After reading Alan Davis’s recent letter, " Weaponizing Religion ," I just can’t resist responding.
First, to be fair, it is not the most ridiculous piece I’ve ever read if I include the writings of Stash Hempeck, Tony Bender, and others. But it is close.
He wrote that American Bishops in the Catholic Church voted to deny the sacrament to “any Catholic who respects women.” Of course, this is false. Davis describes himself as a life long on-again, off-again Catholic who spells out all the shortcoming of his own religion. Steeped in arrogance and assumption, he goes through a laundry list of all the things the Church falls short on. And by failing on these matters, the Church can no longer take a stand on anything like abortion until they get themselves squared away.
Here are some examples. If a priest is against abortion, he labels them as “extremist.” If a priest or Bishop is committed to following Scripture, they are right-wing priests and bishops who want to “weaponize” religion. He states that if they deny Communion to someone who favors killing the unborn, then they cannot give Communion to someone who is against a $15/hr. minimum wage. The Church didn’t do enough to condemn Trump (who is pro-life, by the way, Mr. Davis) so they cannot take any action on Biden, who is pro-abortion. Add to this people who are against climate change, unionization, and others. Wow. Basically, the world will need to be perfect and the Church will need to be instrumental in making it that way, and at that point, Davis would allow them to take a stand on protecting the life of the unborn. Funny thing, he uses those exact words (“life and dignity of the human person”) in his letter as very important principles. To deserve dignity as a human, you must make it out of the womb first. Until then, in Davis’s world, you are a healthcare decision. And by the way, he makes it clear that you better respect this healthcare decision, or you are guilty of misogyny.
I’ve read this type of “logic” before, and it is a tired tactic of the liberals. It’s the “you have to do X, Y, and Z, or believe in A, B, or C” before you get to have an opinion on something like abortion. For example, I’ve been told that unless I am willing to foster kids (which we have) or donate my income to a single mom to raise a child, I cannot have an opinion on abortion. If I do, then I am a hypocrite.
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And that is exactly how Davis ends his arrogant letter, by pulling out the hypocrite card if your beliefs fall into one of the many “crimes” he accuses the Church and conservatives of.
Barry Burchill lives in West Fargo.
This letter does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Forum's editorial board nor Forum ownership.
