I am angry and dismayed to read recent news stories about Dove World Church’s plans to publicly burn copies of the Qur’an on September 11. Nothing, including the passage of time, is going to remove the pain of 9/11 from our lives. As we reach yet another anniversary of that terrible evil, the Christian community is again asked to decide whether the God we worship calls us to reach out in love toward others, or demands intolerance and violence toward them.
Burning holy books has only two purposes, to suppress those who follow their faith and to incite violence against them. We may debate whether such an act would be tolerated under Islam, but we shouldn’t need to debate whether we will tolerate it as Christians. Degrading our neighbors and promoting violence is not the gospel that is shared in Lutsen Lutheran Church.
Tom Murray
Lutsen Lutheran Church
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