Today is inauguration day.  The United States gets a new President.  This makes 45 new Presidents in our history.

We get a new President every four or eight years – unless something terrible happens.  Thanks be to God, that doesn’t happen often, but it does happen.

A minor miracle is that we are one of the minority of nations in which this change of leadership occurs without a coup, military intervention, dissolving of the legislature or imprisonment of political opponents.

The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. — Psalm 9:9

This isn’t to suggest that we are without politicians who have earned prison time.  Even in the land of the free and home of the brave, people enter political service poor and leave a few years later wealthy.

There will be a parade, happy crowds, cheering, inspirational words and lots of parties. There also will be angry protestors, demonstrations and confused news commentators.

Those who like our new President have high expectations:  lower taxes, strong national security, great health care, abundant energy, less intrusive government and a chicken in every pot.

Know that the Lord secures justice for the poor and upholds the cause of the needy. — Psalm 140:12

Those who hate our new President have low expectations:  the rich get richer, the poor get poorer, millions of illegal immigrants are jailed, global warming floods Malibu Beach, minorities are enslaved and school lunches halted.

Both sides of the expectations equation will prove wrong.  A new President can make a difference, but he can’t turn our nation into the Garden of Eden.  On the flip side, he also can’t turn it into Death Valley.

The Psalms offer some insight, because they remind us that it is God – not wee politicians or we the people – who in the end can solve our problems, comfort our hearts, satisfy our souls.

Let’s take that to prayer today.

 

In a few days, Donald Trump will take the oath of office and become the 45^th president of the United States.  Expect parades, demonstrations, parties and protests.

Not everyone in America is on the same page.

To some, this change of administrations marks the end of hope and change.  To others, it is the end of an eight-year nightmare.

In reality, it is a moment in the ongoing history of nation with the highest of ideals that is populated by humans who always fallen well short of perfection.

I hear so many people saying that the country has never been so divided.  Those folks must have slept through their American history classes – or went to schools that should be sued for malpractice.

Anyone who lived through the 1960s and 1970s know what it means to live in a divided nation.  The Civil Rights Movement and the protests against the Vietnam War brought conflict, hate and division.

More than 600,000 American soldiers – Union and Confederate – died in the Civil War.  That’s much more divisive than social media micro aggressions.  So while I would hesitate to claim we are a nation united, it really could be much worse.

My wife and I pray each night before dinner.  We have a long list of intentions, and I’m grateful my wife somehow remembers them all.  The final intentions are for our new President and Vice President, their families and those who serve with them.  We offered our prayers for those now leaving office as well.

We pray for their safety and their wisdom.  But more important, we pray that their hearts be open to the will of the Holy Spirit, that they fulfill the plan God has for their lives.

With God’s guidance, America will have hope and it will be great.

 

Movies are not real

Movies are images on a screen, stories, characters.

Characters in movies are not real.  And I’m beginning to think the actors who portray them also may be not real.  At least, they don’t play in our real world.

This came to mind as I read about Meryl Streep’s grumbling at the Golden Globes.  I’m not going to review her rather immature ramblings, but it is enough to say that she doesn’t like our President elect, Donald Trump.

I have equally negative feelings about the person who will be leaving the Oval Office in a couple weeks.  But if someone were giving me an award about my acting, musical performances, literary genius or plain old masculine beauty (none of these are likely) it wouldn’t occur to me to use the occasion to opine on politics.  I figure that just because I won the Olympic marathon (in my dreams), I should stand there with a gold medal hanging from my neck and voice my views on Republicans and Democrats.

It isn’t that I don’t have an opinion.  And I don’t deny the right of Ms. Streep or anyone else who acts to have an opinion.  But there is a time and place for everything.  When you are getting an award for acting, it is a time to talk about acting – and maybe thank your family and friends.  Please leave the politics to cocktail parties and Tweets.

I’m sure there are some folks of a Republican persuasion who have vowed never to view another movie starring Ms. Streep.  I make no such vow, for the practical reason that if I decided to watch movies not starring goofy liberals I would have few movies to view.

I also hope that politicians don’t decide to return the slams in kind.  I can imagine (almost) Mr. Trump taking the oath of office, thanking his supporters, then launching into a rant about the poor acting in recent movies and the negative impact of Hollywood on today’s youth.  He might even call the movie industry deplorable.

One of the many blessings I receive by working for a Roman Catholic organization is that I visit Rome occasionally.

I’ve been there more than a dozen times.  I mention this not to suggest I’m important, but to establish my credentials for what follows.

McDonald’s has been in Italy since 1985.  That was more than a decade before my first visit to that beautiful country.  So by the time I arrived, it wasn’t unusual to see the golden arches peeking out from behind a famed architectural treasure or mundane subway station.

As shocking as this may seem to some folks, Italians are buying lots of burgers and fries.  And if they were not, McDonald’s wouldn’t be building restaurants around the Eternal City.  The company is an American, capitalist institution.  (I don’t say that as a criticism.)

To some Italians, having McDonald’s in their midst is culturally insulting.  Sort of like drinking California wine in Paris or eating a Hersey Bar in Switzerland.

However, one of my well-placed informants in Rome tells me that most McDonald’s customers are, in fact, card-carrying Italians.  The tourists typically want local cuisine.

According to my source, Italians have several solid reasons for patronizing McDonald’s:

• Inexpensive
• Air conditioned
• Ample seating
• Clean and functioning bathrooms

Frankly, my experience in Rome would suggest that those attributes would be absent from many non-McDonald’s establishments.  But since I rarely enter a McDonald’s at home, I don’t seek them out in Rome (usually).

The Rome/McDonald’s controversy heated up this week with the opening of a burger joint practically on the Vatican’s front porch.  To many people, this seems so inappropriate, like putting a nightclub next to an elementary school.

But I think it is only a matter of time before priests, bishops and even cardinals are sneaking into McDonald’s for a Big Tasty.  I don’t expect the Pope to show up, but he does come up with a surprise now and then.

One of his most surprising – and beautiful – moments was when he greeted the crowd in St. Peter’s Square shortly after his election.  Among his many beautiful reflections was that the Church had gone to the ends of the earth to find a new Pope.

Well, Rome has gone to the ends of the earth (Oak Brook, Illinois) for the newest restaurant near the Vatican.  The world will survive.

 

All of us “practicing” Catholics witness the appearance of visitors at Christmas Mass.

Some are visiting family and friends.  Some are semi-practicing Catholics who get into the Christmas spirit and decide to see what is happening.  Perhaps some are people who just came in to escape snow and ice.

We regulars have varied reactions to these strangers.

At one extreme, what a joyful thing that they at least ventured into the church and we might have the opportunity to make a positive impression so they come back.

At the other extreme, many (perhaps most) don’t understand that they are in God’s house.  They may be noisy, disrespectful and resist efforts by us regulars to persuade them to be quiet in the sanctuary.  And while we want to make them welcome, we also want to experience the spiritual significance of Christmas without long-lost cousins loudly holding a reunion in the pew behind us.

There is a solution that may sound a bit radical, but it is in an approach that has been tried in other forums with grand results.

For many years, I took a commuter train back and forth from my suburban home to the city. Some riders chatted on the trip.  Others, read, worked on their laptops, talked on the phone, worked puzzles or slept.  The ride could get a bit noisy, which annoyed the readers, workers and sleepers.

The railroad implemented a solution:  quiet cars.  Each train now has at least one quiet car where you don’t talk, use the phone or sing along with your headphones.  This satisfies the needs of noisy and quiet riders alike.

Catholic parishes could do something similar, especially at Christmas when there are many Masses, something offered simultaneously (one in Church, one in the school gym).  There would be two options for people coming to Mass:

Option A:  Mass in the school gym.  Music by the contemporary choir.  Welcoming introduction by a young woman wearing tights and a low-cut blouse.  Priest processes in and asks everyone to turn to the person on either side, introduce themselves and shake hands.  Homily ignores the readings and focuses on the forgiveness and inclusion.  Everyone holds hands during the singing of the Lord’s Prayer.  Everyone hugs a stranger during the sign of peace.  Communion offered to anyone who feels the forgiveness of God in their heart.  And before the final blessing, a reminder that there will be a wine and cheese reception following Mass, with cartoons for the kids.

Option B:  Mass in the Church.  People who have been to Mass in the past week and confession in the past month enter in silence as the traditional choir sings classical Christmas works.  The choir accompanies the service with Mass parts sung in Latin and carols from the ancient dusty hymnals saved from the bonfire from the Legion of Mary.  Everyone kneels and prays before the start of the service, which is conducted with great reverence and joy.  The homily is about the birth of Christ and its significance to our world.  People join the priest in the Lord’s Prayer and give a warm handshake and/or nod to others during the sign of peace.  The congregation stays for all five verses of the recessional hymn, then kneels for prayers and leaves in quiet joy to meet and greet outside the sanctuary.

Of course, I have little expectation anyone will actually take my up on this brilliant proposal.  Thus, Christmas Masses will continue to try to accommodate people who don’t have a clue about how to behave in church – and faithful folk trying to tolerate their profane conduct.

There was a time (many years ago) when I would have opted for Option A above.  Today, I’m pure Option B.  I pray for a world where the two options meet in respectful harmony.

Two of the men who had the most influence on my life were part of what many call “The Greatest Generation.”

The attack on Pearl Harbor changed their live in ways most people today can barely imagine.  Shortly after the events of 75 years ago, Chet Fair enlisted in the Navy.  John Esposito enlisted in the Marines.

Chet put a promising career on hold, not knowing when (or if) he would return.  In John’s case, well, I have a feeling he might have stretched his age a little to join the mission.

Both men spent the next several years of their young lives in the war in the Pacific.  Both returned, for which my wife (John’s daughter) and I (Chet’s son) are deeply grateful.

Neither man talked much about their war experiences.  I can’t really relate to what they faced.  Sure, there have been wars since then, heroes have fought – and often died – for their country.

But World War II combined the ability to create mass death and destruction with the inability to communicate quickly or effectively.  No cell phones.  No satellite links.  No internet.

Just handwritten letters sent to an unknown location, perhaps sent to someone already dead.

What times of fear, unknown – and hope.  Without hope, no one would have survived the long war, the not knowing the fate of loved ones.

I think of Chet and John a lot at this time of year.  What a poignant Christmas it must have been 75 years ago.

And I’m thinking about them often this year as I read news reports of people in a state of self-imposed despair because of the outcome of the recent elections.

The comments by a feminist writer struck me; she broke up with her boyfriend because she said there was no hope left, no reason to marry, no reason to have children.

No hope? How ridiculous, how lacking in faith.

I can’t imagine what Chet and John would think.  They didn’t know, 75 years ago, that they were part of “The Greatest Generation.”  But they might think that they left our nation in the care of the worst generation.

I have too much hope to believe that. My hope is that today’s Americans will regain hope and find its way to greatness.

Hampshire College is probably a lovely little place for the intellectual manipulation of young minds.  They have a fancy website and their location in Amherst, Ma looks quite attractive.

However, these days they don’t have an American flag – or at least they aren’t running the one they have up the flagpole.  It is a long and rather convoluted tale that recounts why this is so.

In a nutshell, about a year ago the college starting flying the flag at half-staff to mourn deaths, oppression, discrimination and (I suspect) a Nutella shortage in the cafeteria.

It may not surprise you to learn that following the presidential election there was much flying of the flag halfway up the pole, as students and faculty dealt with the grief that a politically incorrect billionaire won.

Oh, the agony of defeat.  And in such agony, it would be just too upsetting to fly the American flag.  After all, if the person I want isn’t elected, can the nation still be valid?  How can I accept such a terrible injustice?

Interesting questions – and questions that likely entered the minds of some voters four years ago and eight years ago.  But most people understand that when you lose an election, well, you lose.  And if you want to win the next cycle, you work hard, donate to your candidate and try to convince others of your point of view.

Unfortunately, I expect most of the students at Hampshire College and other similar places are part of the “participation” generation.  This is the generation where kids played on sports teams where they don’t keep score and everyone gets a trophy just for showing up.  The kid who runs the 100-year-dash in 10 seconds isn’t any better than the kid who took half a minute.  They both ran and we don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings by pointing out that one kid was a stallion and the other a sloth.

Instead of trying to persuade the participation generation they have unpopular views and need to stop whining, why not just give them ribbons for election participation.  They don’t even have to vote, but simply report to the dean’s office, say they really care deeply about global warming and world peace, and they will be given a participation ribbon.

It didn’t matter who won the 100-year-dash – why should it matter who wins an election?

“Dear Future Mom” is among the most powerful little videos ever produced.

Fifteen young people with Down syndrome give a message of joy and hope in several languages.  The simply goal is to assure women expecting a baby with Down Syndrome that the future with that child can be beautiful, fulfilling, worth the hard work and sacrifice required.

I have watched the video over and over.  It brings a tear to my eye and (yes, it is true) makes me feel warm and fuzzy.

But apparently the impact in France is different.

The French government has banned the showing of the video on television.  The reason is so convoluted that it is difficult to explain, let alone understand – but let me try.

OK…you don’t want to show a video of happy down Down syndrome children because it would make women who aborted Down syndrome babies feel bad.

Following this line of thought, I don’t think the French can put much of anything on television.

• No normal, happy babies – that would make any woman who ever had an abortion feel bad.
• No married couples – that would make divorced folks feel bad.
• No soccer matches with fit athletes – that would make lazy slobs feel bad.
• No shiny new cars – that would make drivers of 10-year-old cars feel bad.
• No green lawns – that would make owners of weedy lawns feel bad.
• No basketball or volleyball matched with tall players – that would make short people feel bad.
• No beautiful actresses or handsome actors – they would make the rest of us feel bad.
• No law-abiding citizens – they would make criminals feel bad.
• No young people – they would make old people envious.
• No old people – they might scare young people about what lies ahead.

In short, there isn’t anything you can put on French television that won’t hurt someone’s fragile sensitivities.  But the least hurtful certainly would be an inspiring video of young people living with Down syndrome.

For you know how one must imitate us. For we did not act in a disorderly way among you, nor did we eat food received free from anyone. On the contrary, in toil and drudgery, night and day we worked, so as not to burden any of you. Not that we do not have the right. Rather, we wanted to present ourselves as a model for you, so that you might imitate us. In fact, when we were with you, we instructed you that if anyone was unwilling to work, neither should that one eat. We hear that some are conducting themselves among you in a disorderly way, by not keeping busy but minding the business of others. Such people we instruct and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and to eat their own food.

– 2 Thessalonians 3:7-12

 This warning against idleness was the second reading at Mass last Sunday.

Like many second readings, it probably didn’t register in the minds and hearts of many of the faithful.  Pastors don’t often jump at the opportunity to opine on second readings.

However, this particular reading slipped into my train of thought, which was troubled by the many post-election demonstrations, the images of young people throwing tantrums because someone they don’t like will be President of the United States.

Some might think protesting in the streets is a noble thing, a brave thing.  And if you are standing again tyranny in China, defending the unborn or demanding justice for the innocent, it is a noble thing.

Whining because you lost an election isn’t noble – it is childish.  Violent protests that injure people or destroy property are criminal.  Throwing a public tantrum because you didn’t get your way or disagree with others is, well, an act of idleness.

It isn’t constructive, positive or helpful.  And it reflects an underlying and arrogant assumption on the part of the protestors that they are someone entitled to have their way.

I have a suspicion that many of these young protestors got the message early on in life that they are special.  School should be free.  They have a right to self-actualization.  Health care is a right.  College is a right.  Economic security is a right.  A position of importance in an important organization is a right.  The world must hear what they have to say and agree with what they think.  They are the future.

And in the town where they grew up, everyone was far above average.

My wise Aunt Louise told me as I got ready to go to college that I was entering the most selfish time of my life.  Of course, I was taken aback and protested mightily.  But it gave me pause when she pointed out that I would be living in a dorm with all my meals provided, attend classes I chose, study in between social events, attend football games, drink too much, eat too much and more or less focus entirely on myself for at least four years.

In other words, she had a point.  And I expect today’s protestors come from a similar perspective, augmented by the gnawing fear that their degree in gender studies will be less marketable than it is currently fashionable.

This is a free country and everyone has the right to express their opinion.  But with freedom comes responsibility to be constructive and avoid damage to others.

I recommend the protestors put down their rocks and get back to class or work.  If you want to change the world, your opportunity comes at the next election – or be doing something positive today for someone else.

Many Americans are trying to hold two seemingly incompatible truths in their minds at the same moment:  The sun came up this morning and Donald Trump will be the 45^th President of the United States.

It must be true, because even the New York Times reported:

Donald John Trump was elected 45^th president of the United States on Tuesday in a stunning culmination of an explosive, populist and polarizing campaign that took relentless aim at the institutions and long-held ideals of American democracy.

Truth be told, the Times didn’t comment on the rising of the sun, and they were so terribly wrong in suggesting that Trump attacked “the institutions and long-held ideals of American democracy.”

Trump criticized big government, high taxes, over-regulation, abortion, open borders and political correctness.  News flash:  none of those is long-held ideals of American democracy.  In fact, politicians who promote those ideas are in complete contradiction to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers.

I suppose Trump’s victory is stunning to some folks, but not to people who live in small towns far removed from New York City, Hollywood and Washington.  The nation’s “newspaper of record” might do well to visit the space between the Hudson River and the eastern border of Los Angeles.

There is much prayer and work ahead to heal the divisions in our nation.  But I chuckle a bit when I hear people say, “we’ve never been so divided.”  We have.

Trump faces the challenge of bringing people together, but Abe Lincoln had a rather divided nation on his hands.

Woodrow Wilson struggled to achieve enough political consensus for the US to enter World War I.

Franklin Roosevelt couldn’t lead the US into World War II until well after the fall of Dunkirk and the Battle of Britain.  It took Pearl Harbor to get our full attention.

The pain – and sometimes violence – of the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War protests revealed a nation torn apart by fear and hatred.  Many of those scars remain.

Yes, we have many problems.  The United States is not and never will be the Garden of Eden.  But we remain the world’s best hope for truth and freedom.  Let’s get to it.