Tag: Social Doctrine
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Catholic Membership in Political Parties
Should Catholics be members of political parties? That depends. The Church doesn’t really have a definitive teaching on this, and because of that, it can be safely assumed that membership in a political party is permitted. However, that doesn’t mean that one SHOULD be a member of a particular party, or any party for that […]
Shane Schaetzel
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The Social Kingship of Jesus Christ – In America
JESUS IS KING! But what does that mean? How do we act as instruments by which the Kingdom of God may shine through? I am an Integralist. That means I believe governments should be subject to the basic principles of Christian religion. Let me clarify that in stating that I am an Integralist of the […]
Shane Schaetzel
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Catholic Integralism
Even though Integralism has fallen out of favor among many within the Catholic Church, including much of the clergy, nobody can reasonably deny that the Church doesn’t still officially teach it. In fact, there are a lot of things the Church officially teaches, and many Catholics (clergy included) don’t like, often ignore, and try to […]
Shane Schaetzel
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We Need a Convention of States
As of today, conventional wisdom is predicting more civil unrest in the days ahead, along with a spike in COVID-19 over the fall and winter, accompanied by the flu. In addition, conventional wisdom tells us the election may not be over on election night, due to the large number of mail-in ballots in many states, […]
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A Catholic Understanding of the Separation of Church and State
The separation of Church and State, as defined by the Encyclopedia Britannica, takes on two main forms, classified as American and French. These two are similar, in appearance, but work toward opposite ends. The American form: “as implied in the Constitution of the United States, was supported by a tendency to leave to the church, […]
Shane Schaetzel
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The 2020 Democratic Ticket is Insulting to Catholics
As a practicing and faithful Catholic, I find the Democrats’ 2020 presidential ticket insulting. Here’s why. Joe Biden is what we call a heretical or cafeteria Catholic. He says he’s a Catholic, and brags about his Catholic heritage, but when it comes to what the Catholic Church actually teaches on moral issues, he picks and […]
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Building an Ownership Economy
There are really only two paths in economics: Moral and Amoral. That’s it. Either economies are governed by a system of morals, or they’re not. That’s all there is to it. Basically, economics is just morality (or lack thereof) by another name. There’s really nothing all that complicated about it. Either we have a moral […]
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In Defense of Distributism
Something very strange is happening in the world of traditional Catholicism, and I think I know where it’s coming from, but rather than point fingers, I’m just going to explain myself and my position for what it is. Let me finish, then call me what you like. Some very prominent traditional Catholics, who I deeply […]
Shane Schaetzel
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Distributed Capitalism: A Catholic Economic Proposal
As a Faithful Catholic, I take the traditional Catholic teaching on economics seriously, starting with Rerum Novarum from Pope Leo XIII in 1891, and culminating (I believe) in Pope St. John Paul II’s centennial anniversary encyclical on Rerum Novarum with Centesimus Annus in 1991, followed with his epic teaching on life and family in Evangelium Vitae […]
Shane Schaetzel
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Would Jesus Support Gun Control?
I have grown rather weary of the “what would Jesus do?” cliche because everyone is using it now. I would rather ask “what did Jesus do?” I think that’s a better question, because it helps to prevent us from injecting our own personal feelings and prejudices into the speculation. To be sure, the Jesus most […]