In a few short days, the election will be over and, God willing, the United States will have a president-elect. But, as the chaos of recent months has made clear, there are questions we must ask: What has this election cost? And what will the price continue to be moving forward?
We are not speaking here of finances, or of the outcomes of electing particular candidates, or of the policies the candidates have proposed, but of a deeper price paid by society collectively and by each of us individually. Because as our political machine has begun to look akin to a seven-headed dragon, we are finding that we have laid too many of the values we once held dear at its feet.
Our country is missing peace. It is missing truth. And it is missing the two greatest of all commandments — to love God and neighbor above all else, including, and perhaps especially, above political affiliation.
Rising anxiety among Americans
On Oct. 29, the American Psychological Association issued the results of a survey that found that 69% of U.S. adults say that the presidential election is a “significant source of stress.” An even greater number — 77% — reported that they were significantly stressed over the “future of our nation.” This anxiety only amplifies the already high anxieties of our population. We have lost our peace. But more disturbing is that many of our brothers and sisters do not know how to reclaim it, or perhaps even wish to.
Catholics can help. Jesus said to his disciples, “Peace be with you.” This is what we now need to say to our neighbors, our loved ones, our colleagues. We need to be the ones to extend the olive branch and to calm the roiling waters. We are Christ’s ambassadors of peace to the world. We cannot forget or avoid this responsibility.
Discerning truth from falsehood
We are also ambassadors of the Truth. Unfortunately, as we know all too well, it can be difficult to cut through all the half-truths and untruths that are tossed around as fact — and perhaps, if we’re honest, we might even lack the drive to follow the truth even when we know it. Our fallen humanity makes it easy to sacrifice truth on the altar of winning.
The same APA survey found that 82% of American adults say they are “worried that people may be basing their values and opinions on false or inaccurate information.” Media coverage shaped by political or ideological agendas, the rise of AI, falsified social media accounts, and the blatant lies shared by leading political candidates and figures of both major parties, have created a world in which it is increasingly difficult to discern truth in a sea of falsehood.
A deeper relationship with Jesus can help us discern what is true from what is false. Those who know Jesus know him to be the Way, the Truth and the Life. If we follow his commandments, if we spend time in front of the Blessed Sacrament, if we seek to love as he taught and commanded us, the truth becomes clear, because he makes himself known to us. God’s truth resonates in our hearts, and we are able to take these hearts into the world to share his truth with all.
Strained relationships and political divide
Finally, the same APA study noted that 32% of adults reported that the political climate has caused strain between them and their family members, and that 30% said that they limit their time with family because they have different values. This number is as devastating as it is astounding. If your sister votes differently from you, she is not your enemy. She is your sister. The same is true for spouses and for all relationships. The Lord summarized the divine law in two great commandments: to love God with all of our heart, soul and mind, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. Have we failed in these commandments because we have wrongly prioritized politics over relationships?
Loving your neighbor, especially loving those you might see as enemies or persecutors — including doing good to them as Christ commanded — isn’t weakness: It is strength. It’s strength beyond what this world, or its pride-filled politicians, foster. It is something that is so beyond our fallen nature — unlike hating your neighbor and doing evil to your enemies — that we need to appeal to God’s grace to help us to do the very thing he commanded. Doing this takes the teeth out of evil, which demands an endless eye for an eye, until the whole world is blind to the truth, alone with its hatred in the dark.
This is the Gospel truth that Catholics, if we’re to be the light of Christ in our times, must hold high through our love of our neighbor, especially those toward whom we feel enmity or whom we feel must be at enmity with us. We must love them as Christ loves them, because he expects nothing less from those who would be his disciples. What is at stake is not just the result of an election or its aftermath — it’s eternal life.
Politics, politicians and political parties are not a stand-in for God. Only God is God. And God is peace, God is truth, and God is love. At the end of an election season in which political parties have vied for our allegiance, let our fidelity be to God alone.
