Liguori Author Stephen P. White Discusses the Applicability of Gaudete et Exsultate to "Red, White, Blue, and Catholic" Citizens
On Flag Day and the Fourth of July, many American Catholics celebrate the country they call home. In his book, Red, White, Blue, and Catholic, Liguori author Stephen P. White urges us to be faithful Catholic citizens, not only on Election Day and holidays but every day of the year.
Inspiration for Red, White, Blue, and Catholic came from conversations White had about voting and being a faithful American Catholic citizen.
“A lot of our conversations about citizenship begin and end with questions of voting, specifically who to vote for. But most of the work of citizenship—the work of living in, and building up, the communities to which we belong—happens long before we ever set foot in a voting booth.”
The importance of being a good Catholic citizen increases in significance each day because of the highly divisive political climate in America.
In his recent exhortation, Gaudete et exsaultate, Pope Francis urges Catholics to not be “single-issue Catholics,” meaning we should consider all issues regarding human dignity as important.
White said Pope Francis reminds Catholics in both his recent exhortation, Gaudete et exsultate, as well as his 2015 encyclical letter, Laudato Si’,that “everything is connected.”
“The sanctity of life which obliges us to defend the unborn is the same sanctity of life we must recognize and defend in the poor, the infirm, the refugee, and so on,” said White.
“Direct, lethal attacks on life itself obviously demand a certain priority, but our commitment to life is incomplete, and our witness to its sanctity is inconsistent, when we ignore any affront to human dignity. Catholic citizens need to set a better example in this regard,” said White.
White believes that faithful citizenship does not necessarily have to mean doing something big, however.
“There are lots of everyday things we can do, including many that might not seem at first glance to have much to do with citizenship. These days, striving to build a healthy and holy family life is critically important to both our Church and our country,” he said.
White strives to live out his definition of faithful citizenship by starting with his family at home, which recently became a little bigger with the addition of White and his wife’s fourth child.
He continues to build upon the ideals of being a faithful citizen in his professional life as well. From July 2 through July 19, White hosts lectures at the Tertio Millennio Seminar on Free Society, a free, three-week seminar on Catholic social teaching. White regularly lectures at this seminar each summer.
