“I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people. For dominion is the LORD’s, and he rules the nations. To him alone shall bow down all who sleep in the earth.”
Psalm 22: 26B-27, 28-30AB, 30E, 31-32
Today, the Tuesday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time, is Election Day 2020 in the United States. This year has been marked by unpredictability, confusion and the need for patience. The weeks to come may be unpredictable, confusing and demanding of our patience. Let us embrace this situation and fear not! Whatever happens in our country—and in the rest of the world—over the next few weeks, months and even years, we can be sure that, as today’s psalm states, the dominion is the Lord’s and we will praise Him in the assembly of His people.
Dominion is the LORD’s. God rules the nations. Sure, we elect leaders to represent us in the government, and we are incredibly lucky to be able to participate in this fundamental process in our country. We don’t—and shouldn’t—always agree with every politician. Everyone has a different voice, and while that sometimes unfortunately leads to hatred and prejudice, it also challenges a nation to improve, move forward and find a common grounding. Our common grounding with our brothers and sisters is God’s dominion. We are God’s creation; we are representatives in His assembly in the kingdom of Earth. And, despite our different voices, we all praise Him, for He rules the nations. Today, as my vote is counted, I will praise the LORD and place faith in Him.
With this in mind, I will also praise God because I have faith that He knows where this pandemic is going. Today’s psalm mentions the assembly of God’s people. What happens when that assembly can’t gather as it normally does? That is one of the toughest questions I, along with the other students of STM and the millions of Catholics around the world, have struggled to answer this year. As a remote student who is far from New Haven, I often think about and miss our in-person STM community: celebrating Christ together in the Chapel; participating in our amazing undergraduate spiritual (and ski!) retreats; and even the ordinary, quiet nights studying in the brilliantly-lit atrium. I am not the only one who misses all of these things. Unfortunately, the assembly of God’s people, like many aspects of our lives, feels reduced to computer pixels. But the assembly lives on within us and in God. We can praise the Lord with and without each other’s physical presence. God hears us, no matter where we are, or who we are with. He hears our voices, and as we pray for stability in our lives, in our country and in our world. He assures us that He is with us, now and forever.
