Netlets for Saturday, Jan. 19

Jeff Strickler's Jan. 12 Faith & Values article, "Jesus & Judaism," requires clarification because people may still be confused about the most basic difference between Judaism and Christianity after reading the article.

The term "Messianic Jews" is deceptive because anyone who believes that Jesus of Nazareth is the son of God and, therefore, the Messiah is a Christian. While there is nothing wrong with Christians believing this about Jesus, for Jews it is strictly forbidden!

Christians believe that Jesus is part of a divine trinity in which there is one God who exists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. However, Jews aren't permitted to believe in any physical manifestations of God. So believing in Jesus as the son of God and, therefore, the Messiah is idolatry for a Jew. Furthermore, there is no verse, word or concept in the Jewish Bible (the 39 books of the Old Testament) that says that believing in a "messiah" (as opposed to believing in the one, true God who created heaven and earth) is necessary for salvation of a Jew's soul in the afterlife. Actually, there were many "messiahs" in the Bible. Every Jewish priest, king and prophet was anointed into the service of God, and none of them was sent to supplant the Torah in order to redeem humanity from its sins.

Jews believe that the Torah was given to them by God as part of the only Divine Revelation to an entire nation, not just to Moses, at Mount Sinai. Jews further believe that the Torah is an eternally relevant text because its laws address human nature, which also has not changed in thousands of years.

Jews have their path to salvation (loving and fearing God, and obeying the Torah's commandments) and Christians have theirs (belief in Jesus). While some people on one path may adopt the trappings of the other path, they are and should remain two distinct paths.

HARLAN BRAND, MINNEAPOLIS

Instead of repairing Lowry Bridge, bring it down Tear the Lowry Bridge down. We already have the Camden, Broadway, Plymouth and Hennepin Avenue bridges motorists can use instead. A country already $9 trillion in debt can't afford to spend another $100 million on a nice-to-have bridge. Both Republican and Democratic parties need to cut spending now. They're spending us into bankruptcy if we are not there already.

Road repair should be budgeted, not borrowed for Regarding the Republican plan to bond for road and bridge repair: Borrowing money to pay for road and bridge repairs is like borrowing to buy groceries. You borrow money for one-time expenses that exceed the capacity of your cash flow. You don't borrow for ongoing daily needs. This is Economics 101 stuff, so how is it that some Minnesota politicians, including House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, are seriously considering such a plan?

If you can't pay for daily needs out of your budget, either increase your budget or eliminate these purchases. If you won't raise the gas tax, a road user fee, then eliminate all new construction projects until existing roads and bridges are brought up to snuff and tear up the asphalt and convert lesser used rural roads back to gravel. I am a rural person, and I've never minded driving on gravel, but I do mind borrowing for road repair. That's not even penny-wise, but it certainly is dollar-foolish.

FRED SCHUMACHER, GHEEN, MINN.

Integrity is the real Facebook issue It was the use of an Internet networking site that put allegations of alcohol use by Eden Prairie High School athletes on the front page. The validity of using Internet images as evidence is less important than the simple facts: Did or did not these student athletes violate Minnesota State High School League rules? If they went back on their word and violated the MSHSL pledge, the students need to step-up and accept the penalty.

The lesson is: Your name means something and when you break a promise you hurt yourself, your family, your team and your school. The school district was right to pursue this investigation. Shame on parents who are aware of their sons or daughters rule-breaking but look for excuses to get their kids off the hook. No scholarship is worth teaching your kids that is OK to lie and when caught in a lie, to weasel.

ROB KESSELRING, APPLE VALLEY; FORMER EDEN PRAIRIE SCHOOLS CHEMICAL HEALTH COORDINATOR 1988-1996

People with disabilities are speaking for themselves We want to thank Bishop Craig Johnson for drawing attention to the important issue of state funding to allow people with disabilities to live in the community with his Jan. 8 letter, "State must keep its promise to the disabled."

Regarding his last question, "Will anyone speak for our most vulnerable and help create a plan to mend the broken promise?": Here's one answer. WE WILL. We, as people with developmental and other disabilities, will continue to speak for ourselves. (Maybe we're not so vulnerable after all.) And we invite allies like Bishop Johnson to join us in this work.

Advocating Change Together (ACT), as a self-advocacy organization, comprised 99 percent of persons with Intellectual and developmental disabilities, has been working to address issues of community participation and oppression since its start up in 1979. We worked with legislators in the '80s to pass a number of key disability rights laws, including Rule 40 (the nonaversive therapies law) and laws making better working conditions for people working at sheltered workshops. ACT has worked to build power among persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities by creating a statewide network, Self Advocates Minnesota (SAM). And finally, we have participated in the annual Disability Days at the Capitol, and will do so again this year.

We agree that the governor and the Legislature should address the needs of persons with disabilities more fairly. As they do, we will be there to tell our stories and share our dreams for a community where everyone participates. And we welcome all allies who want to work with us in this struggle for dignity.