It Is Time

(An ode to Inauguration Day, January 20, 2021)

 

On this date four years ago,
I watched alongside others
In the U.S. and around the world
As the duly elected new president
Was sworn into office
With an oath in which he promised to
“faithfully execute the office of President of the United States,
and will to the best of my ability,
preserve, protect and defend
the Constitution of the United States.”

Though I did not vote for him,
As a believer in the democratic process
Upon which these United States were founded
And by which they have been governed
For over two centuries,
With difficulty I say,
He was my president.

I disagreed with his policies,
Policies rooted in
Narcissism
Hatred
Injustice
Divisiveness
Violence
And the abuse of power, people, and the environment.

My beliefs, both moral and spiritual,
Rest at opposite ends of the continua
Than do his.
But, because I am an American citizen,
He was my president.

Thanks to the nineteenth amendment of the United States Constitution,
I am guaranteed the means to a path for change,
The right to cast a vote
for something, for someone, for different.
In November, with the majority of Americans,
I exercised this right and voted for change.
We now have a new president.

We now have a president who believes in
Giving all rather than taking all
Justice for all
Inclusion of all
Governing for all.
We now have a president who believes in
The power of love
Rather than the love of power.

We now have a president who truly believes that we are “one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

And today
As our new president spoke the words
Of the oath of office,
Many of you chose
To turn your back on
And failed to welcome him,
convinced that recognizing his leadership,
Will in some way bring challenge
To your Christian beliefs and values.

You are correct.
Our new president will bring such challenges.
In fact, he already has,
And he will continue to do so,
Though not in the ways that you think.

By echoing the greatest commandment given to us by Jesus,
Our new president has pleaded with each of us
To love our neighbor,
To welcome the stranger,
To extend a hand and heart to all those in need.
As a nation, he has challenged us
To live the faith that we profess,
A faith rooted in acts of love and compassion
Rather than in words of judgement and condemnation.

How convenient it was
For you to turn your backs,
To not hear
The expectations our president has
For each of us,
For this country,
For  himself.

It is time to turn around.
It is time to examine our faith.
It is time to embrace all of our brothers and sisters.
It is time to acknowledge our new president.

It is time to change.
It is time for change.

It is time.
It is time.
It is time.

 

KEB 1/20/21