Faith in the Public Arena

Much, including our politics, cannot go back to the way it was before. It is, as Pope Francis says, a time for choosing.

Legalizing recreational marijuana is a major issue for consideration during Minnesota’s 2020 legislative session. Many worry that legislators and the public have not fully realized the negative consequences that would likely follow legalization.  

The U.S. Supreme Court is currently deliberating a case involving a Montana state constitutional provision steeped in historic anti-Catholic bigotry. The justices’ decision could drastically impact the future of school choice programs across the country.

We need to do a better job as a Church of telling our story — those of yesterday and of today — as well as reach out to those persons and communities who still struggle with the legacy of the sins and injustices of the past, whether Catholics committed them or not.

“As migration-related advocacy has been a significant focus of our work at Minnesota Catholic Conference over the past decade, I thought it important to travel to the U.S.-Mexico border to encounter the realities faced by those living and migrating there.”

Understanding and putting into practice Catholic social teaching is vital to address the challenges of creation stewardship without falling into the environmental activism today that often mimics religious apocalypticism. 

“The Lord of the Rings” trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien is a beautiful work showing the important role even the smallest and seemingly most insignificant people have in the drama of history.

This session, the Catholic bishops of Minnesota advocated in favor of a policy that would allow undocumented immigrants to drive legally in Minnesota. The bishops and Minnesota Catholic Conference staff have received plenty of feedback from Catholics throughout the state, and in many instances expressing their disagreement with that policy proposal.