A recent contributor to these pages made a series of claims that need to be addressed in the print edition.

The first was that there was some confusion between liberal politics and Christianity, the latter being somehow superior.  I question what about liberal politics is against Christianity? Jesus was, by any measure in the society of his time liberal. That was his calling. Someplace between ignorance of the Bible and resentment against Biblical teaching it is too easy to fall into sinful error. The Jesus of the Bible did not make that distinction and, instead treated all — sinners and the like — with charity.

The claim was also made that charity is an individual matter, not a government mandate. There is no imposition of government mandated charity: Government taxes do get used to help the needy but are used for many services including health care and social security for all: Think of the charity Jesus showed to all people, not at all as a result of the government — often in spite of the government.

A further claim is there are many ways to help the oppressed. Nice thought but how often in what ways do many citizens fulfill this need? The homeless and needy have to fend for themselves. And if the government assists, the complaint is given to the “nanny state.” Meanwhile, as economic studies clearly show, virtually every American profits to some degree from Government benefits, and — worse — the states that contribute the least in their taxes get the most back from the government. FACT!

Incredulously, the claim was made that help to immigrants is not charity. The help given to DPs after World War II contradicts that. So how many your Polish, Italian, and other grandparents would disagree? Then the Donald Trump mistaken question asked; asking how many immigrants are raped coming across the border? That rhetorical question shows the poverty of the bias because you don’t know: you just want to claim it without defending the claim with demographics facts. In fact, though facts are difficult these days in the political realm, more people are returning to Mexico than are coming to the U.S., legally or otherwise! The claim about the rapists, drug runners, and the like was sheer scare tactics; false news.  One of many lies.

The final assertion is that immigrants work for less than the minimum wage. But who breaks the law to pay them and why (as “good Americans”) do they do that? The truth is that many other Americans don’t want these jobs and prefer to live off welfare rather than earning a decent day’s living.

Why not go after the employers and let immigrants work at jobs they’re willing to take?  They’re not taking jobs from others at all: the others don’t want to accept such work and instead live off of the taxpayers.

The pity of it is that so many take the lack of a work ethic of many downtrodden Americans and expect the same from immigrants of comparable social situations who instead are happy to work, e.g., in agriculture and other lower level jobs (cleaners, laborers, etc.).

The theme, again, is Christian charity, and neither laws that protect religious, gender, and ethnic discrimination or everyday discrimination as is evidenced in daily intercourse between people who are “other” can explain the problems away.  In the meanwhile, good Christians should reconsider the role of Christian charity in their lives and actions.

In any situation the guide of “What would Jesus say or do?” would be instructive.

Thomas Regelski is a Brocton resident.