As the primaries draw to a close and the general election season gets underway, Catholics are emerging again as one of the most important demographics in U.S. politics. Both the McCain and Obama campaigns have launched Catholic advisory committees. The media has reported extensively on Sen. Clinton's success reaching Catholic voters. The anti-Catholic comments of an largely unheard of Texas pastor named John Hagee caused months of headaches for the McCain campaign, after Hagee endorsed the Arizona senator in February.

And, as in 2004, a small handful of Bishops have started to weigh in as well, with Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City asking Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (a Catholic) to refrain from receiving Communion for vetoing a piece of abortion legislation, and Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput calling on a group called Roman Catholics for Obama to persuade their candidate to become more "pro-life."

What does Catholic teaching really say about the roles of Catholic voters and officeholders? Is it acceptable for a bishop to deny Communion to a candidate or even a voter? What is the proper role of religious faith in our political system, especially in a society that values a rightful separation between church and state?

It's because of questions like these that Alexia and I decided to write A Nation for All. We believe the stakes are too high to leave the answers to those who would use the language of faith - especially the Catholic faith - in order to advance a partisan political agenda. It's our hope that Catholics of all political stripes (and even Americans of other faith traditions) will use our book as a guide to finding a deeper level of political engagement, and to find constructive, unifying solutions to the pressing moral concerns of our day.

During the coming months we'll use this blog to comment on faith and politics in the news, and to related the principles of A Nation for All to the 2008 elections. We'll also feature a host of other Catholic voices, and invite your comments as well.

We expect the book to be out by mid-June. In the meantime, you can still pre-order A Nation for All.

Thanks for your interest, and please check back soon.