<HTML><BODY STYLE="font:10pt verdana; border:none;"><DIV>Correct me if I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that one of the hallmarks of the Protestant Reformation was the concept of "every man his own priest." That doesn't seem to be what Eric is describing. On certain matters, Doug speaks <EM>ex cathedra</EM>. Christ Church is governed from the top down (it's hierarchical) and it would seem that the elders' word is absolute. To that end, the Christ Church model of governance seems downright . . . papist. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>[My apologies to any Catholics in the house. I use the term papist advisedly. If you're Catholic, being papist is a good thing. That's because Catholics are not the self-proclaimed product of the Protestant Reformation, but the inheritor, instead, of the Counter-Reformation. I'd go further and explain all that, but it's hot, it's Wednesday, and it's hard to type with a bell in one hand and a stick of incense in the other. I don't know how the Pope does it.] </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Anyway, back to Eric's point. Of course, one would expect that those who join a particular church do so because that church best expresses their beliefs about the divine. Why else go to church? I can tell you from my own experience that no one goes for the free coffee. (Ugh.) It's also the case that public officials, like the rest of us, are human beings. They're individuals. For good or ill, they bring their own flawed human understanding to bear on every issue that comes before them. But this is a separate issue from whether or not elected officials should <EM>submit to the oversight of their church elders in their capacity as elected officials</EM>. If I choose to submit to kosher dietary restrictions in my personal life, do I then, as county commissioner, vote kosher on issues related to pig-farming? Do I work to ban the consumption of Porky and Petunia? Do I submit to rabbinical oversight in my capacity as a county commissioner? No -- and you know why? Because that would be unConstitutional. As an elected official, I'm obliged to make a distinction between my private religious belief and my public obligations. This is a line in the sand, Eric. It is the foundation of our secular civil government.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>At the risk of begging the question (in keeping with our Latin theme, that's petitio prinicipii or popes-a-daisy), I will ask again: in voting for Paul, did the residents of Latah County elect the pastor and elders of Christ Church? <BR><BR>Joan Opyr/Auntie Establishment<BR></DIV> <DIV>PS: My 82-year-old Baptist grandmother is strongly in favor of school prayer, or so she says. When asked if she would support school prayer led by a Catholic, or a Jew, or a Muslim, her answer is, "Well that would never happen in Raleigh, NC." For her, all prayer is by definition Baptist. Why am I telling you this? To illustrate one of the many reasons I'm glad my grandmother is not a county commissioner.</DIV></BODY></HTML><br clear=all><hr>Get more from the Web. FREE MSN Explorer download : <a href='http://explorermsn.com'>http://explorer.msn.com</a><br></p>