Ted Kennedy, RIP

Posted by Larry Miller on August 28, 2009 under Why | Be the First to Comment

I wasn’t sure I wanted to comment on the passing of Senator Ted Kennedy. Television news teams and print media have been covering the movements of the deceased ad nauseum in much the same way they did Michael Jackson. It seemed like there was nothing left to say… yet they missed some important points.

Senator Ted Kennedy has met the fate of all men. He had his time on earth as we all do. He had something many of us do not. It wasn’t the fortune his father accumulated filling the nations need for alcohol when it was not exactly legal. He had a passion for the use of massive redistributionist government programs to right the many wrongs, real or imagined, that he saw in our society. We can, and should look at the things he has done in the Senate and out, but that is not the point of our discussion.

He was a flawed man… as are we all. It’s easy for many of us be critical of his liberal views, of his womanizing, even his role in the death of Mary Jo Kopechne on Chappaquiddick Island. But, it’s not our job to sit in judgment on this man who was hailed by many as the liberal lion of the Senate. As for his legislation and public policies, they are open to examination and evaluation, but we did not know his heart. However, we’ve been reminded one more time of what Hebrews 9:27 tells us, “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.”

He will no longer have to square off with the voters, the president or the press . He has a much more important appointment to keep. It is the same appointment that Michael Jackson had… the same one his brothers John and Robert had… and all the other anonymous souls who have passed through life on earth. The occasion of his passing should help us all consider that for all Ted Kennedy’s wealth and power, the grave has claimed him as it does all. He was a man… not a lion. It was a sad event for his family which has certainly had more than their share of misfortunes, but for him it was a transitional turn. One can only hope he made the right choices in determining his final destination.

His tenacity and persistence were qualities to be admired even if we opposed everything he stood for. If we aligned ourselves with his goals, or if we did not, it is important that we approach our lives and promote our causes with the certainty and passion Senator Kennedy had. When we, too, come to the end of our time on earth as he did, will we be able to look back with satisfaction on our efforts to “proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof” as the verse from Leviticus tells us from the Liberty Bell… or will we have to face our creator and explain our failure to live do our best to leave our children and grandchildren a better world to live in?

Senator Kennedy’s decision times are past, but ours lie in the here and now. He acted on what he believed. Will we put just a much energy in pursuing the paths we know are right? If we do, we know we will have done our best to secure a better future for our children, our lifetime and beyond.