Letter to the editor

Preachers spark good conversation

I wanted to take a couple minutes to comment on the two street preachers who were on campus last Thursday. I know that many people were angered by their presence. I, on the other hand, was glad they came to River Falls.

I want to start off by saying that I did not agree with Brother Jed (although I am a member of his Facebook group), but I DID like the discussion that he and his friend started, and by discus- sion I am excluding all the belligerent statements by the uneducated people who were present.

For example, one woman stood up and discussed her Wiccan beliefs. She talked about the after life of a witch, and although I happen to be Christian, I really enjoyed hearing her point of view. There was also a Muslim
woman present; she too talked about her beliefs. Many people were so interested in what she was saying that they stopped listening to Brother Jed and started their own side conversation.

Last but not least, there was a “homosexual,” as Jed would have put it, who stood up and said, “I am gay, but I love people instead of condemning them all to hell like you.”

The point I am trying to make is that, had the street preachers not stopped by on Thursday, I would have never had the opportunity to listen to these three intelligent and brave people who stood up and told their stories. Brother Jed did not change my mind about my own Christian beliefs, but he did start a conversation that ended up educating me about other individuals’ beliefs, and for that I thank him.

Megan Peterson
Student