‘Our civic participation, particularly on election day, is essential’: Archbishop Miller

Archbishop J. Michael Miller released the following letter in advance of the B.C. provincial election, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024.

October 10, 2024

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, 

A provincial election is a rare and important opportunity for British Columbians to directly influence the direction of government. It is a time to prayerfully discern how to exercise our civic responsibilities and put our Christian values into action in ways that aren’t possible in the years between elections.

It is disappointing that many Catholics have chosen to stay home on election day in recent years. Polls show that we vote less than our secular counterparts, giving them a greater influence than we do over the government responsible for more than 5 million people who live in this province.

On Saturday, Oct. 19, I urge you to take the important step of positively influencing our society by going to vote. There are many critical issues where our informed Catholic conscience must be heard: religious liberty, conscience rights, Catholic and public education, the economy, health care, the drug overdose crisis, and certainly life issues, including the rise in euthanasia – misleadingly called MAiD – and the more than 13,000 abortions that occur every year in our province.

No party perfectly aligns with the needs of British Columbia, and only you can decide which candidate is best suited to bring your values to the legislature, whether as an independent or a member of a political party. But our civic participation, particularly on election day, is essential.

We are living in a time of immense social change, and Pope Francis has even raised his concern in Fratelli Tutti that the very notion of democracy as “government by the people” may be in jeopardy. If so, none of us knows what impact our vote might have on society in the years to come.

I urge all Catholics and people of goodwill to bring Christ’s compassion for humanity to those we live with and contribute to the common good by making a responsible decision at the ballot box.

With the assurance of my prayers, I remain