Homosexualists cheered when the Senate passed the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) last year, which included only a narrow religious exemption. However, just months later, now with far greater power than they anticipated, homosexualists want that ENDA bill killed in favor of new legislation that specifically targets Christians' free speech and religious conscience.
Meanwhile, since the GOP-controlled House has never supported ENDA in any form, President Obama announced last month that he'd enact ENDA without Congress, but he's yet to do so because his pro-homosexual allies of the religious left are pleading that Obama's ENDA executive order include "strong religious exemptions," thus placing the president in between his big-money homosexualist advocates and his religious left homosexualist advocates.
However, in the latest development, there's now a rift in the homosexualist religious left exhibited by the issuance of a letter to the president from some extreme-left religious types urging Obama to force sexual deviancy on every church, synagogue, mosque, etc. with a vengeance.
UPDATE 7/22/14: Obama Orders ENDA Unilaterally, with NO Religious Exemption - - Court Challenges Loom
For background, click headlines below to read previous articles:
President Obama and Senate Continue to Push Transgender Privilege - ENDA
Houston Lesbian Mayor Agenda vs. Religious Liberty -- ENDA one town at a time
Homosexual 'Marriage' is Not Enough; Next Gay Agenda Goal
President Obama Ignores Law for Religious Freedom Ambassador
ObamaNation: Building Alters of Worship to Sexual Deviancy
Vice President Biden Says 'Gay Rights' Trump Religious Beliefs
Also read Liberals Furious over Supreme Court Rulings Favoring 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 "Rift Over Religious Exemption in Anti-Bias Order" by The Associated Press 7/9/14
[It] is a difficult balancing act for the White House, which says the executive order is still being drafted — nearly a month after Obama announced he would sign it. White House spokesman Josh Earnest declined to say whether a religious exemption would be included or was even being considered.
Within the past two weeks, scores of religious leaders of contrasting views have signed letters to Obama, arguing for and against an exemption.
One letter, signed by 14 faith leaders urging a "robust" exemption, was organized by Michael Wear, a Washington-based consultant who previously worked on Obama's re-election campaign and in the White House office of faith-based initiatives.
He said the exemption sought by the 14 signatories of his letter would not establish new prerogatives for religious organizations, but would enable them to continue long-standing hiring practices favoring people who share the employers' faith. Among those signing were popular evangelical preacher Rick Warren, prominent megachurch pastor and Obama confidant Joel Hunter, and the Rev. Larry Snyder, CEO of Catholic Charities USA.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Hobby Lobby Is Already Creating New Religious Demands on Obama" by Molly Ball, The Atlantic 7/2/14
[The letter] comes from a group of faith leaders who are generally friendly to the administration, many of whom have closely advised the White House on issues like immigration reform. The letter was organized by Michael Wear, who worked in the Obama White House and directed faith outreach for the president's 2012 campaign. Signers include two members of Catholics for Obama and three former members of the President’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.
Balancing religious freedom with other concerns, be they gay rights or health-care mandates, is difficult, said Stephen Schneck, director of the Institute for Policy Research and Catholic Studies at Catholic University and a signatory to the letter. The faith community simply wants to make sure its side is heard and respected as the administration tries to thread this delicate needle.
"It would be nice if we had just a little bit more leverage," said Schneck, a onetime cochair of Catholics for Obama. "I am a very strong supporter of LGBT rights, and I am really excited about the prospect of extending provisions against discrimination in federal contracts. But I am also aware that this is an issue that provokes real differences among some of the most important religious organization on the front lines of providing care for the poorest and most vulnerable." Those groups, he said, need to be allowed to work with the government while following the dictates of their faith.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Faith Groups Seek Exclusion From Bias Rule" by Julie Hirschfeld Davis and Erik Eckholm, New York Times 7/8/14
Mr. Wear, who calls himself an “ardent supporter” of the president and a backer of gay rights, said in an interview on Tuesday that the rationale of the organizations was to maintain the rights they have. “We’re not trying to support crazy claims of religious privilege,” he said.
The demands of the faith organizations pose a dilemma for Mr. Obama, who has struggled to preserve freedom of expression among religious groups while supporting the rights of gay men and lesbians. Mr. Obama could unleash a conservative uproar if he is seen as intruding on religious beliefs, but many of his strongest supporters would be bitterly disappointed if he appeared to grant any leeway to anti-gay discrimination.
The White House has given no reason for the executive order’s delay.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Gay rights groups halt support for ENDA workplace discrimination bill" by Timothy M. Phelps, Los Angeles Times 7/8/14
Led by the American Civil Liberties Union, the groups said they could no longer support the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, known as ENDA, which passed the Senate last fall.
The move, which has split gay rights groups, reflects the impact of last week's [Hobby Lobby] Supreme Court decision granting employers a religious exemption from providing workers with insurance coverage that includes contraceptives. Also at issue is the scope of an executive order that President Obama has promised that would ban discrimination against gays by companies doing business with the federal government.
The religious exemption in the proposed anti-discrimination law was added last year in a successful effort to attract some Republican support in the Senate, which passed the bill, 64 to 32. But some activist groups had been uncomfortable with the breadth of the exemption, and the Supreme Court's Hobby Lobby decision heightened concern over how it could be interpreted.
"ENDA's discriminatory provision, unprecedented in federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination, could provide religiously affiliated organizations — including hospitals, nursing homes and universities — a blank check to engage in workplace discrimination against LGBT people," the ACLU and four other national gay rights legal groups said in a statement announcing their position. The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force announced separately that it was withdrawing its support.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Gay Rights Groups Withdraw Support for ENDA Over Religious Exemption" by Michael Gryboski, Christian Post Reporter 7/9/14
Ironically, critics of ENDA have argued that the religious exemption provision does not do enough to protect religious organizations who may hold moral objections to homosexuality or transgenderism.
David Christensen, vice president for Government Affairs at the Washington, DC-based Family Research Council, told The Christian Post about his views on the ENDA exemption.
"The religious organization exemption in the Senate ENDA bill is very narrow to begin with. So it is incredible that some would drop support for even the narrow religious freedom protections under ENDA," said Christensen.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Gay Rights Groups Pull Support For ENDA Over Sweeping Religious Exemption" by Jennifer Bendery and Amanda Terkel, Huffington Post 7/9/14
Civil rights groups have long trumpeted their support for ENDA, which would make it illegal to fire or harass someone at work based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. But some have privately had concerns with an exemption in the current Senate bill that would allow businesses with religious affiliations to fire someone for being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. That language goes far beyond religious exemptions afforded under The Civil Rights Act of 1964 for characteristics like race, gender, religion or national origin.
The shift is a huge blow for the legislation, which passed the Senate last year, but has stalled in the House. But there were signs of discontent before the Supreme Court's ruling in Hobby Lobby. The National Center for Lesbian Rights and the Transgender Law Center, along with a few state LGBT groups, dropped support for the Senate version of ENDA early last month.
Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), sponsor of the Senate ENDA bill, demurred Tuesday when asked if it’s time to revisit the religious exemption in his legislation. He redirected attention to Obama’s forthcoming executive order on federal contractors. The order wouldn’t go as far as ENDA, but is still a top priority among civil rights groups.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "U.S. Bishops Wary of White House’s Promised ENDA Executive Order" by Brian Fraga, National Catholic Register 7/10/14
. . . Robert Destro, a law professor and founding director of the Interdisciplinary Program in Law & Religion at The Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law, told the Register that he does not expect the Obama administration, given its track record on advocating for same-sex “marriage” and homosexual-friendly policies, will be influenced by the Hobby Lobby ruling to accommodate religious liberty concerns in the executive order.
“The big problem across the board is that people who are hostile to the way Church sees things are running the show,” said Destro, who added that he expects the executive order will prompt a new wave of litigation.
“You really have a war between world views,” said Destro, who speculates that the next wave of “non-discrimination” legislation could even include attempts to get rid of marriage altogether because it supposedly discriminates against single people.
The bishops previously warned that ENDA threatened religious liberty and could undermine the institution of marriage. A letter sent last fall to the U.S. Senate — signed by three USCCB committee chairmen — said ENDA made no distinction between sexual conduct and sexual inclination, contained an inadequately narrow religious exemption and did not allow employers, in appropriate circumstances, to consider a job applicant’s sexual inclination.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From letter to President by homosexualist Rev. Jim Wallis 7/2/14
Dear Mr. President,
We are writing this private letter with regards to the Executive Order on discrimination against LGBT persons in federal contracts. We have questions about how this order will be worded, shaped, rolled out, and practiced in relationship to the faith community. In particular, we have concerns over the religious exemptions question which has become so understandably controversial.
We are in favor of non-discrimination protection of LGBT people—not only in federal contracts but throughout society. Many of us have endorsed the ENDA bill in the Senate. We have supported equal protection under the law for LGBT people and some of us support same-sex civil marriage as a part of that commitment to equal protection. So we share many of your goals.
Yet we also have a strong commitment to religious liberty and believe that the issues of equal protection and religious freedom must be very carefully balanced. . . .
Your allies in the progressive faith community also have strong convictions on religious liberty. We have had many experiences with governments around the world intruding upon the beliefs and practices of our global faith communities . . . [thus] we are still resistant to federal intrusion into the beliefs and practices of faith communities as a requirement of partnership; it is a creative tension we live with.
If religious exemptions are removed, withdrawn, or seriously cut back from those in place, like in ENDA, the perception will be that your administration is attacking religious freedom and liberty.
. . . it is imperative that the government is not perceived as stepping outside of its proper role and inappropriately influencing these theological conversations. Just as freedom of speech is only meaningful if it protects all viewpoints, ensuring religious liberty must be respected for churches and faith-based organizations who believe that heterosexual marriage is the biblical norm. And the state should not require faith-based organizations to violate those beliefs in order to receive government contracts or grants.
To read the entire letter above, CLICK HERE.
From letter to President by a list of far-left religious homosexualists 7/8/14
Dear Mr. President,
As faith and civic leaders dedicated to affirming the sacred dignity and equal worth of every person, we are grateful for your upcoming executive order ending discrimination against LGBT people in hiring by federal contractors. We urge you not to include a religious exemption in the executive order.
In a nation as diverse as the United States of America, it is critical that the federal government be trusted to follow — and indeed, to role-model — equitable employment practices. We believe that our mutual commitment to the common good is best served by policies that prohibit discrimination based on factors that have no relationship whatsoever to job performance. We are better and stronger as a nation when hiring decisions are made based on professional merit rather than personal identity.
An executive order that allows for religious discrimination against LGBT people contradicts the order’s fundamental purpose, as well as the belief shared by more and more Americans every day, which is that LGBT people should not be treated as second-class citizens. An exception would set a terrible precedent by denying true equality for LGBT people, while simultaneously opening a Pandora’s Box inviting other forms of discrimination.
To read the entire letter above, CLICK HERE.
And read American Decline: Obama's Gay Agenda vs. Christians as well as America Going to Hell; Christians Lose Convictions
Showing posts with label Jim Wallis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jim Wallis. Show all posts
Thursday, July 10, 2014
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Evangelical Message to Blame for GOP Losses?
In the wake of the elections, the media is filled with punditry from atheists and liberal "christians" to so-called evangelical leaders saying that the evangelical message must be changed to appeal to voters or the Republican party simply needs to jettison conservative Christians. Even Bible-believing Christians are being pitted against one another.
Hello?! By definition, a message that is truly evangelical CANNOT be changed.
For background, read Bishops Say Catholic Church Will Defy ObamaCare and also read Will 'Wimpy' Pastors Engage War on Christianity? as well as Religious Liberty & Anti-Christian Totalitarianism
UPDATE 12/2/12: Rev. Ken Hutcherson says Jim Daly is hiding behind compromise and alienating conservative Christians
UPDATE 11/22/12: GOP Moderation Lost the Election, Say Evangelicals
-- From "Hodges: Christian right must soften its tone, widen its agenda" by Corey J. Hodges, pastor of New Pilgrim Baptist Church and Special to The Salt Lake Tribune 11/14/12
Conservative evangelicals have to change if we intend to remain influential in the public arena. Changing our core values is not the solution. Christians derive their values from immutable biblical principles. But some shifting is necessary.
First, the tone of our discourse must change. . . . there is no place for intolerance and the divisive language . . .
Our focus has almost entirely been on opposing abortion and gay marriage. We have neglected issues such as poverty, health care and immigration reform, which arguably have just as much biblical support as the agendas we oppose. After all, the scriptures command us to exhibit love and compassion and to care for the less fortunate.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Focus on the Family head takes conciliatory tone after election" by Mitchell Landsberg, Los Angeles Times 11/10/12
[Focus on the Family leader Jim] Daly is willing to say things that few conservative evangelical leaders are likely to say. He believes, for instance, that the Christian right lost the fight against same-sex marriage in four states in part because it is on the losing side of a cultural paradigm. He says the evangelical community should have been considering immigration reform years ago, “but we were led more by political-think than church-think.”
These are controversial views in Daly's world, and he concedes that some of them have stirred anger among some of his fellow conservative Christians. But Daly, who exudes preternatural cheerfulness, said he believes that evangelicals need to win over friends, not make more enemies, and that the results of the election underlined the need to reach out to people with whom they have disagreements — including Obama — and seek common ground.
“Maybe we've been looking in the wrong direction and we've got to be more ecumenical,” he said.
Still, Daly parts ways with many of his associates when he says that the evangelical right is “fighting an uphill battle of demographics” on gay rights . . .
. . . Daly spoke of a willingness to work with abortion-rights groups to find common ground on adoption — a notion that would probably strike many Christian conservatives as appeasement.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Evangelicals struggle to stay relevant in Republican politics" by Ralph Z. Hallow, The Washington Times 11/13/12
The clout of evangelical voters, once a crucial part the Republican Party’s winning electoral coalition, has come under question after what some say was their failure in the past two presidential elections to put the Republican candidate over the top against a Democrat who had made few friends among social conservatives.
. . . Mr. Daly’s sentiments sit well with traditional Republicans and economic conservatives, some of whom have always felt that loud and uncompromising stands on social issues have cost the party support among a variety of constituencies, including women and a growing cadre of libertarian-minded younger voters.
But reflecting the views of many other conservative religious leaders, evangelical political organizer David Lane, founder of Pastor and Pews, said it was “an outrage” for Mr. Daly to call for Christians to stop engaging in culture wars. Mr. Lane said Mr. Daly was flying the “white flag of surrender” to political opponents of traditional values.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Evangelical Leaders Urge Immigration Shakeup" by Miriam Jordan, Wall Street Journal 11/13/12
More than 150 evangelical leaders called on President Barack Obama Tuesday to make revamping the nation's immigration system a top priority, following a presidential election in which the Latino vote was a decisive factor.
An open letter from the group demanded that Mr. Obama and the heads of the Senate and House of Representatives support a legalization program for the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. Among the signatories are Leith Anderson, president of the [seldom] conservative National Association of Evangelicals, and Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners, a liberal group.
It laid out six principles, including an immigration overhaul that protects family unity, respects the rule of law and guarantees secure borders. The letter said these principles reflect a "growing convergence" with positions by other religious, civic, business, labor and law-enforcement leaders.
Not all evangelicals are on board with legalizing undocumented immigrants.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "White Evangelical Asks Black Evangelicals Why They Re-Elected Obama" by Lillian Kwon, Christian Post Reporter 11/13/12
In an open letter to black evangelicals, Michael Brown candidly asks whether they compromised their beliefs by voting for the re-election of President Barack Obama.
"I simply do not understand how my black evangelical friends who so staunchly oppose same-sex marriage and who stand against abortion could cast their vote for the most radically pro-abortion, pro-gay-activist president in our history," he said as a fellow evangelical.
Brown said he is not attacking black voters in his open letter but that he's simply inquiring why nearly the same percentage of black Americans who voted for Obama four years ago did so again this year.
Black Christian leaders have expressed their disapproval of Obama's policies while on Brown's radio show and have even urged parishioners not to vote for the president. Brown listed Bishop Harry Jackson from the Washington, D.C., area as one of them.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Election 2012 Marks the End of Evangelical Dominance in Politics" by Jonathan Merritt, The Atlantic 11/13/12
. . . 79 percent of white evangelicals voted for Romney on Tuesday. That's the same percentage that Bush received in 2004, and more than Senator John McCain received in 2008. The evangelical vote was 27 percent of the overall electorate -- the highest it's ever been for an election.
Their support wasn't enough. Not only did Obama win soundly, but four states voted to allow same-sex marriage. [Correction: Three states]
[Why?]
First, evangelicals' size is a limitation. . . .
Second, evangelicals' influence is waning. Conservative Christian ideas are failing to shape the broader culture. . . .
Third, evangelical leadership is wanting. . . .
[The rising non-evangelicals] give me hope that American Christians may be on the cusp of a healthier engagement with the public square.
To read the entire opinion column above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Pastor Warns America of Socialism, Calls for Prayer
Hello?! By definition, a message that is truly evangelical CANNOT be changed.
For background, read Bishops Say Catholic Church Will Defy ObamaCare and also read Will 'Wimpy' Pastors Engage War on Christianity? as well as Religious Liberty & Anti-Christian Totalitarianism
UPDATE 12/2/12: Rev. Ken Hutcherson says Jim Daly is hiding behind compromise and alienating conservative Christians
UPDATE 11/22/12: GOP Moderation Lost the Election, Say Evangelicals
-- From "Hodges: Christian right must soften its tone, widen its agenda" by Corey J. Hodges, pastor of New Pilgrim Baptist Church and Special to The Salt Lake Tribune 11/14/12
Conservative evangelicals have to change if we intend to remain influential in the public arena. Changing our core values is not the solution. Christians derive their values from immutable biblical principles. But some shifting is necessary.
First, the tone of our discourse must change. . . . there is no place for intolerance and the divisive language . . .
Our focus has almost entirely been on opposing abortion and gay marriage. We have neglected issues such as poverty, health care and immigration reform, which arguably have just as much biblical support as the agendas we oppose. After all, the scriptures command us to exhibit love and compassion and to care for the less fortunate.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Focus on the Family head takes conciliatory tone after election" by Mitchell Landsberg, Los Angeles Times 11/10/12
[Focus on the Family leader Jim] Daly is willing to say things that few conservative evangelical leaders are likely to say. He believes, for instance, that the Christian right lost the fight against same-sex marriage in four states in part because it is on the losing side of a cultural paradigm. He says the evangelical community should have been considering immigration reform years ago, “but we were led more by political-think than church-think.”
These are controversial views in Daly's world, and he concedes that some of them have stirred anger among some of his fellow conservative Christians. But Daly, who exudes preternatural cheerfulness, said he believes that evangelicals need to win over friends, not make more enemies, and that the results of the election underlined the need to reach out to people with whom they have disagreements — including Obama — and seek common ground.
“Maybe we've been looking in the wrong direction and we've got to be more ecumenical,” he said.
Still, Daly parts ways with many of his associates when he says that the evangelical right is “fighting an uphill battle of demographics” on gay rights . . .
. . . Daly spoke of a willingness to work with abortion-rights groups to find common ground on adoption — a notion that would probably strike many Christian conservatives as appeasement.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Evangelicals struggle to stay relevant in Republican politics" by Ralph Z. Hallow, The Washington Times 11/13/12
The clout of evangelical voters, once a crucial part the Republican Party’s winning electoral coalition, has come under question after what some say was their failure in the past two presidential elections to put the Republican candidate over the top against a Democrat who had made few friends among social conservatives.
. . . Mr. Daly’s sentiments sit well with traditional Republicans and economic conservatives, some of whom have always felt that loud and uncompromising stands on social issues have cost the party support among a variety of constituencies, including women and a growing cadre of libertarian-minded younger voters.
But reflecting the views of many other conservative religious leaders, evangelical political organizer David Lane, founder of Pastor and Pews, said it was “an outrage” for Mr. Daly to call for Christians to stop engaging in culture wars. Mr. Lane said Mr. Daly was flying the “white flag of surrender” to political opponents of traditional values.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Evangelical Leaders Urge Immigration Shakeup" by Miriam Jordan, Wall Street Journal 11/13/12
More than 150 evangelical leaders called on President Barack Obama Tuesday to make revamping the nation's immigration system a top priority, following a presidential election in which the Latino vote was a decisive factor.
An open letter from the group demanded that Mr. Obama and the heads of the Senate and House of Representatives support a legalization program for the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. Among the signatories are Leith Anderson, president of the [seldom] conservative National Association of Evangelicals, and Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners, a liberal group.
It laid out six principles, including an immigration overhaul that protects family unity, respects the rule of law and guarantees secure borders. The letter said these principles reflect a "growing convergence" with positions by other religious, civic, business, labor and law-enforcement leaders.
Not all evangelicals are on board with legalizing undocumented immigrants.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "White Evangelical Asks Black Evangelicals Why They Re-Elected Obama" by Lillian Kwon, Christian Post Reporter 11/13/12
In an open letter to black evangelicals, Michael Brown candidly asks whether they compromised their beliefs by voting for the re-election of President Barack Obama.
"I simply do not understand how my black evangelical friends who so staunchly oppose same-sex marriage and who stand against abortion could cast their vote for the most radically pro-abortion, pro-gay-activist president in our history," he said as a fellow evangelical.
Brown said he is not attacking black voters in his open letter but that he's simply inquiring why nearly the same percentage of black Americans who voted for Obama four years ago did so again this year.
Black Christian leaders have expressed their disapproval of Obama's policies while on Brown's radio show and have even urged parishioners not to vote for the president. Brown listed Bishop Harry Jackson from the Washington, D.C., area as one of them.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Election 2012 Marks the End of Evangelical Dominance in Politics" by Jonathan Merritt, The Atlantic 11/13/12
. . . 79 percent of white evangelicals voted for Romney on Tuesday. That's the same percentage that Bush received in 2004, and more than Senator John McCain received in 2008. The evangelical vote was 27 percent of the overall electorate -- the highest it's ever been for an election.
Their support wasn't enough. Not only did Obama win soundly, but four states voted to allow same-sex marriage. [Correction: Three states]
[Why?]
First, evangelicals' size is a limitation. . . .
Second, evangelicals' influence is waning. Conservative Christian ideas are failing to shape the broader culture. . . .
Third, evangelical leadership is wanting. . . .
[The rising non-evangelicals] give me hope that American Christians may be on the cusp of a healthier engagement with the public square.
To read the entire opinion column above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Pastor Warns America of Socialism, Calls for Prayer
Friday, July 30, 2010
Religious Left Says 'Tea Party' Unbiblical
Just like the mainstream media, liberal/progressive 'christians' are desperate to paint grassroots Americans negatively.
-- From "Is The Tea Party Unbiblical?" by Alfredo Garcia, Religion News Service (on the Huffington Post) 7/23/10
When conservative broadcaster Glenn Beck warned churchgoers to "run as fast as you can" if their pastors preach about "social justice," was he also encouraging them to run from the Bible?
That's what some progressive Christian leaders are arguing as battle lines are drawn for the 2010 mid-term elections. They say Beck and his Tea Party followers are, in a word, unbiblical.
Not so fast, say Tea Party activists, who claim biblical grounds for a libertarian-minded Jesus. He didn't like tax-based welfare programs, they say, and encouraged his followers to donate from the heart.
The insurgent Tea Party movement threatens to usurp the political prominence of religious conservatives, whose focus on hot-button social issues has been overshadowed by the Tea Party's fight against big government.
[David Gushee, professor of Christian ethics at Mercer University and co-founder of the New Evangelical Partnership for the Common Good] described the Tea Party as "an uneasy marriage between the libertarian conservative strand and the Christian right strand" of American politics. In this "uneasy alliance," however, he said the Christian side has taken a backseat to the movement's libertarian impulses.
The Rev. Jim Wallis, founder of the Washington-based social justice group Sojourners, is even blunter in his assessment of the Tea Party's approach to giving.
"The libertarian enshrinement of individual choice is not the pre-eminent Christian virtue," he wrote on his blog, God's Politics. "Emphasizing individual rights at the expense of others violates the common good, a central Christian teaching and tradition."
Lloyd Marcus of Deltona, Fla., a spokesman for the Tea Party Express, is a born-again, nondenominational Christian who says flatly that "Jesus was not for socialism."
Joseph Farah, founder and CEO of the website WorldNetDaily and author of the new "Tea Party Manifesto," agreed.
"When Jesus talks about clothing the naked, feeding the hungry, he's talking to us as individuals," Farah said. The Bible does not "suggest that government is the institution that he designed to help the poor."
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
-- From "Is The Tea Party Unbiblical?" by Alfredo Garcia, Religion News Service (on the Huffington Post) 7/23/10
When conservative broadcaster Glenn Beck warned churchgoers to "run as fast as you can" if their pastors preach about "social justice," was he also encouraging them to run from the Bible?
That's what some progressive Christian leaders are arguing as battle lines are drawn for the 2010 mid-term elections. They say Beck and his Tea Party followers are, in a word, unbiblical.
Not so fast, say Tea Party activists, who claim biblical grounds for a libertarian-minded Jesus. He didn't like tax-based welfare programs, they say, and encouraged his followers to donate from the heart.
The insurgent Tea Party movement threatens to usurp the political prominence of religious conservatives, whose focus on hot-button social issues has been overshadowed by the Tea Party's fight against big government.
[David Gushee, professor of Christian ethics at Mercer University and co-founder of the New Evangelical Partnership for the Common Good] described the Tea Party as "an uneasy marriage between the libertarian conservative strand and the Christian right strand" of American politics. In this "uneasy alliance," however, he said the Christian side has taken a backseat to the movement's libertarian impulses.
The Rev. Jim Wallis, founder of the Washington-based social justice group Sojourners, is even blunter in his assessment of the Tea Party's approach to giving.
"The libertarian enshrinement of individual choice is not the pre-eminent Christian virtue," he wrote on his blog, God's Politics. "Emphasizing individual rights at the expense of others violates the common good, a central Christian teaching and tradition."
Lloyd Marcus of Deltona, Fla., a spokesman for the Tea Party Express, is a born-again, nondenominational Christian who says flatly that "Jesus was not for socialism."
Joseph Farah, founder and CEO of the website WorldNetDaily and author of the new "Tea Party Manifesto," agreed.
"When Jesus talks about clothing the naked, feeding the hungry, he's talking to us as individuals," Farah said. The Bible does not "suggest that government is the institution that he designed to help the poor."
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Media Portray Liberals as Christians RE: Glenn Beck
Due to journalists' ignorance of the Christian faith (and their anti-evangelical bias), they repeatedly report the social justice advocacy of liberal "christians" as if it were the core of Christianity, whether the subject at hand is electing Obama, or voting patterns, or higher education, or health care. With the help of the media, these liberals masquerading as Christians attempt to fool the public into believing that their social justice agenda is the sole Christian mission.
-- From "Evangelical leader takes on Beck for assailing social justice churches" By John Blake, CNN 3/12/10
An evangelical [sic] leader is calling for a boycott of Glenn Beck's television show and challenging the Fox News personality to a public debate after Beck vilified churches that preach economic and social justice.
The Rev. Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners, a network of progressive Christians, says Beck perverted Jesus' message when he urged Christians last week to leave churches that preach social and economic justice.
Wallis says Beck compared those churches to Communists and Nazis.
Wallis says at least 20,000 people have already responded to his call to boycott Beck. He says Beck is confusing his personal philosophy with the Bible.
Social and economic justice is at the heart of Jesus' message, Wallis says.
But a prominent evangelical leader says he, too, is suspicious of churches that preach economic and social justice.
Jerry Falwell Jr., president of Liberty University, a Christian college in Virginia, says Jesus wasn't interested in politics. He says that those pastors who preach economic and social justice "are trying to twist the gospel to say the gospel supported socialism."
"Jesus taught that we should give to the poor and support widows, but he never said that we should elect a government that would take money from our neighbor's hand and give it to the poor," Falwell says.
Falwell says that Jesus believed that individuals, not governments, should help the poor.
"If we all did as Jesus did when he helped the poor, we wouldn't need the government," says Falwell, the son of the late evangelical leader, the Rev. Jerry Falwell.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Christians Rip Glenn Beck Over 'Social Justice' Slam" by Hanna Siegel, ABC News 3/12/10
Wallis is in good company among leading Christians. The Rev. Canon Peg Chemberlin, president of the National Council of Churches of Christ USA, which oversees 100,000 [liberal] congregations across the country and has about 45 million members, has objected to Beck's comments as well.
On his radio and television shows, Beck suggested any church promoting "social justice" or "economic justice" merely was using code words for Nazism and communism.
"I beg you look for the words social justice or economic justice on your church Web site," he said. "If you find it, run as fast as you can. Social justice and economic justice, they are code words. ... Am I advising people to leave their church? Yes! If they're going to Jeremiah Wright's church, yes!
"If you have a priest that is pushing social justice, go find another parish," he said. "Go alert your bishop and tell them, 'Excuse me, are you down with this whole social justice thing?' If it's my church, I'm alerting the church authorities: 'Excuse me, what's this social justice thing?' And if they say, 'Yeah, we're all in on this social justice thing,' I am in the wrong place."
Stu Burguiere, executive producer at "The Glenn Beck Radio Program," sought to clarify Beck's comments today.
"Like most Americans, Glenn strongly supports and believes in 'social justice' when it is defined as 'good Christian charity,'" he said. "Glenn strongly opposes when Rev. Wright and other leaders use 'social justice' as a euphemism for their real intention -- redistribution of wealth."
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
-- From "Evangelical leader takes on Beck for assailing social justice churches" By John Blake, CNN 3/12/10
An evangelical [sic] leader is calling for a boycott of Glenn Beck's television show and challenging the Fox News personality to a public debate after Beck vilified churches that preach economic and social justice.
The Rev. Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners, a network of progressive Christians, says Beck perverted Jesus' message when he urged Christians last week to leave churches that preach social and economic justice.
Wallis says Beck compared those churches to Communists and Nazis.
Wallis says at least 20,000 people have already responded to his call to boycott Beck. He says Beck is confusing his personal philosophy with the Bible.
Social and economic justice is at the heart of Jesus' message, Wallis says.
But a prominent evangelical leader says he, too, is suspicious of churches that preach economic and social justice.
Jerry Falwell Jr., president of Liberty University, a Christian college in Virginia, says Jesus wasn't interested in politics. He says that those pastors who preach economic and social justice "are trying to twist the gospel to say the gospel supported socialism."
"Jesus taught that we should give to the poor and support widows, but he never said that we should elect a government that would take money from our neighbor's hand and give it to the poor," Falwell says.
Falwell says that Jesus believed that individuals, not governments, should help the poor.
"If we all did as Jesus did when he helped the poor, we wouldn't need the government," says Falwell, the son of the late evangelical leader, the Rev. Jerry Falwell.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Christians Rip Glenn Beck Over 'Social Justice' Slam" by Hanna Siegel, ABC News 3/12/10
Wallis is in good company among leading Christians. The Rev. Canon Peg Chemberlin, president of the National Council of Churches of Christ USA, which oversees 100,000 [liberal] congregations across the country and has about 45 million members, has objected to Beck's comments as well.
On his radio and television shows, Beck suggested any church promoting "social justice" or "economic justice" merely was using code words for Nazism and communism.
"I beg you look for the words social justice or economic justice on your church Web site," he said. "If you find it, run as fast as you can. Social justice and economic justice, they are code words. ... Am I advising people to leave their church? Yes! If they're going to Jeremiah Wright's church, yes!
"If you have a priest that is pushing social justice, go find another parish," he said. "Go alert your bishop and tell them, 'Excuse me, are you down with this whole social justice thing?' If it's my church, I'm alerting the church authorities: 'Excuse me, what's this social justice thing?' And if they say, 'Yeah, we're all in on this social justice thing,' I am in the wrong place."
Stu Burguiere, executive producer at "The Glenn Beck Radio Program," sought to clarify Beck's comments today.
"Like most Americans, Glenn strongly supports and believes in 'social justice' when it is defined as 'good Christian charity,'" he said. "Glenn strongly opposes when Rev. Wright and other leaders use 'social justice' as a euphemism for their real intention -- redistribution of wealth."
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Leftist Teaching at Wheaton College, Illinois
[T]he current document known as the “conceptual framework” of the education department at Wheaton College [includes] the father of the social justice movement, Brazilian Marxist, Paulo Freire and former Weather Underground terrorist Bill Ayers.
UPDATE 7/1/13: College officially changes "conceptual framework" back to Christianity
UPDATE 9/12/11: College revises teaching, hopefully for the best
UPDATE 3/11/10: Teaching Social Justice at Wheaton College (from Illinois Family Institute)
UPDATE 3/5/10: Wheaton College's Promotion of Social Justice (includes link to audio quotes from the College)
UPDATE 3/2/10: Wheaton responds, but provides no evidence to refute the accusations below (post dated 2/25/10)
-- From "Billy Graham Meets Bill Ayers" by Sandy Rios, Culture Campaign (posted at Townhall.com) 2/26/10
There’s hardly an evangelical who doesn’t know about Wheaton College. Alma Mater of the Reverend Billy Graham . . .
So imagine the dismay of many to learn that, in an effort to educate its students, Wheaton has moved to the left, so much so that in a survey by the Wheaton Record, 60 percent of its faculty voted for President Barack Obama, the most pro-abortion, pro-homosexual agenda, spiritually confused president the nation has ever elected.
How can this be? Perhaps much of it can be attributed to a movement widely embraced by the campus known as “social justice.”
. . . Why would Wheaton College embrace such a philosophy? “…these are people you can learn from because they’re going to teach us Christians that maybe we have some blind spots here, that we’ve been oblivious to certain areas of injustice,” said President Duane Litfin.
Dr. Jillian Lederhouse, chairman of the department of education defended the conceptual framework by saying “we don’t teach our students to be afraid on an ideology as long as we give them a critical perspective. We do not have a list of people we do not read. Our goal is to produce a thinking Christian teacher.” And that is as it should be in an institution of higher learning, except for one thing. Lederhouse went on to admit that the people who were foundational to Wheaton’s conceptual framework were all on the far left.
To read the entire commentary above, CLICK HERE.
From "Wheaton College Invites Leftist, Pro-Homosexual Evangelical Jim Wallis to Speak" By Peter LaBarbera, AmericansForTruth.com February 2008
[Wheaton College's Center for Applied Christian, CACE, in September 2007 invited] homosexual “gay christian” activist Harry Knox to speak at a panel discussion on “HIV and Morality,” as a representative of the (traditional-Christian-bashing) homosexual activist group Human Rights Campaign.
. . . If I’m not mistaken, Harry talked about his relationship with his male partner at the Wheaton panel discussion, which was titled, “Thy Kingdom Come: Christian Moral Engagement in the World.”
The following excerpt is taken from page 229 of “The Great Awakening” [by Jim Wallis, the Wheaton College CACE speaker of February 2008:]
UPDATE 7/1/13: College officially changes "conceptual framework" back to Christianity
UPDATE 9/12/11: College revises teaching, hopefully for the best
UPDATE 3/11/10: Teaching Social Justice at Wheaton College (from Illinois Family Institute)
UPDATE 3/5/10: Wheaton College's Promotion of Social Justice (includes link to audio quotes from the College)
UPDATE 3/2/10: Wheaton responds, but provides no evidence to refute the accusations below (post dated 2/25/10)
-- From "Billy Graham Meets Bill Ayers" by Sandy Rios, Culture Campaign (posted at Townhall.com) 2/26/10
There’s hardly an evangelical who doesn’t know about Wheaton College. Alma Mater of the Reverend Billy Graham . . .
So imagine the dismay of many to learn that, in an effort to educate its students, Wheaton has moved to the left, so much so that in a survey by the Wheaton Record, 60 percent of its faculty voted for President Barack Obama, the most pro-abortion, pro-homosexual agenda, spiritually confused president the nation has ever elected.
How can this be? Perhaps much of it can be attributed to a movement widely embraced by the campus known as “social justice.”
. . . Why would Wheaton College embrace such a philosophy? “…these are people you can learn from because they’re going to teach us Christians that maybe we have some blind spots here, that we’ve been oblivious to certain areas of injustice,” said President Duane Litfin.
Dr. Jillian Lederhouse, chairman of the department of education defended the conceptual framework by saying “we don’t teach our students to be afraid on an ideology as long as we give them a critical perspective. We do not have a list of people we do not read. Our goal is to produce a thinking Christian teacher.” And that is as it should be in an institution of higher learning, except for one thing. Lederhouse went on to admit that the people who were foundational to Wheaton’s conceptual framework were all on the far left.
To read the entire commentary above, CLICK HERE.
From "Wheaton College Invites Leftist, Pro-Homosexual Evangelical Jim Wallis to Speak" By Peter LaBarbera, AmericansForTruth.com February 2008
[Wheaton College's Center for Applied Christian, CACE, in September 2007 invited] homosexual “gay christian” activist Harry Knox to speak at a panel discussion on “HIV and Morality,” as a representative of the (traditional-Christian-bashing) homosexual activist group Human Rights Campaign.
. . . If I’m not mistaken, Harry talked about his relationship with his male partner at the Wheaton panel discussion, which was titled, “Thy Kingdom Come: Christian Moral Engagement in the World.”
The following excerpt is taken from page 229 of “The Great Awakening” [by Jim Wallis, the Wheaton College CACE speaker of February 2008:]
“I support civil rights laws for same-sex couples. That, for me, is a justice issue. Many Christians, and I include myself, prefer the solution of ‘civil unions’ from the state, and even spiritual ‘blessings’ for gay couples (from congregations prepared to offer them), rather than altering the church’s sacrament of marriage as between a man and a woman, but those differences should not be fundamentally divisive. Gay marriage should not be the primary battleground in the fight for the health and stability of marriage and family in our society. In a pluralistic democracy, we should support civil and human rights for all our citizens, regardless of our different theological and biblical interpretations of the complicated and thorny issues surrounding homosexuality. New evidence and understanding around those issues could cause any of us to alter our views. But we should find common ground by supporting concrete practices and practical policies that strengthen families and nurture all our children.”To read the entire commentary above, CLICK HERE.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Obama Recruits Religious Leaders as Propagandists
President Barack Obama participated in a scripted online discussion of his health care overhaul with a friendly audience of religious voters and pastors Wednesday. It ended with him bemoaning those who bear "false witness" against his plans - and then making a claim of his own that's been widely shown to be false.
UPDATE 8/21/09: Pro-life leader calls President dishonest
-- From "Fighting false health care claims, Obama repeats one of his own" by Steven thomma, McClatchy Newspapers 8/19/09
[President Obama] said the first thing he wanted to correct was the idea that the proposed overhaul would force some people into different health care plans. "If you like your health care plan, you can keep your health care plan," he said, repeating one of his stock lines.
That's not true, however, according to FactCheck.org, an independent truth squad run by the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.
Obama also said that there would be no federal financing of abortion under the plans, a charge made again Wednesday by the Republican National Committee.
"These are all fabrications," Obama said.
He said he'd need help from the people on the call to correct the record, and prod Congress to pass a health care plan.
"I'm going to need the help of all of you," he said. "Knock on doors, speak the truth."
The 40-minute program, on blogtalkradio.com, featured testimonials about the need for health care changes from pastors and members of various churches, mosques, synagogues and temples around the country, all of them apparently supporters of Obama's proposals.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 8/21/09: Pro-life leader calls President dishonest
-- From "Fighting false health care claims, Obama repeats one of his own" by Steven thomma, McClatchy Newspapers 8/19/09
[President Obama] said the first thing he wanted to correct was the idea that the proposed overhaul would force some people into different health care plans. "If you like your health care plan, you can keep your health care plan," he said, repeating one of his stock lines.
That's not true, however, according to FactCheck.org, an independent truth squad run by the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.
Obama also said that there would be no federal financing of abortion under the plans, a charge made again Wednesday by the Republican National Committee.
"These are all fabrications," Obama said.
He said he'd need help from the people on the call to correct the record, and prod Congress to pass a health care plan.
"I'm going to need the help of all of you," he said. "Knock on doors, speak the truth."
The 40-minute program, on blogtalkradio.com, featured testimonials about the need for health care changes from pastors and members of various churches, mosques, synagogues and temples around the country, all of them apparently supporters of Obama's proposals.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Liberal 'Christians' Predictably Support Democrat Health Care Reform
. . . the religious left is rallying behind the health care package being debated in Congress and decrying the tactics used by the plan’s rightwing opponents.
UPDATE: ELCA Lutherans' own health insurance plan for clergy and church employees covers abortion -- even for sex-selection.
UPDATE 8/19/09: Obama orchestrates his faithful following
-- From "‘Religious Left’ tackles health care reform" by Andy Birkey, Minnesota Independent 8/18/09
A new coalition is promising “40 Days of Health Reform” — and it’ll hit Minneapolis in the next few weeks.
The campaign was launched to show the spiritual need for health reform, not to support any one specific set of policies. And it’s seen some immediate success as President Obama will join coalition members on a conference call later this week.
“This isn’t a political issue, it is a deeply theological issue, a biblical issue, and a moral issue,” said Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners magazine in a conference call last week. “So we are not going to at any time during the debate weigh in on the particulars of policy questions…[We’ll] leave the plumbing to the politicians.”
Wallis didn’t mince words in a recent editorial in his publication. “The ’storm troopers’ of political demagoguery, such as Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, and Glenn Beck, have mobilized their followers to disrupt town meetings and defeat comprehensive reform by yelling louder than anybody else,” he wrote. “The campaign tactics include lies, intimidation, character assassination, verbal abuse, and even mob behavior against members of Congress trying to conduct town hall meetings on the issues.”
[The 40 Days coalition includes the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, as well as] some of America’s largest [liberal 'Christian'] denominations: The Episcopal Church, the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc., United Methodist Church, the Unitarian Universalist Association, African Methodist Episcopal Church, the National Council of Churches in Christ, the Presbyterian Church (USA), and the United Church of Christ.
Some [liberal] Catholic groups are also on board: NETWORK, a National Catholic Social Justice Lobby, Catholics United, and Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good.
For Catholics and many other people of faith, the issue of abortion is an important one, but the coalition is refusing to let it be a stumbling block.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE: ELCA Lutherans' own health insurance plan for clergy and church employees covers abortion -- even for sex-selection.
UPDATE 8/19/09: Obama orchestrates his faithful following
-- From "‘Religious Left’ tackles health care reform" by Andy Birkey, Minnesota Independent 8/18/09
A new coalition is promising “40 Days of Health Reform” — and it’ll hit Minneapolis in the next few weeks.
The campaign was launched to show the spiritual need for health reform, not to support any one specific set of policies. And it’s seen some immediate success as President Obama will join coalition members on a conference call later this week.
“This isn’t a political issue, it is a deeply theological issue, a biblical issue, and a moral issue,” said Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners magazine in a conference call last week. “So we are not going to at any time during the debate weigh in on the particulars of policy questions…[We’ll] leave the plumbing to the politicians.”
Wallis didn’t mince words in a recent editorial in his publication. “The ’storm troopers’ of political demagoguery, such as Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, and Glenn Beck, have mobilized their followers to disrupt town meetings and defeat comprehensive reform by yelling louder than anybody else,” he wrote. “The campaign tactics include lies, intimidation, character assassination, verbal abuse, and even mob behavior against members of Congress trying to conduct town hall meetings on the issues.”
[The 40 Days coalition includes the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, as well as] some of America’s largest [liberal 'Christian'] denominations: The Episcopal Church, the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc., United Methodist Church, the Unitarian Universalist Association, African Methodist Episcopal Church, the National Council of Churches in Christ, the Presbyterian Church (USA), and the United Church of Christ.
Some [liberal] Catholic groups are also on board: NETWORK, a National Catholic Social Justice Lobby, Catholics United, and Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good.
For Catholics and many other people of faith, the issue of abortion is an important one, but the coalition is refusing to let it be a stumbling block.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Friday, August 07, 2009
Obama's Liberal 'Christians' Preach for ObamaCare
Following a White House request, the social gospel "Christian leaders" are making the rounds stumping for government-run health care, saying it is a biblical mandate.
The White House wants reports from Americans of anyone who is criticizing the President's health care proposals. You're supposed to watch for "fishy" E-mails be passed around America. Would the White House consider your thoughts/comments as "fishy?" CLICK HERE to tell the White House
-- From "Faith groups unite for health care: Claim it is a fundamental moral issue" by Jacqueline L. Salmon, The Washington Post 7/26/09
Several large coalitions are mobilizing religious communities nationwide in support of overhauling the nation’s health-care system.
In recent weeks, hundreds of clergy members and lay leaders have descended on the offices of members of Congress, urging lawmakers to enact health-care legislation this year. With face-to-face lobbying, sermons, prayer and advertising on Christian radio stations, the coalitions are pressing the idea that health care for everyone is a fundamental moral issue.
The efforts have been coordinated closely with the Obama administration. A group of faith leaders met with President Obama in April, and administration officials took part last month in a rally at Freedom Plaza with representatives of more than 40 denominations and faith groups in support of comprehensive health coverage.
Showing up at the rally were Joshua DuBois, executive director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, and Neera Tanden, senior adviser to the Department of Health and Human Services.
“Your united voice is critical,” Tanden told the gathering. “We are, in the next two months, at the most critical time of trying to get (health-care) legislation passed.”
One coalition of mostly liberal and centrist religious groups was organized by Sojourners, an evangelical group; Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good; Faith in Public Life, a Washington think tank; and PICO National Network, an alliance of 1,000 U.S. congregations. It originally grew out of frustration that conservative Christian groups were dominating the national faith conversation on social issues. The coalition is speaking out on such issues as health-care reform and comprehensive immigration reform.
In August, paid organizers will meet with pastors to help them organize their congregations, develop talking points for meetings with members of Congress and coordinate with other groups and individuals - religious and secular.
Conservative Christian groups say the coalitions are using the common language of faith to disguise unpopular ideas.
“I don’t think they speak for the vast majority of Americans,” said Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, who has debated the Rev. Jim Wallis, executive director of Sojourners, several times on the health-care issue. “They are playing on the sympathies and passions of most Christians.”
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
The White House wants reports from Americans of anyone who is criticizing the President's health care proposals. You're supposed to watch for "fishy" E-mails be passed around America. Would the White House consider your thoughts/comments as "fishy?" CLICK HERE to tell the White House
-- From "Faith groups unite for health care: Claim it is a fundamental moral issue" by Jacqueline L. Salmon, The Washington Post 7/26/09
Several large coalitions are mobilizing religious communities nationwide in support of overhauling the nation’s health-care system.
In recent weeks, hundreds of clergy members and lay leaders have descended on the offices of members of Congress, urging lawmakers to enact health-care legislation this year. With face-to-face lobbying, sermons, prayer and advertising on Christian radio stations, the coalitions are pressing the idea that health care for everyone is a fundamental moral issue.
The efforts have been coordinated closely with the Obama administration. A group of faith leaders met with President Obama in April, and administration officials took part last month in a rally at Freedom Plaza with representatives of more than 40 denominations and faith groups in support of comprehensive health coverage.
Showing up at the rally were Joshua DuBois, executive director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, and Neera Tanden, senior adviser to the Department of Health and Human Services.
“Your united voice is critical,” Tanden told the gathering. “We are, in the next two months, at the most critical time of trying to get (health-care) legislation passed.”
One coalition of mostly liberal and centrist religious groups was organized by Sojourners, an evangelical group; Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good; Faith in Public Life, a Washington think tank; and PICO National Network, an alliance of 1,000 U.S. congregations. It originally grew out of frustration that conservative Christian groups were dominating the national faith conversation on social issues. The coalition is speaking out on such issues as health-care reform and comprehensive immigration reform.
In August, paid organizers will meet with pastors to help them organize their congregations, develop talking points for meetings with members of Congress and coordinate with other groups and individuals - religious and secular.
Conservative Christian groups say the coalitions are using the common language of faith to disguise unpopular ideas.
“I don’t think they speak for the vast majority of Americans,” said Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, who has debated the Rev. Jim Wallis, executive director of Sojourners, several times on the health-care issue. “They are playing on the sympathies and passions of most Christians.”
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Can Encouraging Sexual Activity Result in Fewer Deaths of the Unborn?
Congress and the Obama administration will be considering new legislation that includes more money for teaching children how to have sex and use a variety of devices and medications to preclude discernible pregnancies -- all under the banner of reducing abortions.
Obviously, the liberals have recognized that Americans are predominantly pro-life, and so now the game is to fool the public into thinking that no lives are snuffed out by these so-called contraceptives.
-- From "Democratic Bill Could Be a Preview of Obama's Abortion Plan" by Dan Gilgoff, posted at U.S. News & World Report 7/23/09
Democratic Reps. Tim Ryan and Rosa DeLauro reintroduced their bill aimed at preventing unintended pregnancies and "reducing the need for abortion" today. This is big news because moderate to liberal faith-based advocates are urging the White House to adopt the bill—the Preventing Unintended Pregnancies, Reducing the Need for Abortion, and Supporting Parents Act—as the core of its forthcoming "common ground" plan on abortion and reproductive health.
Conservative religious groups, including the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Southern Baptist Convention, have warned the White House that the Ryan-DeLauro bill is a deal breaker for them, since the bill funds contraception and comprehensive sex education.
. . . the folks who've recently come out for Ryan-DeLauro include White House buds Rev. Joel Hunter, Rev. Jim Wallis, Faith in Public Life, and Third Way, not to mention abortion rights groups like NARAL and Planned Parenthood.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Obviously, the liberals have recognized that Americans are predominantly pro-life, and so now the game is to fool the public into thinking that no lives are snuffed out by these so-called contraceptives.
-- From "Democratic Bill Could Be a Preview of Obama's Abortion Plan" by Dan Gilgoff, posted at U.S. News & World Report 7/23/09
Democratic Reps. Tim Ryan and Rosa DeLauro reintroduced their bill aimed at preventing unintended pregnancies and "reducing the need for abortion" today. This is big news because moderate to liberal faith-based advocates are urging the White House to adopt the bill—the Preventing Unintended Pregnancies, Reducing the Need for Abortion, and Supporting Parents Act—as the core of its forthcoming "common ground" plan on abortion and reproductive health.
Conservative religious groups, including the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Southern Baptist Convention, have warned the White House that the Ryan-DeLauro bill is a deal breaker for them, since the bill funds contraception and comprehensive sex education.
. . . the folks who've recently come out for Ryan-DeLauro include White House buds Rev. Joel Hunter, Rev. Jim Wallis, Faith in Public Life, and Third Way, not to mention abortion rights groups like NARAL and Planned Parenthood.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Religious Left Herald End of Biblical Witness
The landslide passage of Hate Crimes legislation in the House has elated so-called christian leaders who espouse ridiculous interpretations of the Bible.
-- From "Christian Leaders: Hate Crimes Bill Is Necessary, Moral" press release by the heretics 4/29/09
Influential Christian leaders who have not previously spoken publicly on this legislation are declaring their support for the hate crimes bill that Congress has taken up this week:
Dr. David P. Gushee, Distinguished University, Professor of Christian Ethics, Mercer University: This bill deserves Christian support because its aim is to protect the dignity and basic human rights of all Americans [albeit unequally], and especially those Americans whose perceived "differentness" makes them vulnerable to physical attacks motivated by bias, hatred and fear. . . . For me, the case for this bill is settled with these words from Jesus: "As you did it to one of the least of these, you did it to me" (Mt. 25:40).
Rev. Dr. Derrick Harkins, Pastor, Nineteenth Street Baptist Church, Washington, DC: The Scriptures are replete with examples of God's concern and compassion for those seen as "other" by many. I welcome the opportunity to support this bill as an expression of my Christian witness, and my belief in our nation's highest aims for all its citizens.
Jim Wallis, President and CEO, Sojourners: Too often in our country when violence has been directed against gay and lesbian people, most Christians have been painfully silent.
Stephen Schneck, Director, Life Cycle Institute, The Catholic University of America: Gay and lesbian Americans need the protection this legislation offers.
To read the entire press release, CLICK HERE.
-- From "Christian Leaders: Hate Crimes Bill Is Necessary, Moral" press release by the heretics 4/29/09
Influential Christian leaders who have not previously spoken publicly on this legislation are declaring their support for the hate crimes bill that Congress has taken up this week:
Dr. David P. Gushee, Distinguished University, Professor of Christian Ethics, Mercer University: This bill deserves Christian support because its aim is to protect the dignity and basic human rights of all Americans [albeit unequally], and especially those Americans whose perceived "differentness" makes them vulnerable to physical attacks motivated by bias, hatred and fear. . . . For me, the case for this bill is settled with these words from Jesus: "As you did it to one of the least of these, you did it to me" (Mt. 25:40).
Rev. Dr. Derrick Harkins, Pastor, Nineteenth Street Baptist Church, Washington, DC: The Scriptures are replete with examples of God's concern and compassion for those seen as "other" by many. I welcome the opportunity to support this bill as an expression of my Christian witness, and my belief in our nation's highest aims for all its citizens.
Jim Wallis, President and CEO, Sojourners: Too often in our country when violence has been directed against gay and lesbian people, most Christians have been painfully silent.
Stephen Schneck, Director, Life Cycle Institute, The Catholic University of America: Gay and lesbian Americans need the protection this legislation offers.
To read the entire press release, CLICK HERE.
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
Obama & Tony Blair Team up Against Pope, Favor Homosexuality
While Great Britain's former Prime Minister, and recent Roman Catholic convert, challenges the “entrenched” attitudes of the Pope on homosexuality, and argued that it is time for him to “rethink” his views, President Obama has named Harry Knox, a Pope-bashing homosexual activist, to his faith-based initiative.
UPDATE 2/3/10: Obama Adviser, Harry Knox, Stands by Statement That Pope Is 'Hurting People in the Name of Jesus'
-- From "Tony Blair tells the Pope: you're wrong on homosexuality" by Ruth Gledhill, The Times Religion Correspondent 4/8/09
Speaking to the gay magazine Attitude, the former Prime Minister, himself now a Roman Catholic, said that he wanted to urge religious figures everywhere to reinterpret their religious texts to see them as metaphorical, not literal, and suggested that in time this would make all religious groups accept gay people as equals.
In the interview Mr Blair spoke of a “quiet revolution in thinking” and implied that he believed the Pope to be out of step with the public.
“There are many good and great things the Catholic Church does, and there are many fantastic things this Pope stands for, but I think what is interesting is that if you went into any Catholic Church, particularly a wellattended one, on any Sunday here and did a poll of the congregation, you’d be surprised at how liberal-minded people were.” The faith of ordinary Catholics is rarely found “in those types of entrenched attitudes”, he said.
To read the entire, above article, CLICK HERE.
From "Obama Names Pope-Basher to Faith-Based Initiative Board" by Fred Lucas, Staff Writer CNSNews.com 4/6/09
President Barack Obama has named to the federal government’s faith-based initiative a gay-rights activist who, last month, described Pope Benedict XVI and certain Catholic bishops as “discredited leaders” because of their opposition to same-sex marriage.
Harry Knox, who is a newly appointed member of Obama’s Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, is the director of the religion and faith program at the Human Rights Campaign, a homosexual activist group.
Knox told CNSNews.com that he “absolutely” stands by his criticism of the pope.
"The Pope needs to start telling the truth about condom use," Knox said on Monday, Apr. 6. "We are eager to help him do that. Until he is willing to do that and able, he's doing a great deal more harm than good -- not just in Africa but around the world. It is endangering people's lives.”
According to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Web site, the religion and faith program run by Knox has created “a weekly preaching resource that provides scriptural commentary to ministers and lay people interested in an ecumenical gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender perspective on the Bible."
The appointment of Knox advisory board makes a mockery of the faith-based program, said Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League.
“This is exactly the kind of bastardization of common sense that the Obama people are putting forth,” Donohue told CNSNews.com. “Quite frankly, I would prefer to see the entire faith-based initiative closed down. They’re going to use this as political capital in the Obama administration to say, ‘We reach out to people of faith.’ The whole thing is a sham.”
Conservatives have already expressed concern that Obama’s faith-based advisory council is heavy with liberal activists, such as the Rev. Jim Wallis, the Rev. Otis Moss Jr. and Rabbi David N. Saperstein, among other left-leaning clergy on the council who have advocated for more social spending, less restrictive immigration policies and more environmental regulations. Some council members have been avid supporters of abortion rights, gay marriage, and keeping a strict separation of church and state.
To read the entire, above article, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 5/8/09
UPDATE 2/3/10: Obama Adviser, Harry Knox, Stands by Statement That Pope Is 'Hurting People in the Name of Jesus'
-- From "Tony Blair tells the Pope: you're wrong on homosexuality" by Ruth Gledhill, The Times Religion Correspondent 4/8/09
Speaking to the gay magazine Attitude, the former Prime Minister, himself now a Roman Catholic, said that he wanted to urge religious figures everywhere to reinterpret their religious texts to see them as metaphorical, not literal, and suggested that in time this would make all religious groups accept gay people as equals.
In the interview Mr Blair spoke of a “quiet revolution in thinking” and implied that he believed the Pope to be out of step with the public.
“There are many good and great things the Catholic Church does, and there are many fantastic things this Pope stands for, but I think what is interesting is that if you went into any Catholic Church, particularly a wellattended one, on any Sunday here and did a poll of the congregation, you’d be surprised at how liberal-minded people were.” The faith of ordinary Catholics is rarely found “in those types of entrenched attitudes”, he said.
To read the entire, above article, CLICK HERE.
From "Obama Names Pope-Basher to Faith-Based Initiative Board" by Fred Lucas, Staff Writer CNSNews.com 4/6/09
President Barack Obama has named to the federal government’s faith-based initiative a gay-rights activist who, last month, described Pope Benedict XVI and certain Catholic bishops as “discredited leaders” because of their opposition to same-sex marriage.
Harry Knox, who is a newly appointed member of Obama’s Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, is the director of the religion and faith program at the Human Rights Campaign, a homosexual activist group.
Knox told CNSNews.com that he “absolutely” stands by his criticism of the pope.
"The Pope needs to start telling the truth about condom use," Knox said on Monday, Apr. 6. "We are eager to help him do that. Until he is willing to do that and able, he's doing a great deal more harm than good -- not just in Africa but around the world. It is endangering people's lives.”
According to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Web site, the religion and faith program run by Knox has created “a weekly preaching resource that provides scriptural commentary to ministers and lay people interested in an ecumenical gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender perspective on the Bible."
The appointment of Knox advisory board makes a mockery of the faith-based program, said Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League.
“This is exactly the kind of bastardization of common sense that the Obama people are putting forth,” Donohue told CNSNews.com. “Quite frankly, I would prefer to see the entire faith-based initiative closed down. They’re going to use this as political capital in the Obama administration to say, ‘We reach out to people of faith.’ The whole thing is a sham.”
Conservatives have already expressed concern that Obama’s faith-based advisory council is heavy with liberal activists, such as the Rev. Jim Wallis, the Rev. Otis Moss Jr. and Rabbi David N. Saperstein, among other left-leaning clergy on the council who have advocated for more social spending, less restrictive immigration policies and more environmental regulations. Some council members have been avid supporters of abortion rights, gay marriage, and keeping a strict separation of church and state.
To read the entire, above article, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 5/8/09
Thursday, November 27, 2008
The Religious Left 'Taste' the Millennium in Obama
After stewing with anger across 8 years in the wilderness, liberal prelates are shouting Hosanna in expectation of spiritual enlightenment during the Obama reign.
-- From "The Religious Left Celebrates" Commentary by Mark D. Tooley, posted at FrontPageMagazine.com 11/12/08
"We at the National Council of Churches urge all Americans to come together to uphold you with our hands, our hearts and our prayers," the NCC's chief, Michael Kinnamon wrote his congratulatory letter to Obama. The NCC, previously the voice of America's premier religious denominations, once truly walked in the corridors of power. It has never fully accepted its transition from mainline to sideline in America's religious demographic. As recently as 1995, the NCC was invited to the White House to "pray" for President Clinton as he was resisting the new Republican Congress. No doubt, the NCC is praying that its White House visitation rights will soon be restored.
. . . Rev. Kinnamon could not suppress his excitement. "The leaders of this Council pledge to you our unstinting support in the difficult days to come," he promised Obama. "All of us are dependent on God's loving mercy, and we will regularly pray for you and others elected to high leadership. May your wisdom and discernment serve you well, and may your health never wane."
Maybe even more excitable than the NCC was the United Methodist Council of Bishops, who were meeting in Georgia during the election, and could barely contain their joy.
United Methodism's chief lobbyist on Capitol Hill, Jim Winkler, who once called for President Bush's impeachment before retracting the call amid controversy, was also looking forward to ending his exile from White House events. "Barack Obama is a person of deep faith," he enthused. "I fully expect The United Methodist Church, for the first time in many years, will be welcomed in the White House." [Note: President Bush is the first Methodist president since William McKinley]
Another likely White House religious visitor during the Obama years is Sojourners chief Jim Wallis, who has been feverishly attempting to create an Evangelical Left that would undermine evangelicals' traditional conservative voting habits. This new Evangelical Left, largely a repackaging of the old Religious Left for a new audience that cannot remember the 1960's, wants to persuade evangelicals that Global Warming and opposing U.S. military actions is more important than upholding traditional marriage or opposing abortion.
Wallis claimed that his campaign was successful. "Polls leading up to the election showed a significant break from the previous generation on issues like gay marriage and abortion, which while still a top concern, it is not the only one," he rejoiced. . . Wallis, an old 1960's student radical who now wants to be seen as a soothing centrist, claimed, "These religious voters refuse to be distracted by the culture wars of the previous generation."
To read the entire commentary, CLICK HERE.
AGENDA: Grinding America Down (full movie on YouTube):
AGENDA: Grinding America Down (Full Movie) FREE to watch for a limited time (click here)! from Copybook Heading Productions LLC on Vimeo.
-- From "The Religious Left Celebrates" Commentary by Mark D. Tooley, posted at FrontPageMagazine.com 11/12/08
"We at the National Council of Churches urge all Americans to come together to uphold you with our hands, our hearts and our prayers," the NCC's chief, Michael Kinnamon wrote his congratulatory letter to Obama. The NCC, previously the voice of America's premier religious denominations, once truly walked in the corridors of power. It has never fully accepted its transition from mainline to sideline in America's religious demographic. As recently as 1995, the NCC was invited to the White House to "pray" for President Clinton as he was resisting the new Republican Congress. No doubt, the NCC is praying that its White House visitation rights will soon be restored.
. . . Rev. Kinnamon could not suppress his excitement. "The leaders of this Council pledge to you our unstinting support in the difficult days to come," he promised Obama. "All of us are dependent on God's loving mercy, and we will regularly pray for you and others elected to high leadership. May your wisdom and discernment serve you well, and may your health never wane."
Maybe even more excitable than the NCC was the United Methodist Council of Bishops, who were meeting in Georgia during the election, and could barely contain their joy.
United Methodism's chief lobbyist on Capitol Hill, Jim Winkler, who once called for President Bush's impeachment before retracting the call amid controversy, was also looking forward to ending his exile from White House events. "Barack Obama is a person of deep faith," he enthused. "I fully expect The United Methodist Church, for the first time in many years, will be welcomed in the White House." [Note: President Bush is the first Methodist president since William McKinley]
Another likely White House religious visitor during the Obama years is Sojourners chief Jim Wallis, who has been feverishly attempting to create an Evangelical Left that would undermine evangelicals' traditional conservative voting habits. This new Evangelical Left, largely a repackaging of the old Religious Left for a new audience that cannot remember the 1960's, wants to persuade evangelicals that Global Warming and opposing U.S. military actions is more important than upholding traditional marriage or opposing abortion.
Wallis claimed that his campaign was successful. "Polls leading up to the election showed a significant break from the previous generation on issues like gay marriage and abortion, which while still a top concern, it is not the only one," he rejoiced. . . Wallis, an old 1960's student radical who now wants to be seen as a soothing centrist, claimed, "These religious voters refuse to be distracted by the culture wars of the previous generation."
To read the entire commentary, CLICK HERE.
AGENDA: Grinding America Down (full movie on YouTube):
AGENDA: Grinding America Down (Full Movie) FREE to watch for a limited time (click here)! from Copybook Heading Productions LLC on Vimeo.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Liberal Media 'Abortion Reduction' Propaganda
The media is turning up the volume of a small number of self-labeled Christians (who counter pro-life efforts) in an attempt to convince Americans that advocating legal restrictions on abortion is NOT being pro-life.
-- From "As abortion foes grow more intense, a new view surfaces" by Michael Paulson, Boston Globe Staff 10/30/08
Over the last few weeks, more than 60 Catholic bishops, articulating their traditional views in ever stronger language, have urged voters to make abortion their top priority in an election dominated by the nation's economic turmoil.
But the urgency of the bishops reflects an increasing concern about a new argument posed by some [self-proclaimed] antiabortion [left-wing] intellectuals and organizations: that the legislative battle to outlaw abortion is hopeless and that antiabortion groups would be better off devoting themselves to preventing unwanted pregnancies and persuading pregnant women to carry their fetuses to term rather than trying to change the laws of the land. The discussion is taking place within evangelical Protestantism, as well as among Roman Catholics, but it is more visible in the Catholic Church because of the high profile of Catholic bishops.
The debate, which Trinity College professor Mark Silk termed "an emerging civil war within the upper reaches of American Catholicism," is playing out in diocesan newspapers, speeches, blogs, and op-ed pages. But the bishops' views do not appear to be having much impact on voters.
[These claims by the Boston Globe are absent substantiation.]
Recent polls have suggested that Catholics are tilting increasingly toward Democrat Barack Obama, who supports abortion rights, and some polls have suggested that Obama is also making incremental gains among evangelicals.
"The banning-abortion position, conservatives will admit, is not a realistic one in this country - it's never going to happen, and they admit it's not going to happen," said Jim Wallis, a leading progressive [self-labeled] evangelical. "Maybe abortion reduction could result in a more prolife outcome than taking what have become symbolic stances that are never going to be achieved" in the United States.
[So-called] Antiabortion Obama supporters have been using the Internet to fuel an argument that has captivated a corner of the blogosphere. A new organization called Catholic Democrats has posted a Q&A on its website suggesting that Democrats would do a better job than Republicans at reducing the abortion rate, and Catholics United, another liberal organization, has launched a direct-mail campaign in swing states urging Catholics to rethink what it means to be "pro-life."
Scholars say the idea of abortion reduction is not new. As president, Bill Clinton wanted to make abortion "safe, legal, and rare."
Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver addressed the issue in a recent speech, saying, "People who claim that the abortion struggle is lost as a matter of law, or that supporting an outspoken defender of legal abortion is somehow prolife, are not just wrong; they're betraying the witness of every person who continues the work of defending the unborn child."
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
-- From "As abortion foes grow more intense, a new view surfaces" by Michael Paulson, Boston Globe Staff 10/30/08
Over the last few weeks, more than 60 Catholic bishops, articulating their traditional views in ever stronger language, have urged voters to make abortion their top priority in an election dominated by the nation's economic turmoil.
But the urgency of the bishops reflects an increasing concern about a new argument posed by some [self-proclaimed] antiabortion [left-wing] intellectuals and organizations: that the legislative battle to outlaw abortion is hopeless and that antiabortion groups would be better off devoting themselves to preventing unwanted pregnancies and persuading pregnant women to carry their fetuses to term rather than trying to change the laws of the land. The discussion is taking place within evangelical Protestantism, as well as among Roman Catholics, but it is more visible in the Catholic Church because of the high profile of Catholic bishops.
The debate, which Trinity College professor Mark Silk termed "an emerging civil war within the upper reaches of American Catholicism," is playing out in diocesan newspapers, speeches, blogs, and op-ed pages. But the bishops' views do not appear to be having much impact on voters.
[These claims by the Boston Globe are absent substantiation.]
Recent polls have suggested that Catholics are tilting increasingly toward Democrat Barack Obama, who supports abortion rights, and some polls have suggested that Obama is also making incremental gains among evangelicals.
"The banning-abortion position, conservatives will admit, is not a realistic one in this country - it's never going to happen, and they admit it's not going to happen," said Jim Wallis, a leading progressive [self-labeled] evangelical. "Maybe abortion reduction could result in a more prolife outcome than taking what have become symbolic stances that are never going to be achieved" in the United States.
[So-called] Antiabortion Obama supporters have been using the Internet to fuel an argument that has captivated a corner of the blogosphere. A new organization called Catholic Democrats has posted a Q&A on its website suggesting that Democrats would do a better job than Republicans at reducing the abortion rate, and Catholics United, another liberal organization, has launched a direct-mail campaign in swing states urging Catholics to rethink what it means to be "pro-life."
Scholars say the idea of abortion reduction is not new. As president, Bill Clinton wanted to make abortion "safe, legal, and rare."
Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver addressed the issue in a recent speech, saying, "People who claim that the abortion struggle is lost as a matter of law, or that supporting an outspoken defender of legal abortion is somehow prolife, are not just wrong; they're betraying the witness of every person who continues the work of defending the unborn child."
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Thursday, July 03, 2008
Tony Campolo, Jim Wallis: The Marxist Delusion and a Christian Evangelist
In the final analysis it's Communism, not Biblical Christianity, that dominates the thinking of the 'Evangelical Left'
From "Tony Campolo, Jim Wallis: The Marxist Delusion and a Christian Evangelist" by David Noebel, posted 2/19/08 at ChristianWorldviewnetwork.com
I have just finished reading Tony Campolo’s book Letters to a Young Evangelical. Published by Basic Books and copyrighted by Campolo in 2006, this work gives the reader an amazing look into the mind and heart of a radical sociologist on a mission—to establish theKingdom of God
From "Tony Campolo, Jim Wallis: The Marxist Delusion and a Christian Evangelist" by David Noebel, posted 2/19/08 at ChristianWorldviewnetwork.com
I have just finished reading Tony Campolo’s book Letters to a Young Evangelical. Published by Basic Books and copyrighted by Campolo in 2006, this work gives the reader an amazing look into the mind and heart of a radical sociologist on a mission—to establish the
Campolo's volume is a veritable love-fest among three leftwing Evangelicals—Campolo and his two partners in crime (the crime being deception): Ron Sider (Evangelicals for Social Action) and Jim Wallis (Sojourners magazine), whom he calls his "best of friends" throughout the book. All three subscribe to the same party line—liberal, leftwing, allegedly progressive, ideas that impact social, economic and political action. “I believe,” says Campolo, “that Christians should engage in efforts to change the political and economic structures of our society because these structures do not adequately address the needs of the poor and oppressed” (4, 5, 258).
The purpose of Campolo’s letters to two young evangelicals (Timothy and Junia) is to convince them that the “Religious Right” in America is their sworn enemy, and if they wish to get serious about God’s business, which is assisting the poor and oppressed to bring in the Kingdom of God, they must reject the Jerry Falwells, the James Dobsons and the Tim LaHaye’s of the conservative wing of Evangelicalism and stake their claim with the true “progressives,” namely the Sider, Wallis and Campolo camp. This camp will bring forth the
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Wheaton College Features Pro-Homosexual Speaker
From "Wheaton College Features Pro-Homosexual Speaker" by Jeff Johnson, posted 2/19/08 at OneNewsNow.com
Wheaton College is once again featuring a pro-homosexual activist as a featured speaker at its Center for Applied Christian Ethics.
Peter LaBarbera, with Americans for Truth About Homosexuality, says the college is failing both its Bible-centered charter and its obligations to academic integrity. "We find it hard to believe that somebody who believes in the Bible -- and the Bible teaches that homosexuality is an abomination," states LaBarbera, "... could call support for so-called 'civil rights' based on egregiously sinful behavior -- how you can call that 'a justice issue'?"
One must wonder why on earth Wheaton College would give a man, who claims to be Christian -- yet openly advocates rebellion toward God -- a platform from which to influence its students. I can hardly imagine a circumstance under which they would invite a "Christian" who publicly advocates other sorts of sexual sin, such as adultery, polygamy, bestiality or adult incest. Is advocating the more politically correct sin of homosexuality somehow more permissible? Incidentally, Mr. Wallis also supports legalized abortion.
A person such as this should be considered a wolf in sheep's clothing and therefore dangerous to the flock. The only circumstances under which he should have been allowed to speak would have been one where he would have shared the platform with an able Biblical scholar who could have easily rebuked him.
In giving him a solitary platform, Wheaton College not only provided him a position from which to spread his particular brand of rebellion, it also lent him credibility in doing so.
We can only hope and pray that Wheaton College administrators will realize that they have made a very unwise decision and learn from it...
Read the rest of the article.
Wheaton College is once again featuring a pro-homosexual activist as a featured speaker at its Center for Applied Christian Ethics.
Peter LaBarbera, with Americans for Truth About Homosexuality, says the college is failing both its Bible-centered charter and its obligations to academic integrity. "We find it hard to believe that somebody who believes in the Bible -- and the Bible teaches that homosexuality is an abomination," states LaBarbera, "... could call support for so-called 'civil rights' based on egregiously sinful behavior -- how you can call that 'a justice issue'?"
One must wonder why on earth Wheaton College would give a man, who claims to be Christian -- yet openly advocates rebellion toward God -- a platform from which to influence its students. I can hardly imagine a circumstance under which they would invite a "Christian" who publicly advocates other sorts of sexual sin, such as adultery, polygamy, bestiality or adult incest. Is advocating the more politically correct sin of homosexuality somehow more permissible? Incidentally, Mr. Wallis also supports legalized abortion.
A person such as this should be considered a wolf in sheep's clothing and therefore dangerous to the flock. The only circumstances under which he should have been allowed to speak would have been one where he would have shared the platform with an able Biblical scholar who could have easily rebuked him.
In giving him a solitary platform, Wheaton College not only provided him a position from which to spread his particular brand of rebellion, it also lent him credibility in doing so.
We can only hope and pray that Wheaton College administrators will realize that they have made a very unwise decision and learn from it...
Read the rest of the article.
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Friends of Mahmoud
The Iranian president gets a warm reception from the religious left.
From "Friends of Mahmoud" by Mark D. Tooley, posted 10/11/07 at The Daily Standard
From "Friends of Mahmoud" by Mark D. Tooley, posted 10/11/07 at The Daily Standard
NOT ALL OF Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's encounters in New York during his recent trip were testy. The Shiite theocrat had what the New York Times called a "warm, even friendly exchange" with 150 church officials at the United Methodist Women's Church Center for the United Nations.
One sponsor, the Mennonite Central Committee, called the gathering a "time of dialogue and prayerful reflection among the children of Abraham." A Mennonite official further explained that "mutual respect and graciousness in this conversation blunts the demonization which is part of the current rhetoric of both governments."
The meeting is the third between Ahmadinejad and his new church friends. Forty five of them had met the Iranian during his last New York visit a year ago. And 13 church officials saw him in Iran in February.
Seemingly, the church officials are fascinated and perplexed by the chief of Iran's Islamist police state. Unlike most of them, he has uncompromising theological views, especially about the end-times, about which he shares freely. Perhaps the apocalyptic dogma is bracing to these liberal religionists, who might be inwardly bored with their own mantras about endless tolerance.
"We haven't reached the point of hard truth-telling," explained United Methodist Women's Division chief Harriet Jane Olson, as reported in her news release. "But this dialogue may help to de-escalate the language of hostility, which is a necessary part of building bridges."
...Official co-sponsors of this latest bridge building included Jim Wallis' Sojourners, the World Council of Churches, Pax Christi, the Church of the Brethren, and the American Friends Service Committee (Quakers). But the assembled church officials came from a much larger swatch of Mainline Protestants, Catholics, and liberal evangelicals. Apparently Jews were invited but none were willing to participate.
...Stassen, a prominent voice on the Evangelical left and a critic of U.S. war policies, is reportedly preparing a statement from liberal evangelicals that will advocate broader U.S. dialogue with Iran. Meanwhile, Ahmadinejad left the church meeting with some gifts. A Mennonite official presented him with a children's book called "Let's Plant a Garden," and also a dove lapel pin, as an encouragement for him to "work for peace."
But Ahmadinejad left the United Methodist Women's Church Center at the United Nations with much more than a book and a pin. He knows he has reliable American friends who will oppose any strong policies aimed at his regime, while expressing limited concern about his intemperate plans towards the United States and Israel.
Read the whole article.
Friday, September 07, 2007
'Faith' Leaders Mislead Youth
Jim Wallis, Rob Bell, Tony Campolo, Mel White and even Phillip Yancey are among 'faith' leaders who range from wishy-washy to downright rebellious with regard to Scriptural teaching on homosexual behavior...
From "'Faith' Leaders Mislead Youth" by Linda Harvey at MissionAmerica.com
From "'Faith' Leaders Mislead Youth" by Linda Harvey at MissionAmerica.com
So homosexuality, bisexuality and cross-dressing are okay with our Lord? That would mean there’s no difference between such an “enlightened” approach and the behavior of pagans in the Old Testament...hmmm...
“This one...keeps acting as a judge; now we will deal worse with you than with them.” So said a homosexual gang member to Lot in the city of Sodom (Genesis 19:9).
If you listen to some prominent religious leaders today, the same attitudes prevail. It’s all been a big misunderstanding, because it's traditional Christians who are at fault. They are simply primitives enslaved by their own “fear” and even “hate.” We are not to take Scripture too seriously because there are newer messages, newer insights revealed to those who can be entrusted with such things.
The superstars of the “evangelical” left who take this view have strong credibility with youth and students in today’s high schools and even some Christian colleges. This isn’t too surprising, when some of these colleges increasingly permit behavior that violates core biblical principles. (Example: Spring Arbor University in Michigan hemmed and hawed for many months last year before finally deciding to dismiss a male professor who had begun cross-dressing. To its credit, the school finally did the right thing.)
Secular academia is of course enamored with these wolves in sheep’s clothing, because they work hard to distance themselves from the “religious right.” Their spin on “faith” makes it possible to define for today’s youth what constitutes real freedom, faith, and dignity: going to homosexual bars and bathhouses, or women having breasts amputated to “become” men. This can all take place before and after one’s mystical prayers to a New Age “Jesus.”
What do the “evangelical” left offer our kids? A little research reveals glaring problems with the following folks...
Read the rest of this commentary.
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