Let the Trumpet Sound

Let the Trumpet Sound

“Let the trumpet sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, we shall be changed.” 1 Corinthians 15:52

In a steady and slow cadence, Pope Francis delivered his message to Congress yesterday.  He wanted to open a dialogue with them and all of us.

Common Good and Political Leadership:

He reminded members of  Congress they are “to defend and preserve the dignity of your  (their) fellow citizens in the tireless and demanding pursuit of the common good.”  Pope Francis shared what a political leader is called to be, “A good political leader always opts to initiate processes rather than possessing spaces (cf. Evangelii Gaudium, 222-223)”.  With our fractured political atmosphere and a looming federal budget confrontation, we should all hope this message was heard by members of Congress and their staffs.

We the people:

Francis eloquently pointed out we strive quietly to “build and a better life for our families”, and promote solidarity through organizations that help those in need.  We sustain “the life of our society” by hard work and feeding our families.   Family, community and solidarity with those in need are our primary concerns.  We pay our taxes, but that is not our primary concern.

Our values and dreams:

As he spoke, Pope Francis called to remember our values of liberty, equality for all, justice and dialogue for peace.  Those are very similar to St. Pope John XXIII’s four pillars of peace – truth, love, justice and freedom from his encyclical Pacem en Terris.  From our own history, he invoked the memories of Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton.

In concluding, Pope Francis used the following to describe a nation that is truly great –

“A nation can be considered great when it defends liberty as Lincoln did, when it fosters a culture which enables people to “dream” of full rights for all their brothers and sisters, as Martin Luther King sought to do; when it strives for justice and the cause of the oppressed, as Dorothy Day did by her tireless work, the fruit of a faith which becomes dialogue and sows peace in the contemplative style of Thomas Merton.”

Will we hear this trumpet call?  I pray that we do.

I will be writing more on this in the coming days.