To the editor:

I was genuinely moved by the story in Thursday’s Journal-World describing how the Amish of Lancaster County, Pa., have dealt with their grief over this latest school shooting. In the midst of tragedy, they have followed biblical advice to turn the other cheek and urge forgiveness of the gunman who killed five little girls, even reaching out to comfort his family. As a Michigan expert on Amish society put it, “they don’t balance the hurt with hate.” Contrast this to coverage by Fox News, which in its fair and balanced style describes the shooter as a “sick, twisted madman.”

Just when I’ve concluded that the hypocrisy, moral bankruptcy and holier-than-thou Puritanism of the Religious Right has permanently given Christianity a black eye, along comes this example to remind me of the true essence of Christian values. How different might the world be today if we had refused to balance hurt with hate after 9/11? If we had responded to that crisis with the confidence of the spiritually mature instead of the knee-jerk militarism of a 12-year-old boy? Or if we had leaders who embraced the Christianity of Jesus as opposed to that of Cotton Mather? Few of us, including myself, are probably capable of following the Amish example. But it sure is nice to think that we could.

Jim Leiker,

Eudora