Faith in Public Office

One of my favourite news sites "Lifesite" published an article about Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput speaking about John F Kennedy's speech about faith. This is a speech that Kennedy made about 50 years ago. He was speaking to a group of Protestant Ministers. He said that he would not let his Catholic faith would not affect public policy decisions.

Archbishop Chaput says that Kennedy was wrong to make such a statement. “Real Christian faith is always personal, but it’s never private,” Said the Archbishop. To be a man of Public office and to be a Catholic is one and the same. You cannot be a Catholic, have Catholic views, and do things that are not Catholic just to please the masses. We please God first.. then man.

I found this article interesting in the light of the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago and the church building scandal. The Prime Minister has tried on many occassions to keep his faith private. He has been exposed in the most awful of ways. First with Benny Hinn, who called his spiritual advisor a charlatan and now with the church scandal, where the same spiritual advisor seems to have gotten land (and Money) and govenment connections to get labour to build this church.

I feel sorry for the Prime Minister. How does one who is the leader of a country and a world personality seek to serve God? Surely this should be his first priority. Perhaps he should take some of his own money and seek out the Pope. Then he may not feel bad that the man of God who he sits with is indeed more powerful, known, respected and loved than this man from a small caribbean country.