Tag: legislation
Does the Bible Justify Refusing to Serve Homosexual Weddings?
Posted on February 27, 2014 in Public Policy, Religious Freedom by Nathan Cherry
Note: This article is a follow up to yesterday’s post in which I discussed the article by Kirsten Powers and responses to her article.
Predictably, the pending law in Arizona that would allow businesses to refuse service to homosexuals based on their religious convictions has stirred up controversy around the nation. Proponents of the legislation say it is needed to ensure the religious and conscience rights of Christian business owners are protected from government coercion and mandate. Opponents say the bills are just an excuse for people to discriminate.
What was not predictable in this discussion was how divided Christians themselves would be on the issue. Some Christians are saying no one should have the right to refuse service – not even Christians, and not even when rendering service would violate a person’s convictions. Other Christians are baffled by that position and reiterate that the government should not be allowed to force a person to violate his or her deeply held religious convictions. Dr. Albert Mohler recently said that this was “perhaps the strangest and most disappointing dimension of the current controversy.”
NARAL Pro-Choice America president Ilyse Hogue says pro-lifers are “outside the mainstream” on the issue of abortion and frequently “lie and cheat” in order to get pro-life legislation passed. Do you agree?
Watch the video below of Hogue’s comments to see if she is speaking for you and representing your views accurately. As a pro-life advocate I can say I disagree completely with her and believe it is abortion advocates that lie to women in order to support their agenda of killing the unborn (think, “it’s just a blob of tissue.”).
If the video doesn’t appear automatically, please refresh your browser.
H.R. 7: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act
Posted on January 27, 2014 in Life, Public Policy by Nathan Cherry
Autumn Christensen with the Congressional Pro Life Caucus reminded pro-life defenders that H.R. 7, the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act, will be coming up in the House of Representatives very soon, perhaps this week. This very important piece of legislation would ensure that no tax dollars are spent to fund abortion.
Unfortunately, not only is abortion funded through our tax dollars at the federal level but, in some states, such as my home state of West Virginia, taxes are used to fund abortion at the state level. So this legislation would help protect the conscience rights of people opposed to abortion. A memo from the Congressional Pro Life Caucus says:
Answering Questions on ENDA
Posted on November 25, 2013 in Public Policy, Sexuality by Nathan Cherry
The federal ENDA bill appears to be stalled, perhaps dead…for the moment. After passing in the Senate by a solid majority it appears the House will not bring the bill up for a vote. Even though West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin promised to oppose legislation like ENDA, in the end he broke that promise and voted in favor of the bill. However, to this point House Speaker John Boehner has opposed ENDA and said he will not bring it up for a vote in the House of Representatives.
One thing is for sure: this is the end of ENDA. There is no doubt that this bill will come back and we need to be prepared to oppose it. West Virginians in particular need to be prepared to oppose ENDA on the state level as we will no doubt be facing a state level ENDA bill again in the 2014 legislative session.
For those who are not familiar with ENDA, Joe Carter, writing at The Gospel Coalition, has written a short, informative article answering some of the most frequently asked questions about ENDA. In particular he answers the question why should Christians be concerned about ENDA?
“As a practical matter, ENDA teaches a view of human embodiment that Christians will strongly object to. Christianity embraces the body and self as an integrated whole; as unique creations that witness to the divine action and creativity of God through our being created male and female. Male and female are not arbitrary, socially imposed constructs. They are rooted in our biology. In contrast, the worldview behind ENDA assumes an ‘expressive individualism’ where our bodies become instruments of the will, capable of being re-created according to preference and desire.”
I highly recommend reading this article.
The Logical End of ENDA
Posted on November 19, 2013 in Public Policy, Religious Freedom by Nathan Cherry
Remember way back when Ryan T. Anderson said ENDA would threaten the religious freedoms of Christian business owners and people of faith? Well, he said it:
“While it is unclear which religious organizations would be exempted from ENDA, it is clear that the bill would not exempt those who wish to run their businesses and other organizations in keeping with their moral or religious values. Additionally, ENDA’s religious liberty protections extend only to businesses directly run by a church or religious organizations. As a result, other religious business owners would be exposed to significant liabilities. Consider, for instance, a Christian bookstore not formally incorporated as a religious organization. Such a store could be accused of creating a hostile work environment by selling and promoting books stating that marriage unites one man with one woman. Clearly, ENDA would create enormous legal risks for businesses that allowed their employees to express traditional religious teachings on sexuality. Anti-discrimination law ought not to silence religious believers.”