Sister Thea
Dear Editor:
Ours is an age of violence and fear. In the midst of our latest terrorist alarm, a rare and welcome act surfaces (Sister Thea inspires QA man Jan. 6). Thank you for this inspirational and heartwarming story. Thank you for placing it on your front page. It needs to be there and treasured as a gift.
- Constance F. Ramsey
Politicians won't listen
Dear Editor:
I read your article about the tunnel in the Magnolia Newspaper (The bargain basement tunnel Dec. 9) and am in full agreement about what you had to say. I can't understand our local government wanting to go ahead with this project.
Especially as our city and state has a whopping debt. How many times did we vote this down, and who in the world even listened to us.
I was tempted to write in names on the ballot or not even vote at all during this last election, because of the choice of candidates.
Ashamed to say that I voted for the now new mayor. I went to hear him speak and thought he might try to change things. He was against the tunnel and now he is going along with it. Sure wish he had more backbone!!
I have been a resident of Magnolia for almost 59 years, before I lived on Queen Anne where I attended John Hay Grade School and Queen Anne High School as did all of my children.
How can we ever get these elected officials to listen the voters?
- Fran DeBruler
Catholic opinion wrong
Dear Editor:
I have had the QA News delivered to my home since I moved here over 50 years ago. I have anticipated it's arrival every week and look forward to it's perusal. The January 13, 2010 edition came and the caption "One Sunday morning in church" caught my eye and I commenced to read it expecting something "uplifting." I was shocked and disheartened.
It appeared to me the author went out of his way to demean the Catholic faith and its followers.
He also had some faulty facts. You do not have to have received the Sacrament of Confirmation in order to partake of Holy Communion. Why do you think the bread and wine served at Communion is evil tasting--have you tasted it? We bow out of respect and all sizes and shapes of people will vary in their method.
As an Eucharistic Minister I have never had any person drink "heartily" from the cup. It is merely a sip and some people forgo it completely. It is not a requirement that the server drink (not "chug") the leftover wine in their cup. It is their choice to drink it or not. (To drink it would be a service to the priest but we are not bound to do it if we choose not to, for whatever reason.)
I couldn't imagine the reason for the article. If it was just to fill space in the paper, how unfortunate for the paper and the writer. (When I checked and found the writer was the Editor and not possibly just one of the subscribers, I was even more shocked!) Surely, it is an attention-getter but does that justify demeaning the faith and the faithful? Do you think that will increase the circulation?
Now that I have vented my displeasure, I will offer prayers for us both. We need them!
- Jackie Rafferty
Catholic column inappropriate
Dear Editor,
One of the most important aspects of life in a community is having a deep respect for the experience and faith of others. It enables discourse on difficult subjects and helps to knit people together. I was saddened to see the article "One Sunday Morning at Church."
While it is unclear to me what the author wanted to communicate, the article treats things which Catholics hold sacred with a flip kind of disrespect. Many of my parishioners expressed to me how deeply offended they were by the article. For Catholics, the Communion we receive is not bread and wine but the very body and blood of Christ, body, blood, soul and divinity. While the elements used for Communion certainly will not win any gourmet awards, to call them "evil tasting" is neither true, nor respectful and certainly not "tasteful."
But what was more troubling, was the ascription of motives to communicants. To think that one can adequately understand what is going on in the minds of people when going up to Communion is at best presumptuous and at worst insulting.
Some people appear outwardly more pious than others, some less so, but outward appearances often reveal so little of their story. When I see people come up to receive Communion, I see people who have just lost their job and who are worried about how to provide for their families. I see couples who are newly married, giddy with love for one another and full of expectation for their future. I see a son who has been up all night taking care of a dying mother. And yes, I see an occasional bored teenager, but at the same time I also see teenagers who are full of faith. Most of all, I see people with a deep desire for communion with the Lord Jesus.
At the end of the article, the author suggests that being willing to "chug wine and backwash" is part of the job description for minister of Holy Communion. What I find most important, what I do look for and ask of ministers Holy Communion is that they look upon everyone who comes to them with the eyes of Christ, that they look upon them, however they come, with love, and respect, and reverence. Wouldn't we all be better off doing the same?
- Fr. James Johnson, pastor
Our Lady of Fatima Church
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