After almost a week of accepting it, I feel it my duty to clear

up the “discrepancy” about the political cartoon posted in Monday’s

Collegian; as it seems the majority of the campus has yet to

understand its punch line.

I must admit, that I too was outraged at the idea that The

Collegian would print such a strip. That is until I noticed one

small detail … in the right hand of one of the “married” men was

a document with the heading “CA Marriage License” … at which

point I commenced in laughing my head off. The comic was obviously

referencing just a few weeks ago when, in San Francisco, a few of

the city’s officials began handing out marriage licenses to gay

couples in brief, yet legally invalid, two-minute ceremonies.

McCoy wasn’t making jest of same-sex marriage; he was making fun

of the fact that America seems so ready for it, but is caught in

the web of legal bull that makes America, America. But apparently

CSU students are quicker at sending in complaints than analyzing

the very articles they complain about. So for those who were too

quick for the quip, embrace the humor … at the rate we’re at, it

won’t be around for long.

Aaron Nakamura

Sophomore, biochemistry

I want to address a misconception that was expressed in

Thursday’s Collegian in an appreciated column titled “‘Passion’

should open dialogue.”

The column asserted that, for some people, Mel Gibson’s movie

about Jesus may possibly focus on Jesus’ brutal sufferings at the

expense of “perhaps an even more important Christian message–that

of love.” The problem with this perception is that, biblically

speaking, God’s love and the sufferings of Jesus Christ are

entirely inseparable. This will not be understood unless we first

recognize that Jesus suffered on the behalf of others, namely,

everyday sinful people like us.

In other words, He was a sacrifice. It was Jesus Himself who

said that “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his

life for his friends” (John 15:13). Christ crucified is not a

peripheral issue in Christianity. It is the very message of

Christianity. It is the nucleus of biblical salvation and the

rock-solid foundation of any Bible-believing follower of Jesus.

Focusing on Jesus’ torment should not distract us from God’s love.

It should reveal to us God’s fierce punishment of sin, and in turn,

the good news that we do not have to suffer it since Jesus already

did. To witness the sufferings of Jesus is to witness a splendid

and severe display of the love and mercy of God!

Jeremey R. Houlton

Senior, liberal arts