Advocacy central to what it means to be Catholic, Father Hehir says

Published: 2004-02-04

OLYMPIA, Wash. (CNS) -- A wag once said the parable of the good Samaritan contains two lessons. By immediately assisting the beaten traveler, the Samaritan provided direct service to someone in need. But he could have taken the next step and reported the robbery-plagued road to authorities so the highway would be safer for all. "So you need to do both," Father J. Bryan Hehir told participants at Catholic Advocacy Day Jan. 28. "Direct immediate response, and then systematic efforts to try to get at the source of the problem that produces human needs." The Boston archdiocesan priest and former president of Catholic Charities USA was the keynote speaker at the first Catholic Advocacy Day in the state capital. The day gave Catholics from around the state a chance to lobby their lawmakers on behalf of pro-life issues and the poor and vulnerable in society. The event was sponsored by the Washington State Catholic Conference, which is the public policy arm of the state's Catholic bishops, and by Catholic Community Services and others.

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