Healthcare, assault, and other cultural values

“All I want to know,” the student asked coyly, “is how far I can go with a passed-out drunk girl before I break the law.”

I gritted my teeth and tried not to show my disgust, knowing that at least a couple of students would react appropriately and put this guy in his place. The journalism class had taken this unexpected turn. It began as a discussion about media coverage of a famous athlete accused of – but not charged with – sexual assault. But then a young woman mentioned an incident involving a party, two frat boys, and a drunk freshman co-ed. The floodgates exploded.

For the next half hour, the young ladies gave example after example of unrelenting, vulgar harassment that made them feel like prey. The guys countered with claims of mixed messages, “girls asking for it” simply by going to parties and, finally, wanting to know how they, too, could escape rape charges. How in the world did our society come to this?

As a journalism professor, I have always stressed ethics in my classes – the critical differences between objectivity and overt bias, fact and opinion, right and wrong. And also the difference between what’s legal and what’s moral. My usual example is my own divorce and remarriage – completely legal and not uncommon in civic life but, without my annulment, considered immoral by my Church.

Our culture’s sense of right and wrong has changed drastically. Most of us could list all sorts of examples. Unfortunately, the worst of the worst gets the most attention. Many of us don’t realize that, slowly and over time, a lot of secular culture has crept into our lives – culture that is completely at odds with the tenets and teachings of our Church.

One example is a passionate lecture I got a few years ago from a friend and fellow parishioner. He was worked up about health care.

“I work hard for what I have,” he insisted. “I take care of my own health insurance. Explain to me why I should have to contribute to anyone else’s health care. It’s my money. I earned it. Let them work for theirs, too.”

Many Americans would agree. Our culture honors hard work, self-reliance, individualism, initiative, and responsibility. Those traits made our country great. It’s our heritage and we are proud of it.

My friend, though, picked an awkward time and place for his lecture. It was right after Mass, by the foot of the altar, after the Gospel reading of the Good Samaritan. But it was the homily that lit my friend’s fuse. The homily included a mention that the Church believes access to health care a basic, universal right.

Health care is just one issue that exposes the schism between American values and Catholic values. The fact that the US Conference of Bishops had to sue the federal government for abortion and contraception exemptions is just one example of the difference between what most Americans accept and what our Church teaches us to reject.

Our understanding of what is right and what is wrong in America is moving farther and farther away from our Catholic beliefs. And, unfortunately, it seems more and more Catholics are lining up with the changing values of our society.

To be completely transparent, I am more forgiving than legalistic. I embrace Amoris Laetitia, Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation that promotes understanding and pastoral responses to the difficult, complicated and challenging situations many families face. Yet we must acknowledge that issues such as immigration, criminal justice, and health care are most often judged by economic standards, not traditional Judeo-Christian teaching. In other words, Americans make decisions based on what’s best for the bottom line. And when we do that, we reject the teachings of our faith.

Most of us would know what to do with a passed-out drunk girl – take care of her, get help, make sure she’s safe. That’s easy. Answers to other social questions aren’t nearly as easy. Then again, no one ever said following Jesus would be easy.