As I was looking over the news headlines of the past week the words of the mid-twentieth century German theologian Karl Barth came to mind.  He said that the Christian reads the Bible with the newspaper in the other hand.  I think that Barth was saying that we have to bring our faith and spirituality to bear upon how we interpret and react to events in the world around us.  How does my faith impact upon my response to those headlines?

Here are a few new items from the past week:

• We are in the midst of a federal election.  The Globe and Mail has identified some of the key issues as the government’s response to COVID-19, deficits, debt and economic growth, national unity, parliament and accountability, indigenous issues, daycare, internet regulation.
• We are challenged as to how to safely “reopen” society after Covid.
• We have witnessed the withdrawal from Afghanistan and concern of the settlement of those who have been airlifted out of that country, which is dwarfed by refugees from Afghanistan moving into Pakistan.
• Rising housing costs are having a terrible impact on those at the lower end of the economic spectrum.

There is much, in fact too much, for us to consider but I wonder if we were to heed Barth’s words by thinking about how our faith impacts upon a couple of these issues.  How does our faith impact upon the way we cast our ballot in the upcoming election?

Blessings,
Michael