Tag: Constitution
Will Christians Continue to Support Bernie Sanders After His Attack on Faith?
Posted on June 27, 2017 in Public Policy, Religious Freedom by Nathan Cherry
Vought is an evangelical Christian. As such he dares to hold the audacious view that Jesus Christ is the only way to Heaven. Though this is the “enlightened” 21st century, Vought is so “narrow-minded” and “intolerant” as to believe what the Bible says about salvation and what 2000 years of Christians have continued to believe: Jesus Christ is the only way to Heaven. He even made this mind-blowing statement:
Will the Church Be Protected from the Legal Ramifications of Same-Sex “Marriage”?
Posted on December 30, 2015 in Marriage, Public Policy, Religious Freedom by Nathan Cherry
It’s clear from the plain understanding of these laws that anyone, not just a church, has the right to live and do business according to their sincerely held religious beliefs. The idea that the Supreme Court or any governing body can force a person to support anything that violates their conscience or religious convictions is completely foreign to the American Constitution. (This includes the taxpayer funding of abortion.) Our Founders specifically sought to create a place where people would not be forced to violate their convictions.
The proposed resolution goes on to cite cases from around the country where Christians have been prosecuted for their refusal to support same-sex “marriage.” These examples include a photographer in New Mexico, baker in Colorado, florist in Washington, and others that have seen their business and personal lives thrown into turmoil by an overzealous government and complicit media that are chomping at the bit to make examples of anyone that refuse to bow to their agenda.
The resolution goes on to propose the following law designed to protect churches and the people that work for them, as well as religious organizations and their employees and Christian-owned businesses:
Steps Every Church Can Take to Defend Biblical Teaching on Marriage
Posted on May 13, 2015 in Marriage, Religious Freedom by Nathan Cherry
As I discussed yesterday, the Supreme Court is preparing to rule on the issue of marriage. More specifically, whether or not it should be legal in all 50 states for homosexuals to marry. This decision will have a major impact on every person regardless of which way the court rules.
Several years ago I was involved with educating churches and pastors on what steps they could take to protect their churches from lawsuits due to changing cultural norms. While many churches were receptive to such instruction, some churches believed it unnecessary. Few churches today seeking to protect their religious freedom think being educated is unnecessary.
Groups like The Gospel Coalition have been more cautious in recommending to churches steps that can be taken to protect their pastors, facilities, and religious freedom. So when I see recommendations from The Gospel Coalition, in conjunction with Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), I take notice.
In a blog post not long ago, The Gospel Coalition recommended five ways churches can protect their religious convictions and freedom amidst a changing culture. These are five steps groups like ADF and the one I worked with were encouraging years ago; they are more critical today than ever.
The five steps are:
UPDATE: US Civil Rights Commission Tells Houston Mayor to Leave Pastors Alone
Posted on October 27, 2014 in Religious Freedom by Nathan Cherry
The news that Mayor Annise Parker of Houston, Texas subpoenaed the sermons and other communications from several pastors after the passage and attempted repeal of a controversial “bathroom bill” in the city has become a national matter.
Bathroom bills are dangerous, to say the least. Typically a bathroom bill will allow a man to use the women’s bathroom, locker room, or other facilities (and vice versa) based on little more than a perceived gender identity. In other words a man can simply say that he is a woman and be allowed to use the women’s facilities. The dangers of such bills seem obvious to everyone but the activists pushing for their passage.
When the Houston bathroom bill was being proposed by the city many pastors spoke out against it and even encouraged their congregations to oppose the bill. Such speech is not merely appropriate for a pastor inside his church it is constitutionally protected speech. But that didn’t stop the city of Houston and Mayor Annise Parker from subpoenaing the sermons, emails, and other communication of these pastors.
That’s when people across the country got mad.
What If I Decided to Ignore the Law Like President Obama?
Posted on January 29, 2014 in Marriage, Public Policy by Nathan Cherry
A disturbing trend is taking place across the nation regarding marriage laws. We are seeing more frequently a refusal on the part of elected officials to defend marriage laws, even those put in place as a result of a vote of the people. Working from where we are right now, backwards, the troubling trend has a specific starting point.
Just last week the newly elected attorney general of Virginia said he would not uphold his state’s ban on same-sex “marriage.” Mark Herring said he “cannot and will not” defend a law that he believes is unconstitutional. Virginia’s ban on same-sex “marriage” is set to be challenged in court very soon by tow homosexual couples. So this decision by Herring is timely and will require legal scrambling on the part of the state.
West Virginia: Attack on Marriage Intensifies
Posted on January 4, 2014 in Marriage by Nathan Cherry
In case you didn’t know already, a lawsuit has been brought to challenge West Virginia’s DOMA law. The warning that having just a DOMA law and not a constitutional amendment defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman was sounded long ago. Many West Virginian’s spoke up to say they wanted to exercise their right to vote on such a constitutional amendment. But our elected lawmakers refused to give us the right to vote and have ever since held our own state constitution hostage from us.
While they held our constitution hostage they told us repeatedly that marriage in West Virginia was safe, but that if anyone ever challenged our DOMA law that they would be the first to take up the fight to defend it. Well, this lawsuit was first filed in October of 2013. Have you heard one peep from a single lawmaker about it or the need to defend marriage? Me neither. But Lambda Legal is moving full steam ahead with their lawsuit and has recently asked for summary judgment in favor of their case:
Public Libraries Providing Access to Porn
Posted on November 22, 2013 in Family, Public Policy by Nathan Cherry
Imagine taking your kids to the public library. While some might think public libraries are obsolete in the age of the Internet, many people still go and libraries are a valuable asset to any neighborhood. Now suppose you’ve taken your kids to visit the library on a beautiful, sunny day to enjoy looking at books and other activities. You walk your kids through the library, hand in hand, discussing what kind of books they will look at when, to your horror, you see…
Someone on one of the library computers is looking at porn!
This is just not a scenario out of a parent’s worst nightmare; this is a real-life scenario taking place in libraries around the country. A recent case involves a library in Orland Park, Illinois, where residents are asking the library to install filters on public computers to block access to pornography. Some however are concerned that such filters violate free speech rights and insert more government into the lives of Americans.