A Reflection on Our Democracy at 250 Years

President of the Maryknoll Sisters, an Armed Services veteran and seasoned missioner, reflects on the anniversary of the United States.

By Teresa Hougnon, M.M.

Our experiment of democracy in the United States is still young in light of world history. My love of democracy begins from the teachings of Jesus in the Gospels. The gospel stories are ripe with lessons in love and respect, justice and peace, moral governance, and community. However imperfect our democracy is, our Constitution was set in these values as well.

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. ~~ Constitution Preamble, United States

As an experiment, our efforts to “create a more perfect union” have gone through several corrections in our short history. As every experiment requires calibration and evaluation, the United States has survived our Civil War of the 1860s, movements for women’s suffrage in the early 1900s, the Civil Rights movement amplified in the 1960s and still in motion and public protests of the Vietnam War. All these efforts served as feedback loops to correct wrong steps in the experiment. We need to continually correct course to honor the aspiring values of our founding documents that declare “all are created equal” and our government is “of the people, for the people, by the people.”

Service has always been at the center of my life. I served in the U.S. Army as a young adult, and swore to defend the Constitution of the United States. I believed then in the values of democracy and self-determination, liberty, justice and tranquility that our country was founded on. I believe in them today. What has changed for me in forty-two years is that I believe everyone and every nation has the right to self-determination, not only my country which I was taught to defend. If all are created equal here in the United States, all are created equal everywhere in the world. We are all the same and share in indelible human rights.

After my time in the Army, I worked in a state prison as a correctional officer, then at community-based organizations that helped youth, women and children access much needed social services.  I found my way to the Maryknoll Sisters as a deeper calling to serve the people of God. I took religious vows in 1998 and went to Timor-Leste (East Timor) for my first mission.

The people of Timor-Leste had been fighting for their independence since 1975. The United Nations brokered a referendum in which the Timorese voted overwhelmingly for independence. I witnessed the voting at a station that had registered over 2,300 citizens. At 6 a.m. on August 30, 1999, over 2,000 people were lined up to vote when the polls would open at 8 a.m. They all ran to the hills after voting because the Indonesian military made good on their promise to burn all the houses down. I spent five years with the Timorese people, learning from them and rebuilding with them a country that had been destroyed but was free. I wonder what near-100% voter turnout would look like in our country; and what would true access to the right to vote for all our citizens would look like. I have not yet seen either in my lifetime. I work against restrictive legislation and encourage and assist others to access their right to vote, so that I can contribute to that “more perfect union.”

As a Maryknoll sister, I have strived to serve others, to reach out, uplift the dignity of every  human being, to accompany others as they seek access to the human rights that belong to us all. After my time in Timor-Leste,  I went to Kenya in 2006. There, I experienced the cyclic postelection violence, which occurred after every state election. Two other sisters and I gathered citizens in Kenya into conversation circles to hear each other, to share experiences and to find reconciliation and peace together. Every person has a voice, and every person has a contribution to make. Together, they built community networks that ensured peaceful elections despite political pressure. They listened to one another, honored their diverse views and worked together for a safe, free environment. Can citizens of our country come together to build that desired “more perfect union” in a similar way?

Today, on our 250th birthday as a country, I still believe in the democratic values of one voice, one vote, a government of the people, for the people, by the people. I am not wearing my red, white and blue with pride, and I am not wanting to participate in any public celebration. The situation in my country today does not feel celebratory. Many people are being excluded and many have been denied their human rights. But I need to let my voice be heard.

This country was built by immigrants for immigrants, with the labor of African and Chinese slaves. Our First Nation sisters and brothers were pushed to the side for our growth and development. It is time that every person has a seat at the table, that each voice is heard, that we all come together to be the great democracy we can be.

Our national motto is “In God We Trust.” I trust in a God who invites everyone to the table, a God who forgives our mistakes and promises mercy and justice. As a Maryknoll sister, I have learned  to walk with the people, to share life with those on the margins, knowing they too have a place at  the table.

I am wanting a peaceful, participative correction of this experiment today. Our democracy,  grounded in values of my faith and my country, requires us to do the harder right, to step up and let our voice be heard. We have been assailed with half-truths, or no truth at all, for too long. My faith impels me to have hope, to welcome the stranger who is my neighbor, and participate in our collective governance. We all have a place at the table. On this 4th of July, let us declare and claim our citizens’ rights to full participation and human rights for all people. May God bless America and every nation on earth.

Featured image: Maryknoll Sister Teresa Hougnon, president of the Maryknoll Sisters of St. Dominic’s Congregational Leadership Team, often gives presentations on mission and service. (Courtesy of Maryknoll Sisters/U.S.)