Letters should be under 200 words and are subject to editing. Send letters to
tmitchell@whitworth.edu
As a science writer who is unconvinced by current global-warming science and even more skeptical of big-government solutions, I was saddened by the identification of our duty to "stewardship" with adherence to the climate-change agenda (fall 2007). I'm worried that the religious left may well make the mistake of the religious right in too closely identifying Christian moral duties with specific political agendas. Prominent scientists from MIT to NASA think solar data correlate much better with Earth's temperature trends than does CO2 data. And thus while [W.T. writer] Greg Orwig would have us err on the side of caution and embrace the climate-change agenda, I think it unwise scientifically. But it is also unwise morally. The West may have the luxury of toying with speculative CO2-reduction policies; developing nations do not. And many "environmentalists" are working overtime to ensure that Africa does not use its God-given natural resources like coal to industrialize, create jobs, and lift millions out of poverty. All of this said, I was very impressed with the balanced discussion in this issue. You've done our community a service by exposing us to the thought of both Richard Cizik and Dinesh D'Souza. I'm proud of Whitworth for having many voices heard.
Logan Paul Gage, '04
It grieves me, as a Whitworth alum, to read a letter so unloving as Gary Trautman's [re: the authenticity of Anne Lamott's Christian belief], published in Whitworth Today (fall 2007). My upbringing as a Presbyterian missionary daughter in Korea, Colombia and Venezuela, and my four years at Whitworth laid a solid biblical and faith foundation, which has not been destroyed by my many contacts with the "secular" world. Anne Lamott's faith is genuine and has been able to speak to those both inside and outside of the church. And as I'm sure she made clear at Whitworth, Lamott is a staunch and serious member of a Christian congregation.
I wonder if Mr. Trautman would have been among the many Christians who believed, not all that long ago, that slavery and the oppression of women were God's will. As Patrick Henry wrote, "History teaches us to be skeptical of our certainties, especially when those certainties exclude people unlike us." I am a faithful Christian and a retired United Church of Christ pastor, and Trautman's letter does not speak for me. Blessings and Peace.
Dorothy Brooks, '58
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