Dear Editor:

I concur with many of the observations made by Earl Tilford in his Viewpoint article, "Apocalyptic visions." However, I think he misunderstands the significance of the outcry by some against President Bush's use of the term "Islamofascists." The problem is not the imprecision of the term, but rather its connotations in America today: it has been used on (one might argue it is "owned" by) talk radio shows in order to make emotional, often irresponsible accusations. The accusations generally take place in the context of a political rant intended only to resonate with the theme, "our party, right or wrong." At a time when America is in dire need of accurate information about those who threaten us, an alarming number of Americans repeat these labels and sound bytes without attribution as "news." It seems especially tragic for our President to parrot one of these labels. Oh – just for the record, the term "Christofascist" has also been revived on a few talk shows, usually invoking images of "the cold blooded murder of dedicated doctors at abortion clinics." I don't recommend that the President use it, either.

"Civilization is at war with Islamist Jihadists who know their war is fundamentally religious... Instead of a certain trumpet calling the people to battle, flutes tweet 'Kum by Ya.'"

I am not a spokesperson for progressive Christianity, but I wonder if Earl or any other readers know of any "secularist 'progressive' liberal Christians" who believe that there is no "threat to Christianity, Judaism or any other religion" from Islamic extremists. I do not personally know of any who "remain oblivious to Jihadists whose beliefs put us all in their crosshairs," and I know of no "New York liberals" who can breathe a breath without being reminded of 9/11. There is a vast difference between forging and fostering a partnership of good people of different faiths for the common good and remaining oblivious to real threats to us all. Using his metaphor, where would the civil rights movement have gone without the "good" Christians?

There is also undeniable value in knowing your enemy. In fact, to fight in ignorance is simply irresponsible. I have no doubt that Earl knows more of the history of Islam and the middle east than most of us. He understands that many of today's "surprises" were quite predictable with a little bit of information (e.g., Shiite/Sunni conflicts in Iraq). I would like to ask Earl to suggest a few resources for church groups who want to understand just what it is we're in the middle of. Clearly, the theology, history, culture, and world-view of Islam are too important for us to remain uninformed.