Do we succumb to pettiness, bigotry?
The Mosque in New York controversy is another example of all that is wrong in America. Fomenting intolerance of others and the breeding of mistrust and hatred of Americans for cynical political ends.
It gets even more depressing if you spend just a few minutes educating yourself on the issues. All racist incitement requires is willful ignorance.
It came as no surprise to see one of our own local religious extremists, Elizabeth Pearson, weighing in (Fence Post, Aug. 24). One of her comments was particularly noxious, "We are not the enemy of those who have peacefully adjusted to our Christian way of life." She is everything that she condemns in others, and if we have an enemy and something to push back against it would be religious fundamentalists of all stripes. They demand respect for themselves but give it to no one else. I think they also do a horrible disservice to many people's view of that faith. Not all Christians are ignorant, intolerant bigots. Not all Americans hate large swaths of their fellow Americans.
We can strive to be our better selves or succumb to pettiness, intolerance and bigotry. What do my Christian friends think Jesus would do (or want them to do)?
Kevin Jackson
Naperville