The Supreme Court has been consistently coming down in favor of evangelical religious interests. Is the court taking religious freedom too far?
Religion goes through times when it is pampered or even established and other periods when it is persecuted. In the middle ground where we are today, society must decide what to do with churches that become socially counter-productive, teaching that civil government is bad and must be resisted.
When the Roman Catholic Church had run rough-shod over civil society for long enough in Medieval times, nations in Europe clipped its wings. Governments expropriated Catholic lands, debarred Catholics from holding public office, and openly challenged Catholic fundraising methods.
Protestant churches have always been favored in this nation like Catholics were in Europe, and most often have been good citizens. Lately, however, evangelicals have positioned their political puppets in government and in the courts to do their bidding. Church folk are getting involved in anti-law and anti-government militias, upsetting teaching activities in public schools and asserting highly privileged immunity against prosecution for sexual abuse by members and leaders alike.
Is it time to rein in churches who denigrate democracy?
Kimball Shinkoskey
Woods Cross, Utah
‘Sacrifice’
questioned
In April, a series of events across our RGV exposed the contradictions of living here. The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Economic Impact and Diversity held one of its informational sessions on its Justice40 Program Highlights at the UTRGV Edinburg campus for grants, loans, educational training and technical assistance.
Also covered was the topic of “sacrifice zones,” which are places of low income and people of color who live near polluting industries that expose them to all kinds of dangerous chemicals and other environmental threats. Included also was the RGV Overview of Land Use, Energy Production and Health Risks, which included exposure to high levels of air pollution that cause adverse health effects due to particulate matter (PM2.5+) in the air and its associated asthma — and whose existing levels are already high in the RGV.
In Port Isabel, save RGV, a local non-profit organization that advocates for environmental justice and sustainability, protested against Rio Grande LNG/Rio Grande Pipeline at its open house at the EventCenter.
The next week after permitting from Federal Aviation Agency, SpaceX blasted off from Starbase, which ended once again in a fiery conflagration over the gulf, severely scorched BocaChicaBeach and rained sand down (more particulate matter) on the surrounding communities.
Then, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved three LNGs at the Brownsville Navigation District.
So, who in the federal government is really looking out for the “sacrifice zones” in the RGV as stated by Justice40 Program? Aren’t South Padre Island, Laguna Vista, Port Isabel, which are near SpaceX and LNGs, now the “sacrifice zone”? Why isn’t our imminent “sacrifice” not stalled or stopped by the federal government — as well as county and navigation district government?
Diane Teter
Edinburg
LETTERS — Limit letters to 300 words; all letters are subject to editing. Mail: P.O. Box 3267, McAllen, TX78502-3267; Email: [email protected]
