Furthermore…

As I listen to members of the Catholic media incredulously report that many Catholics didn’t vote in harmony with Church teachings, I think “It’s a matter of priorities!”
People cast their votes in keeping with what’s important in their lives, and the Church’s teachings, if they know them, are pretty far down the list. When regular folks discuss their preferences, they kind of reassure one another, without saying it explicitly, that all kinds of other considerations weigh more heavily in their deliberations, and ‘gut feeling’ weighs most heavily of all. (Not the kind of ‘guts’ synonymous with courage.) Note how often people ask “Who do you like?”, not “Whom do you trust?”

POSSIBLE PRIORITY LIST
1. gut feeling
2. party preference
3. pocketbook
4. media boosting
5. tilt of friends & relatives
6. bandwagon effect
7. ads
8. endorsements
9. grasp of issues
0. guidance of Church