Fr. Lou goes to Washington

My brother and I went to the National Archives today. Since George W has mostly packed and left town we joked we were going to check to make sure the Constitution was still there. But for all my Kingdom of God internationalism, I still love our history, I savored every moment of HBO's "John Adams," and I wanted to see with my own eyes the words of the oath that Barack Obama will take on the steps of the Capital on Tuesday, written by the hand that copied them from the notes of the Constitutional Convention for all posterity. The Archives guard who was managing the line was very cheerful and African American. As in he had a thick Ugandan accent. It somehow couldn't have been more appropriate.

My brother has lived in DC through both Clinton inaugurations and both of George W's. He says none of those came close to how the city feels right now. I'm sensing it goes far beyond the Washington DC metropolitan area. The NY Times/ CBS poll that came out yesterday shows a sense of optimism that crosses parties, classes and regions. With the world in the state it's in no less.

I'm wondering if maybe we haven't gotten to a place where a lot of us are realizing that we kind of like this America where the house next door to where you grew up can be a home for an Indian family with a dog named George. Even in Louisville, Kentucky. And maybe a lot more of us - especially those younger than me- are wondering why it should ever have been a big deal for a Ugandan to be guarding the Constitution. Or for a Kenyan/Kansan/Hawaiian to be president.

Maybe deep within us somewhere there's something that's realized that focusing on what separates us is exhausting. And we're tired. And maybe if that's all that's shifting right now, it will be enough. Enough reason for a party at least.

"From many, one," it says in Latin on our money.

"That they all may be one," Jesus prayed as his last prayer in the gospel of John.

Maybe, for a few days at least, what I'm hearing is a sigh from deep within this grand, glorious, sea to shining sea mess that is America, "Amen!"