Mailbag

‘Lonely fight’

Aug. 6 | My child has been addicted to heroin for half his life, in and out of psych wards and rehab, and he is still using. For at least a year he has been on methadone, our government’s heroin, and now he is on the streets. It is terrifying, and I pray every day that God will spare his life and save his soul. I believe that is the only hope he has.

—Sharon Holloway / Columbia, Md.

Substance abuse (and sin of all kinds) may have its favorite locations; but as someone working in an urban men’s residential program, I know it happens anywhere, for we are all sinners. Sin either finds us, or we go looking for it.

—David Mapes / New York, N.Y.

‘Blood and scars’

Aug. 6 | I applaud your printing Mike Huckabee’s rebuttal to Joel Belz’s column. This gives me even more confidence in your magazine.

—Lois Merritt / Huntington, W.Va.

Huckabee’s column touched us. Here in super-conservative Spokane Valley we enjoy faithful politicians who despite adversity work every day for the good of the people, for limited government, and for sensible laws.

—Christopher W. Kuperstein / Spokane Valley, Wash.

I am not distraught over this election’s choices because our God is in heaven. I am, however, frustrated by a system that continues to offer up corrupt, unscrupulous candidates. I would have voted for Huckabee given the chance, but too many “evangelicals” gave themselves over to the god of successful businessmen.

—Michael Cook on wng.org

I have always respected Huckabee, but then he decided to back Trump. Perhaps Huckabee should instead have decided to support a true conservative party and left the GOP.

—Lois Droegemeier on wng.org

I was wondering how I could vote in good conscience, but then I read in Isaiah how God chose Cyrus, someone who “does not know Him,” to carry out His purposes. I came away looking at Him instead of the candidate, and feeling I could vote in good conscience.

—Shirley Creighton, Spokane, Wash.

I agree with Huckabee. Belz wants Christian leaders to share the responsibility? Look no further than Jerry Falwell Jr., who sold his birthright to Trump before the primaries even started.

—Scott Garrity / Temperance, Mich.

The problem with the evangelical candidates is that there were too many of them; they split the conservative and evangelical vote. I don’t know if some of the candidates had delusions of grandeur, but they have no one to blame but themselves for losing to Trump.

—David Albertsen / Arvada, Colo.

I know many evangelicals who have no clue about the costs of public service in what sometimes seems to be an unwinnable battle. Thank you to Huckabee for his service.

—D. Wayne Bearbower on wng.org

‘Choose your taint’

Aug. 6 | Thank you for pointing out the gazillions of Hillary Clinton’s criminal acts. Trump may not seem presidential, but so what? This woman must not become president.

—Virginia H. Salzman / Tucson, Ariz.

I do not like either candidate, but I am in the “Never Hillary” camp. I can handle a narcissistic president but not a liar.

—Janet Piccione Klepper on Facebook

I really appreciated Mindy Belz’s candid thoughts about one of our candidates. I’m very disappointed by the lack of discernment in this election, especially from Christians.

—Paul Matlock / Pagosa Springs, Colo.

Trump’s issue is not what he believes but whether he can accommodate the Christian right. I think that he, as a populist candidate who leans right, will undo most of what President Obama accomplished to “fundamentally change America” as he promised.

—Paul Taylor on wng.org

Both candidates are very flawed people, so, to use a quote from an Indiana Jones movie, let us “choose, but choose wisely.”

—Ronald G. Mele / Pinson, Ala.

‘What could it be?’

Aug. 6 | This column was full of common sense, grim humor, and a gut-punching conclusion that took my breath away.

—Diane Coleman / Harrisburg, Pa.

The Obama administration lives in a make-believe world. Whether premeditated or not, our government’s problem lies in its suppression of the truth.

—Greg Mangrum on wng.org

Excellent column. The Obama administration’s love for obfuscation would be silly if it were not so dangerous and disgraceful.

—Judy Farrington on wng.org

‘A ceaseless interchange’

Aug. 6 | We can argue in print that some are exaggerating or manipulating the facts when they “rage” and “mourn” over cultural oppression of minorities, but does this win over anyone’s heart? Why not make friends and listen to their stories? That might be powerful enough to help them start rewriting the narrative.

—Jessie Harvey / Memphis, Tenn.

‘No free passes’

Aug. 6 | Thank you for the interview with Rosaria Butterfield. She is such a clear witness in our culture. Her books deal with hard questions, and she writes so eloquently. I know what she meant in saying that in Christ we don’t have “complete deliverance,” but I would say instead that we have complete deliverance but it will not be fully experienced until after death or Christ’s return.

—Jim Bazen / Rockford, Mich.

Many, many thanks for the voice of Butterfield on our college campuses. What a lovely balance of grace and gospel truth.

—Andre & Val Autheir on wng.org

‘Mean-spirited reporting’

Aug. 6 | After reading Joel Belz’s column exposing The Washington Post’s liberal distortion of the economic effects of North Carolina’s bathroom bill in Asheville, I praised God for WORLD’s unapologetic, biblical perspective.

—Peter Kushkowski / Portland, Conn.

Clarification

The student pictured appears to be practicing Japanese, a language that uses some written Chinese characters (“My daily Mandarin,” Sept. 3, 2016).

Correction

Biola professor Tim Muehlhoff has a B.A. from Eastern Michigan University and an M.A. and Ph.D. from UNC at Chapel Hill (“Dodging a bullet,” Sept. 3, 2016).

More letters, emails, and comments that we didn't have space for in the print edition:

‘A different Adolf’

Aug. 6 | I was fascinated by Marvin Olasky’s column. I was drafted in May 1945, and our officers, unaware of the Manhattan Project, expected we would be part of the planned invasion of Japan. If the United States had not developed an atomic bomb, I and my comrades would probably have perished on Japan’s beaches. Pray that God will heal our culture’s rebellion and be spared the disasters of Europe and Japan.

—William W. Camp / Pike, N.H.