LETTER TO THE EDITOR – The elephant in the room

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 15/05/2022 (1117 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Too many people are not willing to address the elephant in the room. It is a gigantic, scary beast.

What are we talking about? A clear separation of church and state. This has traditionally been the Mennonite stance. I admire them for that. Having said that, this is not the case anymore. The lines have become very blurry. I am not a Mennonite by choice, but why not lift up the good things that can be found no matter they come from?

We hear a lot about “my God-given right and freedoms”. A prime example is the trucker’s ‘freedom convoy’. The question I am asking is this: which God gives me all these freedoms and rights? The God of the Muslims? The God of the Hindus or the God of Christians? How far can I stretch my freedom and rights? Should the churches take our government to court to obtain special freedoms? That does not seem to work, because the churches in Manitoba and Ontario lost their cases and those churches need to pay their penalties as required by law. Our actions have consequences. Extreme religious and right-wing views lack compassion for others. What good is the mind if we cannot change it to improve our lives. It takes reflective, critical thinking to evaluate what we believe and stand for in the religious and secular systems. I have concluded that I want to contribute to the well-being of society as a whole, not just for a segment of people who think that they have the right to control others. Church power, white, left or right-wing power is not what most people want. Most people want decency and human compassion.

Government and church combined is an unequal yoke. The Quebec government seems to have figured this out and I say ‘congratulations’! no religious symbols in a secular government or in its workforce. The federal government should stay out of it even if Mr. Trudeau does not like it, or for that matter any member of parliament.

Let’s just remember the dark ages, where approximately 50 million people lost their lives due to government and religious forces combining and destroying each other. Could that happen again? Just take a look at Russia and Ukraine today. Mr. Putin is using the Orthodox church as a crutch, and the church enables him to brutalize a nation that apparently wants to be independent and make their own decisions – is that a crime to be punished by death? He even quotes scripture to justify mass murder. A lot of conservative forces in North America support him for that.

If a freedom convoy is so eager to protest against our government and their mandates, and having strong support from the MP for those who violate the law, how shall we think about that? Should they try that stunt in Moscow and see how that works out! How about a fifteen-year jail term for speaking out. You might think that is far-fetched and I agree, but I am trying to make a point. Let’s appreciate what we have in this country. If we poke the elephant in the room, it might just be enough to get the conversation going.

Look at another example. We just need to look south of our border. The ‘God-sent white savior’ had finally come to North America and the evangelical churches were thrilled and adored him, and to a large degree are still worshipping the extreme right-wing ideology. White power is the mantra. White power leads to white privilege and off goes the train in that direction. How can we stop this train? Definitely not by pushing that agenda. We will hold our politicians accountable. Pay attention – there might be another train coming. Anyone that disagrees with that kind of thinking usually gets slighted as a left-winger, socialist, or communist. Whatever those terms mean is probably not understood by a lot of people. They just think it’s bad. Maybe we need to research those terms before we draw conclusions.

Religion and politics mixed together, regardless of what type of religion, creates a disastrous policy and creates division and sense of superior privilege. This creates a class system between cultures and ethnicities, which degrades those that are not like us. We must stand against those arrogant attitudes and hold all people equal regardless of background or socioeconomic class. If we want peace on earth and prosperity for all, we must treat everyone the same and leave the church and politics apart. Secular governments must create laws that are good for all people without any influence of church groups or special interest groups or lobbyists. Let’s address the elephant in the room and see what comes out of it. If we have clarity, a lot of good will come out of it. I won’t let myself be confused with religious jargon. I have been there, done that, and am sorry for it. I have learned a lot on my journey through life, and the lessons have not been in vain. It is worth fighting for a better future where we all treat one another with respect.

In closing I’d like to express my appreciation for the article last week by Lori Penner And the truth shall make you squirm. Delightful and insightful!