New Perspective on Anderson and Catholic Teaching

RE: CUA Trustee Places Anti-Biden Ads

Tom Gallagher
Alumnus
Class of 1985

As a graduate twice of Catholic University, as a part-time student-writer for The Tower, and as the founder of the Knights of Columbus Catholic University of America Council, I read with interest this past week’s article by Margaret Boehm, titled, “CUA Trustee Places Anti-Biden Ads.”  I would like to offer some observations about the article.

Mr. Anderson has spent much of his adult life in some form of Catholic education, especially as the Vice-President of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family.  He serves on a number of Vatican councils.  Mr. Anderson has credibility to speak on issues involving Catholic theology and public policy.  In his capacity as Supreme Knight of the most significant Catholic lay organization in the church, he has a duty and perhaps an obligation to engage Catholic public policy makers at all levels of government who attempt to explain our theology in the public realm in a manner contrary to the facts, as Senator Joe Biden clearly did in his NBC interview.

The article would have had more of an impact had someone from the Knights of Columbus or a person who supported the open letter strategy been quoted.  Such a perspective was not included.  The article’s headline and reference to Mr. Anderson’s prior work as a Reagan White House staffer seemed to politicize Mr. Anderson’s intention of his open letter as somehow against Democrats.  More could have been done to broaden the article and thereby make it a more complete story.

There are plenty of easily secured facts about the Knights of Columbus.  A telephone call to the CUA Knights’ council would have offered the fact that engaging in partisan politics within the Knights of Columbus is not permitted by our rules.  The Knights welcome new members who are affiliated with either or no political party.

As an organization for the so-called “working man” and his family, it is not surprising that the membership of the Knights of Columbus has been, and continues to be, very attractive to Democrats of common and uncommon stature.   Turning the pages of the book, By Their Works:  Profiles of Men of Faith who Made a Difference (Collins, 2005), names of prominent members can be found like U.S. President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, New York State Governor Alfred E. Smith, U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives John McCormack, Peace Corps founder Sargent Shriver, and Boston Mayor and later U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican, Raymond Flynn, among others.

Mr. Anderson’s best-selling New York Times book, A Civilization of Love, offers a compelling case for U.S. citizens of all faiths and no faith at all to embrace immigrants, the undocumented and our neighbors from and in Latin America.  Through a political lens, Mr. Anderson’s analysis would make pro-immigrant Democrats blush with pride.

Importantly, U.S. public policy can be improved on many levels by embracing the common good substantiated by Catholic teachings on love, social justice and the rights and dignity of the human person, from conception to natural death.   It is clear that neither the policies of the Democrats nor of the Republicans contain the fullness of Catholic teaching.

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