MAILBAG:

Former Mayor (and Marine) Steve Bromberg, along with the citizens of Newport Beach, deserve a pat on the back for the kindness they have shown the 1st Battalion, 1st Marines.

Although I personally am opposed to our presence in Iraq, I remember another war 38 years ago when I, as a frightened young Marine, crouched down behind a wall of sand bags and opened a shoe box of stale crushed cookies sent by a woman’s group from my home town.

It wasn’t the cookies themselves that made a difference. It was the fact that people 8,000 miles away, some of whom opposed our presence in Vietnam, cared enough about me as a person to send a little cheer through the mail.

My guess is that bar of soap or dry snack, sent today from Newport Beach to Iraq says, “We regard each of you as patriots. Know that our prayers are with you. Please hang in there, and come home safely.”

MIKE BUTTELL

Newport Beach

Spiritually dead leaders ignore people’s sins

As part of the growing emerging church movement in America that no longer preaches or lives by the word of God as recorded in the Holy Bible, we are now being told to embrace and support lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender (“All faiths must support the LGBT community,” March 8).

Why stop at just LGBT? Since these new so-called spiritual leaders no longer believe in or take the word of God literally, why not extend their acronym to ALGBTPBMRISS (Adulterer, lesbian, gays, bi-sexual, transgender, pedophile, bestiality, molester, rapist, incest, sodomites and sorcerer)?

These spiritually dead leaders are open to embrace all that God abhors, and they shiver to call these deprived lifestyles what they are: sin.

God’s word is as relevant and true today as it was when it was written thousands of years ago. Humanity was created to serve God.

Satan seeks to prevent humanity from following God by deceiving multitudes to do what is right in their own eyes.

Christ is the example of how all who seek God are to live.

All of us are sinners, and God loved all of us so much that he sent his son Jesus to show us and teach us all truth.

He died for us and was resurrected from the dead.

All who believe in him and trust in him as lord and savior will be saved from eternal death, the price of all sins.

Faith and trust in Christ transforms the sinner and causes the “new creature in Christ” to forsake the sins of the flesh.

The Holy Spirit will reveal all truth to all whom humble themselves before God.

If you are to know God you must read and follow his instructions as revealed in the Holy Bible.

Those who do not believe and solely trust in God’s word are spiritually blind guides.

RUSS NIEWIAROWSKI