St. Clair Shores — With Election Day looming, many Catholics are feeling confusion over for whom, or even why, they should vote this November.

With a wide range a candidate positions that seem to be ever-changing this election cycle, Paul Stankewitz, policy advocate for the Michigan Catholic Conference, stopped by St. Germaine Church at Our Lady of Hope Parish in St. Clair Shores on Sept. 29 to offer some guiding principles for voters to consider.

“I’m not here to tell you who to vote for; that’s not what we do,” Stankewitz said. “I don’t come to bring peace, just more things to pray about, and more things to talk about.”

The Michigan Catholic Conference is the official policy arm of the seven bishops in the Michigan, Stankewitz said, which doesn’t officially endorse candidates, but offers guiding principles for people to consider before heading to the polls.

“As Catholics, we have a moral obligation to vote,” Stankewitz said. “Responsible citizenship is a virtue. Pope Francis said, ‘None of us can claim to have nothing to do about this.’ Politics is one of the highest forms of charity. A good Catholic meddles in politics. We need to pray for presidents, governors, senators and representatives.”

When an audience member asked for advice in the case that neither of the two leading candidates seem to represent Catholic values, Stankewitz made it a point to avoid using names of candidates.

“When voting, we need to take into account integrity, character and the positions they have on issues,” Stankewitz said. “If you run into a person running for dog catcher, and they tell you they’re pro-choice, well, that has nothing to do with being the dog catcher. But then we do need to think about where candidates are going next.”

When choosing between the “lesser of two evils,” Stankewitz said — or two candidates who both advocate positions against Church teaching — Catholics must take into account that “some issues, positions are more important than others, but we can’t neglect evil.”

Stankewitz said the Catholic Church advocates on non-partisan issues, such as abortion, assisted suicide or the death penalty, but stays out of partisan politics. Rather, he said, it is up to faithful Catholics to reform the parties from within.

“If you’re part of a party, then you need to reform the parties on those issues,” Stankewitz said. “There is more than one way to skin a cat. There is more than one way to solve poverty, different ways to manage the economy. So we can’t just judge people based on party label.”

Stankewitz said Catholics must also pray for the candidates, before and after the election, noting that while the election season will end Nov. 8, politics and governance is a continuing process.

“You need to be guided by your faith, asking what you identify with politically,” Stankewitz said. “If you don’t want to vote for president, you can still vote down ballot. But if you’re disgusted, write letters, say why you’re noting sending money, tell them why you’re disgusted. If we don’t tell them why we aren’t voting for them, why we’re going against them, then there will be no shifting of parties from within.”

Above all else, Stankewitz said, Catholics should be engaged with their faith in the public life, not only as one’s obligation as a Catholic, but as an American.

“This biggest thing is, as Americans, we don’t just have the right to believe in a faith, we have the right to exercise that faith in the public sphere,” Stankewitz said. “We are called to do more than just serve Catholics. We’re called to care for everybody, even if we don’t agree with them.”