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PASTORAL LETTER ON CACERES VOTERS EDUCATION PROGRAM 20 13

Sunday, 24 M arch 2013

Pi lgr im City o f N aga

A Catholic Vot e is a free , inform ed a nd e vangelized conscience vot e.

Dearest brot hers and sisters!

Seek f i rst h is kingdom and his r ight eousness, and al l t hese th ings shal l be yo urs as wel l .

Today, w e launch th e Vot ers Education Program of the Archdiocese of Caceres. This is our f i rm and

resounding response to t he chal lenge of our fa i th. As discip les of Chr ist, i t is im possib le for us to fo l low

the p ath o f hol iness i f w e turn a deaf ear to t he cal l for pol i t ica l act ion . Our Cathol ic fa i th cal ls upon us to

br ing Jesus to society and society, t o Jesus. As Cathol ic ci t izens, i t is our dut y t o take part in t he po l i t ica l

exercise o f our na t ion armed w i th th e teach ings o f our fa i th .

The Voters Education Program seeks to br in g about a Cathol ic Vote, a free, infor m ed and evangel ized

conscience vote. W hen a Cathol ic casts h is vote, he part ic ipates not on ly in bui ld ing th e nation, bu t in

bui ld ing Gods kingdom i f h is decision is in accord w ith the Gospel. Through a Cathol ic Vote, our fa i th

bears fru i t in ou r pu bl ic decisions and pol i t ical choices.

A Catho l ic Vote is free. W hen a Cathol ic m akes his choice, he is inf luenced sole ly by t he desire to br ing

God to t he w or ld, and not by the d esires of h is hum an patrons. A decision inf luen ced by fear of losing ajo b , a sh el t er , o r fav o rs f r om po l it ici an s, i s a deci sion t hat vio la t es a b asi c t en et o f our fai t h t hat m an ,

by his d igni ty, has free w i l l .

A Cathol ic Vote is inform ed. W hen a Cathol ic m akes his choice, he is able to d ist inguish fact from f ict ion ,

ju st f rom un ju st , good f rom evi l. An in fo rm ed vo t e is no t sw ay ed by t he m ult im il l io n pesos-w o r t h o f

strategies to paint a perfect p ictu re over a rott en pol i t ical leadership. An infor m ed vote does not

emanate f rom a sent im enta l i ty evoked by an appeal to the em ot ion . Rather , i t i s a vo te borne by a c lear

understandin g of our fa i th and a vigorous effor t to b r ing a Cathol ic presence in our society.

A Catho l ic Vote is evangelized. W hen a Cath ol ic makes his choice, he br ings the Gospel to our pol i t ica l

system . As mem bers of Gods Church, w e pledge al legiance to God and no one else. The Gospel is our

m oral standard and Gods love for a l l His chi ldren is our m oral com pass.

W e are ci t izens of Gods kingdom for et erni ty. Our ci t izenship on earth is tem porary. But th is tentat ive

ci t izenship is our pr eparat ion t ow ards shar ing in Gods glory. W hen our l ives are d irected to w ards God,

w e imp act t he po l i t i cal l i fe o f our na t ion in a way tha t God wi l l s i t to be : w e are His so ld ie rs and our l i ves

are a t H is com m and.

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W e launch the Voters Education Program on Palm Sunday to signi fy an entry to a t ransform ed society.

As Jesus himself , in fu l f i l ling His m ission, suffer ed in th e hands of m en, we, t oo, w i l l be m et w i th m uch

dif f icul ty and p ain. But t he prom ise on Palm Sunday is not lost on al l of us Easter w i l l com e.

I cal l upon the f a i thfu l t o t ake courage just as our Ina b ravely said yes to Gods p lan. The baby she

cradled in her arms died a vio lent d eath. But her fa i th w as greater than her p ain. Let our fa i th be greaterthan o ur fears. A Cathol ic Vote is our yes to Gods p lan.

I cal l upon the fa i t hfu l t o take act ion. Part ic ipate in th e elector al process f i l led w ith Gods f lame.

Suppo rt your par ishes in the Vot ers Education Program. Al ign your schools, your o ff ices, your

organizat ions w ith t he program so we can cast a Catho l ic Vote: free, infor m ed and evangel ized.

I cal l upon the you th t o take your r ightfu l p lace in our society. Your energy and ideal ism w i l l br ing in

f resh hope to a genera t ion tha t has been hur t and f rust ra ted in t he s t ruggle fo r t ru th and just ice . Le t a

Cathol ic Vote be th e m ark of your generat ion. Demand f or a Cathol ic Vote; your vo ice, unafra id and

unt ainted, wi l l surely be heard.

Pope Francis calls us to be the pro tector s of Gods g i f ts. But f i rst, w e ought t o prot ect Chr ist in our

l ives, so w e can pro tect ot hers, so we can prot ect creation. By a Cathol ic Vote, Chr ist w i l l reside in our

l ives and our society, and w i l l protect t hose who canno t pro tect t hem selves. Our Cathol ic Vote is in the

service of the po orest, the w eakest, the least im port ant. A Cathol ic Vote is fa i th actual ized in love and

service.

Th is Catho l ic Vote jum pstar ts our renew ed comm i tm ent to p rom ote the socia l teach ings o f the Church .

Our part ic ipat ion in th e dem ocrat ic processes of ou r n at ion do es not begin and end in e lect ions. Thus,

the local Church of Caceres, under i ts education m inistry thro ugh a new Comm ission on t he Promo tion

of Socia l Teachings shal l develop an on going program that envisions a vibrant com m unity of d iscip les ofChr ist, v igi lant in i ts m ission t o bui ld t he Kingdom o f God in ou r society.

Through prayer and d iscernm ent, v ig i lance and hardw ork, let us hear Gods voice in our h earts. Let us

l isten t o Him as He calls us to bui ld His Kingdom on eart h.

Therefore do no t be anxious, saying, W hat shal l w e eat? or Wh at shal l w e dr ink? or Wh at shal l w e

w ear? For t he Genti les seek al l these th in gs; and your heavenly Father k now s that you need them al l .

But seek f i rst h is kingdom and his r ighteousness, and al l these th ings shal l be your s as wel l (M t 6, 31-

33).

+ ROLANDO J. TRIA TIRONA, O .C.D., D.D .

Archbishop o f Caceres