Mailbag

‘The house that Ben built’

March 23 Thank you for your thorough report on our nation’s economic condition. Ben Bernanke’s Keynesian economic policies at the Fed are hastening the nation’s financial demise. He will become known as the architect of the dollar and government debt bubbles some have predicted. I fear for my children and grandchildren, and for this great nation. —Charles Bloomfield, Allentown, Pa.

“Printing money”—what a novel idea. To think I grew up with the old-fashioned idea that you had to work to “make” money. —Donovan D. Kramer, Buffalo, Minn.

‘Buying in bulk’

March 23 Your sidebar on “quantitative easing” does a wonderful job of explaining how our government gets the money it “creates” into circulation, by buying mortgage-backed securities. So as an American taxpayer, I now own a stake in GM and many mortgages. These are assets? Knowing how the system works frightens me, but I appreciate the explanation. —Richard Roeming, Brandon, Wis.

‘Lament for a bride’

March 23 Christa Sutherland’s experience with her church is all too familiar. Too many people attend church out of tradition, not because they feel some compelling urge to worship God. —Phillip Woeckener, Tallahassee, Fla.

I too am a pastor’s wife and serve on the praise team. Each week as I look out on the mixture of people, broken and beaten by the world—but still present, praise God!—I wonder about all those who are absent. Oh, what they are missing! —Caryn Stillman, Plainfield, Ill.

I understand Sutherland’s lament, but I rejoice at the glimpse of glory in that body of Christ. It is so diverse with people from all over the world and varied incomes. How many of us worship in churches where everyone looks just like us? —Amy Brady, Lexington, S.C.

‘A great delusion’

March 23 I love Andrée Seu Peterson’s column, but she is mistaken that the New Testament era had no “gender identity issues.” Homosexuality was quite acceptable in Roman and Greek culture, and common enough that Paul discusses it explicitly in Romans 1. I share Peterson’s horror at where this rejection of absolutes is leading, but also her hope for renewed recognition of the value of natural law and common sense. —Steve Brown, Midland, Texas

Here in Colorado we have just had a controversy over a 6-year-old boy whose parents let him dress and act like a girl, but his school denied him permission to use the girls’ bathroom. Our nation is slowly turning upside down. —Dave Albertsen, Arvada, Colo.

Thank you for pointing out that many of our issues today have their roots in the “hippie” era. What we teenagers and 20-somethings mistook for the new freedom and morality was instead sin and rebellion. It has produced a harvest of pain, bondage, and perversity. But I am thankful that we have a Savior who provided forgiveness. —Pamela Wood, Independence, Kan.

I think the trend was set in the 1950s when pornography began to gain “respectability.” Then no-fault divorce enabled those who desired to remove any hint of integrity in the marriage vows and allowed us to define marriage according to our wants. —Steve Lady, Spokane, Wash.

‘Journey of grace’

March 23 The way God spoke into Butterfield’s life greatly encouraged me, as my daughter is walking the same path. Her testimony is an important reminder that no hole is too deep for God. —Susan Bullok, Campbell, Texas

The material in that interview was so rich, I felt as if I had just attended a seminar on evangelism in today’s culture. Thank you so much. —Pamela G. Kafka, Clarksboro, N.J.

‘Bound and released’

March 23 Janie B. Cheaney’s column on forgiveness was disheartening. Christians should not just wait for the offending party to offer an acceptable apology. The two-way transaction she wants is vertical, between the Christian and the Lord. There is power in forgiveness. We cheat ourselves when we do not claim it. —Barbara DeZarn, Getzville, N.Y.

If I have offended someone and attempt reconciliation yet he refuses to forgive, then I have left only regrets and a failure. Where do responsibility and forgiveness cross? At what point is it no longer my responsibility? When can I smile again? Determination and corrective actions may fail. I have hope only because of His grace. —Jim Odle, Fort Wayne, Ind.

Knowing that “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us,” how can we insist on having an apology or admission of guilt before we deign to bestow our grace on a fellow sinner? Of course this isn’t easy—sometimes it feels downright impossible—but how can we aspire to anything less? —Nancy Maack, Trenton, N.J.

‘Trying to forget Sandy’

March 23 As a pastor ministering in Hurricane Sandy territory, I believe that its effect on New Jersey has little resemblance to genuine suffering. Plenty of money is flowing from insurance and government. The event exposes our victimization mentality and aversion to old-fashioned work. —B.E. Winship, Laurence Harbor, N.J.

‘Conviction and controversy’

March 23 Your excellent article on Dr. Koop left out one important fact: He was a committed creationist and wrote several fine books supporting this view. He once wrote, “I am of the firm conviction that until the scales are lifted from the eyes of those who oppose creation, no scientific evidence will be of value in proof.” —Jerry Bergman, Archbold, Ohio

‘12 worried men’

March 9 I was thrilled to read Edward Lee Pitts’ account of the 12 congressmen, especially Paul Broun’s testimony of first reading the gospel in a Gideon Bible. As a long-time Gideon, it is always great to read of the Lord’s miraculous power. —Barry Bertram, Campbellsville, Ky.

‘Treadmill Swerve’

March 9 Believers have no reason to be intimidated by so-called experts, even if they are Harvard professors. The author of The Swerve, who asserts that the world is “atoms and the void and nothing else,” is either dishonest or astonishingly ignorant of intellectual developments outside his narrow academic specialty. I’d guess the book’s rapturous reception has much more to do with academic in-group solidarity than the merits of the author’s argument for Epicureanism as a better flavor of atheism. —Al Manteuffel, Wheaton, Ill.

‘Number crunched’

March 9 Janie Cheaney was pretty tough on us nerdy types. Obviously, she’s making an important point that data does not guarantee objectivity, but I doubt that there is an important trend toward data. Data about firearm-related problems, for example, are so deeply imbedded in rhetoric that I need a pencil and notebook to assemble scraps of meaningful information gleaned from speeches. —Kathleen Rollins, Bullard, Texas

‘Ideal subscribers’

March 9 The description of your “ideal subscriber” fit me almost to a “T.” I started reading WORLD regularly at age 25, when caring for my firstborn, and am now a stay-at-home mother of four. I appreciate what you’re doing and enjoy the way you make even dull issues interesting. —Alexandra Gobble, Hazelwood, Mo.

Correction

The number of U.S. children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder has risen 41 percent in the past decade (Quotables, April 20, p. 16).

WORLD Around the World

Nazipur, Bangladesh Submitted by Judy Miller

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