European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - March 18, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 10 the stars and stripes columns William f. Buckley or. Nominal christians also do much damage religion has been receiving a bad press these Days calling to mind Picasso s famous disparagement of his own work 20 years ago is god taunting us by pulling the spotlight on Jimmy Swaggart the Ayaton Ian Khomeini and John Bird Singer the last for irresponsible non watchers of "60 min was a mormon fanatic who got himself excommunicated from his own Church Drew his family acc la sively to his Cabin where he stowed his wives and several thousand rounds of ammunition and More guns than Custer had and was killed in an Exchange with Federal and state troopers. His family lives on uncork cycled by experience. Is Swaggart s deviant lechery characteristic of evangelical protestantism is Khomeini s genocidal search for schismatics and blasphemers a Correct transcription of the word of Allah is an excommunicated mor Mon paradoxically an example of the practising mor Mon on the one hand there arc the aberration Al representatives of religion who do the damage but there arc also of course the nominal christians and they do As much damage however Little they arc noticed in part because they have become so humdrum. A few weeks ago i was seated next to a european figure so August that ladies curtsy when they arc presented to him and he was telling the table at which he sat about the great mischief being done by the Mission Aries in Venezuela who move in on native tribes an totally break Down their cultural order resulting in Dirac Nalion and chaos. I cleared my Throat and asked which of the ten commandments was responsible for bringing pandemonium to the poor venezuelan Sav Ages. The speaker hesitated for a moment and said that Well he was talking so to speak about the techniques used o which the answer is of course that bad techniques arc bad techniques whether used by teachers missionaries lovers or musicians but one ought t to regret teaching or evangelizing or sex or music be cause they arc Here and there sometimes practice badly. But he seemed to be saying that it is inherent inthe cultures of alien people that they should be left alone to which one can Only reply As one would have done a generation ago when Margaret Mead discovered the unfettered Joys of unfettered love in Samoa that christianity is the hallmark of civilization and it is an injunction of christianity to go out in the world and teach the word of the lord. Yes even in the Jun Gles of Venezuela and the beaches of Samoa and for that matter the pastures of qom. Granted that the ten commandments can convulse not Only venezuelan Savages but Park Avenue social ites thou shall not Bear false witness against thy neighbor imagine if that were to become a Zero toleration Law in Washington. One would come away with the impression that a nerve Gas had Frozen the Howard Kleinberg Onset i might Fry is it ust v vocal cords of the entire town. Thou shall not covet thy neighbor s wife. Thou shall not what peo ple for the american Way would descend upon you and insist that you were violating the first fourth fifth and 14th amendments the declaration of Independence and the Gettysburg address if you held an such View. Thou shall not covet thy neighbor s goods would put the democratic party out of Busi Ness. So there is the sense in which christianity is a continuing revolution against the ways of Man beginning when he fled Paradise. But christianity Speaks also about forgiveness Yea even to the sinner who has sinned 70 times seven times. And that is a great Deal More than the Ayatollah is inclined to do and very much More than the incas or the aztecs were incl Nedlo do or for that matter the fathers of the Induisi lion. But the Christian religion is about How people ought to act not How they do act and european aristocrats ought to worry about Savages who have of the knowledge of How they should act rather than about non Savages who know How they should act but do not do so. Christianity has never been tried the cliche runs. And of course it s True but so is it True that christianity has checked the movements of millions often and women who but for the pull of Dogma would know no vital Brake upon their behaviour. Sometimes the Brake is effective sometimes it is not. But that it should be there outweighs any concern Over the excesses of Jimmy Swaggart or the Ayatollah or the mor Mon extremist or the venezuelan Savage or the european relativist. C Universal Peai Syndicate. A diminishing Sanctuary from acts of terrorism when the thought first came to mind. 1 Dis missed it As some form of paranoia. But when a bomb went off in Sharon Rogers Van in san Diego i quickly realized that it was not paranoia that gripped me on the Caribbean cruise. It was common sense. There is diminishing Sanctuary from terrorism. It can reach into a Van in san Diego a plane Over Scot land or a vacation cruise or have we forgotten Leon Klinghoffer and the Achilta Lauro shortly after our cruise ship sailed out of Miami several weeks ago it was announced Over the loud speaker that those aboard of the jewish Faith desiring to have Sabbath services on Friday night should sign up at the Shore excursion desk. It sounded harmless until i went to the Shore excursion desk. There taped to it was a piece of paper with a Large Star of David i the top and the notification that persons wishing to attend services should print their names and Cabin numbers. The names were left there in the open from sunday evening until Friday afternoon. The Jacobsons i Cabin 673 signed up so did the adlers in 368, and the Bruckner in 438. In All 17 jewish couples put Down their names and Cabin numbers for All to Sec for almost five full a s. Thai s where the paranoia set in. On the Achille Lauro in 1985, the error Isle Sepa rated the americans from the rest of the passengers then topped their list with Klinghoffer s name. Was in just coincidence that he was jewish could in be possible Hal terrorists were on my ship among the More than 1,000 passengers Why not among the 400 or so Crew Why Noi again there were very few members of the Crew who were american. Sure the terrorists probably could find most of us but it would take them awhile. Why hand in to them on a Silver Platter or in this Case on a Star of David topped list which included Cabin numbers i did t put Down my name. When nothing happened to those passengers who did i began to feel awkward about my apprehension. But after Reading about the attempt on the life of the wife of the skipper of the guided missile Cruiser Vin can pcs in an american City no less i congratulated myself on my caution. We Are an open country. Thai is Good and that is bad. We Are Host to 30,000 iranian exiles according to Intelli Genic reports quoted by . News & world report. You know there Are pro Khomeini fanatics among them. The same is True among the cuban exiles. Everyone knows a Large number of Castro agents have melted in with them. The Opportunity for terrorist acts within the United slates or to american citizens increases daily As the terrorists become bolder and As some of our allies continue to cower under the threat of action a Amsl them. The times of conventional War where we saw our enemies marching through a Field Are Over. They ended in Vietnam when we could not distinguish Cheviet Cong sapper from a Rice Farmer. Terrorists now arc even harder to detect. They could be students Al an american University or a waiter on a cruise ship in the Caribbean. They could be passengers on a Jellinck or the baggage handler for the same flight. Is understanding this a form of paranoia or is it recognition of reality if terrorists can pipe bomb in the Van of a . Naval officer s wife in Cali fornia they can do it elsewhere perhaps in Yankee stadium or on an Amtrak liner from Chicago to Den ver. Or they can Lake Over a cruise ship in the carib bean and go immedi ally to certain Cabins Courtesy of the publicly displayed Sabbath services sign up list. C co news service the opinions expressed in the columns and cartoons on this Page represent those of the authors and Ore in no Way to be considered As representing the views of the stars and stripes or the United states government. ,
