Into the light

Thank you very much for your article on Mike Huckabee ("Out from the shadows," Dec. 22). As an avid supporter, for me it was a dream come true to have you do another article on him. It was a well-researched and well-written piece of work. People need to know about Huckabee's views on abortion, prayer in school, immigration, and other issues. -Reuben Peck, 14,; Leslie, Mich.

You called Huckabee's "Secure America Plan" "compassionate" and reported that it would be fascinating to see if his plan will assuage the "anti-immigration conservatives." I had to look back at the cover to confirm I wasn't reading Time. Conservatives concerned about Huckabee aren't necessarily anti-immigration; we are anti-illegal immigration. -Bryan T. Begley; Cynthiana, Ky.

I am ashamed of your coverage of Huckabee, and even more disappointed that you have failed to give more space to Ron Paul. The Republican Party has betrayed us, and it is using us to accomplish its plans. -Jon Hodges; Acworth, Ga.

Pray more, talk less

I seem wired to have a keen interest in all things political. Therefore Marvin Olasky's column ("Nothing works," Dec. 22) was exactly what I needed. Front and center on my refrigerator now is his comment that "it's important to care about politics and even more important not to care deeply." America's only hope is in God's grace. May I pray more and talk politics less this election year. -Jacqueline Ekberg; Wray, Colo.

I was very disappointed with Olasky's column. We need to be deeply concerned for those suffering, from babies about to be aborted to women working as sex slaves, and that means caring deeply about the political atmosphere of this country that can bring freedom for the suffering captives. -Rick Kenyon; Brattleboro, Vt.

The more I have gotten involved in politics, the more I have come to realize that power and politics have no answers for the real problems that plague people. Only God does. We can so easily get invested in seeing "our guy win" that we abandon our first call as believers. We can easily let the day-to-day news and polls wash away our perspective on life and eternity. And we can become chained to a set of bullet-point ideals espoused by secular conservatives, some of which may conflict with our Christian faith. -Daniel Darling; Round Lake, Ill.

More questions

Thanks to Joel Belz for asking "The right questions" (Dec. 22). "Family values" and "getting the judges right" matter little if we fail to challenge false gospels by preaching and living the truth. Those among us who support Romney should watch out lest political victory be gained at the price of disaster for the truth of our Lord Jesus Christ. -Jon Holmlund; Carlsbad, Calif.

Romney's claim that Mormonism is a bona fide New Testament Christian religion should be challenged. Most Americans, including most evangelical Christians, are unaware of Mormonism's cultic and heretical beliefs, such as the belief that Jesus was married and fathered children; deceased non-Mormons can be saved by proxy baptism on their behalf by Mormons; and that salvation is by grace coupled with law-keeping and the performance of Mormon rituals. -Joseph M. Hopkins; New Wilmington, Pa.

My principal concern with Romney is not his personal beliefs, and I don't accept the far-fetched notions that he would attempt to proselytize the nation or be an agent for the Latter Day Saints hierarchy. I do believe, however, that as president he would bring a level of credibility and respectability to the false teachings of Mormonism that would result in many people embracing them. -Steve Carter; Simpsonville, S.C.

Belz's column reminds me of a passage from Chesterton's Heretics. In it he argues against the common notion that "there is something narrow or irrelevant or even mean about attacking a man's religion, or arguing from it in matters of politics or ethics." The accusation itself is, he wrote, "almost grotesquely narrow." It is not reasonable that "a difference of opinion about the object of taxation matters very much; but a difference of opinion about the object of human existence does not matter at all. . . . This sort of enlightenment is surely about the most unenlightened that it is possible to imagine." -Greta Krawczyk; Logansport, Ind.

On the religious points Romney's speech ("Romney's problem," Dec. 15) was quite deceptive, and that is the problem. When Romney says he believes in god, it is not the Christian God, and when he says Jesus is the Son of God, he doesn't mean that in the same way Christians do. Can people not see that he is internally conflicted? -John T. Miller; St. George, Utah

State awakened

Every other morning I wake up wondering if I will see the mountains through the smog. Living in Utah, I am proud that this state has awakened to the fact that we humans are the cause of global warming ("Stealth Kyoto," Dec. 22). Even if the science of global warming is wrong, if we act now we will have just become good stewards of this God-given earth and leave our children a healthier, cleaner habitat. -Eric Reddish; Salt Lake City, Utah

True intelligence

Andrée Seu's astute observation that everyone "is smart at some things and stupid at some things" ("Keeping it real," Dec. 22) was right on. I was valedictorian of my high-school class but since have marveled daily at how stupid I can be. Perhaps the true measure of intelligence is the ability to recognize stupidity the moment you step into it. That, unfortunately, is a rare gift. -Eleanor K. Gustafson; Haverhill, Mass.

Passer protection

Thank you for your wonderful story on Florida quarterback Tim Tebow winning the Heisman Trophy ("Underclass act," Dec. 22). It's also been reported that his mother, Pam, took strong medicines to treat amoebic dysentery, which she contracted while serving as a missionary in the Philippines in 1985. When she became pregnant with Tim, her doctor told her the baby had been irreversibly damaged and strongly advised her to have an abortion. She refused because of her faith and in 1987 gave birth to a healthy boy, who she described as "skinny, but rather long." -Bev Cielnicky; Fountain Valley, Calif.

Real stories

Thank you for your choice of Daniel of the Year 2007 (Dec. 15). As a former pregnancy center director I believe Marvin Olasky captured the heart of the ministry simply by sharing the client stories. I remember driving a college student to the abortion clinic to get some of her money back because she had changed her mind; listening to a young woman say, "I think your new momma wants to hold you now," as she places her newborn in the arms of a childless couple; and seeing a young man shed tears over his girlfriend's choice, pleading with her to reconsider and marry him. In this long season of presidential politics the pro-life platform gets batted around like a piñata. Thanks for reminding us of the real stories. -Cheryl Magrum; Portage, Ohio

What goes around

Thank you for exposing the earmark scandal ("Our pork," Dec. 8), and especially for having the honesty to point out that Christian groups are part of the problem. Christians of our era have thieving hearts; we refuse to pay God His tithe and then are self-righteously angry when the government taxes us into an early grave. -Carl Wells; Brownstown, Ind.

Know before signing

I am nonplussed that evangelical leaders would sign an endorsement of "A Common Word Between Us and You" ("Common word game," Dec. 8). The key Quranic verse, "Say: O People of the Scripture! Come to a common word between us and you: that we shall worship none but God, and that we shall ascribe no partner unto Him, and that none of us shall take others for lords beside God" is emphatically not "a common call in Islam and Christianity for singular worship and allegiance to one God." Rather, it is a command for Christians to cease worshiping Jesus as God. Evangelical leaders should learn something about Islam and the Quran before they blithely sign on to such statements. -John Tors; Toronto, Ont.

Correction

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., predicted that the Democratic Party would seat Florida delegates at its 2008 national convention despite threats to disallow them (Quotables, Dec. 22, p. 12).