The Greatest
To the Editors:
There will always be debate as to whether Muhammad Ali [Feb. 27] is the best boxer ever, but there can be no, doubt that this boxer, poet and philosopher truly is, as he claims, "the Greatest."
Alfred Nicolosi Pompton Lakes, N.J.
No champion had a more colorful history, and no one has ever stood taller in defeat.
Michael Clark Kalamazoo, Mich.
He was supposed to "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee"? Against Spinks it was more like "Bloat like a butterball, swing like a flea."
Steven I. Himelstein Robert Zambernardi Ithaca, N. Y.
"The Greatest" is not gone. He lives, he floats--he just doesn't sting any more.
Stephen G. Young New Canaan, Conn.
Haven't we all heard enough about Muhammad Ali over the years? Your cover should have displayed the. toothless, thrill-of-victory grin of Leon Spinks, not the tired expression of Ali.
Man Ivener Skokie, Ill.
What a heart-warming sight for this World War II veteran's tired old eyes: an ex-Marine from the ghetto taking the boxing title away from the world's richest and most famous draft dodger.
Frank E. Marik Berwyn, Ill.
Muhammad Ali was my hero, and as he thrived, so did I. His defiance of and accomplishments in white America were exceptional. He exemplified that rare man who seems to be able to control his fate, who calls all the shots. The defeat of this champion scares and depresses me.
Steve Barrett New York City
Stop writing Ali's epitaph; he does not belong to the ages. He projects infinite variety and has exhausted only one of his talents. Win or lose, for millions he's a champ.
Penne White Santee, S.C.
God or Man or Both?
Congratulations on your excellent coverage of the "New Debate over Jesus' Divinity" [Feb. 27]. It is an old debate. There's nothing new about it, except the circles it is now traveling in. When it is put to rest, we will rediscover the human Jesus who was lost in abstract theological gymnastics. Jesus will then be a model for our living, which the earliest Christians meant him to be. The notion of Jesus as God is a base form of idolatry that makes religion a form of magic, rather than an attempt to address real, human concerns in the here and now.
As long as the church argues about the nature of Jesus, trying to decide whether he was God or man or both, our energies will be drained and our attention to the question of the nature of mankind will take a back seat. Hans Kueng is helping the church to grow up. A blessing on his house.
(The Rev.) Frank A. Hall Murray Universalist Church Attleboro, Mass.
That does it. We now have more than enough proof to say with confidence that much of the liberal clergy is drifting toward a fuzzy, lukewarm, impotent theology. It drifts and sways according to the faddish thinking of the times.
Thank God the spiritual aspect of Christianity is alive and well among the Christian rank and file.
John T. O 'Mailey, M.D. Towson, Md.
Early Christians, in a sense, had it easy. The "enemy" was clearly defined as antiChristian, paganism. Today the greatest enemies of the church are those like Father Kueng who claim the name "Christian" while denying the dogma that makes that claim valid.
In place of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they offer their own--a gospel no more appealing to one searching for truth than moldy bread or rotten meat is to one looking for food.
Donna Korczyk Pittsburgh
If Jesus is not the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God from the beginning; if he did not die on the cross and rise again and go to heaven to prepare a place for us; if he is just a man, then he is a fake and a fraud and Christianity doesn't have a leg to stand on.
Harmony Shupp East lake, Ohio
The Roman Catholic Church desires to explore the full meaning of Christ's divinity and humanity, but she realizes that man will never fully understand, because he is confronted with a mystery.
In this age and in ages to come many things will be said about Jesus Christ, but the faithful, united with their shepherds and guided by the Spirit, will continue to believe and profess that Jesus Christ is true God and true man in one divine person, and that he is the Lord who will come again.
(The Most Rev.) Stanislaus J. Brzana Bishop of Ogdensburg Ogdensburg, N. Y.
The Coal Strike
In reading about the coal strike [Feb. 27], I find a country tormented and turned on its back. One of the most powerful industries is abusing the American people in a game where nobody wins, but everybody suffers.
Dave Whitaker Atwater, Calif.
I have derived tremendous satisfaction from the vigor and resolve of the members of the U.M.W. and their families. As the world moves inevitably toward total control by Big Business, it is heartening to know that it is still possible for workers of the U.S. to take some measure of control over their lives.
Donald T. Devey White Plains, N. Y.
Although I have been a union member for 32 years, I have absolutely no tolerance or sympathy for those U.M.W. miners who would terrorize with bombs and guns people who do not agree with them.
These are the tactics of a Hitler.
William Sims Manchester, N.H.
What a crime! Striking U.M.W. members receiving food stamps at taxpayers' expense. If the strikers don't work, let them go hungry.
James Price Maxwell. Neb.
Haldeman's Book
In your story "The Case of the Purloined Pages" [Feb. 27], you state that Publisher Rupert Murdoch signed a secrecy agreement before seeing a summary of H.R. Haldeman's book, and that an unauthorized detail from the book then appeared in the New York Post and New York magazine. Not only did Mr. Murdoch never sign an agreement, as you reported; he never saw the book in any form.
New York magazine did publish three major details from Haldeman's book two weeks before any other publication, but the information was obtained completely from outside sources. Our news was carried by all major wire services crediting New York magazine, and subsequently the report was reprinted in newspapers across the country at the same time it appeared in the New York Post.
Joseph G. Armstrong, President New York Magazine Co. Inc. New York City
We've already had too many garbled and conflicting versions of whodunit and "hedunit" and "I ain't guilty but them other hoods are." Littering the literature may not be a criminal offense, but it's disgusting, messy and stinks. Let's put the empties in the garbage can and fasten the cover--tight.
Harvie Barnard Tacoma, Wash.
No Longer a Communist
Your generally excellent article on new evidence in the Hiss case [Feb. 13] refers to me as "another Communist."
This statement is false. I was a Communist while in my 20s and am now in my 60s. I broke with the Communist Party over the Nazi-Soviet pact of August 1939 and have been an anti-Communist ever since.
Nathaniel Weyl Boca Raton, Fla.
A Little Better?
Hugh Sidey, in his highly complimentary column on the Secretary of HEW, Joe Califano [Feb. 20], tells us this man is "determined to make American life a little better than it was." I assume Mr. Sidey knows that "a little better" means a lot more socialism and that the extraordinary energy Big Brother Joe brings to the job of "tinkering with the heart, mind and body of America" stems from the pressure of knowing he has only six years left until 1984.
John F. Bye Dade City, Fla.
Dylan and the Woodstock Era
Not having seen Bob Dylan's movie Renaldo and Clara yet, I have no quarrel with the review [Feb. 20]. However, I do disagree with the statements in the last paragraph. Dylan may indeed be trying "to hold on to the Woodstock ethos of the counterculture," but what is wrong with that? In my opinion, the Woodstock era was the finest hour in America history. Sure, times change, but not everyone has cut their hair and forgotten their dreams.
Matt McDonough East Burke, Vt.
Screaming for Shaun
The only complaint I have about your story on Shaun Cassidy [Feb. 27] is: You made it seem that the only fans Shaun has are under the age of 14. Well, I scream for Shaun. I also hang posters of him up on the walls of my bedroom, but I'm not a "preteen" or a "just-teen." I'm 15.
Clare O'Toole Boston
If Shaun Cassidy is a "Squeaky-Clean Teen Dream," then I will go on dreaming "squeaky-clean."
Amy Lennington St. Albans, Vt.
Show me that Shaun Cassidy has some real talent or sex appeal and then I'll ooh and ahh like all the rest. Until then, I won't hold my breath.
Lisa Hermann Schenectady, N. Y.
This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so viewer discretion is required.