In regard to your page 10 story (November): “Government money allocated to fight the gang problem in Oceanside,” evangelicals should think twice before rising to the bait. Whether the program is viable or not, it is still questionable Christian practice to accept funds from the public treasury to evangelize.

If Christians think that their interests should be supported by the public treasury, they must be willing to support the interests of others in the same way. That’s the nature of politics. If Christians think it is okay to tax the secular public to fund evangelical projects, then why should it not be okay to tax Christians to fund pornographic art and abortion clinics?

Of course, the above question cuts two ways and begs the question: Why should evangelism, porn, or abortions be funded through the public treasury in the first place?

         Grant W. Kuhns

         Carlsbad

We just wanted to thank you for printing the recent article by Mike Atkinson titled, “Search & Ye Shall (Not) Find.” This article was extremely helpful to myself and our church. We had been scratching our heads trying to figure why we could not get our church to appear on Google.

Hopefully his suggestions will fix our problem.

         Timothy Allen, Office Manager

         WestCoast Christian Center

         Vista

“Moral values”? Which “moral values”? I for one am getting sick and tired of the so-called “liberal” media repeating the absurd contention that people voted for Bush because of his supposed “moral values.” Just what exactly are these moral values? Are they the values of helping the poor, weak, sick, elderly, and needy in our own society and abroad? The rights of workers to fair treatment, safe working conditions, and decent pay? Protection of the environment for the health of present and future Americans? Concern for basic freedoms and civil rights for all Americans? Tolerance for those who are different from you? Honesty, integrity, and compassion? These are MY moral values, moral values I share with many liberals.

It is because of THESE moral values that I and millions of other Americans enthusiastically supported John Kerry for President. Bush has turned a deaf ear and a blind eye to them, publicly supporting these values and then turning around and undermining the policies that support them at every opportunity. Please stop calling Bush’s values “moral” values. They are nothing of the kind. They are the values of a coalition of sanctimonious, hypocritical fundamentalist Christians and the radical right.

These values have nothing to do with moral values nor the principles upon which this nation was founded, and the people who espouse them are not patriots but treacherous betrayers of everything that makes this nation great.

         Valerie Sacks

         Los Angeles

The Supreme Court has given us the green light! Too good to be true? But it is true! I’m referring to the November article by Simone Carr on Child Evangelism Fellowship’s Good News Clubs, which meet in public schools throughout San Diego County and across the nation.

When I heard that only one person had responded to the North County division of CEF, the thought came to me that perhaps it didn’t register because it’s hard getting past the belief that there is “No Prayer Allowed in Public Schools.” Yes, that’s true during school, but you should see what happens at these clubs after school! I’ve been privileged to be a volunteer in two of these clubs. There is prayer and songs of praise, and the Gospel presented each week with an invitation to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior, and week after week new hearts are being added to the kingdom as the kids bring their friends.

Special helps are sent home with each child to encourage Scripture memorization. Of course, all this is interspersed with fun and games and snacks, because these kids have been in school all day. CEF won the legal right to hold these clubs in the year 2001!

Maybe there is another reason why there was only one response, and that is we are all so busy. I know that’s the reason I delayed making a commitment to do this for two hours a week. I prayed about it, and got lots of amazing confirmation — the last one being a sermon by my pastor on Matthew 10:37-39. So, one-by-one, my objections fell away, and because of the opportunity to serve my Lord and be a witness of His love to these children, my joy has returned. Funny thing is, I didn’t know it was missing!

There is one more thing I thought might be helpful to those of us with an already crowded schedule, or who have young children at home. That is job sharing – two moms could alternate every other week at the Good News Club, while taking care of the others’ children when it isn’t their turn. If you’re feeling that gentle nudge of the Holy Spirit, please pray about it. If your obstacles fade away and you feel the call on your heart to bring the Good News to these kids  (most are un-churched), then call CEF Director Robert Burkley at (760) 480-4191.

Oh, and that one response to the article was from a dad who was so glad to hear about the clubs because his daughter was starting public school. This dad considered re-arranging his work schedule to help start up a club at his child’s school.

         Sherrie Frazier

         Valley Center

Parents often mention to me, “Why didn’t I start my child in Christian school sooner?”

My answer is that like the majority of us, we presume that schooling is the government’s job as has been the social norm for 150 years. In reality, the Bible directs us, as parents, to “bring up a child in the way he should go.”

Education is the parents’ responsibility and we see this once that little one enters our life. We teach them to eat, to speak, to walk, to read, to ... well, it seems like we teach them to do everything. Somewhere along the path of rearing the child, we then turn them over to someone else to teach. This is a great help for the parent, but most of us forget that just because we turn the job over to someone else, it is still our responsibility as a parent to see that our children are learning what WE want them to learn.

The government-operated schools have done a remarkable job. They have tons of kids, all coming from varied backgrounds and home environments, with loads of potential, but as of late, it seems that the job has not been accomplished. California, as do most states, spends $5000 to $10,000 dollars per student to help the parents educate their children. Despite the call for more money, the goal of educating our citizens has not been widely accomplished.

In a Christian school, a child learns about His Creator, academics, usually at an advanced level, and good citizenship. The environment is loving and nurturing and not ruled by the biggest kid on the playground. Knowing Christ is the center of the Christian school education as everything else seems to fall in line, as we become more like Him in our daily walk.

Test scores are generally higher in Christian schools than those in government schools. We in Christian schooling do a great job of helping parents accomplish the education of their child and we do it for less than half the cost of government-funded schools. The down-side to this efficient use of the money placed toward the education of a Christian school child is that it is the parent’s after tax money and in order to keep the cost of schooling affordable, Christian school teachers get paid much less than their government school counterparts. Despite this, teachers and administrators of Christian schools put their well-being on hold for the opportunity to pour their lives into their students — in anticipation of Kingdom Rewards.

Why not start your child early in a Christian School environment? If you give them a good foundation of faith to build upon, the Bible promises you, “they will not depart from it.” The sooner the better Mom and Dad! Let us do what we do best - help YOU educate YOUR child.

         Tim Lidberg, Principal

         New Song Christian School

         Oceanside

My name is Gena Logrecco and I would love to see an article about why pastors do not mention or like to get involved in anything to do with Christian singles. It is as though we don’t exist.

Maybe you could pose a question to different churches asking if they have an active Christian ministry for singles of all age groups. I am 49 years old and have gone to my pastor about this and have been told “keep praying.” Of course I am praying about finding a Christian partner. What about fellowship with people my own age? I’ve known at least three of my friends who have married non-believers because they never met any Christian men. This is what we are facing. Pastors want to bury their head in the sand and pretend we don’t need fellowship with other single people our age. What is going on here? Why is it that pastors are so afraid? I’ve even been told that pastors don’t have single ministries because they don’t want the married people to start thinking that the singles are having fun fellowshipping that they just might get a divorce and join the singles. This is ridiculous.

Last year, I thought I would call a radio station to see if they would advertise a get together of all Christian singles in San Diego. I was shocked to hear that they are not interested because of how it will appear. We are not asking for something so taboo. There are many Christians who feel the same way I do.

We exist out here! Pastors, please talk about our need to fellowship! Minister to us for a change. We are feeling left out! Get your heads out of the sand!

I would really like for your newspaper to do an article where people could e-mail their opinions about this. You will find that there are hundreds out there with the same needs.

If you have any questions please call me at (619) 271-6879.

         Gena Logrecco

         Via Internet

At the very moment when the forces of Christianity played a major role in rescuing the United States from the danger of a complete take-over by the Left, the Soledad Cross was sold out by those who owned the land on which it stands when the voters were deceived into voting against the means by which it could be retained on the mountain. Yet in this cross, as it was said to Constantine the Great, the first Christian emperor of Rome, we shall conquer.

Even if all the crosses of the United States are ripped down, even those on the churches and graveyards, the cross will yet conquer. For in this cross came salvation and in this cross, we shall see the sign of the Son of God as He comes in triumph again. The Last and the Greatest Crusade has begun and it has begun for you.

Many uninformed people never understood why the crusade had to be fought in the years 1096-1099. The Seljuk Turks has arrived at the gates of the great Christian city of Constantinople. Had they been allowed by Christian Europe to seize that city, the Turks would have reached the North Sea and conquered all of Europe. These Turks were Muslims who would stop at nothing to make their religion the only one in all Europe. Urban, who was pope at that time, was also a French warrior and nobleman, a knight. He knew what had to be done and he called forth the chivalry of France, his native country, and then the chivalry of all Europe responded. In 1099, the crusaders entered Jerusalem in triumph.

There are people who now cater to the Muslims and apologize for the crusade. In fact, the present pope, who is a politician, apologized to the Muslim world. I reject this craven statement. I also reject this pope and all of his political nonsense. I believe the faith of my fathers does not need this pope. I do not apologize for the crusade. I call for the greatest of all crusades now and for the total triumph of the cross over all the world. I reject this belief that we should wait for the last days. The crusade is now and must be fought now. The last days will take care of themselves.

If you are waiting for G.W. Bush to save Christianity, you wait upon a false god. I am glad Bush won, but he is not the leader of Christendom. We ourselves are the leaders and we ourselves will create the last and greatest crusade.

In every Christian home, each child is a crusader and each parent is the teacher. We do not need the rotten public schools and the equally failing private schools. Teach your child at home and save him from eternal death.

The crusade means separation from the depraved American culture with its rotten music and rotten literature. It also means separation from this rotten culture’s films and television garbage. Do you go to a garbage dump to find food? Then you will not go to Hollywood and New York for your spiritual and intellectual food. Wake up to these facts now.

Those Christians who tell you that you ought to join the secular culture’s institutions to spread the Word are wrong. The American secular culture serves Baal and Moloch not the True God. We do not go to this depraved culture for our music, our literature and our philosophy of action. We create our own culture based on the Word of God in Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen.

I see hundreds of millions of Christian men harkening to the call of Urban at Clermont once again. I see the cross of Soledad rising in our souls.

Oh, Cross of Soledad, you will rise again on that mountain. The day will come when I shall stand there and see you rise over this depraved country. Cross of Christ, I shall not be ashamed in thee. Cross of Christ, lead us on to triumph now and forever.

         Michael Suozzi, Ph.D.

         La Mesa

Jesus gave His disciples  a pattern for prayer. This is commonly, if incorrectly, called the Lord’s Prayer. It is recited in many visible churches each Lord’s Day.

One phrase in it should grab our attention each year as Dec. 25 approaches. It is “...hallowed be Thy Name...” This is to teach us that God is holy, and that His Name whether we are speaking about the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit separately or speaking about all three as combined and co-equal in the Godhead, is to be revered. God and His Names are to be seriously considered and are not to be used carelessly. One of the chief examples of such carelessness is in the use of the term “Merry Christmas.” Christ is one of the titles given to Jesus. It is the New Testament equivalent of Messiah, the Anointed of God.

To attach this revered title to Mass, (for this is what the last three letters in the word “Christmas” stand for) is, certainly not to hallow His Name. Indeed, it is blasphemous!

The Mass is considered by the Roman Catholic Religion to be a sacrifice. To attach Christ to this is an abominable travesty. It is, indeed, sacrilegious.

To make matters worse is the addition of “Merry” in the popular greeting “Merry Christmas.” This is ludicrous. How could a Mass, which is said to be a sacrifice, a crucifying of Jesus afresh each time it’s celebrated, be merry? It has to do with death not birth. There is no connection between this celebration and Jesus’ nativity, unless in an incidental way that He had to be born to die.

Many will say, “We mean no harm.” However, this doesn’t excuse disobedience to the command of Jesus who is said, incorrectly, to be “The Reason for the Season.” Indeed, I’ve seen an advertisement by a prominent businessman that inserts the word “true” into the statement making it read, “Jesus is the True Reason for the Season.” This is nonsense, and almost not worthy of rebuttal, except for the seriousness of the sin of taking God’s Name in vain.

The season, originally, had nothing to do with Jesus. It’s origin is in other religions which don’t recognize Jesus as the propitiatory sacrifice which God the Father provided for those whom He has ordained to eternal life.

Jesus has been thrust into the midst of non-Christian worship practices and rites. He doesn’t belong in the Pantheonic mix.

He is to be set apart.

He is to be revered.

His name is to be hallowed.

         Wallace A. Bell

         Oceanside