Letters

The Ways of Opus Dei Dan Brown's best-selling The Da Vinci Code granted fans access to a thrillingly fictionalized Opus Dei, a religious society both secretive and sinister. Our story on the reality of the Roman Catholic group's rituals, social connections and spiritual convictions inspired readers' aversion, wonder and spirited defense

Thank you for your report on the controversial Catholic organization Opus Dei [April 24]. Any group that is exclusive, isolated and secretive cannot be truly Christian. Just like the press investigations into the protection given to pedophile priests, your article will help the Roman Catholic Church cleanse itself of its secrecy as well as the flaw of gender-determined and gender-dominated leadership. So absorbed are the church leaders in protecting their own agenda that they fail to fulfill their role in the truthful representation of Christ. ETTA ALBRIGHT Cresson, Pa.

Opus Dei seems to be a great force for good rather than the obscure society some have tried to portray it as. Maybe if more of us listened to Christ's truthful message, we wouldn't be surprised by people who try to live by it. At a minimum, there's the intriguing idea that all politicians, especially those in Latin America, should note: the solution to the problem of poverty is not to identify with the poor but to make them members of the middle class. OSCAR ISLAS Mexico City

TIME's report on Opus Dei was essentially correct and fair, but the repeated references to the society as "secret" and "secretive" were off the mark. The story is a proof of our transparency, based as it was on interviews with many of the faithful of Opus Dei, who did not hide their membership but on the contrary made an effort to answer all questions, including some of a very personal nature. The photos of the discipline [a small whip] and the cilice [a chain] presented them in such a way that readers might not know whether they were looking at instruments of torture or a means of Christian penance that could fit in the palm of one's hand. Their use is healthier and less painful than having an ear pierced or getting a tattoo. Those means of mortification are used in Opus Dei just as they have been for many centuries by other Catholics. But readers might form an opinion on the basis of those images and the use of the adjective secret that would prevent them from understanding Opus Dei. Still I consider the article essentially accurate in its description of Opus Dei and of the criticism that it receives. It was an honor to cooperate with TIME in the story's preparation. JUAN MANUEL MORA COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR OPUS DEI Rome

Your article on Opus Dei made plain the dangers of fanaticism and extremism within religious thought. God wants us to hate neither others nor ourselves. The cure for evil must come from God's transformation in us, not from flogging ourselves or vainly trying to impose our practices on others. KEN BROECKEL Escondido, Calif.

Recognizing The Da Vinci Code as fiction, I was surprised to learn that Opus Dei actually exists. But your description of the society as secretive was really not fair. People who pray regularly have a quiet confidence that God knows them. Avoiding a public show of faith is not being secretive. CLEMENT SILVA Bangalore, India

Christ invited all people to celebrate with him in his earthly ministry, but Opus Dei seems to be an exclusive club. Any group that separates itself from daily contact with the faithful violates the teaching that the faithful form one body in Christ. Shame on the Vatican for encouraging the divisive work of Opus Dei. DANEEN WARNER Durham, N.C.

It's puzzling that people join Opus Dei to live their faith on a daily basis. Anyone can do so without joining an esoteric group. One simply has to attend church, pray regularly, be sincere in trying to live a good life and become an active member of the local parish--no self-flagellation required. Perhaps that is too simple, similar to the injunctions in The Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 25, which remind us that we treat Jesus as we treat one another. (THE REV.) TOM ZELINSKI Marathon, Wis.

Sizing Up the Senate

Re "America's 10 Best Senators" [April 24]: When it was created, Congress was intended to be the most powerful branch of our government, and in a time when most Americans can't even name 10 Senators, it is refreshing to see TIME putting them back in the spotlight. The media's greatest responsibility is to inform the public when our representatives are performing well, in order to encourage them, and to inform us when they are doing poorly, so they might either change their behavior or be fired through an election. DANNY G. GIBBENS Aurora, Colo.

The resolution to create a Federal Department of Peace and Nonviolence that Minnesota Senator Mark Dayton introduced was portrayed as an impractical liberal endeavor. In fact, that idea is neither impractical nor liberal. It is commonsense. The proposed legislation strives to establish a framework for resolving conflicts without military aggression. Will it prevent all future conflict? No. Will it reduce the amount of violence? The answer is yes. Is it worth a try? Yes! I tip my hat to Senator Dayton for standing his ground on what he believes, something that seems to be rare on Capitol Hill these days. MATT ROTELLA West Chester, Pa.

The Return of Newt

I enjoyed columnist Joe Klein's "Why Newt Is So Much Fun to Watch" [April 24], on Gingrich's tour in New Hampshire. I would vote for him for President in a New York minute. It's too bad he left Congress. Had he stayed, he would have pushed through the fiscal reforms that Republicans thought they were going to get when they elected Bush. The President would have had to use his veto early and often to keep Newt from eliminating a quarter of the federal programs and their related wasteful bureaucracies. And we would have already had a Mexican border fence. DARRELL HANSHAW Austin, Texas

To Deter or Disarm?

TIME's comprehensive analysis of the Iranian nuclear standoff was wonderfully well written and insightful [April 3]. Iranian leaders rely for the defense of their country on a simple perception: that an opponent doesn't dare make an aggressive move for fear of devastating consequences. Peaceful negotiations through sustained diplomacy seem to be the only viable way out of this threatening situation. Then again, isn't the unwelcome prospect of mutually assured destruction a universally acclaimed deterrent against the unbearable perils of terrorism's ultimate expression? PIERRE GALIPEAU St.-Leonard, Que.

Your report was informative but omitted one facet of the debate. Although Iran is indeed surrounded by nuclear powers, none have ever remotely considered using such weapons because of the possibility of retaliation. If Iran wants to spend the vast resources needed to create the Bomb rather than improve the lot of its people, so be it. But there its Bomb will sit, a true albatross, consuming national resources while it remains unused because of fear of justifiable retaliation. ROBERT O. HOSKINS Florence, Italy

The idea that nuclear weapons are safe only in the hands of Americans and their European cousins and a danger to the rest of the world is not only patronizing but also racist. If the U.S. and its friends can be trusted with nuclear weapons, why not any other country? The only way to ensure universal nuclear disarmament is for all countries to renounce and destroy the nuclear weapons they have acquired. As long as some have them, others will try to acquire them. Iran is not only surrounded by countries that possess nuclear weapons but is also threatened with attack from the U.S. Should we expect Iran to behave like a sitting duck? ERISA MUGABI Kyotera, Uganda

Oil Pressure

In the interview with U.S. Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte [April 24], TIME should have asked whether he realizes that another Pearl Harbor is around the corner. It will be not a military attack but a political and economic blow that will cripple the U.S. Tehran and Moscow share a common interest: to drastically reduce the political power of the U.S. in the Middle East. Once Iran has the Bomb, Tehran and Moscow will practically control the world oil supply and could blackmail the U.S. and Europe. In the past few months, Tehran has bluntly positioned itself as the pre-eminent country opposing the U.S.--the first step before trying to boot the U.S. out of the Middle East. Let's hope that Negroponte's eyes, ears and mind are wide open. AVIV HALLEL Ramat Hasharon, Israel

The Brass-Hat Rebellion

Your story on the growing number of retired generals calling for Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to resign [April 24] showed that our military's patriotism and bravery are of little value to the nation when our civilian leaders have poor judgment. Despite all his experience and expertise, Rumsfeld has shown poor judgment. And George W. Bush's failure to accept Rumsfeld's offers of resignation suggests that the President has also demonstrated poor judgment. LAWRENCE H. GORDON Honolulu

How can we as American citizens have any respect for those retired generals who spent their careers at the public trough and now want to destroy the boss they sucked up to while in command? They need to spend their time playing golf and leave the important decisions to our elected leaders. JOEL EPPERSON Birmingham, Ala.

Why didn't the Generals come forth with their criticism earlier? Competent leadership in the military has been declining ever since our nation went to the all-volunteer force. We Americans have become so soft that we don't have the guts anymore to stand and be counted. The same is true in our civilian agencies. CLAIR MENDENHALL Providence, Utah

Do those gentlemen really think that demoralizing the military by casting doubt on the civilian leadership in the middle of a war is in the best interest of the country or the troops? MICHAEL A. PACER Helendale, Calif.

Comrade Hu Comes Calling

Re "Hu's Coming To Lunch" [April 24]: In visiting our democratic country, Chinese President Hu Jintao represented not China's people but the Chinese Communist Party, which has been holding that nation's people hostage for more than a half-century. Under Mao Zedong, Chinese communists caused more than 70 million deaths. Today the Chinese are still not a free people. Many democracy advocates and religious workers are incarcerated in labor camps without due process of law. People are not allowed to organize political parties, and the government has strict control of the mass media. Thus the Chinese people are blindfolded. TIMOTHY HO Anaheim, Calif.

Walling Off Hope

TIME reported on Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's plans to complete a wall separating Israel from the Palestinians [April 17]. Olmert should consider India's partition into two states. Did it result in cessation of conflict? Partition does not work. PATRICIA DANIEL Norwich, England

The Price Isn't Right

Re "Sweet 16 and Spoiled Rotten" [April 24]: MTV's reality show My Super Sweet 16 verges on the nauseating. It is nearly unbearable to witness the whining of greedy teenage girls while their fathers cough up hundreds of thousands of dollars for a single party and a luxury automobile. Is it any wonder the rest of the world hates us? FERN GALPERIN Stamford, Conn.