There’s ample evidence that a majority of Americans are horrified by the twin killings — excuse me, murders — in Minneapolis. I heard about it at St. Anna’s Episcopal Church in New Orleans as I stood outside after Mass and talked to another deacon and our priest. I admitted that witnessing what has gone on aroused hate in me for those responsible. We agreed that loving our neighbor was a daunting challenge when seeing what Trump and his cult are doing to our country. All three of us acknowledged  regular feelings of sickness and sadness. It had nothing to do with being members of the clergy. We’re typical Americans, part of what I truly believe is a majority that feels revulsion over what is happening. 

 

In order for the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti not to become mere footnotes in the history of this turbulent era, we the people need to rise up and take back what we’ve lost: Our country. We can’t afford passivity and politeness any longer. 

 

You know what I’m talking about: It’s easy to decry the evil of the Trump administration with people who agree with us; easy to remain silent, shrinking from awkward moments with closeted or open Trump supporters. We church people are certainly guilty of that. We avoid having current events roil our Sunday morning worship. That’s understandable, but what about the other 6 ½ days of the week? Is there any way to justify not telling the truth then? Hell, no. 

 

It’s high time for moral people, whether their faith is grounded in Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, or none of the above, to speak out wherever and whenever they can. That means initiating conversations with  family and friends who don’t get it because they live in a bubble or confronting friends who are okay with things, as long as the stock market is going up. There’s a special place in Hell for them, I fear. And yes, it also means speaking out to anyone who still admits, without shame, to being a Republican. 

 

You don’t need to go on the attack. 

 

For example… “I just don’t see how anyone with both a conscience and a brain could support our cruel and criminal Trump police state.” 

 

Or… “How could anyone with a conscience not be willing to take to the streets to put an end to Trump’s cruel kleptocracy?” 

 

Or…. “Our country under Trump is a country I am ashamed of.”  

 

These are ways of telling the truth without being personally accusatory.

 

Something else worth noting: Treading softly and gently persuading won’t always work. At that point you may have to decide whether to hit pause on once important relationships, even familial ones. It has happened before when the country reached reckoning points. There are documented instances of brothers literally fighting against brothers during the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. The Civil Rights era and the Vietnam War also split families and friends. The stakes were too high to not take a position, whatever the cost.   

 

Now, a mea culpa. I haven’t always done what I’m urging everyone else to do. I haven’t come close. I’ve been as remiss and timid as anyone when it comes to speaking out. I’m somewhat reclusive; so I don’t have many opportunities to practice what I’m preaching, but that is going to change.  I will look for opportunities to speak out boldly to friends and family with no shyness or reservation.  I’m even going to continue messaging with  the clothes I wear. I have plenty of T-shirts that send a message loudly and clearly, and I plan to wear them proudly, in public.    

 

Two long time, brave friends of mine decided early on in the Trump era that enough was enough; and they started speaking up and acting out long ago . Jerry and Joni Galasso have been walking the walk for a long time. I commend them for it. So it’s time for me to be more like them. And while I’m doling out merit badges, I hasten to add that my wife of almost 55 years is a lot more outspoken than I am. She’s been way ahead of me and is a good part of the reason I chose this topic. 

 

 

Over the years I have held my tongue by doing what I thought was right for the occasion. I tempered my words with politeness.  But that was then and this is now and things now are infinitely more alarming. Politeness be damned! A moment of social awkwardness — even confrontation — is easier to live with than the lingering shame of silence. I owe it to the people being terrorized and killed by the Trump police state to oppose it whenever, however, and wherever I can.

 

 There is a saying attributed to St. Francis that all deacons know. Preach the gospel at all times and, if necessary, use words. Now is the time to use words as well as actions.

 

Consider what moral Americans did in the past when the nation faced a crisis. How dare we hesitate now to speak out against evil when it is staring us in the face everyday? Americans have historically been willing to put their very lives on the line to wage war against tyrants and fascists abroad. Others were equally brave at home in protest marches that were met with snarling dogs, fire hoses, skull-cracking batons. 

 

The stakes are just too high to sit out this struggle. 

 

Let’s grow a  backbone!

• Top