With the holiday season approaching, it is about time to start decorating the Christmas tree, and preparing to “solve” all the world’s problems with your loved ones.
Dinner-table politics seem inescapable during the holidays. Some members of your family probably have wildly different things to say about the state of the world than you do. I bet you already know who they are, too.
In light of the turbulent year we have all had, from student protests to the presidential election to wars raging beyond our borders, I think now, heading into the holidays, is a good time to reflect on our various commitments and how our Catholic identity can help us inform how we can effectively navigate conflicting beliefs.
We have no shortage of commitments. Broadly, we have commitments as Catholics, Americans, family members and global citizens. Beyond that, we have specific commitments like our alma mater (Go Tigers!), our political party or our favorite sports team. These groups help make up our different identities. Some of these commitments work better together than others. Your alma mater might also be your favorite sports team. On the other hand, your political allegiance might conflict with your family.
I think the best pairing of commitments is our identity as Catholics and as global citizens. These two callings go hand in hand.
In his encyclical, “Laudato Si’: On Care For Our Common Home,” Pope Francis outlines how being a Catholic is deeply tied to being a global citizen: “As part of the universe, called into being by one Father, all of us are linked by unseen bonds and together form a kind of universal family.”
Because we are made in the image and likeness of God, we have a shared human dignity that extends beyond borders. The first line of the Preamble of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights also recognizes “the inherent dignity and … the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family.”
So, as Catholics AND as global citizens, we are called to love and respect everyone.
But how can I possibly love everyone? How can I care for those fighting in the Middle East or in Ukraine when I am struggling to do the same for those around me? It is easy to feel as if our actions have no meaning on such a large scale. This is a problem that I believe our Catholic identity can help us solve.
As Catholics, we have a commitment to improve the common good. While concerning all people, the common good can be improved through actions big and small. Practicing good global citizenship can start small, too, through simple engagement. This brings me back to the dinner table.
While it is frustrating that someone you love doesn’t share all your values, you still have a familial commitment to them. This is a blessing, not a curse. Family is one of our most intimate commitments. It allows us to navigate human differences with built-in guardrails of love.
Not everyone has the same conception of how to improve the common good. It is our job as Catholics, as the USCCB says, to engage in “reasoned, compassionate and loving dialogue” in order to understand each other.
Using our shared commitments to Catholicism, our families and the world, we can begin to bridge the gaps between our differences and work towards improving the common good in larger and larger ways.
So be not afraid to practice good global citizenship should a hot-button worldly issue come up over a Christmas ham.
Gabe Biagi is a 2021 graduate of St. Xavier High School, a senior at Boston College and a parshioner of Epiphany Church.
