By Michael Pauley
Imagine you’re driving down the highway and you come across an overturned vehicle on the side of the road. There are injured people inside, and no one else is there to help. Do you stop to provide assistance, or do you keep driving so you’re not late to your destination?
For most Christians, the answer falls into the “no brainer” category. We’ve heard the parable of the good Samaritan (Lk 10) so many times that our response is baked into our DNA. We’re morally obliged to stop and help, especially when we know that our decision could make the difference between life and death.
Unfortunately, this sense of moral clarity doesn’t always extend to other realms of life, such as our responsibility to vote and participate in political life.
In the Nov. 5 election, there is a “life or death” issue on South Dakota’s ballot in Amendment G. The outcome will determine whether thousands of preborn girls and boys have a chance to be born, or whether their lives will come to a violent end through abortion. A “no” vote on G gives these babies a chance to be born. But if a majority vote “yes,” these babies will die. That is the stark choice before us. Only rarely is an issue of such eternal significance placed into our hands.
On Election Day, will Christians recognize their duty to save those at risk of death? Or will they drive by their polling places, thinking, “I don’t have time”? There is reason to be concerned about this. In the 2020 presidential election, 26 percent of all registered South Dakota voters didn’t cast a ballot. That’s about 151,000 people. Even worse, this doesn’t include the thousands of eligible citizens who are not registered to vote. We don’t have an exact number, but census data provide a clue. In 2020, there were about 669,000 South Dakotans aged 18 and up, but only 579,000 on the voter rolls. That’s a difference of 90,000.
We could be looking at more than 200,000 South Dakotans who are disengaged politically. We don’t know what percentage of these are Christian, but even a small share would amount to tens of thousands of people.
Our faith teaches that the right to vote comes attached with responsibilities. In the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), we read, “As far as possible citizens should take an active part in public life” (CCC 1915). It also teaches, “Submission to authority and co-responsibility for the common good make it morally obligatory to pay taxes, to exercise the right to vote, and to defend one’s country” (CCC 2240).
An older edition of the Baltimore Catechism states, “Citizens should exercise their right to vote. This is a moral obligation when the common good of the state or the good of religion, especially in serious matters, can be promoted.”
The battle over Amendment G is a serious matter that affects both the common good of the state and the interests of the Church. With that in mind, let’s examine some of the reasons people give for not voting.
“I don’t like any of the candidates.” The issue of how we should vote when all the choices seem bad is important. The Church offers useful guidance on this dilemma. But this has nothing to do with Amendment G, a proposed law that can be judged on its own merits, separate and apart from candidates running for elected office. It’s critical to understand that when voting, you do not have to complete every part of your ballot. You can decide to leave your ballot blank for one or more of the candidate races, while still casting a vote on ballot measures like Amendment G, and your vote will still be counted.
“I’m not registered to vote.” It’s easy to register to vote, and you should do so immediately. The deadline for registering is Monday, Oct. 21. Visit the South Dakota Secretary of State’s website at www.sdsos.gov. On the top menu of the home page, you’ll see “Register to Vote.” Click and follow the instructions.
“I’m too busy to vote on Election Day.” You can vote prior to Election Day by requesting an absentee ballot. Visit the website mentioned above, select “Search by Subject” in the menu, and look for “Absentee Ballot Application Form.”
“My one vote won’t make a difference.” This is simply not a rational thought. If your vote is too small to make a difference, wouldn’t that mean that every other citizen’s vote is also irrelevant? Yet the ballots of those who do vote are counted, and they determine the winners and losers in every election. There’s an old saying: “Elections are not determined by public opinion; they’re won by those who bother to show up at the polls.” For the sake of saving innocent lives, you need to show up and vote NO on Amendment G.
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus reminds us that we will have to render an account not only for the sins we commit, but also for “sins of omission”—the failure to do the good that we are obliged to do.
“Then they will answer and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison, and not minister to your needs?’ He will answer them, ‘Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.’ And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life” (Mt 25:44-46).
Vulnerable preborn children are certainly among the “least ones” that our Savior loves. Voting “no” on Amendment G isn’t the only thing we should be doing to serve and protect them. But if we’re not willing to do at least that much, what excuse could we possibly offer on the day when we must render an account?
