This quote from Lane County Commissioner David Loveall in a Lookout article about his tenure and the controversies surrounding it stuck out to me:

“There’s a lot of behind-the-scenes meetings and discussions that people have that the public shouldn’t know about, because people are either blowing off steam or making a point,” Loveall said. “But what has to happen is there’s a level of trust in a closed-door meeting with an individual, and that level of trust keeps open and honest dialog between the parties, but yet it’s not for the public’s consumption, because it gets played out differently in the public court.”

I am reminded of Jesus’ very specific teachings in Matthew about public displays of piety versus private behavior when no one is looking. Jesus was teaching about hypocrisy. If I may paraphrase: “Your private behavior, behind closed doors, is the true indication of your character.”

Right now we are seeing this kind of hypocrisy played out at all levels of our government, and it’s so pervasive that even people who believe they are good Christians condone it in the name of keeping their “side” in political power.

If our current president can still be trusted by “good” Christians knowing all we know (so far) about his language and behavior and the years he dwelled within Jeffrey Epstein’s inner power circle, then surely David Loveall’s private use of vulgar and profane language can be written off as nothing but “letting off steam” or “making a point” by that same “good” Christian mindset.

Right now what this country needs are women and men of integrity, no matter their religious belief system, to step forward to shake the foundations of this profane and vulgar “behind the scenes” power structure and bring it to its knees. I want my president and my county commissioners to be decent, humble and just — in every situation.

Cindy Grantham
Eugene