I really don’t want to start another religious thread on this
page, but I can not in good conscience let the letter of J.G.
McCormack go unchallenged.
I really don’t want to start another religious thread on this page, but I can not in good conscience let the letter of J.G. McCormack go unchallenged. He writes in to congratulate a local pastor for a regurgitated column on the fallacies of the separation of church and state. I wish he had left it at that, but instead Mr. McCormack goes on to give us a skewed list of supposed anti-Christian grievances.
The next time Mr. Mc Cormack writes a letter to the editor, perhaps he will be kind enough to give us some facts rather than merely opinion. Enlighten all The Dispatch readers with the overwhelming evidence of atheistic judges and attorneys conspiring to overthrow Christianity.
While we think about that one, he throws us another curve. In McCormack’s world, the downfall of education falls squarely on the shoulders on John Dewey, one of the most significant American philosophers of the 20th century.
Forget the fact that he was a brilliant theorist; 40 years into his career he embraced humanism. Most people would look at his body of work and be amazed. But apparently, his turn to humanism negates all his prior good work. Preceding his embrace of the theory of humanism, John Dewey wrote seminal books on psychology, logic and pragmatism. He was liberal, no doubt about it. He defended Bertrand Russell, was an early supporter of woman’s rights, and a central figure in the unionization of teachers.
In his later years post-humanism let‚s call it, he wrote a wonderful treatise on aesthetic called “Art as Experience.” He never “installed” humanism as a foundation of our education system. While his knowledge was far-reaching, this was a feat even he could not pull off. Whether you agreed with his ideas or not, he was first and foremost a thinker. This in itself seems to set off Mr. McCormack.
Let’s move on to the scourge of heathen judges. Judges have a duty to uphold the laws of this country. Judges absolutely have a sense of right and wrong, their decisions are based on laws that we as a nation have decided to enact and enforce. Frankly, I am getting sick of hearing the ridiculous statement that some “judge” ruled that a football player could not say a prayer on a football field. Every person has a right to pray whenever or wherever they wish. It’s called silent prayer or meditation – check it out. It seems that some prayer-hungry folks are just unable to pray on their own. These are folks that must feel God is only listening if they can get everyone else on the volleyball team to “chime in for a sure win.”
I pray often, I just try to keep it between me and the Almighty. I have never felt the compunction to ask even one other person in the produce section of Nob Hill to join me while I pray. I respect the right of other people to pray on their own terms if they wish, and to not pray if the spirit doesn’t move them. Why is this such a difficult concept for some people?
Let’s get through the rest of it quickly: Why would Mr. McCormack want to put a crucifix up at the post office? I must be missing something; I honestly don’t understand this mentality. Would the line move faster? As to Arlington National Cemetery, yes there are rows of Christian crosses lining the cemetery. There are some Stars of David, too. Is this the new urban legend – cemeteries being stripped of their markers? I have to admit; at least this one is original.
Our nation is faced with some very serious problems. We are in for a long haul in a war on terror against religious fanatics who happen to be non-Christian. I don’t think the answer to strengthening us as a people is galvanizing ourselves as a “Christian nation.”
We are not a Christian nation; those who were on the land when we arrived were not Christian. Our initial government may have been teeming with Christians, but let’s agree to live in the present. It’s 2003 and we are a multi-religious society. I believe our strength is in our diversity. We are in deep trouble if we don’t work together to build a better government, better society and better schools. I am praying we have the wisdom to do just that.
