Lisa Hendey
Today is an interesting day across my social media venues. I see many rejoicing as President Obama has been re-elected to lead our country for another four years. I see many asking — in sadness, in confusion, and often in anger — what this means for the causes many of us hold dear: the sanctity of all human life, care for all of those in need, and religious liberty.
I’m not a pundit, so it’s not my way to answer either of those camps or to second-guess the will of the voters or our system of government.
So what is my job today? To be the change I desire.
To “be the change” I must commit:
- To stop waiting for a system, one man, or a political party to make our country a better, more loving and more fruitful place to live
- To stop thinking that my prayers — in absence of my actions — will help those in need
- To stop “writing about it” instead of “doing it”
- To stop looking at people in groups, classifying them according to anything more than simply another “child of God”
I’ll be the first to admit that I cannot change our entire country. But I can change my own little corner of it each and every day.
I can feed hungry folks in my community. I can nurture and love the teenagers in my life and their friends so that young women will not find themselves in need of choosing against the sanctity of human life. I can learn to communicate more effectively with families living in my town who have languages and cultures and needs that vary from my own. I can be active at my parish, which is a major source of support for the hungry, the poor and the lonely where I live. And I can continue to believe that the actions of each of our families do have an impact and that one little suburban housewife does have a responsibility in this world.
Following the election results, you might like to read:
- Message of Pope Benedict XVI to President Obama
- Cardinal Dolan Congratulates President Obama on Reelection
Will you “be the change” you desire? What does that look like in your world?
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