Trump can hold Bible, but response far from Christian
I am still digesting Trump’s photo op in front of a church holding up a Bible. There was no way to be certain it was a Bible since he did not display the front cover which would have said “Holy Bible.” Maybe in the midst of all the chaos he had created by calling in armed forces he was rattled and just grabbed the closest book he could find?
Being raised in the Church of the Brethren and being a retired minister, Matthew 25: 35-40 became words to live by: For I was hungry and you fed me; I was thirsty and you gave me water; I was a stranger and you invited me into your homes; naked and you clothed me; sick and in prison, and you visited me. Then these righteous ones will reply, “Sir, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you anything to drink? Or a stranger, and help you? Or naked, and clothe you? When did we ever see you sick or in prison, and visit you? And I, the King, will tell them, when you did it to these my brothers you were doing it to me!”
This paraphrased passage resulted in the creation of Brethren Service, which supplied clothing to war-torn Europe, the Brethren Disaster Ministries, which sends volunteers and equipment to disaster sites to rebuild, and the Heifer Project (now Heifer International), a post-World War II effort to rebuild decimated livestock. I have firsthand knowledge of the Heifer Project as it began on my parents’ farm in Union Bridge. By age 8, I learned faith must not just be words but must become actions that provide help to those in dire need.
In my early adult years my first husband and I were employed at the Brethren Service Centers in New Windsor and Houston, where clothing was gathered from donations, baled and sent to countries in need around the world.
In my latter adult years I became an ordained minister in the Church of the Brethren, serving as chaplain at Brook Lane Health Services in Hagerstown, a hospital for the mentally ill founded by Mennonite Conscientious Objectors during World War II. They knew mental health had to be delivered in a more humane manner; thus the birth of Brook Lane. When I heard a minister say the mentally ill were not good Christians I knew I had to do something to dispel that perception.
I don’t know what chapter and verse Donald Trump used to support his taking military action against peaceful protesters, but I do know that it is not a Christian response.
Patricia Roop Hollinger
Westminster
Column on racism reaches faulty conclusion
I read with interest Hannah Gore’s Community Voices column regarding racial violence that ran in Sunday’s Carroll County Times and agreed with some of the points.
However, I am still trying to figure out how she can assume and conclude that Carroll County is racist and segregated just based on 90% of the residents are white. Other letter writers in the past have made similar statements. Using that line of thinking, wouldn’t Baltimore City and Prince George’s County be considered racist and segregated since 63% of the population is African American in each jurisdiction? African Americans comprised about 12% of the total US population. So if Carroll County had 12% African American population, would it still be racist and segregated according to Ms. Gore? Should white people be banned or discouraged from moving into the county and African Americans be “recruited” or encouraged to buy homes for the sake of leveling out the numbers? Will quotas really fix the problem?
I have lived in Carroll County for 24 years. The communities that make up our great county work together well and are great places to raise families, white or black, in my opinion. The county is as safe as any in the Baltimore/Washington corridor and offers excellent schools and other resources.
Are there any racist-minded people that live here? Sure there are. But you will not find another county that does not have some level of racial issues. I agree that we need to work for change and equality, but concluding that the county must therefore be racist and is segregated due to the high percentage of white residences is a faulty conclusion. There are perhaps several reasons to explain Carroll’s demographic profile, just like in any other county.
Jim Croft
Eldersburg
What is and what isn’t in Constitution
The term “law and order” is not found in the Constitution of the United States. Some relevant phrases do appear: “establish Justice,” “insure domestic tranquility,” “I do solemnly swear ... that I will ... to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution... .”
I submit that if our national leadership adheres to these duties, we will have law and order.
George Conover
Westminster