Sister Quincy Howard, OP, described Catholicism as a sacramental religion.
"In my mind, in a secular democracy, really, the vote is the closest thing that we have to a sacrament," she said. "So it's a critical part of our society and our culture and our future.”
Howard, a Sinsinawa Dominican Sister, spoke at Marywood University during the Nuns on the Bus and Friends tour stop in Scranton on Tuesday. The religious and secular riders are traveling the country to call on Catholics and all people of goodwill to be multi-issue voters and protect freedoms this election season.
"We all live multi-issue lives ... We may have concerns about a medical bill, the safety and well being of the children in our community, a drought in our region that is due to climate change, unhoused mother and child we saw on the street recently, and so much more," said Sister Erin McDonald, CSJ. "These issues and our care for the common good are what motivate us to vote. Furthermore, it is immoral to allow a single issue to outweigh a candidate's positions that harm immigrants, asylum seekers, low income families, people of color, our LGBTQ+ community and our environment. Focusing on a single issue allows other social sins to go unchecked — economic exploitation, racism, xenophobia, environmental destruction and so much more."
Nuns on the Bus is a project of Network, a Catholic Advocacy Organization. Their policy platform includes six freedoms.
Howard, who works in Southwest Wisconsin, discussed the first of six freedoms and what she called the quintessential freedom: the freedom to participate in a vibrant democracy.
"Whether you are Black, brown or white, whether you live in Georgia or whether you live in California, whether you are comfortably retired or have to work two jobs to get by, or if you're a college student, we all have the freedom, the right and the responsibility to cast our ballot to join in the efforts to shape a better future for the common good," she said.
In Marywood's Region Hall, a group of around 100 people went through the program's four acts, which included thoughtful discussion with each other alongside the nuns in T-shirts and jeans.
“Tonight is about coming together in community to create a vision. It is about preparing ourselves to be informed, engaged and committed voters," said McDonald.
The group was asked to reflect on what Scranton would look like if everyone had the freedom to thrive, no exceptions — the tour’s catch phrase.
They brought up access to education and housing.
One of the participants said children in the womb were not represented.
"If we could all agree to end abortion, we could all work on all these issues together," she said.
The nuns and friends also touched on gun control, climate change, childcare, taxing the rich, decreasing the cost of living, and immigration.
The religious leaders from around the country also gave examples of how current laws have impacted people for better and how the others, like the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, should be passed in Congress.
"We need policies that advance racial, economic and social justice," said McDonald, who works in Detroit.
Network said it does not endorse or oppose candidates for public office but rather supports multi-issue voting for the common good.
The tour started Monday in Philadelphia. It ends on Oct, 18 in San Francisco.
