#voting2020

All the Americans voting today or turning in your ballots at poll boxes. Please be safe and thank you for your service.

To everyone who already voted, whether in person, dropping off a ballot, or by mail: Thank you for participating.

It has been a long year, getting to this point.  My fiance proposed to me last year on my birthday (April 20, 2019), and I reached out to one of my parish priests immediately to get the process started on what we need to do to get married in the Catholic Church. 

We have our last zoom meeting with him this month, mostly going over ceremony details and stuff. 

Awhile back, I learned that he is Republican, which isn’t that shocking.  He’s of course anti-abortion and it’s really a very singular issue with him.  He realizes Trump is an asshole, but I think he feels that he doesn’t have a choice but to go along with tradition in his family, voting for the Republican ticket no matter how immoral and disgusting the candidate is. 

My family and I, my fiance included, we’re Democrat.  My mom is also Catholic too, she was raised that way, against abortion but everything else about this president, she recognizes (along with my dad),  that there is NOTHING good or saintly about Trump.  Anyone who thinks otherwise, is fucking deluding themselves. 

As a Catholic Democrat myself, I don’t understand being a one-issue voter, because there is so much more at stake than one issue this upcoming election.

I am honestly scared of what the hell will happen to this country is Trump gets another four years. Everything happening now, is just going to get worse. We might not even have a democracy in four years, but a dictatorship. 

That’s why it’s so important, if you can vote, early as soon as you are able.  Don’t take your vote for granted.  This is no time to stand back and let whatever happen, happen. 

Back to our priest, knowing that he is Republican but a lot more sane than most, it is something that I struggle with when I talk to him.  Knowing all the things that we know about Trump,  I don’t understand how all the shit he’s done can be ignored in favor of a singular issue?  Does character and decency really mean nothing at all? 

It happened 2000 years ago. There was a plague that ravaged 24,000 disciples of Rabbi Akiva. The Talmud (Yevamot 62b) teaches us that the reason for it was a lack of decency amongst the students toward each other.

Commentators question how it is possible that Rabbi Akiva, who taught that love of a fellow is the foundation of the entire Torah, would have so many students who could possibly show such intolerance toward each other?

Their explanation is as relevant today as it was then. The students saw all of the future of Judaism dependent on interpretations and halachic decisions of the time. Because of that, they could not tolerate another person who had a different view because they believed that the other's view would veer Judaism off its path.

In G-d’s eyes this was appalling. Even when you believe the other person is wrong and even if you believe that the repercussions of their beliefs will derail Judaism for generations, you still must never lose the dignity and respect that you have for another.

Even if you believe that another’s vote will destroy this country and the Constitution and the future of our Union still the respect and the friendship that we have with each other must be sacrosanct.