South Africa’s bishops have urged Catholics to register to vote for
the upcoming general election, which will take place on the twentieth
anniversary of the end of apartheid.
“In the light of what our Christian faith teaches us we propose the
following criteria to help us to discern how to vote and with which
political agency to align ourselves,” the bishops stated. Our
participation in political life requires that we promote: the sacredness
of human life and the dignity of each human being, support for marriage
and family, social responsibility and respect for the common good, the
just sharing of resources and wealth, [and] compassionate solidarity
with the poor and marginalized.”
The nation of 49 million is 73% Protestant, 7% Catholic, and 2% Muslim.