Did you attend worship this weekend? Kudos!

Our country is proud of its freedoms. As every elementary student learns, freedom of religion was the very reason the Pilgrims fled England and came to live on these shores.

Yet here we are over 300 years later, and as the Pittsburgh synagogue shootings clearly show, some of our citizens are targeted for their religion. How do we move forward? 

Our reaction might be to hide our faith under a rock, to worship our God in the privacy of our own homes, and to keep the outward symbols of our faith hidden from public view. 

That would give evil power over us. We can't let that happen. We won't. 

As the synagogue's rabbi said, we move forward in love. We respect one another. We hold true to who we are. 

If you wear symbols of your faith, speak your faith, or in any other way live out your faith in God, well done. 

If you attended a worship service this weekend, you demonstrated courage in the face of evil. Well done. 

Every day, millions of Americans and billions of people around the world give thanks to the higher power that connects us all. May it continue to be so.

  

Filipino man does One Right Thing, 64 times over

Persecution of religious minorities is horribly familiar. It was seen in ancient times and has continued into the modern era. Just last weekend, ISIS terrorists searched the Philippine city of Marawi, hunting down Christians and beheading them. President Rodrigo Duterte has declared a 60-day period of martial law in the region.

A number of Christian workmen were doing repairs at the home of Noor Lucman, a Muslim and a resident of Marawi when word of the attacks reached them. The men were stuck: it was unsafe for them to stay in the city and yet they were unable to leave. Lucman sheltered the workmen in his home, risking his own life by doing so. The following day, more Christians joined them and Lucman sheltered them as well. A total of 64 people took refuge in Lucman's home. He was determined that nothing would happen to them under his roof.

Sure enough, ISIS members came knocking. They recognized Lucman as a Muslim and left respectfully when he asked them to leave. When that door closed behind them, no doubt everyone inside breathed a sigh of relief.

Lucman's courage astounds me.

Goodness and decency are not limited to one religion, one nationality. All of us have the capacity to either step aside and let terror reign or to act for the dignity of our fellow man.

Support for the minority Iraqi Christians during Christmas season

At his own expense, a Muslim businessman has erected an 85-foot tall artificial Christmas tree in an amusement park in Baghdad. Yassir Saad hopes the huge tree will show his solidarity with the Christian minority in his country during this Christmas season. The spirit behind his gift is, "joining our Christian brothers in their holiday celebrations and helping Iraqis forget their anguish, especially the war in Mosul," Saad says. What a gracious gesture in the midst of that country's violence and intolerance.

Over the last decade, the Christian community in Iraq has dwindled steadily from an estimated 1.5 million to only 200,000. Often targets of Islamic extremists, many have left the country for better religious freedoms and economic opportunities,