Reading the News

I began reading the newspaper every morning at the age of 12. My father and I would settle silently at the kitchen table and choose our respective sections of The Globe and Mail. The first person to finish would emit a grunt, and we would make an exchange. My poor mother.

Now, over five decades later, I sit at my dining room table, which is also my desk, turn on my laptop and open the PDF version of Le Devoir, which looks like the print edition but with sharper photographs. My cats take turns occupying the valuable piece of real estate that is my lap. I make occasional comments; they purr inscrutably.

Staying informed of current events has become, to put it mildly, less pleasant these days. We are advised to consult reliable sources and to read them carefully, as opposed to skimming over social media posts, with which I admit I have no experience. Limiting our consumption is also recommended. I make an effort to keep an open mind, and to read a variety of news and opinion pieces, to avoid falling into an echo chamber. This can help in managing our reactions to upsetting news, as can having civil conversations with people, instead of getting into virulent, unresolved arguments.

Here at St John’s, we offer a forum for sharing our concerns with the news, from a prayerful and scriptural perspective, during Compline and Conversation on Tuesday evenings at 7:30. For those who prefer a private conversation, my colleagues and I are available to listen.

For me, keeping up-to-date, particularly of the recent elections, is a responsibility of living in a democracy, however imperfect it may be. As a Christian, it affords an opportunity to enter into compassionate exchanges, to hear people’s concerns and to remind them that, no matter how it may seem, God is still in charge.