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Show 1 r By BRYAN GRAY Fanatics not spawned by an understanding j -of other people ;. The caller was both appalled and confused. "I can't believe that you're supporting sup-porting that man's position," he said. "What he's saying is downright ridiculous." ; . "No, it's not ridiculous" I an- swered. "It might be dangerous, W : it's not ridiculous." , "But if it's dangerous, how can you support it?" - ? "I didn't say l supplied it," I said. "I merely think we should carefully consider it In some ways, , the proposal has merit." 1 ' The conversation was nothing new. Earlier the same day, I had the same discussion with my wife. She, , like many other callers in Davis 7 County, was incensed at the recent comments by Dr. Ray Briscoe, the ,. school board member from the ' Woods CrossNorth Salt Lake area. ; - Tl.c tempest concerned Briscoe's ; suestion thra education include : ' g2r.:rd princ:;' J in rr.cnilky and religion. To rany, his suggestion was a thinly veiled attempt to proselyte pro-selyte and a direct poke at the U.S. Conciliation. Further, Eriscoe's employment with the LDS Church -erected an image of school teacher-missionaries teacher-missionaries hoisting a Book of Mormon while riding their bicycles to the school building. 1 Briscoe knew his ' comments would attract artillery fire. Readers alsqi assufned (hat Cyclops would lead the artillery tank division. But while I have misgivings about Briscoe's comments, I can't summarily trash them. History proves pro-ves that morality and religion do not necessarily walk hand in hand. Some of the most moral and ethical folks I've met are also the least religious, and the beliefs of our. Founding Fathers would surely raise eyebrows in today's Sunday School. ' But at the same time, there are -positive aspects in Briscoe's 'suggestion.'; 'sug-gestion.'; Take religion, for, example. In today's classroom," the word "r;liion" is as feared as the word cencbm." Teachers are fearful of mc ticking eiLher-and it's the -sf "cr.ts who suffer. Some Utih h: ry teachers even cough whrn n: .I'sning Brigham Ycunj, re? : jig him to "pioneer" stus s' ii such lesser worthies as j's ro nrrccn to dack r . . . .-wi-ni, t an t cf rLcu3 LJ- tions, it's impossible to understand current events. The poverty of India and Pakistan...The daily marauding in the Middle EasL..The exploding i populations of the , Third World.;.The Irish Democratic strongholds in the metropolitan East. 1 None of these can be fully understood without knowing the traditions and principles of the Hin- ' duism, Islam, Judaism and Catholicism, Yet less than 10 percent per-cent of our high school students even recognize the term Ilir.da-and only a handful of students in Davis County could explain more than bne Hindu belief. A knowledge of religious beliefs is essential, not dorerous. Fanatics are not spawned by a breed undcrsf-irj of other pcc;!c. Far.a-cisni derives f.-om tu.e lock cf ir.fornticn whers rumor to-crs -over substance. . Tcr-hcrs she::! 3 not e 3 a Frrr :!rj rcl".-': ; c;!.' .. Zt n: x shcJJ L c:r.ccl r J.zi as if it were nc; U'C 3 cc " 'J frj'cn ac :r"; " itc ". ; cf . ' 4.,--., : . j i. ...... i... 1 j . . j. there could be common ground. . , s ; - Elder Thomas Fyans, a member of the LDS Church's Quorum of the Seventy, spoke last week, at an interfaith devotional service. Call- -ing religion "the steering wheel rather than the spare tire," he offered a host of common decen-cies: decen-cies: k :f;S, ?;vj- Thinking, constructively constructive-ly ...Spending . less than you t eam...Being generous and helpful, , to others in need...Showing fairness ; in competition.. JDisplaying honesty in business... s He didn't label them as components com-ponents of a moral life. Eut that's " exactly wh"i they areand they are st r.r '3 Vv! ;h mcst of us un ' " zzc--L The fxt they w:.3 v:';:3 ty a Mcrmon hcj reffrj to viL"i their crcihl'Ity. J !? 3 r-1 r-i-Morr.cns " ' - ' ' 'Z rt c:h c ' -r - a c: 1 . 1 . , f . , , -- -i.)u.,i,. r 1 , . . i 13 f " ' ... f :. K' : - " v.'.' . . 1 i- '.' , ... .,). (j s . |