Saturday, November 21, 2020
It seems that the election is (not) over. Although the state of Georgia certified its vote for President-Elect Biden, the current occupant of the White House met with Republican State legislators to urge them to throw out the electors committed to voting for the candidate who won the election in Michigan. The two leaders of that state assembly, however, simply said that they would “follow the law” and that the certification process “should be free from threat or intimidation.”
Some of us are old enough to remember intimidation and threats in elections. In 1964, racists in the South threatened black voters and in some cases shot and killed people trying to exercise their rights under the Constitution. But the integrity of the election process was not questioned the way it is being questioned today.
It is dangerous for democracy when the losing candidate refuses to concede. Having been on the losing side of elections in the past, I know it is a bitter pill. Now is a time for healing the divisions in our Nation so we all work for the common good.
Prayer for the Day
We come to you, O God, for guidance during these days
For it seems like the fabric of our society has loose strings;
Provide us wisdom as we contend with forces tearing us apart
And help us to create new ways of healing.
In the name of him who healed all,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
A healthy democracy requires a decent society; it requires that we are honorable, generous, tolerant and respectful.
Charles W. Pickering, Attorney, former federal judge
While democracy is in the long run the most stable form of government, in the short run it is among the most fragile.
Madeleine Albright, former Secretary of State
For not from the east or from the west
and not from the wilderness comes the lifting up;
but it is God who executes judgment,
putting down one and lifting up another.
Psalm 75: 6–7