Old North News

A North Carolina resident and practicing Catholic says Judge Amy Coney Barrett's faith will not affect her rulings if she is confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court, and that her record shows she will render her opinion based on the law.

Brian Walser, when asked if he approved of Barrett's Supreme Court nomination, told the Old North News, "I am but not because I believe it will affect her rulings, but because she provides a role model that active Catholics, especially young Catholic women, can be inspired by."

Walser said the questions on Barrett's beliefs are concerning.

"I find it concerning that those attacking her have dishonestly twisted her personal moral beliefs into some scary religious extremist mother of seven, just to get votes, and intimidate pro-life people into silence," Walser said. "This seems illogical to me since you do not have to follow any religion at all to have moral beliefs on a topic like abortion. While her conscience might be rooted in her Catholic faith, religion is likely not the only driver of her beliefs about abortion or any other cultural issue."

Walser said many who have questioned Barrett's beliefs are those who have indicated all beliefs should be tolerated. 

"I noticed that many of those who raised questions about her beliefs, are the same people who say we must be tolerant of all beliefs, even if we think those beliefs are bad for our society," Walser said. "If the questioners were truly tolerant of all personal beliefs then her personal beliefs should be just as acceptable as the atheistic beliefs that they point to as the supposedly natural standard."

Barrett's personal beliefs are her own and should not even be questioned, Walser said, and he pointed out a double standard when it comes to liberal judges.

"To be clear, her personal beliefs should not even be an issue," Walser said. "Unlike liberal judges who feel it is their obligation to inject their personal beliefs into their rulings, her philosophy is a textualist, which means that her personal and moral beliefs do no enter into her rulings."

Based on Barrett's record, she has proven she will render her opinion based on the law even if that opinion goes against her own personal moral beliefs, Walser said.

Regarding how Catholics should respond when they are witnessing Barrett's beliefs being scrutinized, Walser said, "I believe this is a moment of clarity we seldom see, where the wolves in sheep’s clothing exposing their true beliefs. Catholics who have traditionally supported the people demonizing Judge Barrett's personal Catholic-based beliefs need to 'reimagine' their voting habits based on the new evidence of attacks on the most important right ... the right to life." 

Walser believes that Catholics should be actively engaged in public life.

"Immorality corrupts our society and totalitarians grow in power when people of faith are not actively engaged in the politics that determine our cultural norms," Walser said. "Catholic and more generally Judeo-Christian beliefs have formed the cultural and legal foundations for the most just, free and best standards of living countries in history. However, there is always room for improvement and a need to push back against moral decline. Because of this the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has stated, "in the Catholic tradition, responsible citizenship is a virtue, and participation in political life is a moral obligation."