Benjamin,

In the early 80's, our small city in the Interior of British Columbia had a chance to turn a huge old TB sanatorium/former mentally challenged residential centre, into a North American centre for dying people and their families.

It was envisioned as a place where patients could die, with compassionate access to their families, outside of the supposedly sterile often impersonal confines of a hospital.

The activists for this were a husband and wife team of Doctor and Nurse who gave of their vacation time every year volunteering abroad with Doctors without Borders.

They had support from a broad swath of people including incredible input from Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, who also envisioned that there would be an opportunity for the study of Thanatology.

The couple knew that they needed support and input from the community. After all, the property was part of the city and it could be a source of tax income.

So I was asked, along with 10 others, to sit in on a round table discussion in the activists' home.

Most agreed in the humanitarian need for a better way to help the dying and those who were facing the prospect of their loved ones' deaths.

The old site was empty. And as ghastly as it sounded, it would even bring in much needed money to our community during a 38% unemployment recession.

Among the ten of us were an Alderman and two religious leaders, one was a Baptist and the other a member of the Evangelical Alliance Church.

The Alliance Church representative spoke first when the topic of compassion arose.

Tapping her gold gilded bible, shaking her head with a self-congratulatory chuckle, she actually smiled when she said the following:

"Well, what with the Lord currently visiting his AIDS plague upon the sodomites, I can see that there certainly will be a need for a centre of the dying."

The Baptist then chimed in, out of turn of course, and he too held on to his version of the 'Good Book'.

"Amen to that Sister. And may I add that we must make it a condition for entrance into this centre that each and every one of the patients first accept and attest to the fact that Jesus Christ is their personal Lord and saviour."

He paused for effect, then looked directly at the Alderman.

"I cannot see this concept of a centre moving forward without such an agreement."

In seconds, the Alderman stood up, looked at his watch and took his out-of-turn and said this to his hosts:

"I'm sorry but I really have to go, my wife is not well and I promised to help her with the kids. But let me say this...it is a topic worthy of much study and I am sure that the City will entertain any and all submissions."

He stood up and nodded first and foremost to both Christians, then to our hosts and finally to the rest of us.

"Don't worry, I can find the way out myself."

Crestfallen would not be an accurate expression to describe the looks on the faces of our hosts.

Of course nothing happened.

Nothing.

Except, the Alliance Church tried to take over the local hospital board to outlaw abortions. Thankfully, hundreds of us lost a day's pay and marched on the hospital and that was overturned.

So, back to your most excellent report.

There is absolutely no 'suffer the children to come unto me' in those Evangelicals who support child abuse or sexual exploitation of a congregant or even a wife-pleasuring pool boy.

There is no brotherly love (agape) in the Evangelical Rapture watchers.

In their pyramid scheme, only the select will ascend to heaven to sit at the right hand of God and watch, with comfort, the afflictions of those 'left behind'.

"The rapture is the doctrine that at the return of Christ, all believers will be caught up (i.e., “raptured”) to meet the Lord in the air."

" The bodies of dead believers will be resurrected, and all believers, living and dead, will be glorified. It is taught explicitly in 1 Thessalonians 4:15–17 and more or less implicitly in 1 Corinthians 15:51–55 and John 14:2. Other passages, such as Matthew 24:31; 2 Thessalonians 1:10; and Revelation 14:14–16 are debated."

From: http://magazine.biola.edu/article/12-spring/what-is-the-rapture-and-when-will-it-happen/

To give such an organization any political power, especially one which attests such a violent non-egalitarian dogma, is indeed a plague on the healthy separation of church and state.

Just as it tragically was decades ago in a small Canadian city, religious extremism continues to be a direct challenge to any democracy.

Thanks for your writing and the history lesson.