Mary Magdalene, in Andrew Lloyd Weber’s Jesus Christ Superstar, sings a plaintive song as she struggles to understand her relationship with Jesus. So many hopes. So many dreams. So many promises. And now, the trial and forthcoming crucifixion.
That song has been running through my head repeatedly since the election November 4th of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States of America. There seems to be a never-ending barrage of charges and counter-charges, complaints and concerns about just about everything associated with the transition. Even the choice of a dog for his daughters gets to be grist for the “mill” of the 24 hour cable news channels.
Neither the left nor the right “know how to love him, What to do, how to move him.” Can he really run faster than a speeding bullet? Leap tall buildings? Is he really a man who seeks rapprochement with his foes [e.g. Lieberman] or is he a wuss? Is he going to bring “change” to the way our Nation operates or is he selecting too many “who’ve been there” to fill major posts? Will some Nations seek strong ties with us because Obama is President or will some distance themselves because he is an unknown?
We don’t know! This past election process was so significantly different from anything before that, like Mary Magdalene in the song, “I’ve been changed, yes really changed.” Changed because, I think, regardless of whether we voted for McCain or Obama this whole process changed us. Both candidates firmly declared that life could not continue as is. That we needed to discover a new paradigm for doing business as the “last Empire” in the world.
As we struggle through these next 9+ weeks, keep in mind the wisdom of Mary Magdalene – he’s just a man! Democracy – this Republic of 50 States – will not prosper if we return to our non-participatory role and “Let President Obama” do it. We need to do it. We need to continue our involvement. We need to communicate to our elected officials [remember what happened the first time they voted on the bailout bill?]
There is no doubt in my mind that to bring care to those who are sick without insurance; to create jobs that enable a family to prosper; to feed those who are hungry; house the homeless; etc. – those cannot be accomplished without a cost to me! Sure, I’m retired. Yes, the stock market in the past few months has wiped out 30+% of our retirement resources.
But even that being true, I [and all of you reading this] are so much wealthier than most of the world’s population. Do I/we really believe what Jesus taught?
These next months are crunch time.
He is just a man.
He is a man with a vision and an ability to invite people to join him.
What to do?
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