By Bishop David Ricken | For On Mission
As the summer months come to a close, I look back over the year and reflect on how much has been happening in our world, our nation and our Church. Joyfully, we are blessed with a new Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, who has been a quiet but steady light for the Church and the world.
At the same time, we have also felt the ongoing pains of war, famine, racism and grief throughout the world. Our nation elected a new president, and we are all experiencing the immense changes that come with a new administration that include topics such as pro-life issues, immigration and the economy, among others. We experience these changes to our way of life — sometimes for good and sometimes not.
Yet, as we watch these events unfold in our world, nation and Church, are we to be mere spectators? It can be easy to feel as though we have no means to impact the world around us and what is taking place. Satan wants us to believe we are powerless, especially before the forces of evil, and that we can do nothing to stop it. Yet that is not what we believe as Catholics.
As Scripture encourages us in the Gospel of Luke, “Nothing will be impossible for God (Lk 1:37).” Because we are in relationship with Jesus Christ, we believe we can make a difference and continue to positively influence our politicians, political processes and society at large.
As always, prayer is the first step. Let us pray for our Church, our country, our elected officials and our world, that we might all be brought closer to Jesus Christ. Through prayer, we must form our consciences in accordance with Sacred Scripture and Catholic teaching, so that our voices and votes will be informed by our faith in Jesus Christ and his Church.
So often, we as a society forget about the most vulnerable: the unborn, elderly, infirmed, migrants, widows, orphans and all of God’s children in need of our help. These groups need us to speak for and with them so that the government does not forget whom it is meant to serve, which is ALL OF US!
The dignity of every human person ought to be respected and valued in every piece of legislation and political action. Yes, we serve those in need through Catholic Charities and many other wonderful Catholic social support agencies, but more can — and must — be done. Our diocesan offices and Catholic Charities reach out to elected officials, but so can every citizen. Contact your elected officials and share your thoughts with them. In addition to prayer and advocacy, I invite you to support these and other faith-based social service organizations, which live out the Gospel daily, walking alongside the poor and marginalized and bringing hope in the midst of despair.
My prayer remains united with our Holy Father’s prayers for peace throughout the world. Let us pray for our elected officials to be peacemakers in Israel, Palestine, Iran, Russia, Ukraine, Sudan and everywhere people suffer from war and violence.
My friends, as we look back on our past as a nation and ahead to our future, let us pray for the strength and wisdom to be agents of good and holy change for Jesus Christ and his Church.