Thanks to MandM for these quotes -
Continue reading “Early Church Fathers on Freedom of Religion”
Jan 07 2010
Christian Persecution? Response Against
This is part two, started here. As a warning, t this is a response prepared by someone, other than myself. This is for dialogue and discussion purposes.
Jan 07 2010
Christian Persecution? Evidence For
This is a two part series in which I will present evidence for persecution against Christians in this country (USA) and a response as part 2. Comments will be closed on this post but open on part 2.
Jan 06 2010
Freedom of Religion in the Words of James Madison (1785)
Note, that this was written in 1785, just a few years before Madison would write the Bill of Rights:
Continue reading “Freedom of Religion in the Words of James Madison (1785)”
Nov 16 2009
Court turns down student over religious speech
First, its a public school. Second, it seems that the student and the school had approved on a text of the speech, which she then strayed from.
The Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from a student who complained that high school officials violated her constitutional rights when they turned off her microphone during her religion-tinged graduation speech.
Continue reading “Court turns down student over religious speech”
Jul 20 2009
Religious Speech Amendment Added To Hate Crimes Bill
The National Religious Broadcasters Friday (NRB) praised passage of a religious speech-related amendment to hate crimes legislation, while the ACLU said the overall bill still lacked sufficient First Amendment protections.
The religious amendment was adopted Thursday night (July 16) by a vote of 78 to 13, according to NRB, after which the underlying hate crimes bill was approved by a voice vote. The bill would raise to a federal offense certain crimes that could be tied to “race, color, national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and disability,” according to ACLU.
Continue reading “Religious Speech Amendment Added To Hate Crimes Bill”
Jul 20 2009
Minister wins right to threaten judge with biblical curses
Well, my goodness….
A Michigan appeals court on Tuesday overturned a ruling that had sent a minister to jail for threatening a judge with curses from the Bible.
The appeals court unanimously decided the Rev. Edward Pinkney’s rights to free speech were violated when he was sentenced to jail for writing a commentary criticizing his trial judge.
In 2007, Pinkney was convicted for paying people $5 to vote in a recall election for a congressional seat in Michigan’s 6th District that he lost. He warned that the Lord would smite the judge who sentenced him to probation with “consumption and with a fever and with an inflammation and with extreme burning,” referring to a passage in Deuteronomy.
The black minister from Benton Harbor, Mich., also called Judge Alfred Butzbaugh “dumb” and a “racist” in the commentary published in a Chicago-based populist newspaper.
Pinkney argued the judge encroached on his First Amendment rights when he sentenced him to prison for three to 10 years in June 2008.
Minister wins right to threaten judge with biblical curses – USATODAY.com.
May 27 2009
Nurse of 40 years sacked for role-playing advice to go to Church
A special thanks to the reader who sent me this. Are we heading the way of the Brits?
A Christian nurse has allegedly been sacked after suggesting that patients should turn to God during a staff training day.
Anand Rao, who works as a nurse for University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, was taking part in a role play when he advised one woman playing the role of a patient with a life-threatening heart condition that she could alleviate stress by going to church, reports the BBC.
Kate Bradley, from the Trust, was quoted as saying that Mr Rao had “showed little regard for the standards of care and professionalism that is expected of him as a nurse”.
The Christian Legal Centre has taken up the case and says it is considering taking legal action over the Trust’s decision to dismiss Mr Rao, 71.
CLC director Andrea Minichiello Williams said: “How is it possible that a nurse who has served the public for 40 years should find himself dismissed because in a training exercise he advised someone to go to church?
“To seek to censor and suppress this kind of language and belief is the fruits of a closed society.”
Okay, let’s review:
- It was a role-play exercise
- It was told, while acting, to a co-worker
- The male-nurse was 71 years old and had worked for 40 years!
Mar 06 2009
Israel Targets Messianic Jews and Christians in Human Rights Complaint
There are some disturbing aspects of the Israeli government’s version of Freedom of Religion. The link to the full report is here.
The state-owned Israel Broadcast Authority controls the Hebrew-language Israel Television and an Arabic-language channel, as well as Kol Israel (Voice of Israel) radio, which airs news and other programming in Hebrew, Arabic, and other languages. The Second Television and Radio Authority, a public body, supervises the two privately owned commercial television channels and 14 privately owned radio stations.
A cable company, HOT, and one satellite television company carried international networks and programs produced for domestic audiences. In July 2007 HOT dropped the Christian network Daystar TV from its subscriber package citing “editorial and content considerations” following complaints about proselytizing. A petition by Daystar TV to the Supreme Court was pending at year’s end.
Continue reading “Israel Targets Messianic Jews and Christians in Human Rights Complaint”
Feb 03 2009
The Legacy of D. James Kennedy
When I was in high school and college, I was not nearly so well grounded in my theological believes and opinions (as I told my wife this morning, my opinions are weightier than some people’s facts). Because of this, I visited different denominations. My church going weekend activities were something like this – Saturday, Methodist 5-6; ‘oneness’-holiness 7-9; Sunday Coral Ridge Presbyterian 8-, 10-12, split between Southern Baptist and Third Wave Charismatic; 6-8 ‘oneness’ holiness. The Coral Ridge program caught my eye because of the ‘pro-America’ stance, the absolute notion of ‘Christian nation’, and the fact that he actually spoke about sin – homosexuality and abortion – but to me, at least he spoke about the elusive sin, after all, it was the gays that were destroying American (much like the Jews destroy Germany – do you get what I am saying?)
I paid little attention to his theology or basis for his other teachings, because he waved the flag and made God and an American. That was biblical enough for me; however, as I grew up (leaving Louisiana for West Virginia) and studied the bible, and the teachings that come from people like Dr. Kennedy, I grew embarrassed that I had ever turned his show on. I had even read one of his books. Today, I can apply the name of ‘dominionist’ to it, even if Kennedy was not charismatic.
He is gone now, of course, but some of the things that he worked for remain as a movement. We cannot stop it, but we must be aware of it.
James Kennedy’s weekly national TV ministry reached millions across the nation. He had become a vocal leader in the religious right. I heard him speak at a national Christian Coaltion rally and his use of Christian Reconstruction language was open for any to note. The late Dr. Kennedy was until recently known for his work in evangelism. Notable his work called Evangelism Explosion. His model of witness training was used in seminaries and colleges around the nation. Later on he seemed more interested in recruiting delegates to the Republical Party than lost people into the church.
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