A Hope Expressed For The Future

The polls in Utah have been open for several hours now. Our church is a polling place - I vote here in fact - and I have been pleased to see a pretty steady stream of people coming to vote.

After today, though, the hard part begins. Regardless of who wins, the issues facing our country seem so daunting that I cannot imagine how they can be addressed. Worse still, it seems that our country is even more divided than ever before.

So, it was with great interest that I read this guest editorial on the Washington Post On Faith site. It was written by Tim Harrison. Let me let him speak for himself:

I'm a conservative Christian - what the media calls an evangelical. I believe in creationism, oppose gay marriage, and think abortion is the killing of a life ready to change the world. I'm a leader in my church and I volunteer to better my community by serving others. ...

If we are going to tackle the huge, complex issues and problems facing our country today, we are going to have to check our religion-based stances at the door. This country is too large and too diverse to apply one set of religious absolutes to every citizen. If we are a country that has been a "melting pot" for generations, and will continue to be --- if we are a country that embraces diversity, then we must build a new bridge of common ground across divisive religious issues. At the very least, we must be able to see the one who disagrees with us (no matter what their religious beliefs) as a partner in overcoming the huge problems (our new common ground) that we face as a nation--problems such as alternate energy sources, the financial markets, national security, Iraq, healthcare, and poverty (both here and abroad).

This is a message of reconciliation. It's a message of trying to set aside the partisan politics and instead, pick up the mantle of responsibility to solve the serious problems facing America and the world. Why can't we all do that? Why can't we quit trying to prove we're right and the other side is wrong, whatever side the "other" side happens to be?

This is all a new thought for me. I'm still not totally comfortable with it yet. However, I know that I've been part of the problem. I've done my part in vilifying those who disagree with me. But things must change, both in my family, my workplace, and in my nation. One thing's for sure, I want to do my part and put aside the religious issues while I play my part in solving the larger issues, whatever they might be.

May his tribe increase. The only way we are going to be able to tackle the issues facing our country is for all people to work together, despite their differences with each other. Surely we can agree that the campaign slogan for the McCain/Palin ticket is applicable here - "Country First".

That is certainly a hope for the future.