Rush Limbaugh is Exhibit 1 in how to turn people away from "traditional values" - and more specifically, Christian faith.

Was he wrong to be indignant over the Georgetown law student who wants taxpayers to fund her licentious lifestyle? Not at all. He spoke the truth.

But he spoke it so crassly that even he is having to apologize for his remarks, mostly, I suspect, to keep his advertisers on board.

Was Rush Limbaugh hoping to correct Ms. Fluke's behavior? To help her escape from the snares of an immoral lifestyle? I don't think so. He was merely trying to make points. Shooting from the lip and hoping his audience would simply utter, "Amen!"

Because of his incautious and ungracious language, he's now having to back down. And this gives the appearance that he was wrong to object to her lifestyle and her cause.

Thus, instead of helping to right a wrong, Rush Limbaugh has managed to make more space for it to grow.

There's a lesson here for all of us who propose to speak the truth of Christ and His Gospel to the watching world: We need to be gracious, patient, and gentle as we try to correct people. We're not going to get anywhere by calling people names and demeaning them in public.

Jesus only rarely resorted to such tactics. But then, He was Jesus - and we aren't. We can't know the hearts of the people we're trying to win to Christ. We have to assume that, whatever their views or lifestyle may be, they are sincere in them and sincerely believe them to be good and logical choices. The Golden Rule requires as much of us.

If we hope to correct what we perceive to be people's faulty worldviews and immoral behavior, we're going to need patience, not bluster. We'll need to learn the art of conversation, not condemnation. Asking questions will allow us to make more progress than pointing fingers or shaking fists. Gentleness, respect, and a cool head are required skills for every Christian witness and apologist.

We don't have to shout, call names, and be outrageous in order to express our disagreement with the policies and practices of our secular and sensual age. We do not condone much of what we see, and we are opposed to what certain leaders would like to foist on us. But if we cannot express our disapproval and disagreement in a civil and respectful manner, then we're better off just shutting up.

We compromise the truth and love of Christ when we attack, condemn, and demean those with whom we disagree. They are, after all, image-bearers of God, just as we are. As such, we may expect to reach them more effectively with truth spoken in love than vomited in disrespect and hate.

Related texts: Proverbs 26.3, 5; Matthew 22.34-40; 2 Timothy 2.24-26; 1 Peter 3.15

A conversation starter: "Do you suppose people would be more interested in the Christian faith if they saw more consistent evidence of that faith in the lives of those who profess it?"

T. M. Moore, Principal

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