From Our Readers

Phobias

I want to thank you for the article “Phobias​—Those Mysterious Fears.” (February 8, 1987) I was always ashamed to talk of this to others, but when I was a child, I had no fear of the dark until I heard a radio program on the supernatural. After that, I dreaded the dark so much that I would not go from one room to another if I had to pass a room where the lights were not on. Your article cleared up the matter for me, showing that my feeling is not necessarily cowardice.

H. M., Brazil

A Birth or an Abortion?

Your extensive coverage of abortion missed one point: the effect of pregnancy on the health and life of the mother. (April 8, 1987) A deliberately induced abortion simply to prevent the birth of an unwanted child is a willful taking of human life. But how do you view a deliberately induced abortion to prevent the death or ill health of the mother?

A. A., Nigeria

It cannot be right to take the life of an unborn child merely because allowing the pregnancy to go full term may possibly, or even probably, endanger the health of the mother. A potential danger is no justification for such drastic action. In many cases, doctors have warned a mother that to complete her pregnancy would endanger her health, but the outcome was a healthy baby and no lasting harm to the mother. Besides, what about the potential physical and emotional damage that may accrue to the mother because of an induced abortion? There might be a situation in which, at the time of childbirth, a choice has to be made between the life of the mother and that of the child. It would be up to the individuals concerned to make that choice. In many lands, however, advances in medical procedures have made this situation very rare.​—ED.

Religion in Politics

I am writing because of your issue on “Religion in Politics​—Is This God’s Will?” (April 22, 1987) I personally do not mind your attacks on nationalism, but being of German background, I object to your constant use of Germany and the Third Reich as the essence of evil. You assert that it is wrong to mix politics and religion. But what are you doing? You do not try to create love as Christians should; you renew hate.

E. M., Canada

We did not criticize the German people, nor did our article stir up old hatreds. However, Nazism perpetrated some of the most heinous crimes recorded in human history. That historic fact should not be ignored or forgotten by the present generation. And it is an outstanding example of how wrong it is for the churches to get involved in politics. Nazism could not have attained power without the support, open or tacit, of the Lutheran and Catholic churches. This was only one of several examples of the bad that results when churches mix in politics, as discussed in our article mentioned above.​—ED.