The following letter was sent to Rehoboth Mayor Paul Kuhns, with a copy sent to the Cape Gazette for publication.
Dear Mr. Mayor,
I am writing to express my disappointment in the decision to not allow the display of a Christmas nativity in downtown Rehoboth Beach near the gazebo.
As a new resident of Rehoboth Beach, I have found the area to be one of the most warm and welcoming and inclusive areas that I have ever lived in. One of the most welcoming feelings comes from attending Mass at St. Edmond Church. Each mass is begun with the following phrase: “No matter who you are, and no matter where you are in life’s journey, you are welcome here.”
To hear about your denial of the display for the second year, I feel like I received a personal slap in the face. I read that you stated “denying this religious showcase, the city is attempting to be more inclusive.” I cannot even comprehend the logic in that statement. “Denying” is exactly the opposite of “inclusive.”
In my previous town of residence in New Jersey, we had all sorts of displays on the main town gazebo area at this time of the year: menorah, Kwanzaa, secular Christmas, and a nativity. That is an example of inclusivity. As a Catholic, while I do not agree with everyone’s beliefs, I am accepting and never offended by any displays that show the melting pot of the community. It is part of being an American.
We are privileged to live in this country. In a letter dated March 11, 1792, President George Washington wrote, “I am sure that never was [there] a people, who had more reason to acknowledge a Divine interposition in their affairs, than those of the United States.” Some 50 years later, Henry Wilson, vice president under Ulysses S. Grant, wrote, “Remember ever, and always, that your country was founded, not by [a superficial, unthinking people], but by the stern old Puritans who made the deck of the Mayflower an altar of the living God, and whose first act on touching the soil of the new world was to offer on bended knees thanksgiving to Almighty God.”
The years have accumulated; times have changed. But God’s grace on this nation still exists. I hope you can feel that grace, alter your thinking, and allow for this display to return this year.
Gabbie Peterson
Rehoboth Beach
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