Campaign Madness

When I read the election news, I wonder if there has been a more contentious election in my lifetime. Sure, there was the fiasco in 2000 with the “hanging chads” and such, and, sure, the Democratic party’s entire platform in the 2004 election was “we hate Bush,” but this election seems worse somehow. I mean, even I have gotten caught up in the hype at times.

Last week, I read a news story about McCain getting booed for saying that Obama was a “decent guy.” In another instance, someone at a McCain rally cried out to kill Obama (although this was apparently only heard by one person). On the other side, I read this morning about an Obama supporter assulting a McCain volunteer in Manhattan with her own sign.

All of this reminds me of a story about a monk I read recently.

For some background, Father Stephen, author of the blog Glory to God for All Things, recently went on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. This is a land that has been torn apart by religious and political strife for centuries. During this visit, Father Stephen visited the Monestary of St. Saba, which has existed since the 5th Century and has seen its share of martyrs. Father Stephen writes of one conversation with a monk:

The monk who was guiding us through the monastery was asked the question about the difficulties the monastery encountered with the political situation in the area (it is situated in the Palestian Authority area). He said, “We have been here since the 5th century and have seen many political situations. We are monks. We have no enemies.”

I immediately grabbed his hand and kissed it and told him, “You’re the first man I’ve met in the holy land who proclaimed that he had no enemies. You are a blessing.”

When he returned, Father Stephen posted a further meditation on this exchange, A Single Monk, which serves as a very good reminder for us as the political season reaches its apex.

In addition, I would offer these words from Psalm 146 (145 in the Septuagint), which are sung as the Second Antiphon in the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom on Sundays in the Orthodox Church:

Praise the Lord, O my soul. I will praise the Lord as long as I live. I will sing praises to my God while I have my being. Put not your trust in princes, in sons of men, in whom there is no salvation. When his breath departs, he returns to his earth; on that very day, his plans perish. The Lord will reign forever; thy God, O Zion, to all generations.