General Election: A message from Scotland's Bishops

The Bishops of Scotland have published the following letter for Catholics in Scotland ahead of the General Election next month.

General Election 2024

This General Election presents us with an opportunity to connect our voting to our Catholic faith and elect an individual representative who reflects as closely as possible our values and beliefs.

It is an opportunity to proclaim the dignity and value of every human being, made in the image and likeness of God, and promote the common good.

The human person is both the foundation and the goal of society, and the principal task of society is to defend and foster human dignity in its laws and institutions which should, in turn, support peace and justice at home and abroad.

During elections, a range of issues compete for our attention.

And whilst the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland does not endorse or support individual candidates or parties, we highlight some of the key issues here so that individual Catholics may reflect on, and raise them, with parliamentary candidates.

Human Life

It is the duty of all of us to uphold the most basic and fundamental human right – the right to life, which is both inalienable and inviolable.

At the heart of the political response to the Covid Pandemic was the desire to protect and care for the most vulnerable.

In a truly compassionate society, this desire to protect and care ought to extend to all people, including the unborn child in the womb.

We should urge MPs to recognise human life from the moment of conception and ensure that the conditions are present to protect and care for both mother and child.

This also applies at the end of life.

Dangerous proposals to legalise assisted suicide must be rejected in favour of improvements to palliative care and a commitment to meet the needs of vulnerable people at the end of life, including providing the care and compassion they need to help them live.

Our politicians should be urged to learn the lessons of how assisted suicide legislation introduced in some countries has already become an intolerable and unjust pressure upon the elderly, the weak and the disabled to see themselves - and to be considered by others - a burden to society and thus to end their lives, or have their lives ended for them.  This is an injustice that ought to be resisted before it can begin.

Marriage and the Family

Society relies on the building block of the family to exist.

The love of man and woman in marriage and their openness to new life is the basic, fundamental cell upon which society is built.

The wellbeing of society depends on the flourishing and health of family life and MPs should respond to this with policies that create economic and fiscal support for married couples and families with children.

Poverty and Immigration

Sadly, poverty continues to be a scourge for many at home and abroad.

Too many people still struggle to make ends meet, homelessness is on the rise, and the two-child limit on tax credits is disproportionately affecting large families, including many families of faith. This reality cannot and should not endure in our country in the twenty-first century.

Reliance on food and clothing banks is a damning indictment of a society that has forgotten its poor.

Our country persists in a tragic lack of charity and responsibility owed to our poorest brothers and sisters in other parts of the world.

With this in mind, we should call on candidates to work for an immediate return to an overseas aid budget of 0.7% of GNI and provide debt-relief to low-income countries that need it.

We should welcome refugees, asylum seekers and migrants, and remove the inhumane Rwanda policy and indefinite immigration detention and provide for those people living in and around conflict zones while committing to working towards the peaceful resolution of conflict.

The Environment

MPs should also commit the nation to responsible stewardship of the earth and all its resources, and act on Pope Francis’ call to be ‘protectors of creation, protectors of God’s plan inscribed in nature, protectors of one another and of the environment.’

We cannot be indifferent to the harmful effects of climate change.

War and Nuclear Weapons

A key task of the state is to ensure peace at home and abroad. We are deeply troubled by the tragedy of war in the world, including conflicts in Ukraine and the Holyland, and firmly believe it is incumbent on the UK Parliament and Government to foster peace where conflict exists and to do everything in its power to prevent bloodshed.

The use of weapons of mass destruction is a serious crime against God and humanity.

While states are entitled to possess the means required for legitimate defence, this must not become an excuse for an excessive accumulation of weaponry which becomes a considerable threat to stability and freedom as well as a misuse of public funds that could serve to address the needs of the disadvantaged.

The UK Government must work actively and seriously towards elimination of the UK’s nuclear arsenal, and the promotion of a more peace-oriented manufacturing industry.

Freedom of Religion and Conscience

We believe that a creeping intolerance towards religious belief, including but not confined to Christianity, has become part of life in modern Britain.

Certain politicians and citizens are finding it increasingly difficult to be true to their faith in an environment that tries to restrict religion to the private sphere.

Our MPs should be urged to legislate for a liberal and tolerant society that is truly welcoming to all faiths and none.

Nor can we be blind to the plight of millions of people worldwide who are persecuted for their beliefs.

People of faith, including Christians, should be able to practise their faith freely and to bear witness to it in their lives without fear of prejudice, intolerance, abuse or violence.

Finally, as we engage in this General Election, please pray for those who will be charged with representing the nation’s interests in Parliament. May they pursue peace and justice and put the human person at the centre of all political activity.

Yours devotedly in Christ,

+ Hugh Gilbert, President, Bishop of Aberdeen

+ John Keenan, Vice-President, Bishop of Paisley

+ Brian McGee, Episcopal Secretary, Bishop of Argyll and the Isles

+ Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh

+ William Nolan, Archbishop of Glasgow

+ Joseph Toal, Bishop of Motherwell

+ Francis Dougan, Bishop of Galloway

Vote today! What Catholics need to know

The Scottish Parliament Election Resource is a must-read for Catholics ahead of the election on Thursday 06 May.

It includes: Catholic Q&A, bishops' pastoral letter, manifestos, candidate contact details and more. To access the resource visit rcpolitics.org/scottish-parliament-election-2021/

When is the election?

The Scottish Parliament election is on Thursday 06 May. It is an opportunity for the people of Scotland to choose who will represent their region and constituency in the next parliamentary term in Holyrood. Once elected, a representative becomes a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP).

What is the role of an MSP?

The main role of MSPs is to represent their constituencies or regions on the issues that are important to local people. Ultimately, these issues are considered when MSPs are speaking in debates, considering proposals for laws, or questioning members of the Scottish Government. The Scottish Parliament was established in 1999 to debate legislation and pass laws on devolved matters.

Am I voting for an individual candidate or a political party?

Partisan party politics is often the driver for an increasingly fractious political culture today. Love of blue, red, yellow etc often trumps all other values in an increasingly divisive political landscape.

Whilst party politics can be an important consideration, particularly in the Scottish Parliament list system, it is individuals who will make up the parliament and form a government; and some of the most important issues, including abortion and assisted suicide, are commonly decided by a conscience, or free, vote. Therefore, it is critical to ascertain candidates’ personal values and opinions and not concentrate solely on party policies.

This is why the CPO has created a Scottish Parliament Election resource which includes a questionnaire to share with candidates standing in your constituency and on your regional list. We have even created a resource containing details of those candidates to make things easier for you to contact them.

The resource also includes the bishops’ pastoral letter, a guide to voting, and further information on some of the issues you might want to think about before you cast your vote.

Will the Church tell me who I should vote for?

No. The Church does not state any preference for this or that candidate or political party. Instead, the Church intends to instruct and illuminate the consciences of the faithful so that their actions may always serve the integral promotion of the human person and the common good.

The fundamental vocation of the church in the political sphere is to form consciences, and to be the advocate of justice and truth.

Which issues are important?

The Church actively engages society on several fundamental issues of peace and justice.

Sanctity of life issues are foundational: deliberately killing the innocent is always inexcusably wrong and sets a pattern of contempt for every other aspect of human dignity. All direct attacks on innocent human life, such as abortion and euthanasia, directly and immediately violate the human person’s most fundamental right – the right to life. All human rights are contingent on the right to life.

Adopting a consistent ethic of life, the Church promotes a broad spectrum of issues seeking to protect human life and promote human dignity from the inception of life until its final moment. Opposition to abortion and euthanasia does not indicate indifference to those who suffer from poverty, violence and injustice. Politics of human life must work to resist the violence of war and avoidable threats to the planet and a healthy environment. And any politics of human dignity must address unjust discrimination, poverty, hunger, employment, education, housing and health care.

Pope John Paul II reminds us that the command never to kill establishes a minimum which we must respect and from which we must start out “in order to say ‘yes’ over and over again, a ‘yes’ which will gradually embrace the entire horizon of the good.”

In the Doctrinal Note on some questions regarding The Participation of Catholics in Political Life, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith states that when political activities come up against moral principles that do not admit of exception, compromise or derogation, the Catholic commitment becomes more laden with responsibility. This, it notes, is the case with:

 Add to this the call to care for our Common Home and to protect God’s gift of Creation.

What if no candidates or parties fit with my own values?

As Catholics we are called to work for the greatest good. We ought to properly exercise our conscience and good sense. If there is no ‘perfect’ candidate then we may vote for the candidate who most closely fits our moral ideal.

Closing Thoughts

St Thomas More, the patron saint of statesmen and politicians, gave witness by his martyrdom to the inalienable dignity of the human conscience. He refused to bow to the pressures of men and refused to compromise his fidelity to God. He remained loyal to his Catholic faith.

As we think about our own loyalties at this election, consider this quote from Avery Dulles, American Jesuit and Cardinal, who said: “the greatest danger facing the Church in our [world] today is that of an excessive and indiscreet accommodation.” In other words, as Jacques Maritain put it, we risk “kneeling before the world”, instead of kneeling before Christ.

We cannot turn a blind eye to injustice. We need to elect parliamentarians who will stand up and be counted and who will stand up for what is right. We need parliamentarians who will: no longer tolerate the killing of innocent babies in the womb; reject assisted suicide and its implicit acceptance that some lives are not worth living; stand up for religious freedom; recognise the importance of monogamous marriage of man and woman and their openness to new life as the bedrock of society; stand up for the poor and prioritise their need; stand up for all children and ensure that their educational needs are met.

Since all these things matter, so too does the candidate with whom you entrust your vote.

Above FAQs taken from Catholic Reflections on the Election at rcpolitics.org.uk