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Vision:
To Nurture Catholic Men's Spirituality in Chicago Southland
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CMCSMen
A Blog for Chicago Catholic Men
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Why We Need to Pray for Our Leaders
“It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible.”
– George Washington
View web version
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"We need to participate for the common good. Sometimes we hear: a good Catholic is not interested in politics. This is not true: good Catholics immerse themselves in politics by offering the best of themselves so that the leader can govern."
- Pope Francis, 9/16/13
1 First of all, then, I ask that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone, 2 for kings and for all in authority, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all devotion and dignity. 3 This is good and pleasing to God our savior, 4 who wills everyone to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth. [1 Tim 2: 1-4]
Several of my family members don’t vote in the elections. When asked, the most common response is
“there is nobody to vote for” or
“the candidates are idiots” or
“my vote wont make a dent”. It doesn’t matter to me who they vote for, just that they vote because it is a privilege and right for every American. So, I then suggest to these non-voters that if they won’t vote to at least pray for our leaders and the people voting for them, because God says your prayers don’t go to waste.
Many of you know how fond I am of the late Zig Ziglar, because he was not only a prolific motivation guru for business and life, but much of his material came from his deep devotion to Jesus Christ. In his book of daily insights I was struck (and the reason for this blog post) by what he says about praying for our leaders:
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“It’s easy to complain about national politicians, corporate managers, bureaucrats at every level of government, and church leaders, but instead, Saint Paul tells us to pray for them – and even to thank God for them! Certainly, God wants to work in these leaders’ lives so they come to know and follow Him, but Paul has an even broader view in mind. Good governance provides peace and stability so that the gospel can be spread unhindered to people next door as well as to the remotest parts of the earth. When our attention and resources aren’t absorbed by wars, bickering, and conflicts of all kinds, we can invest out energies in the things that really matter: Christ and his Kingdom.
Paul didn’t suggest that we agree with all politicians. After all, the top leader in his world was a Roman emperor who had no sympathies for Christians. But that didn’t matter to Paul. His eyes were fixed on an invisible Kingdom where God reigns and were grace and forgiveness are the highest virtues. The reality of life in this world is that we can get caught up completely in the things that are seen but neglect the things that are unseen. Political power (and any other king of authority) can serve the Kingdom by providing peace and stability. Then we can focus on what matter most.
When you think of our political, corporate, and religious leaders, pray for them, for the peace they can provide, and for the gospel to spread under the umbrella of their authority.”
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It turns out the US Bishop’s agree with this:
“The Catholic bishops of the United States are pleased to offer once again to the Catholic faithful Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship (en Español), our teaching document on the political responsibility of Catholics.”
The Knights of Columbus have
this page set up to assist in this election year, as it is said to be one of the most important in recent history.
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Thank you for reading. God bless you and your day.
Frank J Casella,
CMCS-Director |
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