There’s an interesting debate going on in the blog of the Dallas Morning News’ editorial board. It is a rare glimpse inside the process bywhich a major newspaper deals with religious issues. The current issue is the US Catholic bishops’ decision to study how to deal with Catholic politicians who are pro-abortion. Rod Dreher seems to be holding the line against the prevailing sentiment, which is that if Catholic politicians are seen as having their votes determined by the bishops, then everyone will vote against them.
I don’t see how this is different from politicians who are beholden to other special interests. At least in this case, their decisions theoretically would be based on moral principles rather than how many campaign donations they can get from lobbyists.
The other main thread is granting moral equivalence between being pro-abortion and voting in favor of the war in Iraq or supporting the death penalty, which are qualitatively different in the degree of obligation they place on your conscience.
I’m no moral theologian, but I think that he must vote against the bill. Any material cooperation must be avoided. Instead he should call for an amendment removing the funding for abortion.