Sometimes here on Sanibel--this beautiful island oasis--it is easy to forget about the problems of the world. Sometimes immersing oneself in a book at the beach or riding a bike along the many paths that weave there way across the island can lead one to think all is well on Planet Earth. But even here we are not untouched by the news of the day, and so it is that a story has reached our shores from another spot in Florida that sends shivers up my spine, even though its been in the nineties here for days!

Later this week we will mark the 9th anniversary of the tragedy commonly known as 9-11. Once again we will be reminded of how on that beautiful September morning, four planes were flown into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania, changing forever our own sense of security and peace. The perpetrators of the attacks were Islamist extremists, men hellbent on death and destruction. I lived in metropolitan New York at the time and had the sad task of officiating at three funerals for victims of those attacks. That time shall be forever seared in my memory.

Every year the question comes up, how should we remember, how should we commemorate that day? This year, in particular, there seems to have been more than the usual amount of controversy around it all: the debate in New York about the proposed Islamic center and mosque, the appropriateness of the memorial that is under construction at ground zero. These projects have people of good faith arguing on all sides of the issues. But another proposal, the one that emanates from Florida, is, in my mind, indefensible. It is just plain wrong.

The pastor of a small church in Gainesville (the Dove World Outreach Center) is urging folks to to burn a Qu'ran, the scriptures of Islam, on September 11th. He is calling it "International Burn a Koran Day." If you visit the church's website you will discover that they claim "it is neither an act of love nor of hate"--but rather a way to warn people about the dangers of Islam. The church's pastor, Terry Jones, has even published a book titled Islam is of the Devil.

I am the first person to defend the freedoms of religion and speech. And Pastor Jones and his flock have the right to hold whatever opinion of Islam they believe to be true. They even have the right to express that opinion. (Even though I radically disagree with them.) But book burning, especially when the book in question is considered holy scripture by millions of Americans, and many millions more around the world, is an act of intellectual and theological cowardice. The strength, the power, the beauty of the gospel speaks for itself. The uplifting message of Jesus is not dependent on tearing down others. In fact, when his followers vilify other people, they are only undermining the very core of his message: Love God with your all, he preached, and love your neighbor as yourself. Burning a neighbor's book of holy scriptures doesn't strike me as an act of love. It strikes me as an act of hate.

9-11 demonstrated that there is already more than enough hatred in the world--perhaps the best way to commemorate it is to find some concrete way to add some love to the mix. Teaching a child to read. Volunteering at your local library. Reading to someone who's blind. I think any one of those beats burning a book. Any day of the week.