Knowing God?

I read with great interest the excerpt from Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana (Feb. 23/March 1) by Anne Rice. Her approach and style is refreshing, but I question her statement that at the temptation, "Satan doesn't really know that Jesus is God." The accuser did not question Christ's identity. He knew full well who the starving Man in front of him was and pressed with all of his power to make Jesus abort the plan of salvation. -Dan Peters; Thousand Oaks, Calif.

How dare a person put herself in the mind of our Savior and put her words in His mouth! -Bernice Krahn; Fairfield, Idaho

The right question

The problem was not evangelicals' lack of influence but a diffusion of influence due to the lack of a good candidate ("The end of an illusion," Feb. 23/March 1). We were very uncomfortable with a Mormon who had so recently shifted gears in our favor, and with Huckabee, who would have been too blatantly Christian and not blatantly Republican enough to have won a national election. We don't have any influence with John McCain. Evangelicals were intuitive enough to see this. The result was confusion regarding how to vote in primaries. But could we powerfully influence a national election with the right candidate? Yes. -Mary Farrar; Copper Canyon, Texas

I am appalled at any Christian willing to walk away from the polls next election. It is like treading on the graves of those who died to ensure the right to vote, and on the remains of the aborted babies that are inevitable if a pro-death candidate is able to nominate like-minded judges to the Supreme Court. Shame on any Christian who refuses to do his best in November. -Lori Parziale; Alexandria, Va.

Christians and candidates

I disagree with your representation of John McCain as pro-life ("No heaven on earth," Feb. 23/March 1). He believes in federal funding of embryonic stem-cell research and in allowing babies conceived by rape and incest to be aborted. He also believes that there should be less intensity when it comes to abortion. James Dobson is not the only one who will not be casting a vote for McCain. To be consistently pro-life means that you allow no exceptions. -Shelley Tuttle; Superior, Wis.

I am a sorrowful, patriotic, conservative Christian with no candidate. I will vote in November, but I will have the least bounce in my Election Day step since I first participated in 1980. -Laurie Norris; Seminole, Fla.

I am a Naval Academy classmate of Johnny McCain and have heard his very personal testimony to many of us, after he was released, on how he relied so heavily on the Almighty for his salvation and freedom. I am confident that he is now the one to best lead our nation in the times ahead. -J. Dwight Hutchinson; Middletown, Md.

War reading

In "Washington's war?" (Feb. 23/March 1), Marvin Olasky superbly illustrates Paul's admonition to soldiers of Christ not to "entangle" themselves with the affairs of this world, using examples from the life of our first commander in chief. Olasky drives his point home by showing the price paid by Britain, whose own leaders lacked the character to avoid such entanglements. This piece should be required reading for everyone involved in our national security, and for those who select them. -Michael Lipparelli; Eustis, Fla.

Bang for the bucks

I have been thinking about what to do with the economic stimulus check I will be receiving (The Buzz, Feb. 23/March 1). I might return it, so as not to deepen our national debt, but the big spenders in Washington would just spend it on something else. Saving, investing, or paying off debt may be a good move, but probably won't help stimulate the economy. The federal gurus want us to spend it on things we want or need, but giving the money away to individuals or ministries to spend on things they need could have both temporal and eternal value. It could contribute to the Lord's work and stimulate the economy at the same time. -David J. Helwig; Crystal Falls, Mich.

Eurocentric arrogance

Re: "Out of Africa" (Feb. 23/March 1): I applaud Thomas Oden's comments about the misconception that the flow of Christian thought went from Europe to Africa, instead of the other way around. I would add that, not only has this misconception been "hurtful to the African sense of intellectual self-worth," it has hurt European Christians as well. It has buttressed a sense of intellectual self-sufficiency, and enhanced a long-standing pattern of Eurocentric arrogance. -Mark Sandford; Post Falls, Idaho

Faire warning

Gene Edward Veith's column, "Suicidal ideology" (Feb. 23/March 1), is an excellent summary of Mark Steyn's book, America Alone, which is a must-read for anyone who entertains a laissez-faire attitude about the creeping expansion of radical Islam. -H. Eberhard Roell; Boulder, Colo.

Piling on?

I'm stunned by your characterization of New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick as one of several "Losers in victory and defeat" (Feb. 23/March 1). Piling on Belichick for "running up the score" during the season and perceived poor sportsmanship in the Super Bowl is unwarranted. The blowouts were about preparing for hard-fought battles later in the season. And after his team missed a golden opportunity to finish the first-ever 19-0 season, did we expect him to toss a bouquet of roses in the Giants' direction? -Tony Moninski; Prattville, Ala.

Saved

I'm a resident advisor at Union University and really appreciated the article ("Begin again," Feb. 23/March 1). It's so encouraging how God protected us in the midst of demolished buildings. A couch pinned one guy, but it saved him from getting crushed by debris. In another building, a board fell on a girl and saved her from a collapsed ceiling. The praise belongs to God alone. -Caleb Helms; Jackson, Tenn.

Unsigned

WORLD cites Rick Love as international director of Frontiers ("Common word," March 8/15). Love was international director when he signed the Yale response to "A Common Word," but he resigned effective Dec. 31, 2007. Tim Lewis, the new international director of Frontiers, announced in a recent press release that he withdrew his signature from the Yale response "because I now see that my signature contributed to the misunderstanding that Frontiers endorses it as an organization." -Bob Blincoe, U.S. Director, Frontiers; Pasadena, Calif.

A blessed period

David Bahnsen's excellent piece on "Retiring biblically" (Feb. 23/March 1) shows how Christians fail to recognize that we see retirement as a status symbol and a right. Our post-working "period of financial independence" is truly a blessed period when we can give back to a needy world using our God-given gifts and talents. There is no biblical basis for opting-out of productive society once our storehouses are full. -Steven Diehm; Lumberton, N.J.

Amen

To Andrée Seu's column ("Where are the men?" Feb. 23/March 1) I say, "Amen!" How often we lose sight of the fact that we are often the cause of our own problems, and yet spend more time looking for someone to blame instead of repenting and asking God to show us our hearts. -Tom Lawrence; Dayton, Ohio

Minefield poppies

I do not object to your movie reviews as some people do; they are helpful to determine what not to watch. If I'm going to pick poppies in a minefield, I want to know where the mines are. -Alice Borg; Wrangell, Alaska

Corrections

Richard Roberts resigned as president of Oral Roberts University more than six weeks after appearing on Larry King Live ("Back from the brink," Feb. 23/March 1, p. 74).

Mart Green announced on Jan. 31 that he had finalized a $70 million gift to Oral Roberts University ("Chronology of a comeback," Feb. 23/March 1, p. 74).

Greg Oden and Kevin Durant were selected in the 2007 NBA draft (Looking Ahead, March 8/15, p. 9).