An author and social justice advocate appealed for a stronger Catholic response to right-wing rhetoric within the U.S. federal government at a Georgetown University event April 1.
The Dahlgren Chapel Sacred Lecture, titled “‘Woman, Behold Thy Son’: Reflections on Suffering in Our Society,” is part of a semesterly series that invites Catholic voices to continue the Jesuit tradition of sacred lectures, which applied liturgical teaching to people’s daily lives. The lecture featured Gloria Purvis, the inaugural pastoral fellow at the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame and an outspoken advocate for racial justice within the Catholic Church.
In her lecture, Purvis highlighted the biblical story of Barabbas and Jesus Christ, in which both imprisoned men are presented before a crowd in a metaphorical choice between love and hate. Barabbas — who represents hate — is chosen.
Purvis said the modern Catholic Church mirrors the tale because of widespread hateful rhetoric against immigrants, citing examples with religious overtones.
“We listen to the mob,” Purvis said at the event. “It’s a seductive mob. ‘These people aren’t made in the image and likeness of God, they’re criminals. They broke our laws. They eat cats and dogs.’ These preposterous things that we hear are so effective. Why is it that we need to believe these things about other people, and then because of that allow horrible, cruel things to happen to them?”
Purvis said the church’s lack of a response to hateful comments targeting minorities and immigrants is dangerous.
“Is it not clear of the danger of what happens when you separate people from the human family?” Purvis said. “Have you not seen this with the child in the womb, the elderly at the end stages of life or the person being unjustly killed by the police? Have we not seen this?”
Purvis added those who criticize her condemnation of the right and express discontent with a perceived lack of response to liberals in the United States fail to recognize both the church’s unified opposition to the administration of former President Joe Biden and the uniquely negative rhetoric of the current administration.
“We haven’t done a good job talking about this as a church,” Purvis said. “We haven’t done a good job pointing out that this is a violation of human dignity. I know the Jesuits love the pursuit of truth and virtue — that kind of speech is neither. It neither leads to truth nor does it lead to virtue; it leads to the worst behaviors in the human family.”
Purvis said the church often endorses certain candidates based solely on their stance on abortion, regardless of other aspects of their platform.
“What are the proportionate reasons for voting for a candidate who used racist sloganeering? I have not gotten an answer,” Purvis said. “This is not pro-life to say these things about members of the human family. It’s not pro-life to make you revile other people. It is not pro-life when the administration is saying the very thing that we would slam the other side for saying.”
Though President Donald Trump’s administration has been staunchly anti-abortion, it has faced criticism in conservative circles for not supporting a national ban on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy and choosing instead to relegate abortion policy to individual states.
Purvis said her politics are secondary to her faith and now is the time for Catholics to act in defense of their beliefs.
“In our current society, it is a martyrdom to speak out against power,” Purvis said. “To point out the lies that are contrary to our faith is not a popular thing. We like the martyrs until we might have to be one, and I’m telling you now is the time that we have to be one.”