A busload of politicians was driving down a country road near Galway when suddenly a tire blew. The bus ran off the road and crashed into an old farmer's barn. The old farmer got off his tractor and went to investigate the accident. Soon he dug a large hole and buried the entire busload. Several days later, the sheriff came out, saw the crashed bus, but no bodies, and asked the farmer where all the politicians had gone. “Sure, and I buried ‘em.” The sheriff said, “Lordy! Were they all dead?” Said the old farmer, “Well, some said they weren’t, but you know how them crooked politicians lie.”
We are just nineteen days to the presidential elections here in the United States. The airwaves, newspapers, and other media are serving up campaign stories 24/7. The USCCB has issued statements to help guide our conscience formation on seven pillars to consider:
The Church never intends to side with one party over another. Its concern is to help form our consciences and encourage us as faithful citizens to vote. The USCCB's website has more solid information.
In this spirit of responsible citizenship, consider the witness of Ignatius of Antioch, who died in 107 A.D. When Emperor Trajan came to Antioch, he forced Christians to renounce Christ and worship the emperor. Bishop Ignatius refused, and Trajan condemned him to die a violent death by wild beasts in the arena in Rome.
On the long journey to Rome, he wrote seven letters, five to churches in Asia Minor, encouraging them to be faithful to God and obey their superiors. He warned them against false teachings, providing them with solid truths of the Christian faith. The sixth letter was to Saint Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, who was later martyred for the faith, and the seventh and final letter was to the Christians of Rome. He begged them not to try to stop his martyrdom.
“The only thing I ask is to allow me to offer the libation of my blood to God. I am the wheat of the Lord. May I be ground by the teeth of the beasts to become the Immaculate Bread of Christ.”
Ignatius bravely met the lions in Circus Maximus. His great concern was for the unity and good order of the Church. Even greater was his willingness to suffer martyrdom. He did not draw attention to his own suffering. But the love of God, which strengthened him, taught him the price of commitment, and he would not deny Christ even to save his own life.
Saint Ignatius of Antioch, pray for us.
Father Wilfred J. Raymond, C.S.C. (Father Willy), a native of Old Town, Maine, is the eighth of 12 children. He joined the Congregation of Holy Cross in 1964 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1971. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Stonehill College in 1967 and a master’s in Theology from the University of Notre Dame in 1971. He served in ministry at Stonehill College (1979-1992), Holy Cross leadership (1994-2000), National Director of Family Theater Productions, Hollywood (2000-2014), and President of Holy Cross Family Ministries (2014-2022). In addition to English, he is conversant in French and Spanish. He remains a diehard fan of the Boston Red Sox, even though he has served as Chaplain for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
