Vote for the Democratic Presidential Candidate among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
6.3 Percentage of Catholics and Non-Catholics Voting for Democratic House Candidates, 1956¿2004
6.4 ANES Democratic Party Identification among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
6.5 ANES Republican Party Identification among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
6.6 Mean Feeling Thermometer Rating of the Democratic Party among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1978¿2004
6.7 Mean Feeling Thermometer Rating of the Republican Party among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1978¿2004
6.8 Mean Number of Things Respondents Liked About the Democratic Party among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
6.9 Mean Number of Things Respondents Disliked About the Democratic Party among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
6.10 Mean Number of Things Respondents Liked About the Republican Party among Catholics and Non-Catholics, 1952¿2004
8.1 Catholics in US House, 92nd to 110th Session
8.2 Catholics in US Senate, 92nd to 110th Session
8.3 U.S. House Votes on Abortion, 1979¿2004, by Party Affiliation
8.4 U.S. Senate Votes on Abortion, 1979¿2004, by Party Affiliation
8.5 U.S. House Votes on Abortion, 1979¿2003, by Party and Religious Affiliation
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC