Political candidates

Editor:

I read Father Kenneth Doyle’s response to Bel Aire, Md.,(Question Corner, “The Catholic Church does not endorse political candidates,” Aug. 3) and although I agree with the “letter” of what he wrote, my perception of what the bishops do leads me to another conclusion. Outright endorsement? No. Implicit endorsement? Yes.

The bishops have continually supported (endorsed) Democrat sponsored expansion of welfare and other social programs, as if their (the Democrats’) ideas of expanded government are the solution to the ills of the world. It irritates me to no end that the liberals of the church keep pushing for the government to feed the hungry, house the homeless, clothe the naked, etc., when Jesus instructed his disciples to do those things. To my knowledge he never admonished his followers to petition the government to impose confiscatory taxes for the benefit of bureaucracies to tend to the poor. The church needs to re-establish its role in caring for the poor and disenfranchised. Denounce those priests calling for expanded government programs. That leads to fascism, totalitarianism or worse. It’s certainly leading to our bankruptcy. We’ve already got a Democrat party literally making up their own “facts,” and a compliant media allowing them to perpetuate the lies. Christians and others are demonized and denounced on a regular basis.

Government has to shrink, and the church has to pick up the slack, or the last, best hopes of earthly mankind will very soon fade from this earth. That’s a world in which no one wants to live.

Gregg Helsel

Swedesboro