Undercover Homosexual Methodist 'Pastors' Exposed

More than a hundred male and female American leaders in the United Methodist Church joined together this week to formally admit they've been falsely serving in local churches by concealing their claims to deviant sexuality.  Their announcement comes as the UMC quadrennial global General Conference begins in Portland, Oregon where these renegades will attempt to force their personal predilections upon the world-wide traditionally Christian denomination that believes homosexual behavior is incompatible with church teaching.

". . . this public relations campaign is designed to overwhelm our denomination’s infrastructure until traditionalists abandon their theological moorings."
-- Rev. Tom Lambrecht, Vice President and General Manager of Good News (representing UMC Christians who hold to Scriptural Authority)

For background, read how renegade UMC leaders recommend taking over the denomination by force.

Click headlines below to read previous articles:

New York Methodist Bishop Allows Same-sex Marriages

UMC Bishop Talbert Breaks UMC Covenant via 'Gay Marriage'

Renegade Methodist Clergy for Same-sex 'Marriage'

Methodists Ignore Own Rules re: Lesbian Pastor

African Methodists' Votes Halt Homosexualists' Rebellion

Also read Methodist Seminaries Train Pluralistic Clergy

And read Methodists Wonder Why Members Leave in Droves



-- From "Defying church ban, dozens of Methodist clergy come out as gay and lesbian" by Daniel Burke, CNN Religion Editor 5/9/16

Dozens of United Methodist clergy members came out as lesbian, gay or bisexual on Monday, defying their church's ban on "self-avowed practicing homosexuals" serving in ministry and essentially daring their supervisors to discipline them.

In a public letter posted online, 111 pastors, deacons, elders and candidates for ministry said church rules require "that we not bring our full selves to ministry, that we hide from view our sexual orientations and gender identities."

A spokesman for Reconciling Ministries Network, [a renegade UMC] LGBT advocacy group that organized the letter, said that about 80% of the 111 signatories are coming out to their supervisors for the first time. In addition to gay and lesbian clergy, the letter was also signed by intersex and transgender pastors, who are not technically excluded from ministry.

Monday's missive follows a similar letter issued by 15 Methodist ministers in New York, who also openly acknowledged that they are gay or lesbian.

A council of African bishops issued a statement last September urging Methodists to "submit to the teachings of Scripture that God designed marriage to be between man and woman."

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "As United Methodists meet, 111 clergy come out as gay, defy church ban" by Greg Garrison, The Birmingham News 5/11/16

The United Methodist Church, the nation's second-largest Protestant denomination with 7.4 million members [in the U.S.], has debated homosexuality at its General Conference every four years for four decades.

While the U.S. membership in the denomination has declined, membership in Africa has expanded, and those members have an increasingly important voice in the General Conference debates. While the U.S. leadership has become more accepting of homosexuality, the newer African members have held the conservative line.

While the number of United Methodists in Africa grows by about 250,000 members a year, the number of U.S. United Methodists shrinks every year, by more than 50,000.

Africans will constitute about 30 percent of the 864 delegates to this year's General Conference.

Without the church's growing global membership, the United Methodists would very likely have taken a turn towards acceptance of gay marriage, like several other mainline Protestant denominations . . .

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "United Methodist lawmaking body to weigh LGBT issues" by Holly Meyer, The Tennessean 5/10/16

The United Methodist Church does not permit its clergy to officiate same-sex marriages, but that divisive issue and others regarding full inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender members are up for debate as the denomination convenes its top policy-making body this week in Portland, Ore.

Delegates from across the globe will consider more than 100 pieces of legislation regarding human sexuality at the General Conference, which meets every four years to decide the future direction of the second-largest Protestant denomination in the United States. It counts about 12.8 million members worldwide.

The 864 delegates gathering at the Oregon Convention Center have the power to revise church law, pass resolutions on social and public policy and adopt churchwide budgets and plans. While LGBT concerns are in the spotlight, the General Conference is considering a plethora of issues. The gathering started Tuesday afternoon with a worship celebration and concludes May 20.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Good News responds to clergy coming out letter" by Jay Voorhees, Executive Editor, United Methodist Reporter 5/9/16

The Rev. Tom Lambrecht, Vice President and General Manager of Good News, an organization that has advocated for the retention of the current United Methodist teaching on homosexuality, released a statement this afternoon in response to the letter from 111 UM clergy identifying themselves as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer/Questioning, and Intersex (LGBTQI).

“Unfortunately, the statement comes across more like a manifesto for an orchestrated campaign to influence General Conference than a ‘Love Letter to the Church,’” Lambrecht wrote.

Lambrecht addressed the concerns raised by the letter writers about their need to hide parts of themselves as they carry out  the work of ministry:

The letter talks about LGBTQI persons being forced to hide parts of themselves in order to engage in ministry. No one is forcing LGBTQI persons to hide their identities. That is a choice that they are making. The church has always been straightforward about what is acceptable behavior for clergy. Having same-sex attractions or being LGBTQI is not a bar to ordained ministry. Engaging in sexual relationships outside monogamous heterosexual marriage is a bar to ordained ministry. The line is clear. It is LGBTQI persons who have chosen to cross that line and yet pretend to fulfill their ordination vows. Such an action constitutes a fundamental lack of integrity that undermines the doctrine, discipline, and unity of the church.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "United Methodists may never agree on LGBT issues. Can they stay together anyway?" by Michelle Boorstein, Washington Post 5/9/16

Disputes over human sexuality appear to many to be most pressing [for the UMC General Conference]. This is in part because United Methodists have not changed their stance on homosexuality, whereas much of mainline Protestantism has in some way. The United Methodist Book of Discipline – the group’s book of law and doctrine – calls homosexuality “incompatible with Christian teaching.” The church has also seen huge controversy in recent years as pastors have begun openly bucking the ban on officiating at same-sex weddings, and high-profile disciplinary trials have embarrassed many Methodists.

According to the United Methodist News Service, the conference will weigh more than 100 pieces of legislation on human sexuality. Delegates from dozens of countries will consider the possibility of full inclusion of LGBT people, the “agree to disagree” option, whether gay people can be ordained, the question of officiating at same-sex weddings, whether such weddings can be held in Methodist churches and whether the current Book of Discipline wording should remain.

The United Methodist News Service lists “church structure and powers” as the first of top, broad issues to be voted upon this month. The most broad is a measure asking whether Methodists “can create a global Book of Discipline that says: ‘Here’s what we agree upon worldwide,’ and then one for each area of the world to help us deal with our own cultures,” said the Rev. Tom Berlin, a delegate from the Floris United Methodist Church in Herndon, Va. “The issue is: What questions belong to the whole, and what questions belong to the parts?”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Charlotte gay wedding defies United Methodist Church rules" by Tim Funk, The Charlotte Observer 4/24/16

. . . [Rev. Val Rosenquist, 59,] the pastor of Charlotte’s First United Methodist Church and a retired bishop [Melvin Talbert] who once did jail time with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. decided to go ahead over the weekend and preside at the wedding of John Romano and Jim Wilborne.

The two Charlotte men became the first same-sex couple in North Carolina to get married – at least publicly – in a United Methodist church.

They said the Saturday wedding was attended by more than 250 people – including about 30 supportive United Methodist clergy. Also in attendance: Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts, who is a friend of the couple’s.

Last August, [Rosenquist] said, the leadership board at First United Methodist voted that any member of the church could get married in the sanctuary, even if that defied the [UMC] Book of Discipline.

The 81-year-old Talbert, a retired United Methodist bishop based in Nashville and a one-time leader of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, spent three days and three nights in a jail cell with King in 1960. He called his disobedience of Methodist rules against same-sex marriage an act of “biblical obedience.”

On Sunday, Talbert delivered the sermon at First United Methodist Church, telling about 150 people in the pews that, like African-Americans, women and other past victims of discrimination, LGBT persons are being ridiculed and ostracized “simply because of the way God created them.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Methodists call themselves the ‘church of the big tent.’ Why one minister is camping outside." by Julie Zauzmer, Washington Post 4/5/16

[His daughter Sarah] was the inspiration for [UMC Rev. Michael Tupper's] activism – and the first lesbian bride he married.

[Sarah] and her wife met at the preeminent evangelical university Wheaton College — despite the fact that Tupper, suspecting that his teenage daughter was lesbian, told her that if she were lesbian she should not go to Wheaton.

Tupper reached a sort of out-of-court settlement in the United Methodist Church’s judicial system. He knew when he agreed to officiate [the same-sex wedding] that he might be defrocked for it . . . But Tupper was cleared to continue ministry at his church near Kalamazoo, Mich.

Then he performed his second gay wedding, that of a fellow United Methodist minister who was banned from his pulpit when he came out as gay. Tupper expected, after he helped officiate Benjamin Hutchison’s wedding, that he would face a church trial.

But the trial never came.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Female Methodist pastor admits she's gay during church service, stunning worshippers" by Czarina Ong, Christian Today 1/19/16

Nobody was prepared for Pastor Cynthia Meyer's coming out declaration during the Edgerton United Methodist Church's first sermon this 2016, but the 53-year-old Kansas pastor decided then that it was the best time for her to serve "with full authenticity and as my genuine self—as a woman who loves and shares my life with another woman."

Meyer risks being sacked because of her pronouncement, but she insists that her conscience is clear because she keeps "faith with the church by challenging it to keep faith with the Gospel."

Conservative Methodists, on the other hand, are not condoning Meyer's vocal support of same-sex relationships and marriages.

They wrote: "We simply cannot abandon the Bible's teachings on the practice of homosexuality and same-sex marriage. Your proposal would put us, who believe that same-sex relations are sinful, in the position of having to deny our consciences. This new policy is simply asking us to do something we cannot do."

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "New York United Methodist Body Says It Will Ignore Church's Rules on Gay Clergy" by Michael Gryboski, Christian Post Reporter 3/3/16

The New York Annual Conference's Board of Ordained Ministry released a statement Tuesday noting that they will no longer consider the sexual orientation or gender identity of an ordination candidate.

The Rev. William B. Pfohl, chair of the NYAC BOOM and chief signatory of the statement, told The Christian Post that the . . . final vote on the released statement took place on Feb. 20, with a supermajority of the New York board approving the standards via secret ballot.

NYAC is not the only conference in the UMC that has recently announced its decision to ignore the denomination's ordination rules regarding homosexual practice.

Last month the Board of Ordained Ministry of the Baltimore-Washington Conference announced that they recommended a married lesbian to a provisional deacon position.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Liberal 'Churches' Continue to Wither as well as Liberal 'Churches' Conforming to Decadent Culture

In addition, read President Obama's National Cathedral is the Seat of Apostasy

For myriad attacks on the Bible and Christian faith, read CBS Gives Voice to Atheists, Heretics, & Apostates

Pastors' Hands Bloody: Abortion Parts Trafficking

Presidential candidate U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is pleading with all Bible-believing Christians to pray and call on their own local church leaders to engage the battle against abortionists and stop government funding of Planned Parenthood.  Yesterday, Sen. Cruz told thousands of Christian leaders via a conference call that they have the utmost duty to protect the unborn.

"How did America become a country that harvests organs from unborn children? And who has the courage to stop it?"
-- Ted Cruz campaign ad

For background, read Sen. Ted Cruz Rallies Christians in Iowa for Religious Liberty and also read Planned Parenthood Caught Selling Aborted Babies on Video as well as Kill Baby to Save Mother? No! Says Gov. Scott Walker

In addition read Rev. Franklin Graham Says Pastors Cowering from 'Culture War' Deserve Hell and read Study Finds Pastors Conceal Culture Truth to be Successful



-- From "Ted Cruz Rallies Evangelicals In Campaign To Defund Planned Parenthood" by Don Gonyea, NPR National Public Radio 8/25/15

[Ted Cruz'] latest pitch to religious voters came in a conference call Tuesday with church pastors from around the country.

In the conference call earlier, and at every campaign event, Cruz attacks Planned Parenthood. He highlights the recent series of undercover videos from an anti-abortion-rights group accusing the organization of selling fetal tissue from abortions for profit.

Cruz argues that he can win the nomination — and the presidency — by motivating real conservatives and not worrying at all about winning moderates. That's something he and others argue imperiled Republicans' chances in the last several elections.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Cruz’s evangelical outreach shifts into high gear" by Katie Zezima and Tom Hamburger, Washington Post 8/23/15

More than 100,000 pastors received e-mail invitations over the weekend to participate in conference calls with Cruz on Tuesday in which they will learn details of the [defund Planned Parenthood] plan to mobilize churchgoers in every congressional district beginning Aug. 30. The requests were sent on the heels of the Texas Republican’s “Rally for Religious Liberty,” which drew 2,500 people to a Des Moines ballroom Friday.

Heading into the primary season, it wasn’t clear how significant a role social issues would play in the selection of the Republican nominee. But social conservatives and evangelical voters say they have been galvanized by a one-two punch this summer: first, the Supreme Court’s decision that same-sex marriage should be legal in all 50 states — and then, the release of hidden-camera videos showing Planned Parenthood officials discussing the donation of fetal tissue in a seemingly cavalier fashion.

All of the Republican candidates have found themselves spending more trail time on both issues over the past few months. Those fighting most fiercely for religious voters have made them central to their campaigns. But few candidates have made the burgeoning “religious liberty” movement in opposition to same-sex marriage and the fight to deny funding to Planned Parenthood as much of their campaign centerpiece as Cruz has — and perhaps no one is as well positioned to benefit politically from a renewed focus on those issues.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Ted Cruz Teams With Pastors To Defund Planned Parenthood" by David Brody, CBN News Chief Political Correspondent 8/23/15

Dear Pastor,

The recent exposure of Planned Parenthood's barbaric practices of harvesting the body parts of innocent babies and selling them to the highest bidder has brought about a pressing need to end tax payer support of this institution.

As the son of a pastor, I know you bear a high and holy calling on your lives. I am urging you to confront this evil in our nation by praying and preaching with an unbridled passion until funding for Planned Parenthood ends, and this barbaric practice is purged from the land.

Over the next two weeks, with the support of your prayers and the impact of your preaching, I intend to lead an effort to end taxpayer support of Planned Parenthood.

The battle we face is not political. It is spiritual. To enter this arena in a prayerless condition invites failure. . . .

To read the entire E-mail from Sen. Ted Cruz above, CLICK HERE.

From "Ted Cruz tries to rouse evangelicals with campaign against Planned Parenthood" by Lauren Markoe, Religion News Service 8/26/15

Cruz is working with the American Renewal Project, a conservative group that encourages pastors to run for elected office on a campaign to defund Planned Parenthood.

“Our call to action primarily, number one, is to get the pastors to return to prayer on this and every issue,” said the Rev. Ken Graves, who spoke on Tuesday’s teleconference call.

Too many of of the nation’s evangelical pastors “have come to believe that we have no freedom, no right to speak,” said Graves, senior pastor at Calvary Chapel in Bangor, Maine, and a speaker on the 20-minute call. He encouraged his fellow pastors to exercise their right to talk about Planned Parenthood and other issues according to their understanding of Scripture.

And Graves said the pastors stand on firm legal ground. “The word is out that pastors have the freedom, that they’re not a lower caste of American people,” he said. They can both speak out and engage in the process.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Ted Cruz recruiting pastors in push to defund Planned Parenthood" by Bob Allen, Baptist News Global 8/24/15

The phone call is part of a larger 50-state campaign by Cruz to end taxpayer support for Planned Parenthood — a campaign likely to raise his profile in a Republican primary race where the vote of social conservatives is seen as up for grabs.

[Sen. Cruz] asked that pastors preach a message Aug. 30 “calling on your people to enter into this spiritual battle for the soul of their nation.” A link on the American Renewal Project points to an outline for a sample sermon titled: “The Cry of the Innocent for the Soul of a Nation.”

Finally, Cruz asked pastors to lead congregations in a “Day of Prayer and Fasting,” on Wednesday, Sept. 9, and use Wednesday night services asking God “to move in the hearts of men and women in government to vote to end the slaughter of the innocents.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Ted Cruz calls out pastors to fight abortion" by Jack Minor, World Net Daily 8/25/15

“Now more than ever it is the role of the church, as well as our pastors and faith leaders, to stand up and speak the truth with absolute clarity,” Cruz said in a telephone conference call.

“I would encourage every pastor on this call to preach the truth about what is happening with Planned Parenthood. I recognize these are topics that are not without controversy, and they invite criticism when faith leaders speak candidly about them,” he said.

“If we cannot speak about this, there is very little that we can stand up and speak about. Preaching from the pulpit biblical values on life and comparing those values, the teachings of Jesus, to this nationwide business of trafficking in the body parts of unborn children is a message that needs to be heard across this nation.”

Cruz urged the pastors to lift up America’s leaders in prayer as well as pray for action against the sale of human body parts by the abortion provider.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Urging Pastors to Register Their Flocks to Vote (David Lane, American Renewal Project)

Pastors Defeat IRS, Endorse Political Candidates

More than a thousand pastors this election year have, once again, defied the contested regulations of the Internal Revenue Service that forbid church leaders to tell their flocks for whom to vote. The liberal media are clearly lamenting the lack of enforcement by the IRS because most Christians vote conservatively and few Democrat voters even attend church.

For background, read Pastors Inflame IRS Scandal for Religious Liberty

And read the Pew Research poll showing a growing number of Americans who say that religion should play a greater role in politics.

Also read Houston: Ground Zero in Obama's War on Christianity



-- From "Political pastors openly defying IRS rules on candidate endorsements" by Josh Hicks, Washington Post 11/4/14

The IRS has taken virtually no action against the pastors . . .

The defiance movement, known as Pulpit Freedom Sunday, has grown from a few dozen ministers to more than 1,600 over the past six years, according to the alliance [ADF].

Church leaders involved in the effort have weighed in on key races that could tip the balance of power in the Senate during this year’s midterms, openly endorsing candidates such Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) over Alison Lundergan Grimes (D) and Thom Tillis (R) over Sen. Kay Hagan (D-N.C.).

The IRS’s reluctance to enforce the tax law suggests it has grown timid about dealing with tax-exempt groups . . . The IRS did not respond Monday to repeated requests for comment about whether it plans to crack down on the movement. . . .

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Pastors endorsing candidates, in defiance of IRS rules" posted at FoxNews.com 11/3/14

Christian pastors reportedly are defying IRS rules and endorsing political candidates at an unprecedented rate.

Under IRS rules, nonprofits -- such as churches -- are allowed to discuss politically sensitive subjects in their sermons, but historically have been barred from actively campaigning and endorsing particular candidates. But a growing number of pastors are challenging that standard – and the IRS may be looking the other way.

. . . the IRS may be gun-shy after its high-profile fight with Tea Party groups and virtually all Republicans on Capitol Hill over its targeting of conservative groups.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Rogue pastors endorse candidates, but IRS looks away" by Rachael Bade, Politico 11/3/14

It’s another sign of the tax agency turned upside down by the tea party targeting controversy. Although the IRS is under fire from the right for being heavy-hand with conservative tax-exempt entities, it’s also getting hit from the left [including atheists suing the IRS] for failing to enforce decade-old rules governing churches and politics.

IRS Commissioner John Koskinen in an interview last month with Tax Analysts suggested the IRS isn’t planning to crack down on churches anytime soon. He said the [atheists'] lawsuit news “spread out into the world … somehow we are doing something very different and we are going to show up either more aggressively or more often in a different way than we have in the past, and that is not what that case was about at all.”

The pastors, who make it easy for the IRS by often taping their sermons and mailing them to the tax agency, argue that it infringes on their First Amendment rights.

Their ultimate goal: igniting a lawsuit with the IRS and taking the issue to the Supreme Court.

“If by chance a member of the IRS gets this sermon and is listening, sue me,” said evangelical pastor Jim Garlow of the San Diego-based Skyline Church . . .

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read about nationwide efforts to register more Christians to vote.

And read Proved: Tea Party Movement is Christian

Study: Pastors Hide Culture Truth to be Successful

Researcher George Barna says that after years of survey and study, The Barna Group has found that the vast majority of theologically conservative American pastors intentionally conceal information that is critical to the well being of their flock and the nation, and do so in order to enhance the "success" of their church.

"Well, that's not part of my mission; my mission is to bring in more people and to get them to understand certain things that I feel they should know."
-- Common response by clergy

For background, read Pastors Who Avoid Gay Agenda Deserve Hell, Says Franklin Graham

-- From "Barna: Many pastors wary of raising 'controversy'" by Chris Woodward, OneNewsNow.com 8/1/14

"What we're finding is that when we ask them about all the key issues of the day, [90 percent of them are] telling us, Yes, the Bible speaks to every one of these issues. Then we ask them: Well, are you teaching your people what the Bible says about those issues? – and the numbers drop ... to less than 10 percent of pastors who say they will speak to it."

When researchers ask those pastors what else they are willing to do to get their people active in the political process, Barna said "it's almost nothing."

"There are five factors that the vast majority of pastors turn to [when asked the question of what defines success]," [Barna] explained. "Attendance, giving, number of programs, number of staff, and square footage.

"What I'm suggesting is [those pastors] won't probably get involved in politics because it's very controversial. Controversy keeps people from being in the seats, controversy keeps people from giving money, from attending programs.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read America Going to Hell; Christians Lose Convictions

Urging Pastors to Register Their Flocks to Vote

Recognizing that Christians who did NOT vote in recent elections could have swept God-fearing conservatives to power in all branches of government across America, Republicans such as Sen. Marco Rubio, Sen. Rand Paul and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal have been invited to participate in the “Pastors and Pews” event in May.

“If the key to maintaining sustainable freedom is righteousness -- the same virtue that produced freedom -- what is the greatest threat to freedom? Unrighteousness. America has left God.”
-- David Lane, American Renewal Project

The question for Christians to discern: Are Republicans abandoning a God-fearing Party platform?

For background, read Registering Millions of Christians to Vote and also read Pastors Defeating IRS on Freedom to Preach as well as Will 'Wimpy' Pastors Engage War on Christianity?

-- From "Group aims to drive up turnout among faith voters" by Holly Bailey, Yahoo! News 2/25/13

The American Renewal Project, an arm of the conservative American Family Association, is launching “Pastors and Pews,” which will offer policy briefings to church leaders and their congregations in hopes of encouraging Christians to become more politically active amid years of declining turnout among voters of faith.

The group’s efforts come after former Christian Coalition head Ralph Reed led an effort to drive up voter turnout among faith voters during the 2012 election. His group, the Faith & Freedom Coalition, said evangelical voters made up 27 percent of the voting electorate—a number that was far better than the turnout in the 2008 election, but which still wasn’t enough to help Republican Mitt Romney win the White House.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Evangelical Pastors Ready to Mobilize for 2014 Election, Say 'America Has Left God'" by David Brody, CBN News Chief Political Correspondent 2/25/13

. . . The states that will be targeted [by The American Renewal Project for elections] in 2014 are Colorado, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, South Carolina, Alaska, Arkansas, North Carolina, Nevada, South Dakota, Virginia, and West Virginia.

In addition, The Brody File has learned that their first “Pastors and Pews” event is scheduled for the last week of May in Des Moines, Iowa. More than 400 pastors and their spouses will be on hand. . . . speakers include Congressman Steve King, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback, Texas Gov. Rick Perry, former Congressman J.C. Watts, Congressman Tom Latham and David Barton of WallBuilders.

The American Renewal Project is housed within the American Family Association and in the past, the group has been extremely active and successful. They played an instrumental role in rallying Christians to support California’s Proposition 8, which affirmed traditional marriage. They played a significant role in removing Iowa’s three Supreme Court judges who ruled to overturn the Defense of Marriage Act. They have also been very vigorous in presidential politics; with top Republican candidates speaking at their pastor policy briefings in key swing states like Iowa and South Carolina.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Major push to get Christians to voting booth" posted at World Net Daily 2/26/13

. . . That issue also arose in the run-up to the 2012 election as many evangelicals were disenchanted with the moral positions of candidates on abortion, marriage and other social issues.

In fact, WND columnist Chuck Norris pointed out his concerns, calling on evangelical Christians to join him in crushing the creep of socialism under Barack Obama.

“We are here to talk about a growing concern we all share,” Chuck Norris explained. “If we look to history, our great country and freedom are under attack. We’re at a tipping point and, quite possibly, our country as we know it may be lost forever if we don’t change the course in which our country is headed. . . . And it is because of that we can no longer sit quietly or stand on the sidelines and watch our country go the way of socialism or something much worse.”

The theme of this year’s Presidential Inaugural Prayer Breakfast was II Chronicles 7:14, which places the burden of a nation’s restoration not on its leadership, its politicians, its military, its social programs, its economy or any of the typical power sources.

It puts the responsibility on Christians: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read President Obama Redefines 1st Amendment Freedom of Religion even though Obama Denies Leading War Against Christianity

It comes down to Religious Liberty vs. Anti-Christian Totalitarianism in America

Dems Vote for Abortion, Christians Pray for Life

While liberals fight for women's rights to taxpayer-funded sexual immorality and abortion, Christians campaign to save unborn lives and women's well-being in the annual 40 Days for Life prayer vigil across America.

For background, read Prayer Vigil Saves Babies & Mothers from Abortion and also read Christians Will Vote Against Abortion, Socialism as well as Obama Makes New Promise to Fund Killing Babies


-- From "For 40 days, protestors pray at Planned Parenthood" by Nathan Bergstedt, Grand Rapids, MN Herald Review 10/9/12

As part of the nationwide 40 Days for Life movement, local anti-choice activists have gathered outside Planned Parenthood in Grand Rapids. Throughout the 40 days, which last from September 26 to November 4, the prayer vigils are being conducted each Monday throughout October during business hours at the Planned Parenthood office.

According to local organizer Marlene Rowe, the main purpose of these demonstrations is to “pray to end abortion in our country.”

Around 1 p.m. on Monday, despite the dreary, drizzly weather, three protestors marched back and forth in front of the clinic’s office off of Hwy 2 on the west side of town. Holding signs that read “Abortion Kills Children” and “Jesus Forgives and Heals,” they quietly paced on the public space by the street so as to not trespass on the Planned Parenthood property. They did what they could to stay out of the way, and they are not allowed to talk to patients unless approached and asked questions.

Locally, for the second year in a row, members of numerous different churches in the greater Grand Rapids area have joined together to have a presence outside Planned Parenthood.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Campaign provides students opportunity for prayer" by Jackey Tamez, Staff Writer, Houston Baptist Collegian 10/25/12

Every Wednesday between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m., Students for Life members gather in front of a Planned Parenthood as part of the 40 Days for Life campaign offering advice and information on alternatives to abortion.

“Our goal is to encourage women to not get an abortion,” [sophomore Nicholas] Van Cleve said.

Their efforts are not futile. Van Cleve said that during the week, one woman decided to keep her baby after listening to the ultrasound.

However, Van Cleve said Planned Parenthood staff members do try to interfere with the counselor’s efforts. For example, if the sidewalk counselor has been talking to someone for over five minutes, a staff member will drive up behind the car and start to honk in order to get the car to move.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "341 babies saved from abortion" by Shawn Carney, 40 Days for Life Campaign Director, LifeSiteNews.com 10/22/12

With two weeks to go in this 40 Days for Life campaign, we are so far aware of 341 babies saved from abortion!

[Example: WILMINGTON, DELAWARE]

There was a long line waiting to get into the abortion center. As one of the young women waited, she could hear the sung prayer of the 40 Days for Life vigil participants. She said that the song stuck in her head.

When she got inside and talked with the staff, she asked for an ultrasound. Once she saw the baby, she realized she simply couldn’t go through with the abortion.

After she walked out, she spoke to vigil participants. “She said she really never wanted to see the place again,” said Julie, one of the volunteers. “I don’t blame her! Thank you to all of you for your continued presence at Planned Parenthood. A life was saved today!”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Three abortion workers quit" by Shawn Carney, 40 Days for Life Campaign Director, LifeSiteNews.com 10/26/12

[As for the 40 Days conclude] abortion center staffers … ask themselves the question, “What good do I really do here?”

During this campaign, we’ve had reports of three abortion center employees who have left their jobs — and a few others are thinking about it. In the majority of these cases, the stories will remain confidential.

When former Planned Parenthood director Abby Johnson experienced a conversion, quit her job and walked into my office at the Coalition for Life next door, she lost not just an income but close personal friends. These workers will experience the same. So please keep them in your prayers as they transition out of the abortion business and find hope and healing.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Planned Parenthood's Prayer Vigil for More Abortion

Christian Marriage Coalition Launched

A nationwide campaign to defend Biblical marriage, including Christian leaders Pastor Ken Hutcherson, Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council and James Dobson, will prepare America for the coming Supreme Court battle over the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

For background, read Who Cares About Same-Sex Marriage Anymore? and also read Obama 'Throws Marriage Under the Bus'

-- From "Christian Right Leaders Return to War Room over DOMA" by Michelle A. Vu, Christian Post Reporter 4/5/11

[They] predict that there are only 18 to 24 more months before the Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage at the federal level as between one man and one woman, will be challenged in the Supreme Court.

But the evangelical leaders agreed in distress that churches and evangelical Christians are currently woefully unprepared to defend traditional marriage.

. . . Gary Bauer . . . said, "What really disturbs me is that some Christians are buying into this argument, 'Well, I'm not in favor of same-sex marriage, but so what if we have it. It doesn't affect my marriage. It doesn't affect my family.'"

". . . if the court looks around America and the only people they see speaking up and making demands is the radical gay rights movement and a handful of left wing politicians along with media personalities, they may very well rule 5 to 4 to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act," he warned.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "New campaign sets goal of restoration of marriage" by Bob Unruh © 2011 WorldNetDaily 4/9/11

Kenneth L. Hutcherson, senior pastor and co-founder of Antioch Bible Church in Kirkland, Wash., told WND that while rebellious Old Testament people posed a threat to build a tower to heaven, right now Christian people, working together, have the chance to restore marriage, defined as one man and one woman, to the nation. His comments came in an interview where he said it's not surprising that the secular world would try to redefine marriage to include same-sex duos.

But what bothered him was the lack of a defense by Christians of the definition of a family that predates the U.S. law, the U.S. Constitution and even the Founding Fathers by a few thousand years.

"There's nothing we cannot accomplish if we stick together with the power of God," he told WND. "This is going to be a powerhouse that's going to shake up a lot, starting with marriage."

"It's time for the church to wake up and get serious," he said.

It's time, Hutcherson said, for Christians to stand up and say, "Enough is enough."

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

'Good Sex' Exposed to Kids on Church Billboards

Midwestern churches in conservative cities are challenging both tradition and Hollywood by emphasizing God's design for sex within marriage, but many Christians prefer the churches keep their sex private.



-- From "Church Tries to Ignite Married Couple's Sex Lives" by Dean Schabner, ABC News 2/12/11

. . . some people in Joplin, Mo., say the billboards that Ignite Church has put up in the town shouldn't be viewed by children . . .

But Ignite Church's Lead Pastor Heath Mooneyham said the message . . . is all about love, and God's purpose for it -- which includes sex.

"We're doing a series about sex, and God's intended purpose for it," Mooneyham. "We're hitting things like adultery and pornography."

Mooneyham indicated that in a poll on the church's website, 86 percent of the respondents said they were not having enough sex in their marriage.

"This is really one of the major issues that's ripping marriages apart. They are at a higher risk of adultery, looking at pornography -- that leads to divorce," Mooneyham said.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Indiana Church Behind Provocative Sex Billboard" posted at FoxNews.com 3/10/11

When people go to the [advertised Internet] site, the link brings users to The Blended Church -- a non-denominational and non-traditional church that preaches, among other things, about the positive aspects of a healthy sex life within marriage, Indiana's Fox59 reports.

However, many motorists are offended by the advertisement, saying it's bad exposure for kids.

But Pastor Dehner Maurer, whose church is responsible for the signs, disagrees.

"Hollywood is speaking it. The Super Bowl is talking about it, so the church should be talking about it," he says.

"We're just trying to be real and relevant and speak about issues that we face and that's a part of life."

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Controversial billboards around Indianapolis have many parents worried as church targets sex as church addresses topic that is 'real and relevant'" by Heather MacWilliams, Fox59 WSBT-TV Indianapolis 3/10/11

"My kids are pointing. I don't want to see that when I'm driving. I just don't. That's a little bit too much," Jennell Allison.

Many motorists share this mother's opinion. "I think that's a little explicit to be on a billboard out here for children to see. It's a little much," says Sherry Knokes.

"In first grade they're talking about it and its too young for the children. I understand that. The problem is if we as parents don't talk to them about sex the kid down the road will," Maurer continues.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

I Still Love You Atheists: God

As atheists declare war on Christmas through a variety of advertisements, some businessmen respond with a loving message from the Bible, but the city of Fort Worth decides to outlaw all religious advertising in its control.



-- From "Atheist Ads on Buses Rattle Fort Worth" by James C. McKinley Jr., New York Times 12/13/10

A public bus rolls by with an atheist message on its side: “Millions of people are good without God.” Seconds later, a van follows bearing a riposte: “I still love you. — God,” with another line that says, “2.1 billion Christians are good with God.”

A clash of beliefs has rattled this city ever since atheists bought ad space on four city buses to reach out to nonbelievers who might feel isolated during the Christmas season. After all, Fort Worth is a place where residents commonly ask people they have just met where they worship and many encounters end with, “Have a blessed day.”

But the reaction from believers has been harsher than anyone in the nonbeliever’s club expected. Some ministers organized a boycott of the buses, with limited success. Other clergy members are pressing the Fort Worth Transportation Authority to ban all religious advertising on public buses. And a group of local businessmen paid for the van with the Christian message to follow the atheist-messaged buses around town.

The face-off here follows efforts in other cities by several coalitions of atheists — American Atheists, the United Coalition of Reason and the Freedom From Religion Foundation, to name a few — that have mounted ad campaigns to encourage nonbelievers to seek out others of like mind. Some have compared their efforts to the struggle of gay men and lesbians to “come out” and win acceptance from society.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Religious ads banned from Fort Worth buses" by Gordon Dickson, Fort Worth Star Telegram 12/15/10

The new [Fort Worth Transportation Authority] policy is effective immediately, but existing ads will remain on buses until their contracts expire. No religious ads are under contract beyond Dec. 31, T President Dick Ruddell said.

On Wednesday, several dozen people packed the T boardroom in east Fort Worth. Atheists and church leaders applauded the decision to end religious advertising.

The T's new policy comes months after other agencies, including Dallas Area Rapid Transit, banned religious ads to avoid controversy.

The T also bans ads that are political, have defamatory or hate speech, or promote adult entertainment or alcoholic beverages other than beer and wine.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Predicting the Failure of Evangelicalism

We are on the verge – within 10 years – of a major collapse of evangelical Christianity. This breakdown will follow the deterioration of the mainline Protestant world and it will fundamentally alter the religious and cultural environment in the West.

-- From "The coming evangelical collapse" by Michael Spencer, posted on The Christian Science Monitor 3/10/09 edition

Within two generations, evangelicalism will be a house deserted of half its occupants. (Between 25 and 35 percent of Americans today are Evangelicals.) In the "Protestant" 20th century, Evangelicals flourished. But they will soon be living in a very secular and religiously antagonistic 21st century.

This collapse will herald the arrival of an anti-Christian chapter of the post-Christian West. Intolerance of Christianity will rise to levels many of us have not believed possible in our lifetimes, and public policy will become hostile toward evangelical Christianity, seeing it as the opponent of the common good.

Millions of Evangelicals will quit. Thousands of ministries will end. Christian media will be reduced, if not eliminated. Many Christian schools will go into rapid decline. I'm convinced the grace and mission of God will reach to the ends of the earth. But the end of evangelicalism as we know it is close.

Why is this going to happen?

* We Evangelicals have failed to pass on to our young people an orthodox form of faith that can take root and survive the secular onslaught. . . .

* There are three kinds of evangelical churches today: consumer-driven megachurches, dying churches, and new churches whose future is fragile. Denominations will shrink, even vanish, while fewer and fewer evangelical churches will survive and thrive.

* Despite some very successful developments in the past 25 years, Christian education has not produced a product that can withstand the rising tide of secularism. Evangelicalism has used its educational system primarily to staff its own needs and talk to itself.

* Evangelicals have identified their movement with the culture war and with political conservatism. This will prove to be a very costly mistake. Evangelicals will increasingly be seen as a threat to cultural progress. Public leaders will consider us bad for America, bad for education, bad for children, and bad for society.

* The evangelical investment in moral, social, and political issues has depleted our resources and exposed our weaknesses. Being against gay marriage and being rhetorically pro-life will not make up for the fact that massive majorities of Evangelicals can't articulate the Gospel with any coherence. We fell for the trap of believing in a cause more than a faith.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Also available is the full (original) writing by Michael Spencer

The author has presented a very thought-provoking treatise, but concerning the final point excerpted above, he is exhibiting signs of being cloistered from the actual churches that account for the majority of evangelical Christians. Sure, there is demonizing rhetoric from those who oppose evangelical Christianity concerning "culture war" issues, but the vast majority of evangelical Christians do not address such issues, rather it's only a very vocal, tiny minority of evangelicals, who are concentrated in advocacy organizations, bringing culture war issues to the fore.

It is utterly laughable to suggest that rank-and-file evangelicals are currently too focused on Christian witness to the decadent culture.

If the author's prediction of an "evangelical collapse" is correct, the precursor will certainly not be an overemphasis on recognizing the moral decline of American society.

California Pastor Leads Church on Local Mission

Christians experience reinvigoration of their family and their faith as they impact the culture where they live.

Church members say: "I saw it as a crossroads in our country. I feel like for the sake of our country and our family I had to stand up and be heard." . . . "A lot of my friends are mad at me, but I honestly don't care. I'm standing up for what is right."

-- From "Christian family fights on for Prop. 8" by Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times 1/10/09

Abel Ferreira and his wife, Robbie, never considered themselves political activists.

But when Proposition 8 landed on November's ballot, the Spring Valley couple did everything they could to ensure that the constitutional amendment [in favor of biblical marriage] got passed. They made phone calls. They attended prayer rallies. They fasted for 40 days.

For the Ferreiras, as for so many other people motivated to action by Proposition 8, the measure wasn't just a matter of politics. It was about family, faith and the future of the country.

The Ferreiras's fight for Proposition 8 began less than two miles away, at Skyline Church. . . . Pastor Jim Garlow, one of the state's most vocal proponents of the measure, was crucial in collecting the more than 600,000 signatures required to get the proposition on the ballot.

One Sunday about a year ago, Garlow told his congregation what he thought the consequences of legalizing same-sex marriage would be.

"The thing that affected me the most was knowing that my grandkids are going to be taught this ungodly and sinful act as if it's OK," Robbie said. "I thought from that point on, 'No. I will fight for them. I don't have them yet, but I'm going to fight for them.'"

A few months ago, the Ferreiras's 18-year-old daughter, Brooklyn, began posting her opinions about gay marriage and her support of Proposition 8 on her MySpace profile.

She was met with a flood of criticism from friends and strangers, she said.

Robbie points out that Skyline Church offers counseling for people who are "struggling with same-sex attraction," and its pastor has told his congregation to save gay people by giving them love.

"We hate the sin," Abel often declares, "not the sinner."

In April, after hearing Engle preach at Skyline, Robbie formed a Bible study group.

Every Sunday evening, about a dozen teenagers and people in their 20s meet in the Ferreiras's living room to discuss faith.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Christians Encourage San Antonio Police Chief to Stop Promoting Homosexual Causes

More than 150 Christians showed up at the San Antonio City Council meeting to protest last month's appearance by Police Chief William McManus as grand marshal in a homosexual pride parade.



From "San Antonio police chief encouraged to stop promoting homosexual causes" by Allie Martin, posted 8/8/07 at OneNewsNow.com

A conservative radio talk-show host says Christians throughout San Antonio will continue putting pressure on that city's police chief in an effort to discourage him from promoting the homosexual agenda.

Last week, more than 150 Christians showed up at the San Antonio City Council meeting to protest last month's appearance by Police Chief William McManus as grand marshal in a homosexual pride parade. (See related article) Chief McManus, who is not homosexual, has said he wants to strengthen ties between the police department and those living so-called "alternative lifestyles."

Adam McManus, who is not related to the police chief, hosts a daily show on San Antonio radio station KSLR. He says Chief McManus must stop catering to homosexuals -- and wonders if the chief will uphold public decency laws when homosexuals are involved.

"I made the case that our boys and girls look up to the cops as role models -- and rightly so," says the radio host. "The cops, more than most, understand the difference between right and wrong. The cops get the bad guys; the cops uphold justice."

McManus notes that the chief has made it a priority to build relationships between homosexuals in other cities where he has served. Toward that end, evidently, all San Antonio police officers are being required this week to take sensitivity training for homosexuals. The radio talk-show host is curious if the department or city officials plan to treat the issue of "sensitivity" equally.

"I wonder when are they going to have sensitivity training ... about Christians who are legitimately offended and outraged that the top law enforcement official in the Alamo City is endorsing a behavior that is unnatural, immoral, and unhealthy," says Adam McManus.

Media reports said nearly 40 homosexual men and women turned out for the city council meeting last week.

May God bless and strengthen the Christians of San Antonio as they stand as witnesses to the truth and hold their leaders accountable (which blesses us all.)

Illinois Church Challenges Candidates, Christians with National Newspaper Ad

An Illinois church has placed a full-page, pro-life ad in USA Today in hopes of delivering a message to presidential candidates -- and at the same time, challenging churches.

From "Illinois church challenges candidates, Christians with national newspaper ad" by Allie Martin, posted 8/6/07 at OneNewsNow.com

The ad -- found on page 5A of the August 6, 2007, issue of the nationwide newspaper -- is titled "A Lesson from Samuel - A Child or a Choice." The centerpiece of the ad is the famous picture taken by veteran photojournalist Michael Clancy from Nashville. He was hired by USA Today in 1999 to photograph a spina bifida corrective surgical procedure.

During the operation, performed in utero, the 21-week-old baby thrust his arm out of the uterus and grabbed a surgeon's finger. The ad carries a moving testimony from Clancy about what he witnessed in the operating room that day.

Todd Greiner is senior pastor of Community of Faith Church in Carterville, Illinois, which placed the ad. The ad promises to support only pro-life presidential and political candidates -- and Greiner says it is also meant to motivate Christians and encourage them to stop retreating from the culture war.

"We definitely need to stand up and we need to speak out on this issue," the pastor says. "Sadly, the church has been far too quiet. Silence is not golden in this situation."

According to Greiner, the project has unified the church. "I have never witnessed such a spirit of unity [as] what God is giving us here," he shares -- adding that "the sacrificial giving, the commitment, the passion, the burden for this" is a "a complete indication of what God is doing."

The Illinois pastor is hopeful the ad spurs his fellow Christians to get involved in defending the lives of unborn children. "It's something that needs to become contagious; it needs to grow, it needs to become a burden for the believers," he states.

The ad was paid for by a special, one-time offering.

Thank God for courageous, faithful pastors like Pr. Greiner. We need about 10,000 more like him...