Christine Smith's Blog

Issues of Life: This Catholic’s spiritual & libertarian perspective

All my life I have meditated upon the sanctity of life and reverence for all life.

But only in the last year and a half, as my devotion to seeking understanding in my Catholic faith has become paramount in my life, have I felt an inner understanding as never before regarding certain issues.

In years past I wavered, torn between trying to use my mind to logically analyze matters and a deep heart sense of what I felt was truly spiritually and morally correct. Any discrepancy between what I felt deep down or believed true in years before (and have come to believe or return to again) and what I had sometimes expressed or condoned came to pain me. I allowed a wondering about certain beliefs to cause me to wander away. I’ve always been sincere, but as I look back, sometimes sincerely wrong.

Such is the weakness of letting only one’s mind and intellect guide them, rather than letting their heart and its devotion to God lead and then using one’s mind to implement the divine guidance provided. Reconciliation/confession, prayer, and sharing through my writing and personal conversations of what I realize spiritually has brought peace from that pain.

libertarianism

Since reading those such as Frederic Bastiat and Leonard Read, my understanding of freedom, liberty, and my personal faith has been clarified. It’s entirely consistent to practice or abstain from something yourself and not try to impose it upon others through the force of government.

Respecting the freedom of every individual to make personal choices, free from government coercion, allows all to reap the consequences (whether negative or positive), leading to personal responsibility which is an essential part of liberty.

In my opinion, the majority of politicians (regardless of political party affiliation) have no such respect for the freedom of the American people. Thus, government gets larger, more powerful, and uses its force to make laws resulting in more government intrusion into our lives. Rather than focusing on their job of upholding the U.S. Constitution, they meddle into people’s private lives, poking their heads into bedrooms, deciding what people can or cannot ingest, what we can or cannot see, and deciding who can “legally” take our private property. They behave as if they are the epitome of righteousness with the right to judge, condemn, and define for us what is moral or immoral, healthy or unhealthy, productive or non-productive, and thus what should be legal or illegal.

If one in or seeking public office feels they cannot uphold loyalty to the U.S. Constitution (or state constitution depending upon the office) because of religious beliefs, they should have the integrity not to seek elected office. As for me, my spiritual and religious beliefs govern my behavior, not the behavior of others. I respect the freedom for others to live as they choose as long as they harm no other. I would see no contradiction between my personal beliefs and my upholding of the Constitution.

Respecting Free Will

The legitimate use of law is for recourse when an injury has been caused to another. But as we know, many laws wrongly criminalize personal behavior.

Just as you would not want those with differing beliefs to force you to accept their values, you cannot condone the government forcing the beliefs you have upon others.

Personal behavior choices, social issues, and research are not a legitimate business of the federal government to determine what is permissible, discriminate against (or for), legislate, punish, or fund with taxpayer money.

Issues not within the Constitutional realm of the federal government (and very few are) should be left to the individual states. Can you imagine a nation where states were free from the many federal mandates/restrictions they now abide by? We could have a nation of states with their own distinct “personalities,” each operating primarily as its own sovereign power under their state constitutions yet as a state of The United States, where citizens of like-mindedness could vote, keeping many decisions closer to the people as they should be.

As a Christian, I share my beliefs with others and I willingly give to causes, charities and people I want to help, but I part company with many Christians because I do not want the government involved in legislating morality nor using taxpayer money for welfare, and I oppose the federal government stepping beyond its enumerated powers to dictate what states may do.

Sex & The Humanae Vitae teachings

As a Catholic, I seek to live in God’s will for my life. I want to learn and grow in faith; my devoutness comes from adhering to the teachings of the Church and is strengthened in prayer. My faith is integral to the way I live my life in every area.

Amazingly to me, I now feel a deep understanding inside (beyond mere mental understanding) of matters which perplexed or confused me before.

I can give you a direct example of where my eyes have been opened. It is in my understanding of the Humanae Vitae teachings found in the Encyclical Letter of Pope Paul VI in 1968.

Although all my life I have always regarded life as beginning at conception, I couldn’t understand how (artificial) contraception would contradict God’s will. It seems so apparent to me now. But for much of my life, I couldn’t grasp it.

Though I don’t have to consider contraception now since I am single (and believe sex to be a sacrament reserved for marriage), it’s still a matter I’ve given thought to understand. Now, I see it as directly a matter of trusting God. Just as I trust God to provide for me in life, so I would not exclude His will from a matter as sacred as to determine whether or when a new life should be brought forth. Likewise, very importantly and completely interrelated to that, I would want to keep nothing (not even temporarily) of myself artificially from my husband.

Unlike many of my friends and associates, I’ve never felt an urge to have a child as if it it were a necessity to my life, but always felt that if it’s meant to be, it would occur in a marriage to a wonderful man. The idea of having a child has always been inextricably linked to a deep desire to love a man whom I would respect, admire, cherish and help in every way I could…only within the idea of the prerequisite of being in such a relationship have I ever been able to imagine the possibility of having a child.

With that, has always come a knowing I would respect what the man finally chose in all matters of importance, not my own will. I am first subject to God, and secondly would be subject to the man whom I loved and married since he would also be one who puts God’s will first, and as such I would have a trust in his judgment above mine.

Unlike many other females, I don’t spend any time thinking about my “biological clock”; I simply trust and gratefully accept that which naturally happens in my life as God’s will for me. Whether I have a child, or if I never do, is in God’s hands, it’s not a matter I will try to artificially control one way or the other. If I were to marry, I would trust God’s omnipotence and omniscience to determine whether I would become pregnant or not. The blessing of being entrusted with giving birth to the child of the man God would have given me would be a great honor and responsibility – I trust God to determine whether that experience is meant for me or not. God would know what is right for us. Whoever I would be and the man would be when brought together in matrimony, (paraphrasing what the wedding vows say whether we’ve come together in sickness, health, prosperity, difficulties, fertility or not, or any other life circumstance), we would come under God’s hands and intentions to love one another as we are and to help each other grow.

My focus in marriage would be caring for and being a helpmate to the man in the authentic love God would have him receive.

Not Lonely, Though Alone

I am not lonely, but alone (in regards to the marriage sacrament and its unique blessings); I rest peacefully that if it ever be God’s will for a man who puts God first who would benefit from my companionship, and I from his, in serving God together, it would happen naturally, (probably) mysteriously and wondrously since I certainly am not someone who tries to meet others to date.

I’m busy and happy living my life, doing the work God has put before me and blessed me with. I trust God’s guidance and His timing if such a relationship were ever to happen. And if it did occur, I would want nothing to come between myself and the man God would have given me and given me to, for marriage is “by appointment of Jesus Christ, a sacred sign and symbol of his indissoluble union with his Church…” (The Manual of The Holy Catholic Church,  Rev. James J. McGovern, D.D., “The Sacred Bonds of Matrimony”).

Sex, as physically pleasurable and enjoyable as it is, is a gift meant to emanate from a spiritual union of two individuals. It represents God’s spiritual union with us. It is a sacred communication, joining, and sharing…a physical expression of the joyful spiritual union of two individuals giving themselves first to God, then to one another. It’s beautiful. Sexual desire is natural.  Its sharing with another individual is a gift from God for both. As such, I personally believe sexual union to be only for marriage.

I find this Scripture beautiful: “But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.” (Mark 10: 6-8, KJV)

In Conclusion: Share What You Believe

A number of those I know are perplexed by my perception and personal choices when they discuss such matters with me. They speak from what they accept (what they consider a practical, pragmatic worldly approach) to life, but I have chosen (and that choice of faith has been strengthened continually inside my heart and in life) to “…walk by faith, not by sight.” (2 Corinthians 5:7 KJV)

Similarly, some of religious faith are also perplexed by my perception because they do not draw the line between their moral choices and respecting the the fundamental right of others to choose differently.

But the more I’ve shared of my faith, in addition to sharing my libertarian political stances, the more I’ve found there are those of us out there who adhere to both a religious faith and are simultaneously devoted to freedom and liberty. We may not be as rare as it sometimes seems. Perhaps all that is needed is for more of those who do live this way to make it known occasionally, so that others don’t automatically only associate Christians with those often vocal ones who have an inability to respect the freedom of people to live their lives as they choose.

For example, recently I had a happy experience of meeting someone at a political gathering who reached out and motioned toward my necklace (The Miraculous Medal which I always wear) while asking me if I were Catholic. When I replied yes, the lady was most insistent that we speak together before we left. We did: regarding our faith, our parishes, ministries we participated in, and what experiences we each had regarding sharing our liberty views with fellow believers and vice versa. Turned out she was a state representative. It was a most enjoyable sharing!

I think it’s important those with spiritual and religious basis for their life, who are libertarian, let others know; for that in itself can dispel many false assumptions among believers and non-believers.

As for one’s personal spiritual and religious choices – It takes courage and steadfastness; it requires forsaking mere intellectual arguments that exclude the reality of a spiritual life; it means putting total faith, trust, and love of God in one’s heart and then following your heart (and asking for guidance from God when questions or temptations arise) realizing that “Temptation is necessary to us to make us realise that we are nothing in ourselves.” – The Cure D’Ars – St. Jean-Marie-Baptiste Vianney, sermon “We Are Nothing In Ourselves.”