“Lord, show me where I can make a difference.”
This was the prayer petition in the June 12, 2012 Regnum Christi online gospel reflection. As I read this, I knew God has been paying attention, because this has been my daily prayer of late.
I had been feeling overwhelmed as the November elections approach, and the deadline for the implementation of the new “healthcare” plan put forth by President Obama looms. I have to be honest — I am worried.
I send my children to an authentically Catholic school (Everest Academy in Clarkston, Michigan) and I love to listen to my local Catholic radio station (Ave Maria Radio) and watch Catholic programming on the EWTN television network. What will the future of these organizations be?
One of my best friend’s husbands works in the finance department for a Catholic hospital. He tells me his boss said they will NOT comply when the mandate from the Health and Human Services Department goes into effect, forcing hospitals and other Catholic institutions, and all business owners who are Catholic for that matter, to pay for contraception and abortifacient drugs for their employees, directly in opposition to Catholic religious beliefs.
When the HHS mandate goes into effect, the people in these organizations will have a serious choice to make. From what I can understand, they will have to close the doors of their businesses or go to jail because they refuse to pay the fines imposed on them.
From what I can see, few people, including some in our own Church, seem to care about this. And apparently neither does the media. (Click here to read about their “coverage” of the issue thus far.)
Frankly, I am frightened, but I am doing my best to overcome my fear with God’s help. And I am also doing what little I can to make my voice heard. I have put a sign in the window of my car that states “Stop Obama’s HHS Mandate,” which I got while attending the religious freedom rally in Flint, Michigan, on Friday, June 8.
I just returned from spending my money to see the movie “For Greater Glory” about the Cristero War for religious freedom in the early 1900s in Mexico. (It was hard to find a time I could attend – our local theater in Birmingham, Michigan, interestingly is showing this R rated movie only at noon and 6:30 pm.) And I am encouraging others to see it. If this movie doesn’t inspire you, nothing will.
I beg all of you who are reading this to do what you can — pray, fast and offer sacrifices. I encourage all Catholics to go to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops website to read about the upcoming Fortnight for Freedom, and then check to see what is happening in your local diocese.
And remember how many people one person’s actions (through God’s grace) can affect. I once heard a homily from a priest about Genesis 18:20-33, where Abraham negotiates with God about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. God finally agrees that, if 10 good people lived in these cities, He would not destroy the cities. The priest said that according to the population estimate in Sodom and Gomorrah at that time, the actions of one good person, through God’s grace, could have saved 10,000 souls. This makes me feel a lot better about the effectiveness of my seemingly small efforts.
And with religious freedom on my mind, I will be casting my vote in November.
