Come Election Day, remember those who came before you

Today is All Saints' Day. On this day, Christians pay tribute to those saints and martyrs who gave their lives to God and served others as an outpouring of their Christian faith.

All Saints' Day is regularly observed in liturgical churches — Catholic, Episcopal and Methodist. Yet, as a Baptist I look forward to this day, even though slight attention is given to it in my tradition.

I find great meaning in this day as I think of all those warriors and saints who preceded me along this Christian journey. Some I know, but most I do not. Yet, I honor those whose faith enabled them to believe in freedom although enslaved in kitchens and fields not of their choosing.

I am in debt to those who stood at lecterns and in social halls to proclaim God's word because they were not allowed in pulpits because of their gender. I also remember my mother and ancestors farther back who taught me how to believe in myself and to trust in the power of God's love even in the hardest of times.

All of us travel a path that was forged by others. The path may not be very wide or well-traveled. But there have been others with similar aspirations long before we caught a glimpse of our own possibilities. On this day of remembering, it is important to give thanks for those who made sacrifices for us. As long as we remember them, those saints of yesterday continue to be with us.

This year, All Saints' Day falls in one of the most important election seasons of our time. So in addition to the saints whose legacies were crafted in the church, I also recall those saints who left their mark on the political landscape of this country.

Three of the political saints and martyrs who made a difference on the national stage are Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman to run for president on a major party's ticket; Barbara Jordan, the great orator and congresswoman from Texas; and Thurgood Marshall, the first African American to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

The religious convictions of these three and countless others propelled them into the political arena. They fought for the civil rights of all Americans, regardless of skin color. Those who suffered atrocities from attack dogs, water hoses, lynchings and bombings maintained their courage when hatred and bigotry seemed as commonplace as white bread. Yet in many ways these saints and martyrs are vindicated with the real possibility of the next president being an African-American man.

In 1963, four little black girls died in Sunday school in Birmingham, Ala., when the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church was bombed by white supremacists. The church was a meeting place for the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil-rights leaders. Now, 45 years later, those horrible deaths of innocent children will be remembered as a new chapter is written in American history. This new chapter begins with the possibility of two little black girls growing up in the White House.

I am compelled to vote in every election. It would be an insult to those who fought and died for the right to vote for me to sit out any election because I did not feel like voting. I vote regardless of the popularity of my candidate or issue. I vote regardless of the sun, clouds or rain. I must vote because in that act, I honor the memory of those who risked life and limb for me.

On this All Saints' Day, remember those who came before you. Remember the saints of antiquity and those you know personally. Find ways to honor their lives, their work, and their faith. We are surrounded by a cloud of witnesses who encourage us daily.

Today, as I cast my absentee ballot, I give thanks and cheer for them.

The Rev. Patricia L. Hunter is an associate in ministry at Mount Zion Baptist Church and an employee-benefits specialist for American Baptist Churches in the USA. Readers may send feedback to faithcolumns@seattletimes.com.