At least, that's one way of looking at the election season. Political strategists know that there are more than 62 million Catholics in the United States — a hefty 22% of the total population. Political clout like this should shore up considerable support for candidates who support the Church's teachings on abortion and other key moral issues. Yet a closer look at the Catholic vote tells a different story.

In the 1996 presidential race, 54% of Catholics voted for Bill Clinton. Even among practicing Catholics, those who attend Mass at least weekly, Clinton won 44% of the vote. In the 2000 presidential election, Al Gore managed to win a small majority of the Catholic vote over President Bush. All this raises a tough question: Why would any Catholic vote for a political candidate who holds secular and liberal ideas hostile to the faith and morals of the Church?

I've heard many reasons for this phenomenon, but none quite like Kathy's. Kathy is a woman I sat next to last year on a plane trip from North Carolina to Rhode Island. Middleaged, heavyset and quite gregarious, she described herself as an openedminded Catholic raised in the New England tradition. Her friendly demeanor explained her willingness to talk. We chatted about a number of things before the topic of politics came up. She gave high approval ratings to certain politicians who hold to political ideologies contrary to Catholic morals. I didn't want to start an argument, but I couldn't let this one go by. So I simply asked her:

“Kathy, are you aware that the politicians you mentioned staunchly support anti-Catholic causes such as partial-birth abortion, worldwide condom distribution and stem-cell experimentation?” I noticed Kathy began to squirm a bit in her seat.

“Father, I don't judge any political leader on a single issue like abortion,” she said. “I make my decision after weighing his position on a broad range of issues.”

“What issue,” I replied, “could be more important than a person's life?” Her forced smile vanished. With a rather terse tone of voice, she retorted: “Like most Catholics, on these matters, I follow my conscience. Whomever I decide to support politically is, for me, a matter for my own conscience.”

Without realizing it, I think Kathy uncovered the root cause why many Catholics vote the way they do. They appeal to their private, personal conscience as the ultimate arbiter of moral discernment. Like most everyone in our society, Catholics too are quick to say: “I ask that my conscience be respected.” Furthermore, many Catholics, like the general public, justify and defend questionable moral decisions by asserting, “I acted in good conscience.”

So: How important is personal conscience for Catholics? In Catholic Tradition, the conscience receives eminent respect. The Fathers of the Church call it “the spark of the Holy Spirit,” “the sacredness of man” and “the sanctuary of God.” The catechism calls the conscience “man's most secret core, and his sanctuary. There he is alone with God whose voice echoes in his depths” (No. 1777). But, as lofty and noble as each individual's conscience may be, none is infallible. Our conscience will only be an accurate guide of discernment to the extent that it is receptive to truth. As Catholics, we acknowledge a revealed truth about God and man — about what is good and evil.

This truth remains regardless of an individual's openness to it. When we ignore basic truths, our conscience cannot make sound judgments or good decisions. In his encyclical Veritatis Splendor, Pope John Paul II explains why: “Once the idea of a universal truth about the good, knowable by human reason, is lost, inevitably the notion of conscience also changes … instead [there will be] a tendency to grant to the individual conscience the prerogative of independently determining the criteria of good and evil and then acting accordingly.”

In other words, if not checked by truth, the individual conscience tends toward error. How can we avoid following a flawed conscience? The Church affirms there's one sure way: to correctly form one's conscience. To form a good conscience, the Church proposes a few practical means. The first is the acceptance and practice of Catholic moral teaching as taught by the magisterium of the Church. Every Catholic has a serious obligation to know the Church's moral teaching in order to form good conscience. Next we need to strengthen our knowledge of the moral truth with prayer and mediation. Prayer enlightens the dictates of our conscience and directs us toward God, the source of all truth. To form a conscience that conforms with God's will, we need to examine our conscience frequently in light of Christian morality. This is the best way to prepare for the fruitful reception of sacramental confession. Finally, our conscience can acquire a more objective moral judgment through spiritual direction. A spiritual director well-grounded in Catholic doctrine can help us reach a very high degree of moral rectitude.

The Church will never endorse a political candidate or party. This is not her mission. But she will urge every Christian and person of good will to defend the truth by making his or her well-formed conscience heard at the polls next month.

Legionary Father Andrew McNair teaches at Mater Ecclesiae International Center of Studies in Greenville, Rhode Island.