Letters to the editor
Posted on Sunday, February 26, 2006
We are not with them
Rev. Grisham's Monday, Feb. 20 "Roots and Wings"column prompted an unknown person to cut it out and drop it in St. Gabriel's Episcopal Church's mailbox. This unidentified person wrote," Thou shalt not kill,"alongside Grisham's claim," There is nothing in the Bible about abortion."To this anonymous person, I'm not sure Rev. Grisham will buy the idea of the Ten Commandments, as he claimed in a previous Roots and Wings column, that they "cause anxiety"and are "not necessary for salvation."
To this person and to anyone else who wonders where St. Gabriel's Episcopal Church stands in relation to Grisham's columns: We stand far from them. Grisham speaks for himself, and not for the whole of Christendom, and certainly not for all Episcopalians. As a minister of Christ, one needs to speak what people ought to hear and not what they want to hear. They need to speak not what they want to say but what God wants them to say. If Christ had been a weathervane, then when the political tide turned against him, he could have easily evaded the passion and his death. He had guts and a message. Of course Christ was compassionate, but He was also full of conviction. He embraced the sinner, yet abhorred sin, giving the repentant sinners grace and freedom to be children of God. In our context, we need to listen to what God says and follow it in our heart rather than invent some extempore interpretation that has neither roots nor wings.
We are Episcopalians who stand for the faith and morals that once belonged to the Episcopal Church, whose tryst with liberalism has necessitated the birth of continuing churches, as St. Gabriel's is. We embrace the sanctity of life. We are for those who feel betrayed by their church because of its apostasy. Our members have let their goods and kindred go in search of preserving the faith that supported them, uplifted them and continues to direct them. This is the faith for which millions have shed their blood. The faith that the scriptures teach cannot be watered down. Coming from a country where people are martyred for their Christian faith, I can ascertain that witnessing to one's faith in a mission land will give one a better sense of appreciation of it. So, to the person who left the copy of Grisham's column, thanks for being the voice of the voiceless. We are not with them. We are with you in fostering the faith, based on scripture, guided by tradition and fostered by right reasoning that is still the hallmark of faithful Episcopalians.
Rev. Leo Michael Rector, St. Gabriel's Episcopal Church / Springdale
A strange sense of morality
How ironically juxtaposed on a recent opinion page were the Times editorial about an Izard County man facing stiff legal repercussions for killing a dying bald eagle and the Rev. Lowell Grisham's column that, in part, espouses his biblically-derived views on abortion. On the page a writer makes bold to say," In life, there are certain lines people just aren't supposed to cross"and," It is simply unconscionable that anyone could do such a thing."Are these the impassioned words of a Christian clergyman railing against the inhumanity of abortion? His courageous affirmation of the immorality of abortion as rooted in two millennia of authentic Christian moral theology? Regrettably not. Quoted are the words of the Times editorial writer decrying the killing of the eagle. In stark contrast, the Rev. Grisham cites a dearth of direct biblical references to abortion in justifying his support for it and chastises a group called the American Family Association of Arkansas for opposing the practice. The killing of a bald eagle certainly warrants a commensurate punishment for the culprit. But the upshot is this: dispatch a bald eagle and, per the Times editorial, you'll face a $50,000 fine and a five-year prison term. Sacrifice your unborn child at an abortion clinic and you'll receive impunity under civil law and the approbation of misguided clergymen. The bird's right to live trumps the unborn child's. This tragic inversion of sound moral principles recalls and embodies the loathsome words of the witches in Macbeth: "Fair is foul, and foul is fair..."
James H. Barre Jr. / Fayetteville
The force behind a genius
What a pleasure it was for me to find a picture of Mary Elizabeth "Gus"Jones on the front page of the Northwest Arkansas Times, Monday, Feb. 20, 2006. Fay Jones' great gift of putting the sacred into the everyday life of the everyday person is often recorded. His genius cannot be exaggerated. Rarely, do I see the insight and understanding of the forces behind his genius recorded or recognized. Fay had a great partner. Spiritually, they were inseparable. Creatively, they were inseparable. They shared a common hope, faith and love that brought great joy and peace. Their shared joy and peace and creativity were much more than the sum of the two contributions. As they filled in the blanks left by the other and cleared the path for each other, their gifts and talents melded into a near perfect creation. "Gus"saved Fay's life for more than a decade. She saved his creativity for more than two decades. She was totally devoted to his physical and spiritual health. She guarded his emotional, social, political and financial well-being as a lioness cares for a threatened cub. Her roll as mother, housekeeper, washer woman, hostess and mistress was taken for granted. She demonstrated her compulsion for perfection in every area of her life. What a joy it has been for me to see the beauty of this partnership through the glass of each window of all their creations. I write this letter in the hope that the shared feelings and relationships of "Gus"and Fay's life might enrich all.
Dr. Joe B. Hall / Fayetteville
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