As I write this it is 5:30 in the morning here in southern California. The sun has not risen and yet the day begins. Alone in the common room of my dorm I see opened books and study guides strewn all around me. Very soon most girls will wake and brace themselves for the last final exam of the year, philosophy. Not me. Only restlessness has awoken me. The hallways are filled with suitcases and boxes and all the signs that the semester is ending and summer is here. For me though the end of this semester marks more then the beginning of summer it marks the beginning of the unknown. Tomorrow I graduate.
The inability for my mind to quiet and let the rest of me sleep comes from certain repeating thoughts. The first is the truth that there are people here I will never see again and the hope that there are many I will. The second is how I need to pack and the knowledge I am avoiding this task. There are still books on the shelves and clothes in my drawers, because I know once I pack leaving a place that has changed my life forever will become all too real. The third is the racing thought about the unknown things to come in the future. All young people about to graduate have to figure out their next step and find their place in the world. The world today is not like the world of decades ago.
Earlier this week the House of Representatives passed a Pro-Life bill banning late term abortions after 20 weeks. This is an excellent victory for all those who seek to protect life. Everyday in some way America deals with the ramifications of legalizing abortion in the 1973. There are many who desire to stop it and then there are those who see abortion as a necessity and legal right. The conversation about abortion is more polarized than ever. After the House passed this bill the president of Planned Parenthood, Cecile Richards confirmed as much in her comment. “Put simply: a 20-week abortion ban lacks compassion & it lacks respect.” Pro-lifers would never agree to such a statement.
Then this weekend within the Catholic Church a conference of European Bishops will be held on the theme of “ The Radicalization of Islam: Experience and Dialogue in Act.” The conference is casting light on the international situation including past terrorist attacks on Europe, and of Christians who were expelled from their homes in Muslim countries, and the “Isalmophobic reactions” that occur in the aftermath. Cardinal Jean-Pierre Richard noted that the “only path of dialogue, awareness, collaboration and mutual respect can realistically prepare for the future. This is both a challenge for our societies and a call from the Lord.” The conference is an honest admission that there is a need for the Church to address the reality that radical Islamists are not going anywhere and their actions are affecting everyday lives of Christian’s and people around the world.
At any given moment there seems to be multiple issues at play at the same time. Those graduating college face this arena from a new perspective. The difference between today and tomorrow is that adulthood will be thrust upon my class at graduation. The formation we have received, the self-discovery we have made will now be tested. We need to figure out not just where our place in the world is, but also, how we will interact with the world. By world I do not mean a general abstract notion, rather I mean the world right now as it is in reality. Today if one is young and believes in sacredness of life from conception until death and in the traditional family one must be prepared for a world where one will encounter anything ranging from hostility to open arms and possibly a lot of apathy in-between. It is impossible to know what life will bring and how exactly we will react in any given circumstance. Will firm convictions drive us or will we settle into comfortable indifference? Will we seek truth and goodness or shy a way from difficult questions?
Although, these questions are applicable at any age after graduation they will be asked as if they were never asked before. When you are first embarking on the road of adulthood you get a special chance to decide the answers for yourself. The worst answer seems to be not answering at all: whether it’s from a lack of caring about the world or from thinking why bother-one person cannot make a difference. Indifference is a cloudy overcast in the sky that prevents the sun from shining through. With no sun to warm you or to let you see, you are blinded to the wonderful things around you and too cold to move. Indifference is one of the greatest threats to the young. It’s dangerous because it allows others to make decisions for you and the world. Indifference can make your life not your own.
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