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And For a Follow-up
To The Editors : I read with much interest the article by the Rev . Jeremy Simons : A Racist Free World ( New Church Life , September / October , 2017 ). Mr . Simons rendered a valuable service to the New Church Life readership by clarifying what the Writings have to say about various races and religions , both favorable and unfavorable . The fact that the article also focused much on other religions was a real bonus .
For me , an obvious follow-up to this article would be , The Causes of Racism . Of course , one could simply state that the hells are behind racism and religious bigotry . But it would be interesting to take a deeper look .
What causes people to look down on those who are in some way different ? Why are we afraid of people who are different ? Does over-protection of things we hold dear adversely affect our view of the neighbor ? Is there transgression of a particular commandment that comes into play with bigotry ? What , about us as human beings , lends itself to this particular evil ?
Perhaps Mr . Simons ( or others ) might be encouraged to give us their insights into the religious psychology of this ongoing problem . Again , I very much appreciated and enjoyed this article .
Gregory L . Baker Huntingdon Valley , Pennsylvania
Confident in Church Leadership
To The Editors : In the July / August 2016 issue of the New Church Life I had the honor of having a letter to the editors published wherein I tried to commend the Bishop and the clergy of the General Church for their diligence and integrity as they searched for the Lord ’ s guidance regarding the old policy of a “ male-only clergy .”
In the November / December 2016 issue of New Church Life , Mr . Barrie Ridgway took exception to my view , essentially asking me how it could be that some of the current-day , thoroughly dedicated , New Church disciples of the Lord , using the same Divine Word for their guidance , could end up divided from the majority on the question of women in the clergy ?
He answered his own question by saying : “ The Word does not directly address the issue and the answer is subject to interpretation regardless of the
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