*   *   *

Why they were arrested

I was raised within a culture that emphasized Christian values, such as peace, justice, compassion, generosity and service. I know that many Christians believe these things to be important — however, for some strange reason a group of followers of Mr. Wilson embraces a petulant version of Christianity.

No, you are not being victimized by being asked to socially distance when singing hymns. When did it become an impossible burden to stand 6 feet apart when singing? Or to wear a mask, in case you unknowingly carry a potentially deadly virus? Deadly not to you, but to the old person next door.

We all want this to be over, but some of us put the greater good over the burden of wearing a mask. Under normal circumstances I would have thought all Christians would be first in line to embrace this little gesture to protect others. Not so in the world of Christ Church and Mr. Rench — who is running for election for county commissioner by fabricating a story about religious persecution where there isn’t any.

You got cited and temporarily arrested for flagrant flouting of basic ordinances and rules with the intent to create truly fake news, not because you sang hymns. If I loudly sang the most beautiful hymns in front of your house at 2 a.m. the police would cite me as well — for disturbance of the peace, not because of what I sang.

Since when did lying and deceit have become acceptable means of running for local government? I am truly disgusted by this, and I just donated money to your opponent’s campaign so we don’t have to endure this type of opportunistic leadership at the county level.

Steffen Werner
Moscow

*   *   *