July 1, 2005

Letters to the Editor

For our letter writing policy, click here

There were no published letters this week, so below are last week's letters.

 

The courts protect our religious rights

In answer to Sandra Dudley’s letter, I say thank God for those liberal and moderate judges and justices. The courts have protected our rights to practice our religious beliefs in the light of attempts to subdue Catholicism in the United States.

Remember that absolute power corrupts absolutely, and the conservative movement here in the United States would take away all individual rights at a drop of the hat.

-Walter Aldorisio, Greenwood

 

Church should distance itself from ‘conservative versus liberal’ politics

I want to offer a different opinion than the one presented by Sandra Dudley in her letter in the June 17 Criterion concerning appointments to the federal courts. Jesus’ message is not one of conservative versus liberal; his message is one of love, compassion, healing and faith in him.

The battle over conservative versus liberal ways of thinking only separates us from the message of Jesus. There are many issues in the Church that the Church needs to be more aggressive in handling, such as poverty, education, the AIDS crisis, the ever-growing priest ­shortage, etc.

The Church should not be focused on trying to support federal judge candidates just because they are “conservative.” A judge’s job is to interpret the Constitution to make the lives of its citizens fair and safe. A judge is not a religious representative, and should not be influenced by religion but what is best for the society at hand. If a group is being discriminated against, the court should protect that group (as it did with African-Americans so it should do with those who are gay).

The Church should distance itself from the conservative versus liberal debate because it only separates us and prevents us from hearing the true message of Jesus.

-Patrick Kelly, Indianapolis

Local site Links: