EDITOR:

Everyone has an opinion. Obviously, there are disagreements over opinions. If we don’t agree with someone, it is no exaggeration to say this can lead to hostility, as every war is started by opinion. Have you ever considered your/my/our opinion could be wrong? I’d like to share some opinions, have you consider them and then determine whether these opinions might be true. Your choice!

Melanie, while dying of ALS, the disease being so hideous that she shared with her sister she just wanted it to be over, still said, in spite of her tremendous suffering, “the nicest place to be is in someone’s thoughts, the safest place to be is in someone’s prayers, but the very best place to be is in the hands of God.” Often, we don’t realize these things until we find ourselves with similar difficulties. Anyone who has witnessed the effects of terminal illness can relate to Melanie’s supernatural insight. Only our death will provide complete clarity to this opinion.

Thomas Moore, defending his moral stand in an argument with King Henry said, “I have but one purpose, to first serve God and then the king.” He said this because he refused to honor King Henry by agreeing with him about being the supreme head of the Church. King Henry was so enraged at his close friend that he told Moore to acknowledge him as supreme leader of the church or he will lose his head. Moore is known to have said to his executioners, “Father forgive them they don’t know what they’re doing.” He then said to the crowd of on-lookers, “may we all meet in heaven one day.”

Henri Nouwen’s opinion states, “We have conveniently set God aside and now wonder why so many are so sad?” Is this true? Have we set aside God? Was Thomas Moore speaking for all of humanity, that our first purpose is to serve God, and if we do, everything else will fall into proper order? This shouldn’t be overlooked. If this is true, would you/me/we benefit by an honest-to-goodness examination of priorities?

Is there evidence that indicates we have set God aside, even attempted to “play” God? Furthermore, if there is a God, what’s His opinion on our Supreme Court’s decision in 1980 to take down the ten commandments from every public school building? If your opinion is that, yes, there is a God, what’s His opinion on seventy-three million abortions performed each year? And if the God of Scripture is real and He said, “male and female created He them”, is it ok for someone to “play god” by attempting to change the identity God Himself has assigned, knowing that scientifically you can prescribe hormone blockers and even perform surgical maneuvers and you still cannot change their God-given identity because you cannot change the chromosomes.

Is the Church’s opinion right? “Jesus Christ is the answer to every question life provides!” If this is true, only one opinion will matter…and it’s not the governments, nor mine!

Mike Cousineau

Escanaba