Election-Eve Broadcast: Theology Professor Discusses Voting & Catholic Faith on Tampa Radio Station

November 25, 2009

With the national presidential election at hand, Saint Leo University faculty member Randall "Woody" Woodard is scheduled to discuss Faithful Citizenship in brief segments during the 3 to 6 p.m. show, Monday, Nov. 3, on Spirit FM 90.5.

Woodard will be speaking with hosts from the popular FM station about an important guide issued several years ago by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to help American Catholics consider voting choices from the perspective of Catholic teachings. The guide, called Faithful Citizenship, does not direct voters to choose any particular candidate or party.

Instead, the guide helps voters through the many complex social and public-policy issues Catholic leaders feel parishioners need to weigh as they make their voting choices. The guide is not limited to pro-life issues. It includes concerns over immigration, fair-trade and wage policies, the worldwide food supply, discrimination, and concern for environment, for instance. While the guide is available for free on the Internet at http://www.faithfulcitizenship.org, many people would not be aware of the depth and range of the guide’s teachings without broadcast programs on the topic.

Spirit FM 90.5 is operated by the Diocese of St. Petersburg. Woodard, an assistant professor of theology at Saint Leo, brings his perspective as a Catholic and his skills as a communicator and teacher to the discussion of Faithful Citizenship. He appeared as a guest on Spirit FM twice in October as a commentator.