Pentagon May Court Martial Soldiers Who Share Christian Faith

The Pentagon has released a statement confirming that soldiers could be prosecuted for promoting their faith: “Religious proselytization is not permitted within the Department of Defense…Court martials and non-judicial punishments are decided on a case-by-case basis…”.

The statement, released to Fox News, follows a Breitbart News report on Obama administration Pentagon appointees meeting with anti-Christian extremist Mikey Weinstein to develop court-martial procedures to punish Christians in the military who express or share their faith.

(From our earlier report: Weinstein is the head of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, and says Christians–including chaplains–sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ in the military are guilty of “treason,” and of committing an act of “spiritual rape” as serious a crime as “sexual assault.” He also asserted that Christians sharing their faith in the military are “enemies of the Constitution.”)

Being convicted in a court martial means that a soldier has committed a crime under federal military law. Punishment for a court martial can include imprisonment and being dishonorably discharged from the military.

So President Barack Obama’s civilian appointees who lead the Pentagon are confirming that the military will make it a crime–possibly resulting in imprisonment–for those in uniform to share their faith. This would include chaplains—military officers who are ordained clergymen of their faith (mostly Christian pastors or priests, or Jewish rabbis)–whose duty since the founding of the U.S. military under George Washington is to teach their faith and minister to the spiritual needs of troops who come to them for counsel, instruction, or comfort.

This regulation would severely limit expressions of faith in the military, even on a one-to-one basis between close friends. It could also effectively abolish the position of chaplain in the military, as it would not allow chaplains (or any service members, for that matter), to say anything about their faith that others say led them to think they were being encouraged to make faith part of their life. It’s difficult to imagine how a member of the clergy could give spiritual counseling without saying anything that might be perceived in that fashion.

In response to the Pentagon’s plans, retired Lt. Gen. Jerry Boykin, who is now executive vice president of the Family Research Council (FRC), said on Fox & Friends Wednesday morning:

It’s a matter of what do they mean by “proselytizing.” …I think they’ve got their defintions a little confused. If you’re talking about coercion that’s one thing, but if you’re talking about the free exercise of our faith as individual soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines, especially for the chaplains, they I think the worst thing we can do is stop the ability for a soldier to be able to exercise his faith.”

FRC has launched a petition here which has already collected over 30,000 signatures, calling on Secretary Hagel is stop working with Weinstein and his anti-Christian organization to develop military policy regarding religious faith.

**UPDATE**

The FRC petition has now exceeded more than 40,000 signatures at the time of this update.

Breitbart News legal columnist Ken Klukowski is senior fellow for religious liberty with the Family Research Council and on faculty at Liberty University School of Law. 

Courtesy of http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2013/05/01/Breaking-Pentagon-Confirms-Will-Court-Martial-Soldiers-Who-Share-Christian-Faith

Parks Services Reverses Decision – Permits Woman To Distribute Free Bibles

A Louisiana woman who was ordered by Park Rangers to stop giving away free Bible at her farmer’s market stand, will now be permitted to after some timely legal assistance led to the Park Services Department reversing its decision.

According to reports:

“I was really just elated,” the woman, Shirley Elliott, told The Christian Post. “I was just happy that I could do what I felt like I needed to do, and what the Lord wants me to do.” Elliott says she always kept Bibles in her car to give to others, but found the Thibodaux Farmer’s Market near Jean Lafitte National Historic Park to be an ideal place to offer them to shoppers. She has been selling produce and homemade jellies at the market since 2011, according to Liberty Counsel, and in 2012 she set out the books along with a sign indicating they were free. But in December she was told by a park ranger that she could no longer offer the Bibles at her stand because “they were on federal property,” and she was instructed that she could hand them out in a separate area designated for literature distribution. (source).

Rather than give up her desire to share the Gospel at her stand, Elliot contacted the Liberty Counsel a legal advocacy group which represents Christian victims of religious discrimination. Liberty Counsel attorney Richard Mast Jr. wrote a letter to Carol Clark, superintendent of the park. In the letter he advised of why the park’s decision amounted to viewpoint discrimination. According to the park’s own policies, non-profit distribution of literature that pertains to education, youth and nutrition is permitted. And thus preventing a licensed vendor from giving away free Bibles to those who choose to take them would be discrimination solely on the basis of its religious nature.

Thankfully the letter led to a swift resolution of the matter:

Clark responded with a letter to Liberty Counsel in which she called the situation a “misunderstanding.”  “The NPS (National Park Service) respects the right of vendors to make free religious materials available,” wrote Clark. “Please assure Ms. Elliott that she is welcome to offer free Bibles at her produce and homemade jellies table.” (source).

The Bible has returned to the Farmers Market.

The efforts to silence the voice of Christianity is becoming so vociferous that even a woman giving away free Bibles at a food stand is subject to persecution. Jesus Christ prophesied that this persecution would take place and even His own disciples faced it during their ministry:

Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people. Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned. And when they had brought them, they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them, Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man’s blood upon us. Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him. – Acts 5:25-32.

Pray for Christians to continue to exercise their right of free speech to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the unbelieving world. As it grows more hostile to the Bible’s message (while accommodating and embracing other faiths), it is even more urgent to share the message of forgiveness of sins and eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ.

Courtesy of http://beginningandend.com/parks-services-reverses-decision-permits-woman-to-distribute-free-bibles/

Atheist Group Loses Lawsuit Challenging Prayers at Florida City Commission Meetings

Lakeland, Florida – A Florida atheist group has lost their court challenge surrounding prayers that are offered during Lakeland’s City Commission meetings.

Atheists of Florida had filed a lawsuit against the City of Lakeland and its mayor, Gow Field, in 2010, contending that the prayers that preceded each meeting violated the Establishment Clause of the United States Constitution. The organization states that it sat in on a meeting in March 2010 and complained that the prayer was clearly Christian. It requested that the City have a moment of silence instead.

In its lawsuit, the group noted that prayers at the meetings include phrases such as “in the name of Jesus Christ,” “our Savior,” “the King of kings” and “Father, Son and Holy Spirit.”

A month after filing in district court, officials opened up the prayers to all religions in an effort to end the dispute. However, a year later, Atheists of Florida stated that it was not yet satisfied as the prayers were still predominantly Christian. One Muslim and two Jews had reportedly participated in a year’s time.

A federal judge dismissed the lawsuit against the City, and Atheists of Florida appealed to the 11th Circuit. This week, the court upheld the ruling of the lower court, stating that the prayers — according to the new policy — were not unconstitutional.

“The selection procedures of the invocational speakers invited to deliver an invocation at Lakeland City Commission’s meetings pursuant to policies and practices initiated informally in March 2010, which were codified with the passage of Resolution 4848 in August 2010, do not support the AOF’s contention that Lakeland attempted to exploit the prayer opportunity to proselytize or advance or disparage any one faith or belief,” wrote Judge Arthur Alarcon on behalf of the panel. “Nor do those policies and practices have the effect of affiliating the Lakeland City Commission with any discrete faith or belief.”

“Accordingly, we are persuaded that the district court did not err in granting Lakeland’s motion for summary judgment with regard to Lakeland’s policies and practices for the selection of speakers since March 2010 and codified in Resolution 4848,” he concluded.

The judges advised, however, that they lacked jurisdiction to decide Atheists of Florida’s contention that the prayers were unlawful prior to the new policy.

“For the same reasons, the district court lacked jurisdiction, and we vacate that portion of the district court’s judgment addressing the merits of AOF’s challenge to the pre-March 2010 prayer practice and remand for the district court to dismiss that portion of the challenge as moot,” Alcaron wrote.

“We were elated to hear the news earlier today on the court’s ruling,” stated Lakeland Mayor Gow Fields following the decision. “I believe very strongly that this was a very important message to make: That the Constitution applies to those that want to exercise their right to offer an invocation for heavenly guidance for their elected officials.”

The Lakeland City Commission has been opening its meetings with prayer since 1951.

Courtesy of http://christiannews.net/2013/03/28/atheist-group-loses-lawsuit-challenging-prayers-at-florida-city-commission-meetings/

Pro-Life Group Granted Rights as Official Student Club of Johns Hopkins University

ANN ARBOR, MI – The Thomas More Law Center (TMLC) a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan announced this morning that the Student Government Association (SGA) Judiciary Committee of Johns Hopkins University (JHU) issued a unanimous decision late yesterday evening overturning a SGA ruling that denied recognition to Voice for Life (VFL) as an official student club of the University.

TMLC, whose mission includes defending the constitutional rights of pro-life groups and individuals, representing VFL, authored an April 4^th letter to top Johns Hopkins University officials and the SGA Judiciary Committee laying out the legal basis requiring recognition of VFL. However, Andrew Guernsey, VFL’s president and Chris Fernandez, VFL’s treasurer, presented VFL’s case to the SGA Judiciary Committee last night.

Responding to the decision, Andrew Guernsey commented: “We commend the SGA Judiciary for honoring Johns Hopkins’ institutional commitment to free speech by overturning Voice for Life’s rejection by the SGA Senate. Today is a victory not only for pro-life students here at Johns Hopkins, but for pro-life students around the country. We hope that our story of rising above discriminatory opposition can inspire pro-life students around the country to courageously take a stand for life and speak truth to power at their own college campuses.”

Continued Guernsey, “On behalf of JHU Voice for Life, I wish to thank all our supporters in the Hopkins-Baltimore community and around the country. I especially want to express my gratitude to Students for Life, FIRE, and the Thomas More Law Center for their support in helping us win approval from the SGA. It is important that pro-life students like us who face unjust discrimination on their college campuses know that they are not alone, and that there are powerful resources to help them win the battle for free speech in order to win the war of defending the dignity of every human life.”

Monica Rex, Vice President of JHU VFL, added: “Now that the SGA Judiciary Committee has approved us, we are ready to begin the real work of saving lives! While the road was difficult, we have learned just how much this fight for life means to us, and how important it is that students at Johns Hopkins have the opportunity to hear our pro-life message. Johns Hopkins has always stood for the very best in higher education, and we look forward to bringing our pro-life message to future leaders in the medical industry here at Hopkins.”

On March 12^th, SGA denied VFL’s application for official recognition as a student club on the grounds that VFL’s intention to peacefully engage in sidewalk counseling off campus at a Baltimore abortion facility violates the University’s anti-Harassment and Code of Conduct policies, and that VFL’s website includes a link to the Center for Bio-Ethical Reform’s website, which features images of aborted preborn babies, considered by members of the SGA to be “offensive”.

The SGA March 12^th denial was affirmed by the SGA Senate on March 24^th. VFL filed an appeal with the student Judiciary Committee.

Richard Thompson, TMLC’s President and Chief Counsel, commented: “This is a great example of courageous students facing tremendous opposition, sticking to their deeply held pro-life principles and advancing those principles based on their right to free speech so deeply engrained in our culture, enshrined in our constitution, and fostered at Johns Hopkins University.”

 

Federal Judge Throws Out Atheist Lawsuit Seeking to Remove 9/11 Cross From NYC Museum

Manhattan, New York – A federal judge appointed by former president Bill Clinton has thrown out a lawsuit filed by a national atheist organization that sought to remove a steel beam cross from the 9/11 Museum in New York City because it promoted Christianity.

As previously reported, the group American Atheists stated that the cross, which was found in the rubble following the 2001 attack on the World Trade Center, has caused individuals to suffer “depression, headaches, anxiety, and mental pain and anguish,” and even indigestion. It had filed suit against numerous responsible parties, including the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

“This shrine is a cross. It was picked up, trimmed, polished, the word ‘Jesus’ was carved on top of it, it was prayed over in front of a church for five years, and then it was installed in the WTC memorial with no warning by a priest in a religious service where in the ground was consecrated,” stated David Silverman, the president of the organization. “This is a working Christian shrine in the memorial, and then they had the gall to say it’s not religious in nature, that it represents everybody. That’s not true. It does not represent Jews, Muslims, Mormons or atheists, and they all had deaths on 9/11.”

He also claimed that the cross was problematic because it was stationed on public land.

 

Attorneys for the museum filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit last August, and have been waiting on an answer from the court ever since. Area residents who supported the display stated that they were upset by the legal challenge.

“I’m angry that we are being forced to defend this,” 9/11 survivor Joe O’Connor told reporters. “It was very important to the people who were down there at the time.”

“They’re trying to [take away symbols of hope] a little at a time with these frivolous lawsuits,” he said. “Our country needs to stand tall. It’s so much easier to destroy than to create things.”

On Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Deborah Batts, appointed by Bill Clinton, rejected the arguments of American Atheists regarding its belief that “the government enshrinement of the cross” excluded non-Christians from being recognized in the tragedy. She dismissed the group’s lawsuit, stating that the cross served both a “historic and secular purpose.”

“No reasonable observer would view the artifact as endorsing Christianity,” Batts wrote. “[The museum curators] have not advanced religion impermissibly, and the cross does not create excessive entanglement between the state and religion.”

American Atheists says it is disappointed in the outcome.

“We are angry that we have to have this fight,” Silverman told CNN. “We will not sit and let the 500 atheists who died on 9/11 go unnoticed.”

He plans on filing an appeal in the case.

Museum curators state that they are elated with Batts’ ruling.

“[I am thankful that the court] agrees that the display of the World Trade Center Cross is not a constitutional violation but is in fact a crucial part of the 9/11 Memorial Museum’s mission of preserving the true history of 9/11,” president Joe Daniels told reporters.

“The museum is gratified by the decision,” added attorney Mark Alcott. “The plan has been to display this as one of hundreds and hundreds of artifacts … because it is part of the history of the recovery efforts after the 911 attacks.”

“For some of these people, [the cross indeed] had symbolic significance,” he acknowledged, referring to the first responders on the scene. “They treated it as a religious object and it gave them a great deal of comfort at a difficult time. The 9/11 museum is simply depicting what happened.”

Courtesy of http://christiannews.net/2013/03/30/federal-judge-throws-out-atheist-lawsuit-seeking-to-remove-911-cross-from-nyc-museum/

Missouri Mayor to Install National Motto ‘In God We Trust’ Inside City Buildings

City buildings in St. Peters, Mo., will begin displaying the national motto “In God We Trust” in April – a decision alarming to atheists who believe the motto is unconstitutional.

Inspired by similar efforts throughout the nation, St. Peters, Mo., Mayor Len Pagano and members of the Board of Aldermen had voted (five voting yes and three absent) on Jan. 10 to approve the display.

“When I heard this idea at the National League of Cities conference, I thought what a great way of showing patriotism,” Pagano said. “I have found that it’s something the community at large thinks is the right thing to do, and we are leading the way by being the first city in St. Charles County to display ‘In God We Trust’ in city buildings.”

On March 12, the Freedom From Religion Foundation, sent a letter to Pagano and the Board of Aldermen asking them to honor the “constitutional principle of separation between church and state,” and to reconsider their decision to display In God We Trust in five city buildings, including St. Peters City Hall, the aldermanic chambers in the city’s justice center and the municipal courtroom.

Dan Barker, co-president of the Wisconsin-based FFRF, a nonprofit organization that represents atheists and agnostics, told The Christian Post that his organization sent out 2,500 letters last year challenging the display of religious messages on city property.

“What is their intent,” asked Barker, who believes St. Peters’ mayor must have a religious agenda behind his actions. “Because of all the things that the city has to do, why would they do that?”

In Barker’s opinion, the city can recognize that religion is part of people’s lives in the community, but he also believes it has no place in city business.

Barker said that lawsuits challenging the use of the motto In God We Trust on city properties have increased in number in recent years. Although his group cannot litigate every case, Barker said they could file a complaint against the city of St. Peters, but instead they’re waiting to receive a response from Pagano’s office.

On Feb. 1, FFRF filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York claiming the motto In God We Trust violates the First and Fifth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993.

In the letter to Pagano from Annie Gaylor, co-president of FFRF, she claims: “Statements about a god have no place in government buildings. Elected officials should not use their government position and government buildings as a place for promoting their religious views.”

She continues, “More than 638,000 Missouri adults identify as non-religious (American Religious Identification Survey 2008). Aldermen are elected to represent all residents of St. Peters, including those that do not believe in a monotheistic god or any gods.”

“Additionally, it does not inspire confidence that city officials apparently feel ‘In God We Trust’ must be displayed at the municipal courthouse and in the Board of Aldermen meeting room in order for you to make the right civic decisions.”

“The history of the motto, ‘In God We Trust’ evidences no secular purpose; on the contrary, the motto was first adopted during the Cold War as a reaction to the purported ‘godlessness’ of Communism. America’s original motto was purely secular, i.e., ‘E Pluribus Unum’ (‘out of many, one’), which was selected by Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin.”

According to In God We Trust – America, the national motto is displayed in over 300 cities. The national movement, founded by Bakersfield City Councilmember Jacquie Sullivan, aims to get the motto in as many cities throughout America as possible.
Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/missouri-mayor-to-install-national-motto-in-god-we-trust-inside-city-buildings-92451/#UtUa0RZTb5TiySbJ.99

Real Bullies: The Homosexuality Is Normal Movement

Think of us as crew members on the starship Enterprise of the Star Trek TV show, boldly going where no one has gone before. Folks, this is what it feels like challenging the Homosexuality Is Normal Movement. It is extremely dangerous.

Homosexual activists attempt to humiliate and politically destroy anyone who dares even criticize their agenda. Meanwhile, the MSM (mainstream media) casts us who believe marriage should remain between one man and one woman as the aggressors, as hate-filled villains.

Have the Homosexuality Is Normal Movement stolen our kids? Despicably, while we were not looking, homosexual activists sneaked their agenda in the back doors of our elementary schools, indoctrinating our kids early. Unquestionably, lack of access to your child for indoctrination contributes to the Left’s hatred for home schools and their relentless attempts to close them down.

Here is another example of homosexual activists’ in-your-face, aggressive indoctrination of our kids. A Massachusetts charter school, grades 7-12, will host a production of the play “The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told,” a retelling of the biblical story of Genesis with gay characters. Keep in mind, folks, that American schools have a cow when a kid brings a Bible or wears a t-shirt with religious, patriotic, or U.S. Military images. And yet, this school gleefully hosts a play which blasphemes Christianity while promoting homosexuality.

Our forty-year-old son and twenty-year-old granddaughter support homosexual marriage. Their attitude is What’s the big deal? It is only fair that gays be allowed to marry. America’s youths are parroting the liberals’ argument that opposition to same-sex marriage is discriminatory and bigoted. According to a Washington Post-ABC News poll, support for gay marriage is at 65 percent among those 18 to 29 years old. The gay marriage approval rating is probably even higher among high school kids.

A twenty-something-year-old Christian youth pastor picked me up from the airport in California. Justifying his support of same-sex marriage, he said, “God does not care who we love.” Wow, I could hardly believe my ears. This young man, who claimed to be a minister of God, chose to ignore the Bible and spout the liberal pop-culture spin.

From cooking shows to home improvement and everything in between, it has become difficult to watch TV without the Homosexuality Is Normal agenda being forced down your throat. If you do not believe that these people are outrageously aggressive, listen to this. The Green Street United Methodist Church will not perform heterosexual marriages until gays can marry.

Folks, I have dear friends and beloved relatives who are homosexual. I am loving and kind to their mates. My 85-year-old dad has been a Christian pastor over 50 years. Dad said he loves the homosexuals in his life, but they know where he stands on this topic, which is the biblical view.

Dad’s tolerance is not enough to please the aggressive Homosexuality Is Normal Movement bullying America today. They seek to politically bend Dad’s arm behind his back, forcing him to declare homosexuality normal, against his faith.

My point is, homosexual activists are extremely aggressive while portraying themselves as innocent victims of an intolerant society. In reality, we who believe in traditional values are the ones being bullied. The MSM gang vilifies anyone who dares to stand up for traditional marriage. Come hell or high water, they are going to make us embrace homosexuality as being normal by severely punishing those who refuse to comply.

And will someone please tell me why homosexual activists are so hell-bent on forcing Christian institutions to betray their faith by embracing the homosexual agenda? Homosexual activists have sued the Boy Scouts of America and launched a war on the Catholic Church.

No one is opposing homosexuals doing their own thing. Rather than aggressively trying to infiltrate the Boy Scouts and the Catholic Church, why not form their own Fabulous Scouts of America and the Church of If It Feels Good, Do It and leave Christian institutions be?

Christian institutions are simply saying you cannot come into our house and force us to change the rules – especially when those rules come from God. And what is the MSM’s response to Christian institutions defending their religious freedom? The MSM campaigns to brand the Boy Scouts of America and the Catholic Church intolerant haters. We are living in crazy, insidious, evil times, folks.

The Homosexuality Is Normal Movement takes no prisoners – not even new Pope Francis. They have already begun finding fault with him because he is against gay marriage and gay adoption.

Question: will homosexual activists get away with branding the pope a hater?

The Homosexuality Is Normal Movement is not made up of passive, well-meaning victims simply seeking tolerance and their place in the sun. They are relentless, viscious, and hell-bent on forcing all of us, particularly Christians, to say their behavior is normal.
Read more: http://www.americanthinker.com/2013/03/real_bullies_the_homosexuality_is_normal_movement.html#ixzz2ObVYHdl4
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Religious Free Speech Victory at Sinclair Community College in Ohio

March 12, 2013 — Sinclair Community College (SCC), of Dayton, OH, agreed to settle a federal lawsuit brought by the Thomas More Society and Ohio attorneys Curt C. Hartman, Christopher P. Finney, and Bradley M. Gibson, in response to actions by the college to prohibit students from distributing literature and displaying signage on campus.

“We are pleased that Sinclair Community College decided to join with its students to promote free speech instead of silencing or trying to control the content of their speech,” said Peter Breen, executive director and legal counsel of the Thomas More Society. “At its core, the university campus provides a place for students to debate and grapple with ideas, including ideas that may not be popular in certain quarters. Freedom of expression is an absolutely fundamental value in a democratic, self-governing society and indispensable to the educational process.”

The case was filed last summer in U.S. District Court, on the heels of a “Stand Up for Religious Freedom” rally opposing the U.S. Health and Human Services conscience-oppressing abortifacient-sterilization mandate. The rally had been organized and sponsored by members of the student body of the Dayton-based school.

Sinclair’s campus police forbade student-generated signage during that rally, and the lawsuit by the Thomas More Society and Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) alleged that the campus police had continued to engage in systematic censorship of free speech as at previous student-led rallies. The suit also alleged that students had been barred from distributing informational brochures to their classmates.

The lawsuit alleged that police stated the practice of disallowing signs and brochures was supposedly intended to comply with a school policy barring “disruptive behavior,” even though censoring the content of signs or brochures was nowhere addressed in the actual wording of the policy cited. It is fundamental First Amendment law that the content of free speech, no matter how “offensive” it may be to certain onlookers, deserves the very highest degree of legal protection, despite the fact that some of those hearing or seeing the speakers’ message may be “disruptive” and seek to impose their “hecklers’ veto” against the speakers. Here, the police — as is all too common — were the sole folks within hearing or sight of the pro-life messages displayed on the “offensive” signs who sought to enforce their own “hecklers’ veto.” In every such case, the Thomas More Society will hasten to support the right of pro-life speakers to have their “say,” loud and clear, in America’s public forums!

As a result of the lawsuit, SCC has adopted a new policy recognizing and allowing for the exercise of broader First Amendment Rights of students and groups hosting expressive activities on campus. The college also agreed to pay $9,000 to cover the plaintiffs’ costs and attorneys’ fees.

Thomas More Society recognizes and applauds the fine legal work provided by lead attorneys Chris Finney and Brad Gibson of the law firm of Finney, Stagnaro, Saba & Patterson Co., L.P.A., based in Cincinnati and Columbus, OH, and Curt C. Hartman, of Amelia, OH, which led to this very positive result. In addition, the Thomas More Society appreciates the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education for writing to SCC President Steven Lee Johnson last year, asking Sinclair Community College to disavow the censorship of TVC’s event by the SCC police and to promise never to enforce such a ban against signs in the future.

A copy of the settlement letter can be found here.

Courtesy of https://www.thomasmoresociety.org/news/

Missouri Atheist Group Says It Will Take Part in St. Patrick’s Day Parade Despite Ban

An atheist organization in Missouri banned from taking part in a citywide St. Patrick’s Day Parade has stated that it will participate despite the ban.

According to Fox 4 of Kansas City, the leader of the Kansas City Atheist Coalition announced earlier this week that his organization would hold an event along the parade route titled “Ask an Atheist.”

“We want to help people understand that atheism is not a negative worldview,” said Josh Hyde, vice president of the KCAC, in a statement.

“As atheists, we believe it is up to us – not a deity – to make the world a better place, which is why we do volunteer work, raise money for charity and work to promote equality and human rights.”

Last month, the KCAC submitted an application to be part of the city’s annual Saint Patrick’s Day Parade, set to be held Sunday.

However, the application was rejected. Sarah Hargreaves, a member of the KCAC, told Fox 4 that the rejection was “discrimination.”

“The idea that they are presenting now that this is a very Catholic event and they were celebrating the patron saint and his Christian legacy, I think makes for a good response but I don’t think that’s their reason,” said Hargreaves.

“I think people on the parade committee are personally offended by atheists in a similar way that there are people in this country that are offended at the existence of people who are gay.”

Organized by a group of private volunteers since the 1970s, Kansas City’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade is listed on its website as a nonprofit 501C3 corporation.

In addition to the parade, festivities included in the celebration include a Gaelic Mass at Redemptorist Catholic Church and a food drive. Fr. Patrick Tobin will be this year’s Grand Marshall.

Erin Kiekbusch of the parade board of directors forwarded a statement to The Christian Post from the 2013 Parade Co-Chairs Sharon Bundy and Anne McKeown.

“Kansas City’s parade celebrates the Feast Day of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, and the Christian teachings and beliefs that he lived and suffered for. The Atheist Coalition’s published mission is to advance godlessness through activism,” reads the statement.

“[Its] stated intent regarding the 2013 parade was to carry banners with phrases such as ‘positively godless’ and ‘morals without mythology.’ It was with respect for the legacy of St. Patrick that the parade committee turned down the Atheist Coalition’s application to participate in this year’s procession.”

Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/missouri-atheist-group-says-it-will-take-part-in-st-patricks-day-parade-despite-ban-91982/#2clzsT10wFhSc0D7.99

IRS SURRENDERS: TIME FOR CHURCHES TO GET ‘POLITICAL’

The jig is up. The news is out. Pastors across America have called the left’s bluff. The empty words “separation of church and state” – a phrase found nowhere in the U.S. Constitution – have lost their sting.

Yes, “separation” still applies, but only insofar as it requires the state to remain separate from the church. That is to say, that government not interfere with the free exercise of either speech or religion.

For decades, hard-left anti-theist groups like the ACLU, People for the American Way (PFAW) and Barry Lynn’s Americans United (AU) have employed a cynical disinformation scheme intended to intimidate clergy into silence on issues of morality, culture and Christian civic involvement – issues that are not political so much as they have been politicized, issues that are inherently “religious.”

AU, for instance, recently sent 60,000 letters to churches across the nation warning pastors, priests and rabbis that “If the IRS determines that your house of worship has engaged in unlawful intervention, it can revoke the institution’s tax-exempt status.”

That’s a lie.

Despite hundreds of thousands of threatening letters sent by these liberal outfits (and as many complaints filed with the IRS) not a single church has ever lost tax-exemption for socio-political activity – zip, zero, nada. Not even for endorsing candidates from the pulpit. The left has cried wolf far too many times. No one will come running. Especially not the IRS.

That’s because churches, unlike other nonprofit organizations, don’t need a letter of tax exemption from the Internal Revenue Service. Churches are constitutionally tax-exempt simply by virtue of existence. It’s automatic. The only way the IRS could revoke a church’s tax-exempt status would be to disband the church, which, obviously, the government has no authority to do. It’s simple. Pastors, if you get a letter from the ACLU, PFAW or AU, I suggest a singular use for it: bird-cage liner.

Keeping all this in mind, something I’ve long expected has finally occurred. A little over a week ago, the IRS ran up the white flag. That bureaucratic bully we all love to hate announced that, for the indefinite future, it is “holding any potential church audits in abeyance,” for violating its arbitrary “no politicking” rule.

This rule stems from the blatantly unconstitutional “Johnson Amendment,” which, in 1954, was introduced by then-Sen. Lyndon B. Johnson. At the time, Johnson was facing opposition from Christians and anti-Communists. He pushed the rule through in an effort to muzzle them.

Unfortunately, his scheme has achieved much success. That is, until now. I suspect the realization that it lacks constitutional authority to yank any church’s tax exemption for “politicking” has prompted the IRS to finally lay down its arms.

But there’s a back story. Since 2008, the Christian legal organizationAlliance Defending Freedom (ADF) has spearheaded a First Amendment exercise called “Pulpit Freedom Sunday.” Since then, thousands of pastors across America have boldly exercised their guaranteed constitutional rights by addressing “political” issues from the pulpit. This has included directly endorsing candidates. These pastors have dared the IRS to come after them and, not surprisingly, the IRS has balked.

Essentially, the goal was twofold. First, it was hoped that if the IRS tried, somehow, to revoke a church’s tax-exempt status, that church could sue and, once and for all, have the Johnson Amendment ruled unconstitutional.

The second possibility was that, rather than having the “no politicking” rule completely thrown out, the IRS would choose, instead, the path of least resistance – that it would simply do nothing. It has chosen door No. 2. Not only has the IRS done nothing, it has, at least for now, completely thrown in the towel.

The next step is to repeal the toothless Johnson Amendment. This will do away with any residual confusion. A Republican-led Congress and a President Romney could do just that.

Indeed, the staggering gravity of Tuesday’s election has weighed heavily on the hearts of spiritual leaders who, hitherto, have remained completely apolitical. Obama’s unprecedented attacks on life, freedom, faith and family have prompted the Rev. Billy Graham, for instance, to run full-page advertisements in newspapers across the country, urging voters to choose candidates who support biblical values of life, natural marriage, and religious liberty.

People are taking notice.

“This is unprecedented for the world’s best-known evangelist,” said Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel. “Billy Graham has always steered clear of politics. In reality, Billy Graham has merely raised his prophetic voice like any preacher should when biblical and moral values are placed in jeopardy by politicians.”

John MacArthur, a well-known pastor and author who, over the years, has spoken out against Christian political advocacy, has also had a dramatic change of heart. “I was amazed that one of the historic parties in the U.S. adopted the sins of Romans 1 as their platform,” MacArthur said of the DNC in a recent Sunday morning sermon. “This is a new day in our country. Parties that used to differ on economics, now differ dramatically on issues that invade the realm of God’s law and morality.”

”I am beginning to see more and more pastors waking up and realizing that biblical and moral issues are under attack and they have no choice but to speak,” noted Staver. “This isn’t politics; it is biblical and moral issues that have been politicized.”

In 1980, Moral Majority leader Jerry Falwell, along with other venerable Christian leaders, was central to placing Ronald Reagan in the White House. Today’s socio-political stage is strikingly similar. Pastors are poised to do the same thing for Mitt Romney.

At the time, Falwell gave a rousing call to arms: “What is wrong in America today?” he asked. “We preachers – and there are 340,000 of us who pastor churches – we hold the nation in our hand. And I say this to every preacher: We are going to stand accountable before God if we do not stand up and be counted.”

 

Pastors, stand up and be counted. The IRS muzzle has been removed. The choice is clear.

You know what to do.

Now go and do it.

Courtesy of http://www.wnd.com/2012/11/irs-surrenders-time-for-churches-to-get-political/