ARCHDIOCESE — One of the intriguing sideshows in the recent national election was the blossoming of religious-oriented tracts and booklets designed to "instruct" the righteous faithful on how to vote.

Side-stepping the document that the Roman Catholic bishops of the United States promulgated about the duties of the Catholic voter — they developed Faithful Citizenship in 2003 to address the pending presidential elections held in November — various lobbies circulated pamphlets that encompassed the moral spectrum in examining religious/electoral issues, borrowing from the pages of the evangelical Christian movement the practice of circulating single-sheet or chapter-booklet testimonials designed to sway uncommitted voters toward a particular political compass-setting.

CNS FILE PHOTO

Marianist Brother Brian Halderman demonstrates against captial punishment in front of the Supreme Court building July 1.Brother Halderman and 30 other abolitionists participated in the annual “Starvin’ for Justice ’04” fast and vigil.

Author Robert H. Hopcke lists his six steps to ending capital punishment to include prayer, reading up on the topic, attending meetings where capital punishment is debated, writing legislators and signing petitions on execution-moratorium campaigns, bearing witness to friends, families and acquaintances about the issue, and, finally, donating to organizations dedicated to eradicating the death penalty.

As Hopcke notes, "the way of Christ is not a way of diminishment through violence and death. The way of Christ is a way of fullness through a healing affirmation of the sacredness of all life. The way of Christ is not the quick and easy execution of an individual nor the raucous dehumanization of those who have done horrible things. Rather, the way of Christ is a far less simplistic, far more challenging path of trying to find reconciliation, rehabilitation, forgiveness and wholeness in a broken and sinful world."