I think you know how much I love you and I truly believe that in our hearts we are much closer in our beliefs than we are different. I'm not trying to make you change teams; I'd just like to convey as best I can how I see the differences between us in an attempt to separate out and put aside the things we can't reconcile. Yesterday I made an attempt to talk about the differences between conservatives and liberals in terms of conservatives being of a patriarchal mindset, wanting to set the rules for everybody, as opposed to liberals being content to set the rules for themselves and allow other people to make different choices.

Today I've been thinking about it in another way. Many of the ideological differences that divide us (you and me, conservatives vs. liberals) revolve around culture war issues, such as abortion and gay rights. One of the huge triumphs of America's form of government is the separation of church and state, the fundamental right of all Americans to practice the religion of their choice OR to practice no religion at all.

If your opposition to abortion, for example, is based on your moral principles, informed by your religious beliefs, doesn't the separation of church and state guarantee that you should NOT impose that on people who don't share your moral principals? If your Bible tells you that homosexuality is a sin, wouldn't legislating that into laws that have to be followed by everybody be a clear violation of the right of others to hold their own beliefs, even if those beliefs are supported by different religious beliefs, or by the practice of no religion at all?

It seems clear to me that we have not yet reached a point in America where a candidate for the Presidency, for example, could state simply that his religious beliefs are private and none of our business. Every candidate has to affirm their Christianity, even though our Constitution is supposed to free us from the shackles of such a declaration. One of the most successful whisper campaigns against Obama was that he was a "secret Muslim." Clearly after 9/11, being a "secret Muslim" would pretty much guarantee that you would be unelectable, even though freedom of religion should make that a shameful thing, since Islam is one of the major religions of the world and it does not equate with being a terrorist, although it's hard for a certain simple mind to grasp that concept.

Anyway, I want you to know that I love you and I respect you and I think it's valuable for me, and I hope for you, to continue this dialogue. I know it's made me dig a little deeper to understand and justify my own beliefs.
Love, your little sister.