Kennedy and Catholic witness
There has been a lot said about the Catholic part of Ted Kennedy’s legacy, if in fact there really is one. His consistent support of abortion and related issues puts his Catholicism in doubt regardless of his personal devotion in private life.
But the discussion brought to mind a more general consideration that we all need to be aware of, namely our public Catholic identity. I cringed the other day while standing in a check-out line, (I won’t name the store) when the young man running the cash (about 35 give or take) was trying to be funny. He carried on and started out funny enough, in a rough sort of way but became downright crude and embarrassing particularly for the women in the line when he made a very nasty and rude comment about his “ex-wife.”
When I got to the head of the line I noticed that he was wearing a large, probably 2.5 to 3 inches, crucifix around his neck. For some of those people in the line it is quite possible that he was the only self-identifying Catholic they had met that day. I was sad, ashamed, and just wishing to be anywhere else. It is not the first time I have experienced such a thing, and as always, I am not sure whether I should have called him on it. He wasn’t speaking to me but was speaking loudly enough that his conversation was public.
It did make me think about myself, and my own conduct, and I asked the question whether I have brought shame on the name of Christ. It is a good thing to regularly examine ourselves, I think. I did the only thing that I could think of doing for the man. I prayed for him that he will come to a more repentent and reverant attitude and bring honour to Christ instead of shame.