NEWTON, Mass. (The Pilot) - Two Catholic senators and presidential candidates — Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., and Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan.- shared their views on their faith and how it affects their public policy decisions on April 23 at Boston College’s Conte Forum.

“My faith has had a huge influence on me,” particularly the teaching of Catholic social justice, Dodd told the crowd of nearly 4,000. However, he underscored that “faith informs my decisions. It doesn’t define my decisions.”

Brownback, too, acknowledged that his faith is “a big part of the decision-making process.” A recent convert to Catholicism - having entered the Church only four years ago - Brownback noted, however, that most of his views predate his entrance into the Catholic faith...

Moderated by Tim Russert, host of NBC’s “Meet the Press,” the senators spoke on issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage, the death penalty and the war in Iraq.

Dodd indicated he is in favor of embryonic stem-cell research in cases where “the choice goes down to whether to discard embryonic stem cells or utilize them.” Brownback, who is opposed to embryonic stem-cell research, indicated that he believes the issue “boils down to one question: What is the youngest of humans — is it a person or property?”

Labels: catholic, Chris Dodd, embryonic stem cell, presidential candidates, Sam Brownback

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