Our Lady of Lourdes in Daytona Beach shared an open letter from their pastor to his parents in their Aug. 23 church bulletin.

In his letter, the Rev. Philip Egitto gave updates on current goings on in the nation and community.

“Last night watching the RNC someone said that thousands are going to die by the end of the year," Egitto said. "They are healthy people right now and they have no idea they will contract the virus. It was a rather sobering comment."

While it is tempting to think that this is the end of the virus, it has not finished ravaging the nation yet and we must not become complacent.

“I took the time to watch the movie ‘13th,’ a documentary that explores the history of racial inequality in the United States, focusing on the fact that the nation's prisons are disproportionately filled with African Americans,” Egitto continued.

He explained that the church was joining “With Malice Toward None,” a program that will help bring the community back together— despite it being an election year, which can be especially divisive. 

“We know from Scripture that a house divided against itself cannot stand and if we are going to save our country, we can all agree we have to stop the divisiveness and look toward our common values,” Egitto said. “No matter who wins the election, we are going to have to remember that as Christians we have our own agenda that we agree on. That is the beauty of church.”

A number of core values are important, regardless of who wins the election:

• Life and dignity of the human person 
• Solidarity 
• Care for God's creation 
• Call to family, community and participation 
• Option for the poor and vulnerable 
• Rights and responsibilities 
• Dignity of work and rights of workers

Fr. Egitto extended his gratitude to those who have supported the school with Amazon Smile. He ended by thanking the congregation for their cooperation in the current mask-wearing phase.