In our first U. S. presidential election year since the insurrection on January 6, 2021, it is prudent to ask questions about the safety of our democracy and the steps citizens can take to protect it. In this space we are curating resources for education and action in 2024. The following resources do not endorse or oppose any political party, candidate, or PAC.
Tools for Voters
- Designed for use on college campuses, our Mercy Voter Reflection Guide helps young people, and all people, use Mercy values when evaluating candidates. Scan and share the QR code to access the guide on a phone.
- The Voter Toolkit from Faiths United to Save Democracy will equip you to educate and empower voters in your community. A product of the Skinner Leadership Institute, Sojourners and the Center for Faith and Justice at Georgetown University.
- Project 2025 in contrast with Catholic Social Teaching from NETWORK explores the important elements between the contrasting visions of Project 2025 and Catholic Social Teaching.
- Election Protection-866-OUR-VOTE. Find out all you need to know about elections in 2024. Have questions about voter registration deadlines, requesting absentee or mail-in ballots, or how to vote in-person during early voting or on Election Day? Call or text 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) to speak with a trained Election Protection volunteer.
- Voter ID Info Cards. VoteRiders provides pocket-sized guides to what types of IDs are accepted to vote in each state.
- Conversation Guidelines on Election Issues from Education for Justice is a resource to assist people attempting to discuss complex social issues to have an informed conversations based on respect.
- Interfaith Power and Light’s Faithful Voter Reflection Guide is intended to spur discussion and discernment.
- NETWORK has created a Presidential Candidate Comparison resource to support voters in learning about candidates’ records and positions on the freedoms that are essential to a future of flourishing for all of us.
Pray With Us
Please join the Mercy Community in praying daily for voters to consider the common good in their choices for national, state and local leaders; to treat with respect even those who hold differing opinions about the direction of our country; and to commit ourselves to a peaceful transfer of power after the election.
Let us be Mercy at this time through our prayer, rhetoric and actions at this time of potential national stress.
The Sisters of Mercy of the Americas launched a Vote with Mercy initiative to encourage U.S. citizens to vote in the November elections and to consider a variety of factors and values in determining their decisions.
As people of faith, we are called to witness for others. As Sisters of Mercy, that witness is expressed throughout Catholic teaching and in our Critical Concerns of immigration, nonviolence, care for our Earth, racism and the education, health and spiritual needs of women and girls. A centerpiece of the initiative is a video highlighting these concerns, available on the website and social media platforms and featured in advertising.
We have also produced a short video on guidelines for not for profit organizations and political activity by members of religious congregations.
Webinars
Georgetown University
- Tuesday, November 12, 7:00-8:00 pm ET, Faith and the Faithful in the 2024 Election: What Happened, Why and What Now? – Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life
- Faith, Discernment, and Democracy: Young People and the 2024 Election – Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life
- Faith and the Faithful in the 2024 Election – Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life
- How White Christian Nationalism Threatens Our Democracy – Center on Faith and Justice
- The Civil Rights Act of 1964 After 60 Years: Challenges and Questions for Voters and the Nation in 2024 – Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life
The Experts’ Guide to Free and Fair Elections
Voting and Our Common Home: Reflections from the Catholic Tradition
Election Work
White Supremacy and American Christianity
- White Supremacy and American Christianity
- How it Harms our Churches, Politics and Communities
- A Consistent Ethic of Hate Threatens our Democracy
- Moving Toward Beloved Community
PBS
Brookings
JustFaith Ministries
More Websites
- Voting and Democracy, from NETWORK, includes a series of blog posts about elections and politics.
- Vote411, from League of Women Voters, provides information and resources for participating in local and national elections.
- Ensure Every American Can Vote, from the Brennan Center for Justice, explores voting rights issues.
Articles
- “Pursue What Leads to Peace.” A Christian Response to Rising Threats of Political and Ideological Violence, by Most Rev. Borys Gudziak
- Beyond Voting: Participating in Elections, Vol. 1, by Rose Marie Tresp, RSM
- Beyond Voting: Engaging in Elections, Vol. 2, by Rose Marie Tresp, RSM
- What Catholics need to model this election season, by Kathleen Bonnette at America Magazine.
- Conscience, by Joanne Lappetito, RSM
- How to detect and guard against deceptive AI-generated election information, by Mekela Paditharatne and Shanze Hasan at Brennen Center for Justice.
Documentary Film
God & Country is a 90-minute film that explores the dangers of Christian Nationalism, featuring prominent Christian voices including Sister Simone Campbell and Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II.
Learn more about the film here.
View a discussion with the producers of the film here.
Podcasts
- Just Politics – 3 seasons from NETWORK and U.S. Catholic
- Confronting Christian Nationalism – 6 episodes from Vote Common Good
- Democracy Decoded – from Campaign Legal Center
Books
- A Consistent Ethic of Life: Navigating Catholic Engagement with US Politics, by Steven P. Millies
- The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism, by Katherine Stewart
- The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy and the Path to a Shared American Future, by Robert P. Jones
- The Seven Deadly Sins of White Christian Nationalism: A Call to Action, by Carter Heyward
Raise your voice with ours!
Explore our current advocacy efforts and get involved.
Take Action TodayJoin us as a Mercy Advocate for Justice! Click the “Take Action Today” button to the left. Each individual who responds to a call for legislative action or policy change increases the volume of our Mercy voice in the halls of power. Signing up online is easy and customizable. Alerts are available via email or text message. Advocates can choose to receive notices about a single issue or the entire menu of options. Please invite people from your circles and networks to join our efforts by sharing this link with them today: https://sistersofmercy.org/mercy-for-justice/action-alerts/
LCWR’s Transforming Grace: The Work of Transformative Justice invites participants to take responsibility for the personal and collective responses we can make in the challenges we will encounter during the national election period.
Student Videos
Each year, students at Mercy sponsored schools are invited to enter a Social Justice Video Contest and put their creative ideas and skills to work by sharing stories of the Sisters of Mercy’s Critical Concerns. In 2024, some of the videos focused on voting. Here are three videos that took home honors for this year’s contest.
Riley Wichman and Angela Thiel
“Vote with Faith and Mercy”
Mercy High School, Middletown, Connecticut
“Be a Hero and VOTE with faith!”
Gwynedd Mercy Academy High School, Lower Gwynedd, Pennsylvania