Many conservative Catholics are feeling down. They believe we have been dealt a serious blow in our fight for life and possibly the freedoms we hold dear. This was my first instinct too.
The Lord, in His mercy, has changed my heart for me. I began to see the gifts in this situation. I went to Mass with peace growing in my heart and my private revelation seemed to be confirmed.
When we are in a lighted room we can barely seem the soft dim of a candle burning, however, in a dark room the candle burns bright and everyone gathers around it. The first reading at the Mass was:
“Do everything without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine like lights in the world.. ” Philippians 2:14-16
We are called to be the lights in the darkness, today more than ever before. We can be that positive force that others are drawn to. There has been so much talk of ‘hope’ and today, hope abounds.
When our current president was elected, many of those against him were people who didn’t know God or believe God was formed in their image and by their consciences. They proceeded with anger and vitriol. They worked against this man with all their might.
President-elect Obama is indeed a blessed man as his main opponents are those who love the Lord and believe in the sanctity of life. He will have all those people praying for him during his administration! We can only imagine the fruit that will come out of all that prayer.
If we can hold our heads up and be the people God means us to be, we will set a beautiful example of Christian love and charity in the world.
We are troubled by the president elect’s radical stand on abortion, which even extends to babies that survive abortion. It troubles our senses and our minds. We want to rage against this injustice. Instead, we can draw on this outrage to renew our prayers and our peaceful efforts to protect the unborn. We will not have the opportunity to be lulled into complacency. We should be grateful for this.
We may not win this battle in the courts, but we are already winning it in the hearts and minds of others. We must remember to focus our efforts in that direction. My constant prayer is that someday the very idea of abortion will be as repugnant to our country as our past history of slavery is to us now.
Good will triumph over evil. It is always darkest before the dawn, and remember, it is better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness.
