In addition to the work it does at the State Capitol, the Minnesota Catholic Conference also is involved in educational efforts to help Catholics and others gain a better understanding of important issues with public policy ramifications.
Jason Adkins, MCC executive director, identified three topics that he said need further attention at this time from Catholics around the state:
Gender-related issues
“We have to have a proper understanding of the human person,” Adkins said. “There is a gender ideology that is getting more and more aggressive in trying to assert in public policy that gender is essentially malleable, an identity a person can choose to put on and take off at will. . . . It adds an incredible amount of confusion to who we are as persons.”
Legislation has been proposed in other places, such as the District of Columbia, that “not only advances this agenda but also undercuts or eliminates religious liberty protections,” he said. “The rational defense of our positions on the human person is vitally important for preserving religious liberty.”
The ‘throwaway culture’
Adkins points to what he calls the “inevitable push” in Minnesota to allow for assisted suicide legislation.
“We really need to talk about the dignity of life, even in difficult circumstances,” he said. The MCC is developing an end-of-life care guide as a practical resource for Catholics.
Environmental stewardship
Pope Francis’ upcoming encyclical on ecology, expected sometime in the spring, will give Catholics an opportunity to talk about a wide range of environmental issues, including how they impact the world’s poor. The MCC is organizing a Catholic event on climate change and environmental stewardship this fall in light of the encyclical, Adkins said. Details about the event will be coming soon.
At the federal level, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops supports the Environmental Protection Agency’s plan to reduce carbon emissions, an effort “which will have a positive economic and environmental impact,” Adkins said.
“Being pro-life means we also need to be concerned about the air children breathe, the food they eat and the world they play in,” he said. “This is part of developing a consistent ethic of life.”
