I'm offended

By Tom Quiner

I’m offended.
These two words carry mammoth clout in this politically-correct age. I’m offended that Iowa State University, whom I support with my tax dollars, will be removing the Bible from  Iowa State University’s  Hotel Memorial Union because a single guest complained.
Just one.
The guest contacted the “Freedom from Religion Foundation” who leaned on Iowa State to remove the offending book.
In a stunning act of moral cowardice, the University caved like a house of cards to this organization which aggressively evangelizes atheism throughout the country.
Since it took but a single offended person to precipitate Iowa State’s knee-jerk reaction, I offer up my offense to offset that of the offended atheist.
I call on Iowa State President, Steven Leath, to allow diversity of religious thought by allowing bibles to remain in the hotel drawers. We know diversity is important to President Leath  because he said so.
Just last month  he waxed eloquent about a diversity report that was prepared for him. He said he would use the report to ensure that Iowa State …

“is as diverse as it has ever been, but we have a responsibility to build upon past successes and ensure that we strive every day to create an environment that is as welcoming as possible to all people.”

The University’s refusal to allow Bibles in the campus hotel doesn’t seem very welcoming, does it? Doesn’t sound very diverse, does it?
The offended atheist characterized the Holy Bible as “unwelcome religious propaganda in the bedside table.”  Note the word “in.”
Doesn’t it make sense that if someone finds the contents of a book offensive, they simply leave it in the drawer? Why in the world would Iowa State deprive everyone else the opportunity to experience the comfort, the peace, and the joy of Judeo-Christian scripture simply because an evangelical atheist is mad about it, even if the Book is stuck in a drawer!
Perhaps the atheist is fearful of being converted through osmosis.
An Iowa State spokesperson tried to rationalize the decision:

“What we’re doing is trying to be respectful of individuals who may have differing opinions on this.”

No, the university is not being respectful, they’re being hypocritical. If a single person were to complain about a different religion, let’s say one that embraces sexual paganism, child sacrifice (in the guise of human abortion), and nature worship (ala global warming climate change), let’s call it Secular Humanism, would the University back pedal and scrub their curriculum of these sacraments of Secular Humanism?
I suspect not since the vast majority of academia support that religion, even if many  of their students and their parents don’t.
A Freedom from Religion spokesperson played her trump card by suggesting that Christians would be offended by competing books:

“Imagine the uproar if someone found a Quran or Richard Dawkins’ ‘The God Delusion’ in their state-supported hotel room.”

Why would any Christian be concerned about these other books? For starters, if we don’t want to read them, we just leave them in the drawer. Simple.
On the other hand, Christians will stack their Holy Bible up against the scriptures of these competing religions in a heartbeat.
Richard Dawkins believes this intelligently-designed universe just kind of happened, that materials interacted randomly to create life, intelligence, and consciousness, and that these initial materials just popped into existence.
Fair enough. The Judeo-Christian Bible offers an alternative scenario which doesn’t require as big a leap of faith.
As for the Quran, it contains over a hundred verses calling on believers to wage war on non-believers. Contrast that with the message of love in Christianity where Jesus tells  us tells us to turn the other cheek. Christianity states explicitly that God is Love.
Other religions simply can’t compete with the sheer beauty and hope of Christianity. So we welcome the comparison. If the Freedom From Religion Foundation would like to buy books for hotel rooms promoting their religion, just as Gideon International does with the Christian Bible, more power to them.
But stop bullying politically-correct universities into removing Bibles from their hotel rooms. If this suppression of religious thought concerns you, perhaps you should let President Leath know your views. You can reach him by e-mail: president@iastate.edu.
[If you’re bothered by Iowa State’s removal of Bibles from their campus hotel, you can do two things  to fight back: 1. Contact IA State President Leath with a quick e-mail to share your views at: president@iastate.edu. 2. Spread this post. Put it up on Facebook. Tweet it. Forward it. It worked for Duck Dynasty.]