Faith: A Perspective From Aging

Our life experiences shape who we are and how we understand the world around us. As I age, I realize that my life experience shapes what I believe to be most true about life. In living with marked social divisions in our era, I’ve come to understand that my perspective on those divisions reflects my life experience and my faith.

The following is a text version of this posting.

I don’t think of myself as old.  It helps that I have good friends who are older than I am.  When I’m honest, I have to acknowledge that most people I know, in fact, most people in the world, are younger than me.  I’m not young.  I passed middle age more than twenty years ago.  Rather than saying I’m old, let’s just say that I have developed a certain perspective on life.

Having been born in the 1950s, I remember the excitement that came with leaders who inspired the nation and offered hope for change.  Of course, there was JFK who became president in 1961.  People referred to his inauguration and early presidency as a return to Camelot!  Yes, it was the stuff of fables, of hopes, and the shining knights of the Round Table and King Arthur.  That came to an abrupt end when President Kennedy was assassinated. 

There was Martin Luther King, Jr., who worked tirelessly for civil rights.  When friends visit me in my current hometown, Atlanta, GA., I take them to the King Center and his tomb.  Yes, during this fight for civil rights, he was assassinated.

As a gay man, I was hopeful when Harvey Milk was elected to the Board of Supervisors in San Francisco.  He was out, proud, visible, and elected to public office.  I wondered what Milk’s election would mean for the future of LGBTQ rights.  But he, too, was gunned down.

Many people say that there’s never been a time when the country has been as divided as it is today.  Yes, the division is clear.  Is it more divided than during the years of the Civil War? Is it more divided than during the US war in Vietnam?  Let’s remember that demonstrations during that war were marked by violence.  Yes, the police and the National Guard responded with incredible violence, beating peaceful protestors, shooting rubber bullets, and at Kent State University massacring students. 

As we live through this time of social division, I know that in my lifetime, while hatred, prejudice, and bigotry have not vanished, equality and equanimity among people are at a higher level than it was in past generations.  No, it’s not what it should be.  However, there is forward movement.  In addition, the martyrdom of past leaders did not end the struggle for greater freedom.  That struggle continues and needs to continue.  That’s true in the US and many countries of the world.

For me, this struggle is about spirituality and faith as well as justice.  The heart of the matter is my belief that human beings are capable of evolving and creating a better world.  It’s not just that we’re capable of creating a better world.  Instead, our human spirit strives for a better world.  It’s part of what makes us human. 

Yes, it’s very difficult to believe that human beings can make the world a better place when there’s so much evidence to the contrary.  We can hurt each other in profound ways, often denying the humanity of others.  But faith calls us to be better, to do better, to create pathways forward for ourselves and all people.  Believing that and working for the betterment of the world is the challenge of faith.

Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock, pastor of a church just a few miles from my home, often says that voting is a kind of prayer where we put our faith into action.  He’s right.  In addition to voting, every time we act in ways that care for others, advocate for others, and show kindness and compassion to others, we tangibly act in prayer-filled and faithful ways to make the world a better place.  In faith, I vote.  In faith, I advocate.  In faith, I am intentional about my actions to show kindness and compassion to others.  In doing these things, I believe the world becomes a better place for us all.

Social change is rooted in faith:  a faith that believes we can be more than we have been.  Social change is inspired by the blood of martyrs who died while working tirelessly to build a better society.  Social change comes about as we put our faith into action each and every day.  That includes voting for those who safeguard the rights and protections of others. Honestly, I’ve lived long enough to have sufficient perspective to know that these things are true.  And I have faith!