Show tolerance by adjusting vision statement

An open letter to the City Council of Bonners Ferry:

Greetings: My name is Fred Zobel. My wife and I moved to Boundary County in 1987. We have been a part of this community for a long time. We’re asking you to reconsider the wording in the city’s Vision Statement; specifically the wording welcoming people regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. These words describe behaviors that are spoken against in the Bible and we are told are repugnant to God and not to be encouraged.

There are people that say, “Everyone is entitled to behave in the way they see fit because what’s true for one person may not be true for another” and they also say, “it’s all relative”. I hope that this is not the case for any of you. Relativism leads to chaos because there is no fixed reference point from which one measures. There would be many ‘truths’, but not ‘Truth’. With Relativism no one has the same moral compass. Our country was begun using the Bible as our compass, but our nation is moving further and further away from the Bible and Truth. I believe there are a lot of broken compasses out there today, all pointing to a multitude of directions.

Christianity requires that all views be treated with tolerance, but not necessarily with validity. By tolerance, I do not mean acceptance. By tolerance I do mean that we don’t move to make war on them, to physically or mentally injure, and we don’t verbally beat them into submission. But rather, to love them as Jesus does, which can be difficult and imperfect for us to do. We are called to share with them the Gospel and God’s Truth in the Bible.

By adding the words ‘regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity’ to the city’s ‘vision’ the council is pushing an agenda, which is also being pushed in schools to our children: to normalize un-biblical behaviors, to verbally beat Bible-believing people into submission, and thus hurting people in our community. In future versions of the Vision Statement the list of behaviors will only grow longer because that is not all there are. There’s bestiality, incest, sadism, adulterers, pornographers, and the list goes on and on, especially when it’s ‘OK’ between consenting parties. “It’s all relative”, right? (Not that I’m saying the beast would be OK with it).

One of the reasons given at the July 21st city council meeting to include “sexual orientation and gender identity” was because “they can still be a productive citizen and can do business with the City of Bonners Ferry”. I submit to you that there are a host of other unbiblical behaviors by productive citizens doing business with the city, so why not add these to the Vision’s list, too?

Can the city council be tolerant of my wife and I, and many people like us, by not welcoming immoral behaviors into our community? I’m not asking you to accept our beliefs, but please remove the wording, as it is unnecessary. Don’t make war on us or verbally beat us into submission. I’m asking each of you on the City Council: “What are you using for your moral compass?”

Thank you for your time.

Fred and Tara Zobel