Remember the Centennial of Armistice Day, not the Glory of Nationalism

Eleven days until Election day. I urge you to vote (if you have not already). Also remember the 11^th hour of the 11th day of the 11^th month of Nov. 1918. This is the 100^th anniversary of Armistice Day, the end of WW I, the “War to End all Wars.” Now called Veterans Day in the U.S. and Remembrance Day in Canada and other nations. French President Macron, hosting world leaders for the centennial, will have no celebration of national triumph. No tanks or missiles in the streets. 

In the U.S. we need peace for our press, freedom of the press--not bombs for them. We need no military at our borders; we need nuclear peace treaties. My father was a veteran of WW I. My uncle was gassed in that war. Remember that war did not end all wars. Nov. 6 is a time for voting. Nov. 11^th is a Sunday, a day of Remembrance, not of the glory of nationalism, but of the Christ who died to end death and of Resurrection: for new together life for all.

Voting Matters. Every Single Person Matters

We voted yesterday! First day polls are open at our County Court House for absentee ballot voting. Our neighbors, new to Iowa, voted, too. It was a friendly, welcoming process. No voter I.D. required. All was in order, carefully done. Now we are free on November 6th to help others go to the polls! Democracy means that we all work to make sure everyone is able to vote!

Commentators wonder which way the final vote on the Supreme Court nomination will swing in the Mid-terms.  Will the Republicans be more fired up? Will the Democrats' determination to change things hold? We cannot know, of course. But I do know these things: We absolutely have to make sure that those people whom others want to keep away from voting are supported.  How many names are being erased? What can I do? Who needs an I.D.? What can I do?  Whose polling place has been changed without someone knowing about it? How can I let them know?

What can I do locally to make sure that information is correct and widely known?  Whom can I tell that their vote matters and that they matter? That they really matter? 

"No" to Gender Justice and So Many Other Rights . . . for Years to Come

With Senator Collins and Senator Manchin just announcing they will vote “yes” to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to be an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, I raise again the concerns of the National Council of Churches: (Below) Also today, after decades of work by women and men, the Lutheran Church of Australia again denied women the right to be ordained (2/3 vote needed; only 59.7% received). 

National Council of Churches Statement this week: “Kavanaugh’s political record is troubling with regard to issues of voting rights, racial and gender justice, health care, the rights of people with disabilities, and environmental protections.  This leads us to believe that he cannot be an impartial justice in cases that are sure to come before him at the Court.” October 5, 2018, a day full of clouds here.