6) In the nature of the case, it is impossible to discuss matters privately with most public figures. I have no idea how much email Bill O’Reilly gets, but I suppose it must be thousands of emails every day. He can’t possibly read them all – or even most of them. I hope he doesn’t because that wouldn’t be a good use of his time. He doesn’t have the time or energy to respond to everyone who writes to him. The same is true of all public figures. James Dobson can’t read all the mail that arrives at Focus on the Family. I presume he has staff that handles his mail so that he only sees a tiny fraction of what is sent to him. That’s the way it has to be.

Here is my bottom line response to the issue raised by the email. Christian leaders should not receive public immunity from their public comments. I deplore the coarsening of public discourse, and I realize that the blogosphere has contributed to that. But there ought to be a place at the table for reasonable discussion and disagreement regarding the public statements of public people. And I don’t exempt myself from that. I thought about it and realized that I have published in one form or another well over one million words. I have written 28 books, speak around the country, have a weblog, and do quite a bit of radio and TV work. In the great pantheon of cultural figures, I’m a wide receiver on the peewee football team, and Bill O’Reilly is a NFL all-star. But I do have my audience. I get critiqued all the time. People evaluate my work, my writing, my words, my books, my sermons, and sometimes they like what I say, sometimes they don’t. Do I always like what they say? No. Do I think it’s always fair? No. Do I think my words are taken out of context? Sometimes.

But that’s part of the deal. As Harry Truman said, "If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen." I don’t get one millionth of what Bill O’Reilly gets in terms of criticism, and he mostly lets it run off his back. I try to do the same.

So I’m saying that when you write publicly and speak publicly, you have to accept that others will comment publicly on what you say or write. And they don’t have to talk it over with you in advance.

Somehow we have to find a way to engage the culture and express our disagreements–even our strong disagreements–while speaking the truth in love. Not easy to do, I admit. But it can be done. And that’s why I think public commentary on what others have said and done is not always wrong.

Okay, that’s my two cents. Let me say again that the person who wrote the email does have a good point. I’ve given my response. What do you think? If I’m wrong about this, let me know. Or if you have further insights, I would be glad to hear from you. Click here to offer your comments.

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