Christians must defend the abused
For many Christians, the most important political issue is abortion. They are against it and believe it should be illegal. It is wrong to kill babies in the womb, they say.
Hillary Clinton was expected to choose Supreme Court justices who would support a woman’s right to choose. Donald Trump, however, was expected to nominate justices who would seek to overturn Roe v. Wade. So these anti-abortion Christians voted for Trump. They acted to save the lives of unborn children. But imagine, now, that these children have grown up.
Is it right to portray them as rapists and drug dealers because they are Mexican? Is it right to treat them as guilty until proven innocent because they are breathing while black? Is it right to consider them second-class human beings because they are women? Is it right to see them as likely terrorists because they are Muslim?
I believe all disciples of Jesus Christ can agree that the answer is no. All these grown children, including those who do not accept Christian faith, are people for whom Jesus was born that first Christmas day.
I believe all of us whose faith is Christian must seek to treat all people with dignity and respect, even while recognizing that all people — including us — are sinners in need of forgiveness, repentance and transformation.
I believe churches are called to be sanctuary: safety and support for those society would scorn, mistreat, malign, disrespect, abuse. And should the government step aside when hate crimes occur or, worse, codify white-American-heterosexual-evangelical-Christian-nonchallenged-male privilege as national security policy, we may be called to rebuild the underground railroad.
David Paul Henry
Interim pastor
First Baptist Church of Bangor
Lamoine
Orono coffee shops
I enjoyed reading the Dec. 13 BDN article on the Nest, a new coffee shop that opened recently in Orono. The new store is a great addition to the town of Orono. But I feel she made a huge omission by neglecting to mention the other coffee shop that has been in business for more than 25 years.
The Store Ampersand on Mill Street has been a full-service espresso coffee shop offering cappuccinos, lattes, iced coffee drinks and pastries. In fact, having been a customer in both places, I can attest to the fact that The Store Ampersand lists many more of what I would call designer coffee drinks than the Nest lists.
It is important to have competition in a town the size of Orono, and each venue offers something different. We need diversity as we grow the downtown area. Let’s share our business around to all the shops and, in turn, make Orono more vibrant.
Beth White
Orono
Jesus lived a life of peace
As we approach the birthday of the Prince of Peace, the ways and teachings of nonviolence of Jesus come to the fore in Pope Francis’ important statement titled “ Non-violence — a Style of Politics for Peace.”
In a world streaming with refugees from the terrors of war, this message will be delivered by the Pope on Jan. 1, 2017, the annual World Day of Peace.
From noon to 12:30 p.m. every Friday a silent vigil for peace, which has happened for more than 14 years, takes place near Houlton’s Peace Pole in Monument Park. As we pray for peace and justice, we are encouraged by the pope’s words: “Countering violence with violence leads at best to forced migrations and enormous suffering … at worst, it can lead to death, physical and spiritual, of many people, if not all.”
We echo the words of Pope Francis: “May charity and nonviolence govern how we treat each other as individuals, within society and in international life.”
Marilyn Roper
Al Burleigh
Deacons
Houlton