U.S. bishops urge Catholic voters to put faith before politics
U.S. bishops released video messages urging Catholic voters to put their identity in Christ before political identity as they prepare for the 2026 midterm elections. Archbishop Shelton Fabre said voting is a moral responsibility and encouraged Catholics to form their consciences through the Gospel and Church teaching. The bishops emphasized prayer, human dignity, charity, respectful dialogue, and the common good in political engagement. A USCCB clergy guide and training video offer resources for teaching Catholics about faithful citizenship.
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Ahead of the Nov. 3, 2026, U.S. midterm elections, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops released video messages urging Catholics to put their Christian identity ahead of political affiliation and take part in civic life through prayer, conscience formation, charity, and concern for the common good. 1
Archbishop Shelton Fabre of Louisville, chair of the bishops’ Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, said Catholics have a responsibility to vote and should form their consciences according to the Gospel and Church teaching. He described voting as a moral act grounded in respect for human life, charity, and the pursuit of the common good. 1
Fabre also urged Catholics to participate beyond voting by advocating for every person’s dignity and reminding political institutions and groups to serve the common good. He said discipleship should guide a voter’s decisions. 1
A separate bishops’ video, released the previous month for clergy formation, featured Bishop Daniel E. Flores, Archbishop William E. Lori, and Archbishop Alexander K. Sample. The prelates said Catholics should show Christ’s love in how they speak and act in political life, not only through the positions they support. 1
Sample called for dialogue, unity, and respect for each neighbor’s dignity. Lori said Catholics should encounter people with whom they disagree as persons made in God’s image, rather than treating them merely as opposing viewpoints. 1
The USCCB also published a written guide with a structured plan to help clergy teach Catholics how to engage in political life with consciences formed by Church teaching. 1
The formation of conscience in Catholic political participation and the pursuit of the common good
Catholic political participation begins with a conscience formed to seek truth, not merely to confirm personal preference or party loyalty. Its purpose is service: citizens use their judgment and civic responsibilities to protect human dignity and work for the common good. The Church teaches moral principles and helps form consciences; Catholics themselves must apply those principles prudently to particular candidates, policies, and circumstances.
Conscience is a judgment of reason about whether a concrete action is right or wrong. It is not simply a feeling, a private permission to do whatever one chooses, or a way of making one’s preferred conclusion morally true. Catholics therefore have a serious, lifelong responsibility to form conscience in light of both human reason and the Church’s moral teaching.
That formation involves several practices: a sincere desire to seek what is good and true; study of Scripture and Catholic teaching; attention to reliable information about issues and their effects; and prayerful reflection. Without these efforts, people can make mistaken moral judgments—not necessarily because they intend evil, but because their understanding is incomplete or poorly formed.
Prudence is essential in applying moral principles. It is the practical virtue of discerning what is good in a particular situation and choosing suitable means to pursue it. Political decisions often involve complex facts and competing proposals, so a well-formed conscience does not eliminate the need for careful judgment; it helps orient that judgment toward truth and the good.
The common good is not merely the sum of private interests, nor the advantage of one party or group. Catholic political engagement is directed toward the dignity of every person, the good of the community, and special concern for those who are weak or vulnerable. The Church’s social teaching identifies human dignity, the common good, subsidiarity, and solidarity as basic principles for evaluating public choices.
These principles help Catholics consider more than campaign promises or slogans. They can ask whether a proposal respects persons, whether it helps people and communities participate in decisions affecting them, whether it strengthens solidarity across social divisions, and what its likely effects will be on those most at risk. Such questions bring faith and reason together in the public square.
Political participation is not limited to voting. It can include learning about public questions, taking part in civic life, and serving others through public responsibility. The bishops describe this participation as a responsibility connected to Christian life and as a form of service to the common good.
The bishops do not direct Catholics to vote for particular candidates. Rather, they teach principles and leave the responsibility for evaluating candidates, government actions, and complex policy choices to the laity, who must exercise prudence and form their own judgments.
That responsibility means political loyalties must remain subordinate to moral truth. A Catholic should not allow attachment to a party or interest group to lead to neglect or denial of fundamental moral truths, or to approval of intrinsically evil acts. At the same time, evaluating political choices calls for attention to the issues and circumstances involved; the cited guidance does not reduce faithful citizenship to a single candidate preference or a mechanical formula.
The Church’s approach therefore avoids two opposite errors: treating faith as irrelevant to public life, and treating Catholic teaching as a substitute for a voter’s own informed judgment. The aim is a public life shaped by truth, justice, concern for the vulnerable, and a commitment to seek the good of all. Political engagement, understood this way, can be a genuine form of service and charity.