Sitting Out This Election?

This time last year I was so excited about what might happen in America during the next election and what effect that might have in the world. There was a pool of presidential candidates I liked. A few I would be absolutely thrilled to take the White House. Others I’d have just been very happy to take the White House. I disliked very few of those who took the stage and began to present their cases.

I’d felt this way before with other candidates. Men who I believed were good and honorable had entered presidential races before, but this time, things were different. Before, I’d never had the hope that “my guy” would win. Before, my candidate had always been voted off before he’d really had the chance to step foot on the island. This time though, things seemed different.

As the field narrowed and “my guy” stayed in the race, I became more and more hopeful. I believed my candidate was different. I believed he was more Christ-focused, more caring of his fellow man, and more capable of leading America from the brink of disaster.

Then things changed. I began to realize my lesser candidates were simply being picked off one by one with insults, name calling, and a media that cheered on the nastiness.

Self-righteous Anger Seems to Unify

I watched disheartened as it dawned on me how deep the hurts in America are and how deeply anger had gripped it’s claws into my beloved land and her people. What most seemed to unify America appeared to be this overwhelming self-righteous anger and a need to demand more for oneself rather than to give of oneself. I’d seen this attitude in others on the opposite side of the political aisle, but now, I began to see it in those who I thought I stood beside. Suspicion, anger, greed, and hurt oozed invisible toxins into both the land and the people I loved so much and no political leaning seemed safe.

I watched candidates I liked hang in there debating on that stage in front of the world. I cheered each time they made a good point or rose above a low blow, but even they could not hold themselves up completely. Even they sunk to levels beneath them in their retorts and desire to prove themselves. Even they had me occasionally cringe at home as I wished they stumbled in being the men they were created to be.

By the time my candidate withdrew from the race, I had already known it was coming. That didn’t make it easier. I had to face that again change would not come to America through love. I was left to wonder how long change without love could continue without effects beyond my worst imaginings.

Now What?

Today I realize none of the candidates I had such hope for will be my next president. Like many Catholics, I’m left choosing between two people I do not respect or admire. One candidate has proven to be selfish, dishonest, and unconcerned with human life from those lost in our military battles and foreign embassies to the most innocent and defenseless among us, the unborn child. The other has quickly become a political force to be reckoned with, not through a display of true strength, but through bullying tactics and an incredible destruction of the dignity of those he disagrees with.

I’m left with a decision I don’t want to make. For the first time in all the years I’ve been eligible to vote, I’ve actually thought of consciously passing up that privilege. I thought long and hard about what it would mean to not go to my town hall this November. I almost decided to stay home. I almost decided to wring my hands and give up hope. I almost decided I’d simply resign myself to the end of America as I know it. More accurately, maybe it would be the end of America as I hoped it would be. In truth, the America that lives in my heart may have been gone for a while.

Inaction is Action

As tempting as staying home might be, I can’t bring myself to do it. As we draw closer to the November election, I realize now more than ever that voting is a responsibility. Voting is not something you do just when it’s easy. It is not something you do only when you have a good chance of a positive outcome. Voting is not something you do without sacrifice.

What you do when things get hard shows the type of person you are. Voting is hard for me this time around, but that doesn’t mean I quit. I think many people feel the same. Voting for either candidate is hard, but we are Catholics. We are not quitters.

Catholics are given a Spirit of courage. When we call on that Spirit, it works for us, for our good and God’s glory. We see it work when a teen studies and prays to do well on a difficult test and succeeds. We see it work when we find someone we care deeply about and pray for chastity despite our bodies’ longing for pleasure. We see it when we marry and day after day drags on but we do choose love for our spouse, our children, and our vows rather than chasing elusive happiness. We see this as we age and care for those who become frail around us when we know there is no chance for them to get better.

Lessons From the Pre-Election:

My candidate is out. There is no chance for him to win. My second choice is out. My third choice is out. My fourth choice is out. I could continue down the list. My favorite candidates, all of those I was so happy with at this time last year now have no chance of winning this election.

This time last year I had such great hopes for what might happen in America and for what that might mean in the world. Today I have a very different outlook, but this year has been a year of reminders for me. As I look back over the past year, I wonder if I could have learned these lessons with an easy win by “my guy.”

I’ve learned how heavy the weight of freedom can be to those who take it seriously. I’ve considered how long and hard our Father must have thought before He could give the gift of free will to us knowing we would sometimes use it for His Glory and our good, sometimes for our own, and many times when we would simply turn our backs and choose to sit this one out letting other people face consequences because of our inaction.

I’ve learned that “my guy” can’t be a presidential candidate or a spouse or anyone walking the earth today. “My Guy” has to be my Savior, Jesus Christ. Hope for America and the world does not come from a presidential candidate but from my God. It is my faith in Him and Him alone that gives me hope for America and for the world.

I’ve learned that when the rest of the world is acting and shouting out and voting in suspicion, anger, greed, and hurt, it is more important than ever for us to put on the Spirit of courage given us by the Holy Spirit and to act in Love.

God Knows the Outcome

I’ve learned that no matter which candidate you vote for, you are called to act in Love, to light a candle when darkness prevails, and to continuously Love all those around you, love your neighbor, love your enemy, and even love the next presidential candidate, no matter how hard that may be.

God knows the outcome already. He gives you free will while He is in control of the final game. This election is just one aspect of centuries of God’s plan for mankind and our final reconciliation in Heaven with those who choose to Love. Do not sit out the presidential election, but begin to love the next president today, no matter who that president may be. Pray now and never give up. For God can turn the heart of His children no matter whether it is one you care deeply for or one who wants to rule the world. Nothing is impossible with God.

Do not give up. Do not despair. Pray and Love instead.

Please join me next month as I look at some of the factors Catholics may choose to call on when voting for a candidate.

God Bless…