I would like to offer an explanation for the decision to run a letter in the Jan. 17 edition of this newspaper that had a tone inconsistent with our publication.
The letter-writer was replying to an opinion piece that had run a few weeks earlier, and offered, in his words, “a contrary conservative viewpoint.”
As editor, I have no objection to people expressing contrary viewpoints. I firmly believe that healthy debate and a free exchange of ideas are beneficial to society, not to mention being fundamental principles of democracy. So I want to be very clear that I am not apologizing for publishing a critical letter. However, some readers have pointed out that the tone of that particular letter was divisive and therefore not in keeping with these pages. I agree that we do not usually publish articles or opinion pieces with that kind of tenor. In hindsight, I would have done better to contact the author and ask that the letter be re-written with a different approach; he could have made his point just as well that way.
Because a couple of readers asked about how the letter came to be printed, let me explain that when I received it I did in fact debate with myself whether it should run. I discussed it with a staff member, then with one of my superiors, and although none of us appreciated the tone of the letter, we all agreed that it was appropriate to publish a response to the original opinion piece. However, the fact that all of us objected to the tone of the letter should have prompted me to contact the writer for a re-write, and in the future I will do so in similar circumstances.
All this leads to another issue that I think needs to be addressed. In the 15 years I’ve been editor, these pages have carried the response of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to various pieces of federal legislation. This has included both praise and criticism based solely on whether it was in keeping with Catholic teaching, regardless of which political party backed the legislation. The most recent example is the bishops’ responses to some of the actions taken by the Trump administration in the past week: The bishops are praising his actions on abortion and sexual identity, but criticizing his approach to immigration and other issues.
That the bishops can be critical on one hand and supportive on the other should come as no surprise: The Church teaches that abortion is a sin, while also teaching that we as Catholics should uphold human dignity and, in the words of the Bible, welcome the stranger and help those in need.
This newspaper will continue to report the bishops’ response to the federal administration’s actions. This isn’t partisanship; it’s our way of informing our readers about how the Church in the United States is standing by the principles of our faith.
As for letters to the editor, we will continue to welcome them regardless of viewpoint, as long as they are respectful in tone and are not contrary to the teachings of the Church.
Marie Mischel is editor of the Intermountain Catholic. Reach her at marie@icatholic.org.
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