Court Nixes Police Favoring Muslims vs. Christians

On June 15, 2012, Christian evangelists were ordered by police to leave the Arab International Festival in Dearborn, Michigan because some Muslims there perpetrated acts of violence against the Christians.  Last week, the 6th Circuit Appeals Court ruled in favor of Bible Believers against defendant Wayne County, Michigan.

“We find that defendants violated the Bible Believers’ First Amendment rights because there can be no legitimate dispute based on this record that the [police] effectuated a heckler’s veto by cutting off the Bible Believers’ protected speech in response to a hostile crowd’s reaction. . . . The video record evinces next to no attempt made by the officers to protect the Bible Believers or prevent the lawless actions of the [Muslim] audience.”
-- 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati

For background, read Federal Judge Muzzles Christians at Public Festival

Click headlines below to read previous articles:

Kansas Pastor Arrested for Witnessing to Muslims

Christians Arrested for Debating Muslim

Maine Fines Christians for Criticizing Islam

Church Attacked for Proclaiming Beliefs About Islam

President Obama Ignores Hate Crimes Against U.S. Christians

Religious Killing OK Says One-third of Muslim Students

Muslim Beheads Christians in New Jersey per Koran

Muslims Killing Christians Doesn't Make Headline

Also read Christians Pray for Detroit, Muslims Condemn those Prayers



-- From "Christian activists win speech case tied to Arab festival" by The Associated Press 10/31/15

The case stems from a 2012 incident in which members of a group called Bible Believers were pelted with rocks while carrying a pig’s head and telling Dearborn Muslims at the street festival that they would “burn in hell.” Wayne County sheriff’s deputies told the evangelists to leave or be ticketed.

“From a constitutional standpoint, this should be an easy case to resolve,” said Judge Eric Clay, writing for the majority. “However, it is also easy to understand Dearborn’s desire to host a joyous festival celebrating the city’s Arab heritage in an atmosphere that is free of hate and negative influences.

“But the answer to disagreeable speech is not violent retaliation by offended listeners or ratification of the heckler’s veto through threat of arrest by the police,” Clay wrote.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Pig head-carrying Christians ejected from Muslim festival may collect damages" by Nader Ihmoud, Chicago Sun-Times National 10/29/15

Some [Muslim] members of the crowd responded by throwing plastic bottles, eggs and milk crates at the Bible Believers.

The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, Ohio, made its ruling based on the First Amendment, saying the evangelist group Bible Believers should have been protected even though its speech was loathsome and intolerant. The opinion also mentioned the obligation of police when confronted with constitutionally protected speech that threatens to incite violence.

“Bearing in mind the interspersed surges of ethnic, racial, and religious conflict that from time to time mar our national history, the constitutional lessons to be learned from the circumstances of this case are both timeless and markedly seasonable,” Judge Eric Clay wrote.

The opinion by the court on Wednesday overturned a lower-court judgment and sent the case back to a federal court in Detroit, where a judge will decide the damages.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Pig's head-carrying Christians ejected from Muslim festival may collect damages, 6th Circuit says" by Debra Cassens Weiss, ABA Journal 10/29/15

An en banc federal appeals court [review by 15 judges] has ruled that Christian evangelists who were “preaching hate and denigration to a crowd of Muslims” may collect damages because police told them to leave.

Police conferred with the Wayne County corporation counsel and told the Bible Believers they would be cited for disorderly conduct if they did not leave. More than a dozen officers escorted the group members from the festival.

The Constitution, however, does not allow “an angry mob of riotous adolescents to dictate what religious beliefs and opinions could and could not be expressed,” the court said. . . .

The court said Wayne County “effectuated a constitutionally impermissible heckler’s veto,” violating the Christians’ rights to free speech, free exercise of religion and equal protection.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Anti-Muslim group wins appeal in Arab fest case" by Robert Snell, The Detroit News 10/28/15

The case against Wayne County, Sheriff Benny Napoleon and members of the department [deputies Dennis Richardson and Mike Jaafar], originally was handled in Detroit by U.S. District Judge Patrick Duggan, who recently retired.

The full court agreed one year ago to reconsider the case after setting aside a 2-1 decision by a three-judge panel in August 2014.

In that opinion, the panel said sheriff’s deputies didn’t violate the evangelists’ free speech rights

Such rehearings are rare.

“We are reviewing the court’s opinion,” sheriff’s office spokeswoman Paula Bridges said in a statement Wednesday. “No decision has been made as to what next steps, if any, will be taken therefore we will refrain from comment at this time.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Court rules Bible Believers should not have been thrown out Arab American fest" by Khalil AlHajal, MLive Media Group 10/29/15

The lawsuit was originally filed in Detroit federal court by Ruben Chavez, Arthur Fisher, and Joshua DeLosSantos, a group known as the Bible Believers.

U.S. District Judge Patrick Duggan threw out the case, and an earlier appeals ruling upheld that decision, but the Wednesday opinion overturns the first two, ordering the case back to the lower court for calculation of damages.

"The only references to violence or lawlessness on the part of the Bible Believers were messages such as, 'Islam is a Religion of Blood and Murder,' 'Turn or Burn,' and 'Your prophet is a pedophile.' These messages, however offensive, do not advocate for, encourage, condone, or even embrace imminent violence or lawlessness," the majority found in an opinion written but U.S. 6th Circuit Judge Eric L. Clay.

"Although it might be inferred that the Bible Believers' speech was intended to anger their target audience, the record is devoid of any indication that they intended imminent lawlessness to ensue. Quite to the contrary, the Bible Believers contacted Wayne County prior to their visit, requesting that the WCSO keep the public at bay so that the Bible Believers could 'engage in their peaceful expression.'"

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Click headlines below to read related articles:

Wichita State Chapel Muslim Conversion leads to Uprising

Angry Muslims Storm New Jersey School Board Demanding Holidays

Lawmakers Counter Islamic Teaching in Tennessee Schools

Muslim Prayer Ends Invocation Policy in North Carolina

KY Forbids Pastors Calling Homosexuality 'Sinful'

Attorneys for Pastor David Wells are demanding that the Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) drop the religious test on volunteer counselors issued by the Warren County Regional Juvenile Detention Center that censors use of the Bible regarding sexual sin.  Wells was recently dismissed by the State because he refused to sign an agreement denouncing God's Word.

"Many juveniles are in DJJ custody because of sexual crimes.  Pastor Wells must be able to discuss what the Bible says about matters of sexuality with the juveniles he is trying to help. . . . DJJ 912 equates the teaching of biblical morality with ‘derogatory,’ ‘biased” and ‘hateful’ speech."
-- Mat Staver, chairman of Liberty Counsel (representing David Wells)

UPDATE 10/15/15: Obama Plans to Ban Evangelism to 'Homosexual Kids'

UPDATE 8/2/15: Christian Prayer Outrages California City Council

For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:

Religious Liberty in Homosexualists' Crosshairs

Pastor Arrested in California for Reading Bible in Public

Jesus Talk Outlawed in New Orleans, Arrests Made

Houston Lesbian Mayor Subpoenas Pastors' Sermons

Idaho Pastors Face Fines, Jail for Refusing 'Gay Wedding'

Also read how state legislators, governors and judges are forbidding troubled youth from seeking Christian counseling.

And read how President Obama and his federal government agencies are elevating the Gay Agenda above religious liberty.

In addition, read Gay Agenda will be Complete when Christians are Muzzled, Say Homosexualists as well as Senator Ted Cruz Says the Gay Agenda Ends Christian Liberty

-- From "State forbids pastors calling homosexuality 'sinful'" by Bob Unruh, World Net Daily 7/24/15

The policy states that DJJ staff, volunteers and others “shall not imply or tell LGBTQI juveniles that they are abnormal, deviant, sinful or that they can or should change their sexual orientation or gender identity.”

Wells had volunteered more than 10 years at the facility under the prison ministry of Pleasant View Baptist Church in McQuady.

Liberty Counsel’s letter [to the DJJ] noted Wells was ordered to sign a form “promising to refrain from telling any juvenile inmates that homosexuality was ‘sinful.’”

The state demand “violates the First Amendment by prescribing an official state religious ‘orthodoxy:’ now, only a religious belief that homosexuality is not ‘sinful’ may be expressed in DJJ facilities.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Unconstitutional Restriction on Religious Speech - letter to Bob Hayter, Commissioner, Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice" by Liberty Counsel 7/23/15

Demand is hereby made that Mr. Wells and other volunteer ministers be immediately reinstated as volunteers at this facility, free from unconstitutional religious discrimination, Policy 912 notwithstanding,

.. [In the past, DJJ] children have asked Mr. Wells if there was any hope for them in this life, and in the life to come.  He has told them without exception that Christ can, and would, forgive them, if they would repent and believe the gospel.  This message has given them hope, and many have told him this personally and in written correspondence.  Despite these facts, Superintendent [Gene] Wade has told Mr. Wells, on the basis of Policy 912, that if a child now asks questions of him on issues involving sexual activity, he may not discuss the same with them: “You can give a scripture reference to the kids, and let them look it up, but you can’t read it in their hearing. You can’t say “sinful;” you can’t discuss sexual orientation – heterosexual or homosexual - period.”

. . . By restricting speech which volunteers are allowed to use while ministering to youth detainees, the State of Kentucky and the Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice have violated the protections given to private speech through the First Amendment and the Kentucky Constitution.  Policy 912 requires affirmation of homosexuality as a condition of providing spiritual guidance to troubled youth, and singles out a particular theological viewpoint as expressly disfavored by the State of Kentucky. This the State cannot do.

To read the entire letter above above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Supreme Court Rules Bible as 'Hate Speech' in Canada

And read European Union High Court Rules Gay Agenda Trumps Christianity

Jesus' Virgin Birth NOT Worth Celebrating: Poll

The latest Pew Research poll again demonstrates the cognitive dissonance of Americans.

Although 73% of U.S. adults believe, presumably by faith, that Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary, including 32% of those with no religious affiliation, only half of respondents consider Christmas more than a cultural holiday, complete with Santa Claus.

"Younger adults are less likely than older adults to see Christmas a religious rather than cultural holiday, they're less likely to say they will attend Christmas services and they are less likely to believe in the virgin birth."
-- Greg Smith, director of U.S. religion surveys at the Pew Research Center's Religion and Public Life Project

For background, read Poll Shows Most are Disgusted with American Morals, Yet Favor Sin

Also read Ultrasound of Unborn Jesus: Pro-life Focus on Christmas

In addition, read the latest news of the secular rebellion against Christmas.

-- From "Christmas is more a cultural than religious event for one-third of Americans, new survey finds" by The Associated Press 12/18/13

A poll released Wednesday by the Pew Research Center found only half of Americans consider the holiday religious, even though nearly three-quarters said they believed Jesus was born to a virgin. One-third consider Christmas a cultural celebration.

Church attendance will be higher than usual during the holiday. But the survey found fewer adults are holding to the tradition of attending worship services. Sixty-nine percent of respondents said they attended Christmas services as a child. Only 54 percent will do so this year.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Christmas in America: Belief in the Virgin birth and visits from Santa" by Cathy Lynn Grossman, Religion News Service, Washington Post 12/17/13

Overall, 31 percent of U.S. adults play up the Santa role in their holiday season, according to a survey released Wednesday (Dec. 18) by the Pew Research Center.

The survey finds that 73 percent of adults believe Jesus was born of a virgin — the act of God at the theological heart of the Christmas story, the birth of the Christ child.

That belief is held overwhelmingly by Christians of all stripes and even by some people with no formal religion: 32 percent of “nones” say they, too, believe in the Virgin birth of Jesus.

Women are more certain of this than men, though: 78 percent of women and 69 percent of men say they believe it.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Jesus ahead of Santa Claus in Pew Center survey of Americans' Christmas values (poll)" by Kay Campbell, The Birmingham News 12/18/13

While 72 percent of the 2,001 adults polled in representative samples from across the U.S. during Dec. 3 to 8 said their families pretended Santa Claus visited their home when they were growing up, only 31 percent said they still perpetuate the Santa Claus story in their own households -- although the rate remains at 69 percent of those with little kids still in the house. So while Santa is losing his grip, Jesus is, barely, hanging on. Of the 92 percent of Americans who say they celebrate Christmas, just 51 percent say that Christmas remains more of a religious holiday than a cultural holiday for them.

But then, the observance of Christmas activities in general is showing consistent, if slight, declines, according to the survey, which asked people what they typically did for Christmas as a child and what they plan to do this year.

Attending a religious service on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day is decreasing from 69 percent to 54 percent, mirroring an overall decline in religious participation in the United States. But Christmas Eve or Day attendance is still double the 36 percent of Americans who say they typically attend a religious service during an average week. And while caroling, in the surveyed people’s memories, was never a common practice, from a remembered 36 percent who went to sing to someone, only 16 percent of people will carry songs into the streets this year.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Christmas A Non-Religious Holiday For Half Of Americans, Pew Survey Finds" by Jaweed Kaleem, Huffington Post 12/18/13

At 82 percent, evangelical protestants were most likely to see Christmas as a religious holiday, following by white Catholics (66 percent), black Protestants (60 percent) and white mainline protestants (56 percent). About half of Hispanic Catholics said it was a religious holiday.

The Public Religion Research Institute survey also found Americans largely prefer businesses to use the phrase "happy holidays" or "season's greetings" instead of "merry Christmas."

Pew found that religious and non-religious Americans largely celebrate the holiday the same. . . .

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Apparently only a minority of Americans who see Santa at the mall ask, "Where's the Line to See Jesus?" (music video):

Liberal Media Use Heretic to Counter Christ

Rob Bell of the "emergent church" movement is finally being fully exposed as a "wolf in sheep's clothing" and the liberal media just can't get enough of him.

For background, read Heretical Preacher Embraced by Liberal Media

-- From "'Love Wins': Pastor's book kindles firestorm over hell" by Cathy Lynn Grossman, USA TODAY 3/14/11

Bell's new book, Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived, has provoked weeks of fierce infighting among pastors, theologians and anyone else who scans the Christian blogosphere where critics rage that he's a hipster heretic.

But Richard Mouw, president of the world's largest Protestant [liberal] seminary, Fuller Theological Seminary based in Pasadena, Calif., calls Love Wins "a great book, well within the bounds of orthodox Christianity and passionate about Jesus.

In Love Wins, which arrives in stores Tuesday, Bell claims:

• Heaven and hell are choices we make and live with right now. "God gives us what we want," including the freedom to live apart from God (hell) or turn God's way (heaven).

• Death doesn't cut off the ability to repent. In his Bible, Bell sees no "infinite, eternal torment for things (people) did in their few finite years of life."

• Jesus makes salvation possible even for people who never know his name. "We have to allow for mystery," for people who "drink from the rock" of faith "without knowing who or what it was."

• Churches that don't allow for this are "misguided and toxic."

Small wonder that traditionalists call him a false teacher of a Jesus-optional Gospel, leading innocents to damnation and a traitor to the evangelical label.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.


From "Hard-hitting Rob Bell interview goes viral" by Michael Foust, Baptist Press News 3/16/11

"What you've done is you're amending the Gospel -- the Christian message -- so that it's palatable to contemporary people who find, for example, the idea of hell and heaven very difficult to stomach ... That's why you've done, isn't it?" [MSNBC reporter Martin] Bashir asks Bell at one point.

At another point, Bashir asks Bell if it is "irrelevant" for someone to follow Christ in this life if -- as Bell argues -- non-Christians will be saved anyway.

Bell's evasive answers to questions have frustrated Christian leaders. Even in the interview, he denies he is a universalist, and then proceeds to make universalistic arguments.

To read a partial transcript of the YouTube video above, CLICK HERE.

From "What Happened to Heaven and Is Gandhi There?" by John Wilson, Wall Street Journal 3/18/11

Something strange has happened in evangelical churches over the past generation. Not in every congregation, but in the main, sermons devoted to the grim prospect of hell have become rare, and even talk of heaven is muted.

. . . So is Mr. Bell one more Christian liberal describing God as a mountain you can climb any way you want? Not exactly.

. . . anyone who carefully reads "Love Wins" will see that Mr. Bell is not a universalist. As C.S. Lewis did, he suggests that God grants free will to all, including those who do not want his divine company and therefore choose damnation.

Still, the account of heaven and hell that he rejects does sound a lot like what most Christians have taught and been taught for 2,000 years . . .

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Rob Bell and the (re)emergence of liberal theology" by R. Albert Mohler Jr., President of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary 3/16/11

For the last 20 years or so, a movement identified as emerging or emergent Christianity has done its determined best to avoid speaking with specificity. Leading figures in the movement have offered trenchant criticisms of mainstream evangelicalism. Most pointedly, they have accused evangelical Christianity, variously, as being excessively concerned with doctrine, culturally tone-deaf, overly propositional, unnecessarily offensive, aesthetically malnourished, and basically uncool.

And yet, even as many of these [emerging/emergent] leaders insisted that they remained within the evangelical circle, it was clear that many were moving into a post-evangelical posture. There were early hints that the direction of the movement was toward theological liberalism and radical revisionism, but the predominant mode of their argument was suggestion, rather than assertion.

Rather than make a clear theological or doctrinal assertion, emerging figures generally raise questions and offer suggestive comments. Influenced by postmodern narrative theories, most within the movement lean into story rather than formal argument. Nevertheless, the general direction seemed clear enough. The leading emerging church figures appeared to be pushing Protestant liberalism -- just about a century late.

. . . Rob Bell uses his incredible power of literary skill and communication to unravel the Bible's message and to cast doubt on its teachings.

Bell clearly prefers inclusivism, the belief that Christ is saving humanity through means other than the Gospel, including other religions. But he mixes up his story along the way, appearing to argue for outright universalism on some pages, but backing off of a full affirmation. He rejects the belief that conscious faith in Christ is necessary for salvation, but he never clearly lands on a specific account of what he does believe.

. . . Yes, we have read this book before. With Love Wins, Rob Bell moves solidly within the world of Protestant liberalism. His message is a liberalism arriving late on the scene. Tragically, his message will confuse many believers as well as countless unbelievers.

To read all of the above in-depth analysis of Rob Bell's "theology," CLICK HERE.

UPDATE 5/3/13: Rob Bell and Andrew Wilson debate homosexuality & the Bible (video):

Seattle Church Embraces Muslims, doesn't Proselytize

So-called evangelical pastors have no interest in witnessing the Gospel to Muslims, but rather are eager to maintain relations, such as regular meals with imams affiliated with the controversial Council on American-Islamic Relations.

"When Christians sit down with Muslims to have an interfaith dialogue, typically what happens is that Christians stand up and say wonderful things about Islam. Then Muslims stand up and say wonderful things about Islam so there's really no interfaith dialogue taking place."

-- From "Evangelicals extend a hand to Muslims" by Janet I. Tu, Seattle Times staff reporter 9/6/10

Michael Ly, a young, self-described Chinese Cambodian American evangelical Christian . . . is a pastor at Soma — Renton, a nondenominational church formerly called Harambee Church. An accountant by day, his aim to build better understanding between evangelical Christians and Muslims is purely a grass-roots effort.

And it's an effort he thinks is growing nationwide, especially among those his age and younger.

Ly's next big project is to work with the director of the local Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) to organize a dinner this fall, inviting 20 imams and other Muslim leaders, and 20 pastors and other Christian leaders mainly from conservative evangelical churches.

There's the theological barrier: Many evangelicals view Muslims as people who have rejected the teachings and messages of Jesus. Some also believe Muhammad was a false prophet and that Islam is therefore based on a false premise. Or they feel Islam is antagonistic toward Christianity.

. . . Lead Pastor John Prince of Soma — Renton . . . says [proselytizing is] not his goal. And Ly believes it's up to God whether people change their faith.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Seattle church invites Muslims to dinner" by Michael Carl © 2010 WorldNetDaily 9/24/10

. . . Crosstalk radio host and cultural analyst Ingrid Schlueter believes the effort is outrageous.

"There is a two-pronged outrage. The first outrage is that we have an evangelical pastor once again giving aid, promotion and legitimacy to a group [CAIR] that has been called unindicted co-conspirators," Schlueter stated.

"The second outrage is that the pastor of this church apparently believes that conducting potlucks and hosting tours of mosques for Christians and churches for Muslims is going to somehow fulfill Christ's command to preach repentance and remission of sins," Schlueter added.

"All the good intentions and all the group hugs in Seattle are not going to accomplish the commission that Christ gave us to preach the Gospel to every nation," Schlueter stated.

Ly said that Washington State CAIR chapter president Arsalan Bukhari introduced him to the Muslim Association of the Puget Sound Redmond leader and "helped us get the Qurans we used."

"When you are promoting CAIR, that has a proven track record of defending evil, you are serving as a tool of the enemies of Christ, the enemies of Israel and the enemies of freedom," Schlueter asserted.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Methodist Seminary Trains Pluralistic Clergy

Saying that not all Muslims – or Christians or Jews for that matter – believe their faith is the only way to God, the United Methodist Church's Claremont School of Theology has launched a program to train leaders for the often-conflicting faiths together.

-- From "Seminary introduces program of religious collaboration" by Michael Carl © 2010 WorldNetDaily 6/25/10

The unorthodox program was announced on the website for the school, and detailed in a statement released by school media-relations officer Claudia Pearce.

"Christians, Muslims and Jews will now have the opportunity to take classes together to learn about each other's religious traditions, to study topics that deal specifically with interfaith issues and to build bridges through coursework that assists them, our society’s future religious leaders, to act collaboratively in response to the various issues that face our society and world," the statement said.

. . . Christian cultural commentator and Cross Talk America radio host Ingrid Schlueter says the Claremont program is a clear compromise of the truth of the Gospel.

"Their new spiritual-blender approach to Christian theological education is to 'teach students to recognize the legitimacy and integrity' of other religious traditions. This, by definition, cannot be Christianity," Schlueter said.

"The founder of Christianity, Jesus Christ, declared himself to be the exclusive way to heaven in John 14:6. The founder of Christianity further described the spiritual way to eternal life as 'narrow' in Matthew 7:14," Schlueter explained.

"Clearly Claremont is still teaching theology. It is not, however, Christian theology. It is the new, popular brand of universalism that rejects outright the exclusive claims of Jesus Christ in Holy Scripture and ventures into rank spiritual rebellion in the name of tolerance and cooperation. God's unchanging Word tells us that it is at the name of Jesus that every knee will bow and confess His Lordship. Not Buddha, not Krishna, not Allah or some other god cobbled together in human imagination," Schlueter said.

Schlueter said Claremont is not representative of the doctrine taught by Methodism's founder John Wesley.

"If John Wesley were alive today to see what his heirs were teaching, one could only imagine his anger and grief. Claremont is setting the stage for persecution of biblical Christians who refuse this apostasy. They are casting themselves as Christians, but theirs is a faith that is alien to everything Christians have lived and died for in the last 2,000 years," Schlueter said.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Christians Responsible for Loss of Religious Liberty: Franklin Graham

Evangelist Franklin Graham prayed today outside of the Pentagon, in defiance of the Army's booting him from the National Day of Prayer event. Graham is warning that America's freedom of religion "is being eroded every day" and is on the brink of extinction lest Christians "have the guts to stand up."

-- From "Franklin Graham says 'religious rights' denied" by Andy Barr, Politico 5/3/10

During an interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Graham said that his speaking slot in conjunction with Thursday’s National Day of Prayer was unjustly dumped over his saying that Islam is “evil.”

The only reason his invitation was dropped, Graham said, was that “a couple members of the Pentagon who are Muslim objected about me coming.”

“I feel my religious rights are being denied here because of what I believe,” the evangelist said. “I believe Jesus Christ is the way, the truth and the life…I believe that because of my beliefs, that’s why I’m not being given the opportunity to speak.”

“I love Muslim people…I love them and care for them,” he insisted, adding that he does not “believe what they believe.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Franklin Graham soldiers on, prays at Pentagon" USA TODAY 5/6/10

Rev. Franklin Graham prayed outside the Pentagon Thursday -- not inside leading an official National Day of Prayer service. Instead, he and a half-dozen others stood on the sidewalk and bowed their heads in prayer for about five minutes, according to Associated Press.

Normally, it's not news when an evangelist prays or a father of a soldier prays for the troops and their leaders (Graham's son is on his fourth tour in Afghanistan).

And he's news today because Graham is the honorary chairman of the private Task Force that leads national events where all the prayers are strictly Christian.

So, undaunted, Graham said his prayers and chatted up the media. According to Andrea Stone at AOL News, the service inside the Pentagon was led by the head of the Armed Forces Chaplain Board (a Protestant) along with Catholic, Jewish and Muslim chaplains who were "hastily added to the program" after the Task Force was dropped.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Franklin Graham: Christians Will Lose the Power to Pray Outside Church Walls ‘Maybe in My Lifetime’" by Pete Winn, CNSNews.com Senior Writer/Editor 5/5/10

“We’re living in a time where we cannot compromise, we cannot back up, we cannot retreat,” Graham said Wednesday during a live Webcast from the Washington, D.C. offices of the Family Research Council.

“The Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is to be preached to the ends of the Earth – that’s what He’s called us to do,” he said.

He alluded to Eastern Europe under communism, where Christians and others were allowed to pray only within their homes or inside the officially sanctioned churches that were allowed by the state.

“I think its coming to this country where we (will) have the freedom to preach inside a church wall, but we will lose the freedom to do it outside. That day will probably come – maybe in my lifetime,” Graham said.

“(In the United States) we see everyday our rights being eroded. Just a little at a time, but its happening. Everyday. So let’s preach while we can. Let’s stand up and holler ‘Jesus Christ! King of Kings, Lord of Lords!’to the top of our voice,” the younger Graham said.

“The secularists are going to get ticked off, the news media’s going to hate it. I don’t know, maybe the people in the White House are going to be mad. But you know what, I don’t care. Because God has called us to take the Gospel -- His Gospel, the power of God and His Salvation -- unto the ends of the Earth.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Click headlines below to read how America is losing religious liberty:

Obamanation: Secularized Like Europe, Spiritualized Like Oprah

Employment Non-Discrimination Act will end freedom in Christian Schools

Another California City Restricts Home Bible Studies

Christian Arrested for Casual Conversation about God in Mall

Pastors Tell White House 'Hate Crimes' Law (Gay Agenda) Unconstitutional

Pastor Jailed for Saying Homosexuality is Sin

Homosexualists Issue Death Threats to Christians

Christian Talk About Bible Banned at School

Christian Programing Banned from National Public Radio

Federal Judge Muzzles Christians at Public Festival

U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds denied Arabic Christian Perspective's request . . . for permission to hand out literature on sidewalks at an Arab festival in the heart of the Detroit area's Middle Eastern community . . . expected to draw hundreds of thousands . . .

UPDATE 11/1/15: Appeals Court Rules Against Police Favoring Muslims vs. Christians

UPDATE 5/14/13: Federal Judge Patrick J. Duggan rules against Christians who were bullied and assaulted by Muslims at Arab Fest

UPDATE 5/6/13: City of Dearborn, MI agrees to pay damages to Christians arrested at Arab Fest

UPDATE 6/17/10: 6th Circuit Court of Appeals grants motion allowing Christian tracts at Arab-fest

-- From "Judge: Christian group can't walk with literature at Arab festival in Michigan" by David N. Goodman, Associated Press 6/18/2009

The group describes itself in its court filing as "a national ministry established for the purpose of proclaiming the Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ to Muslims ... (that) travels around the country attending and distributing Christian literature at Muslim festivals and mosques."

[The Thomas More Law Center and the Becker Law Firm] said it would seek a permanent injunction against the city of Dearborn [and] said the Dearborn officials action could be part of what [it] described as a broader Muslim legal attack on critics of Islam in our "Judeo-Christian nation."

The city said safely accommodating the 150,000 daily festival-goers requires limits on where people can leaflet.

City officials say anyone is free to have conversations — but not leaflet — on sidewalks within the festival's barricades.

"It appears to be a legitimate governmental interest for crowd control and safety," Edmunds said in denying the request. "The festival area is more akin to a fair than a normal city street."

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Tusla Government Boots Christians Helping Poor Kids

A Christian evangelical fellowship that has helped underprivileged children for decades has been prohibited from hosting their typical religious-themed summer programs to reduce incidents of drug use and crime -- possibly a violation of a Supreme Court ruling allowing such use of public institutions.

-- From "Evangelical Group Banned From Tulsa Housing Projects, Chapter Leader Says" by James Osborne, FOX News 6/8/09

For more than 70 years, the Missouri-based Child Evangelism Fellowship has worked with underprivileged kids, not only to convert them to Christianity, but to improve their lives through education and after-school activities. In one program, fellowship missionaries visit prisons and sign up inmates' children for Bible study programs in an effort to keep them from winding up in jail themselves.

But recently, the fellowship was told that it was in violation of a long-standing policy prohibiting religious instruction on public housing property, said Larry Koehn, who heads the organization's chapter in the city.

Koehn said he was informed of the decision by Youth at Heart, a non-profit company that administers recreational programs for the Tulsa Housing Authority. A company representative said she had been told to refer all calls about the evangelical group to the housing authority.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Rick Warren Mushy on Marriage

"We cannot, cannot back away from that mandate from our Lord . . . and every pastor ought to be publicly and privately saying, 'That is my agenda!'"

-- From "Former SBC president 'concerned' about Rick Warren's comments on gay marriage" by Bob Allen, Senior Writer, Associated Baptist Press 4/17/09

A former president of the Southern Baptist Convention said he is "deeply concerned" about comments by Purpose Driven Life author Rick Warren that a recent court decision allowing gay marriage is not part of his agenda.

Frank Page, pastor of First Baptist Church of Taylors, S.C., told the American Family News Network he believes it should be on every pastor's agenda to defend biblical marriage and lead homosexuals to Christ.

Warren, pastor of the Southern Baptist-affiliated Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., said April 7 on "Larry King Live" that he is "totally oblivious" to a recent Iowa Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage. "That's not even on my agenda," he said.

In a Q&A interview with Christianity Today, Warren sought to clarify what he meant when he told King he "never once" issued a statement or gave an endorsement during two years of debate over Proposition 8.

". . . Proposition 8 was a two-year campaign in the state, and during those two years, I never said a word about it until the eight days before the election, and then I did make a video for my own people when they asked, 'How should we vote on this?' It was a pastor talking to his own people. I've never said anything about it since. I don't know how you take one video newsletter to your own church and turn that into, all of a sudden I'm the poster boy for anti-gay marriage."

Warren also discussed an hour-long Beliefnet interview, during which he answered one question in a way that "made it sound like I was equating homosexuality with pedophilia and incest."

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Prominent Evangelical Backs Out of Pro-Israel Event Over Proselytizing Disclaimer

From "Prominent evangelical backs out of pro-Israel event over proselytizing disclaimer" by Jim Brown, posted 3/28/07 at OneNewsNow.com

Christian radio talk-show host Janet Parshall, a high-profile American evangelical known for her strong support of Israel, has dropped out of a Jerusalem conference sponsored by a Christian caucus of the Israeli Parliament. Parshall says she decided not to speak at the conference after she learned that the Knesset Christian Allies Caucus "condemns" and does not associate with groups that share the gospel of Jesus Christ. Hear This Report.

Parshall says she is also troubled that the strict religious political party Shas has yet again introduced legislation in the Knesset that would give up to a one-year prison sentence for people who share the gospel in Israel. "I thought, wait a minute: we can't just blindly support Israel," she observes. "We have to be able to tell them, as a friend, [that] you can't do that. You can't silence us."

The Christian radio commentator says Israel understands by now who evangelical Christians are and that their very nomenclature as evangelical Christians "means that we share the love of Jesus Christ." Individual Israelis may not accept Jesus as the Messiah, she notes, but they "cannot silence us from sharing [the gospel] with whomever might be interested in that message."

Also, Parshall points out, there is the added problem of censoring Christian evangelism, i.e., that "as Israel begins to move deeper and deeper in that direction, they start to replicate their Islamic neighbors." The talk-radio host says the Apostle Paul was given the exact same message in Jerusalem, told to "stop talking about the empty grave." But Paul did not follow that dictate, the American evangelical asserts, and neither will she.

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May God bless Ms. Parshall for her integrity and faithfulness.