Editorial Page Editor Greg Kesich’s April 18 column, about state Sen. Garrett Mason’s candidacy for the Republican nomination for governor, repeats the pattern that Portland Press Herald opinion writers have established of erroneously lumping churches, especially Maine’s small churches, into one political pot.
Kesich states that Mason has built a base of support “in no small part … (through) the state’s informal network of small churches.” The fact is, Maine’s small churches are full of people with diverse social and political perspectives. And while a subset may participate in political networking, most do not, choosing instead to focus on worshiping our creator, celebrating the daily gifts of living we receive, seeking to share the good news of a redeeming Christ, growing as disciples of a loving God and working with our neighbors for better communities.
In our churches are independents, Democrats, Republicans and those with a host of other political commitments. So, when Kesich writes “state Sen. Chandler Woodcock, who, like Mason, had the backing of the churches of central Maine,” he is offering a false narrative. Please work on ways to overcome this corrosive prejudice on your editorial board.
Karen L. Munson
Topsham
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