by George Hunsinger
We are more than 225 religious leaders from a wide diversity of backgrounds. Notable within our ranks are many Latino and Latina leaders who are more concerned to oppose torture than to applaud appointing a Hispanic to the cabinet. Whatever our backgrounds, we all agree that this appointment should be concerned with the content of the nominee's character, his values, and above all his judgments, not with the color of his skin.
Together we call upon Alberto Gonzales (1) to denounce the use of torture under any circumstances, (2) to affirm that no prisoner stands outside the protection of the law, (3) to endorse the binding legality of the Geneva conventions, and (4) to denounce the existing abhorrent practice of shipping detainees for interrogation to countries where torture is practiced.
No less than the soul of the nation we love is at stake in the torture scandal. What does it profit us if we proclaim high moral values, but fail to reject torture? What does it signify if torture is condemned in word, but allowed in deed? A nation that rewards those who permitted and promoted torture is approaching spiritual death.
Torture is abhorrent to all Americans and to international law. For religious people it is especially deplorable, because torture is a sin against God. It degrades everyone involved – planners and perpetrators as well as the victims. <snip>
http://www.antiwar.com/orig/hunsinger.php?articleid=4263