Building back trust in the hierarchy

I was more than pleased when I read that some of Minnesota’s bishops and leaders of the Catholic Church, led by Archbishop Hebda, initiated a meeting with the 11 recognized indigenous tribes in Minnesota to talk about the six Catholic-run “Indian schools” that were in Minnesota (“Bishops meet with tribal leaders to explore Church’s role in Indian boarding school history,” Dec. 23 edition). Rather than say there is no racism in the Church and try to hide from the likely painful historical facts, they are opening the archives and working with the local indigenous peoples to help them discover what happened and where there might be unmarked graves. I hope and pray this leads to some healing for the indigenous peoples of Minnesota and possibly some reconciliation between them and the Church. It is encouraging to see our local bishops and other church leaders doing the right thing.

Greg Sicheneder
Immaculate Heart of Mary, Minnetonka

One-sided on Capitol attack

Upon reading the Jan. 13 article titled, “In Jan. 6 observations, Catholics urged to defend truth and democracy,” I expected both sides of the story to be referred to while defending truth and democracy. Therefore, I not only expected to read about Vice President Pence’s certification of the 2020 election vote count, but also to read about how some government officials who administer elections were not separated from political operatives who work to win them, thus permitting a conspiracy to take place behind the scenes, the result of an informal alliance between some business titans and some left-wing activists. A major part of this conspiracy was to use COVID as a pretext to maximize absentee voting. Truth-seekers are concerned about future elections and are already aware of what leftists are doing to rig future elections and create a one-party state, thus losing our democratic republic.

Roland Mayer
Epiphany, Coon Rapids

Inconsistent message

One passage in the article, “Legalizing Recreational Marijuana” in the Jan. 13 edition caught my attention: “Overall arrests of African Americans in Colorado actually rose from 2012 to 2018, perhaps because marijuana lowers inhibitions, cuts into the ability to make good decisions and increases encounters with police, Jones said.” According to the CDC, about 12 million U.S. residents reported driving under the influence of marijuana, compared to self-reported incidents of people driving under the influence of alcohol: 111 million. But how is this relevant? On page 20, there’s an article about a family who brews beer in Illinois. They do this with a faith-centered approach, and yet, the facts remain. Alcohol is a more common drug used when people drive under the influence. Therefore, it’s irresponsible to publish an article shaming the idea of legalizing marijuana, while praising a family for brewing their own alcohol, a dangerous and unhealthy drug in itself. The Catholic Spirit has strayed from the idea of spreading Jesus’ teachings of love and peace to all. You’ve done this by painting alcohol as a drug that brings people together, simultaneously claiming that marijuana “lowers inhibitions, cuts into the ability to make good decisions and increases encounters with police,” which are downsides to alcohol. Please consider what your articles are attempting to say more carefully.

Dan LaValle
Guardian Angels, Oakdale

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