Editor:
Tolerance is a two-edged sword. We are asked to be tolerant of other religions, of other cultures, of other habits and most particularly of the LGBT community.
When I visit my Catholic friends, I bow my head and fold my hands when they say grace at the table. I wish my Jewish friends a Happy Hanukkah and never forget my Chinese friends at their colourful New Year’s celebrations. I have attended celebrations of life in Catholic churches and weddings in a synagogue. I was baptized a Protestant but have turned agnostic. My friends don’t care. They respect my view on life and I respect theirs.
On Friday, Oct. 4, there was an all-candidate meeting, which was supposed to be at the Star of the Sea Hall, but had been moved to the White Rock Community Centre because the LGBT community refused to enter a hall attached to a church, the reason being that the Hall had not been made available to them previously because of conflicting interests.
Is a church not entitled to stand by what the Bible tells them? Whatever their opinion, agreeable or not, there we were, crammed into the White Rock Community Centre, standing room only, with people spilling over into the corridor.
It was stifling hot and extremely uncomfortable and I had to leave early because I simply couldn’t breathe. Tolerance works both ways and when it does not, it will come back to haunt you. If I were a member of the LGBT community, I would ask myself, will people continue to be tolerant when I am not bending an inch or will they eventually turn intolerant towards me? Tolerance is a two-edged sword. It can bite.
Edie Williams, South Surrey