The Left wants silence, not dialogue.  That quickly became obvious to me as I sat as part of the team defending Prop 8 in California this past January.  I was amazed at how often the plaintiffs’ lawyers brought up the Roman Catholic and Southern Baptist statements on marriage and homosexual conduct.  It was such an odd strategy in a trial about whether the definition of marriage is constitutional.  But those statements (one of which was authored by Pope Benedict) became the example of “invidious discrimination” that has no place in modern society.  The Left reckons that if same-sex “marriage” is the norm, religious views like these will be much easier to suppress.

And they’re right.  Our views on marriage and family—and our faith in general—will come under much heavier attack if same-sex “marriage” is the law.  As ADF’s Alan Sears warned several years ago, the legal fight to advocate homosexual conduct is the biggest modern threat to religious liberty.  The Left will use whatever pretext they can find to muzzle opposing voices.

For example, atheist Richard Dawkins, homosexual activist Andrew Sullivan, and a loony United Nations judge have at least one thing common— they and a slew of leftist newspapers and pundits would like Pope Benedict XVI to resign and/or be arrested.  Is that because they care so deeply for the safety of children or the health of the Catholic Church?  Don’t bet your life on it.

What they care deeply about is a radical agenda that would do much better if the Pope would simply go away.  And because they smell blood in the water, they’re attacking with all their might.  Facts don’t matter a whit.

For example, some of the media have unsuccessfully tried to link the Pope to specific cases of sex abuse. But this media-driven onslaught isn’t surprising if you think about what the Pope represents.  He’s one of the few religious leaders proclaiming the Gospel boldly on the world stage, fighting for an end to abortion, and defending the sanctity of marriage and family.  No doubt much of the media and secular culture would prefer that he just stay passively compliant in his own little corner of the world.

Any doubts?  Just ask the pastor of Mt. Hope Church in Michigan.  His Sunday services were terrorized by a group of anarchist homosexuals merely because the church dared to preach biblical truth about homosexual conduct.  And government officials refused to do anything about it.

We pray for the Pope and other religious leaders, and we thank them for their unyielding defense of Truth.

May the Lord preserve him, and give him life, and make him blessed upon the earth, and deliver him not up to the will of his enemies. [Psalm 41:2]

Please leave a comment below to share your thoughts or follow us on Facebook to join the conversation. http://www.facebook.com/SpeakUpChurch

As we’ve discussed before, the Obama Administration’s push to normalize homosexuality in the military is a distinct danger to religious liberty in the military.  And today, some of the best possible experts on the subject—retired military chaplains—are raising their voices to draw attention to this concern.

With the support of ADF, a group of 41 chaplains from all branches of the armed forces released a letter that provides a detailed explanation of how repealing the so-called “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law would censor chaplains and marginalize Christian soldiers.  Since their letter speaks for itself, I won’t elaborate further on it.  Especially when you could read three different explanations of the letter written by three of the chaplains themselves.

But I will introduce you to the signatories of these letters.  These are men who have given the bulk of their adult lives to serving the spiritual and moral needs of our armed forces.  And many of them continue to serve those needs by preparing and sending young chaplains into the military from a variety of Christian denominations.  Here’s a quick rundown of the signatories:

1)      Combined, the 41 chaplains have put in over one thousand years of service in the armed forces.  Almost every one served for at least two decades; a few almost made it to four decades.

2)      They are a high ranking group, with 2 brigadier generals, 21 colonels (or colonel-equivalents; a Navy captain is the same as a colonel in the other branches; learn more here), 14 lieutenant colonels (or LTC equivalents), and 4 lieutenant commanders (which are the equivalents of majors in the other services).

3)      The majority have served with our troops during armed conflict, ranging from the Vietnam War to the current-day wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Several have earned Bronze Stars for courageous conduct during battle; a couple even earned the Purple Heart (one did so three times!).

a.)  One of them was the first chaplain wounded during the Vietnam War.
b.)  Another earned two Presidential Unit Citations for extraordinary heroism under fire.
c.)  Yet another provided critical chaplaincy support during search-and-rescue operations at the Pentagon after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

4)      Almost all of the signatories have attained high levels of responsibility and service within the military.

a.)  A couple served as the leader of the armed forces’ top branch schools for chaplains (like the U.S. Army Chaplain Center and School)—that is, they were responsible for training every chaplain entering the military.
b.)  Another served as Assistant Chief of Chaplains—only a step away from the highest chaplaincy position the military can offer.

When a single person with credentials like these speaks up, you listen.  And when over forty of them speak with one voice, we had all better stop and think about what they’re saying.

Before it’s too late.

________________________________________________________________________

If you’re a military chaplain, active or retired, and are interested in becoming involved in this issue or sign the Chaplains Letter, please contact us with your information.

Please leave a comment below to share your thoughts or follow us on Facebook to join the conversation. http://www.facebook.com/SpeakUpChurch

Watch as distinguished military chaplains announce opposition to overturning the ”Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law.

To understand what’s at stake, download this important information. Learn what’s at risk and how you can specifically pray for religious liberty in the military.

I’ve spent the last couple blogs discussing protecting military chaplains’ religious liberty from the threat posed by normalizing homosexual behavior in the military.  Allow me to take a moment to celebrate that religious liberty.

My wife and I took a road trip to Colorado Springs recently to celebrate our anniversary.  While there, we were able to enjoy some breathtakingly beautiful examples of God’s magnificent creation (which we found particularly impressive because neither of us had ever been to the Rockies before).  For instance, we saw:

Garden of the Gods

Pikes Peak

and Aspen trees (which we both love, but rarely see).

But one of the most beautiful things we experienced was inside the unusually-shaped walls of The Cadet Chapel at the U.S. Air Force Academy.  And while the building itself is a marvel to behold, I’m not referring to it.

Instead, I’m referring to the time of worship we had, led by an Air Force chaplain and shared with a small group of Air Force cadets, members of the community, and tourists (like us!).  The chaplain opened God’s Word to us, teaching about the incredible plan God has for our lives.  No health/wealth/prosperity gospel teacher, the chaplain showed us that the incredible can also be inscrutable, relating the story of his aunt whose courage and grace in facing an untimely and painful death was a catalyst for many to find new life.  And then the chaplain shared with us Communion, administered by him and two surprisingly-young-albeit-competent-looking cadets, which is the remembrance of perhaps the ultimate example of God’s incredible and inscrutable plan.  Our small, impromptu congregation ended this celebration of Christ’s sacrifice together with song praising His grace and goodness.

I left thankful that, in America, citizens can be so led to know and honor their God by chaplains.

Chaplains’ religious liberty is worth standing up for.

Please leave a comment below to share your thoughts or follow us on Facebook to join the conversation. http://www.facebook.com/SpeakUpChurch

According to proponents of homosexual behavior, the battle between religious liberty and homosexual behavior is a zero sum game where one side must lose so the other one can win.  And the battleground has now moved to the military.

President Obama has called for repeal of the so-called “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law, which prevents open homosexual behavior in the military.  Already, two bills are pending in Congress that would both get rid of DADT and replace it with special rights for homosexual behavior, treating such behavior as deserving the same protection from discrimination as innate, innocuous characteristics like race and gender.

The result of this change will be a major loss to religious liberty in the military, especially for chaplains.  We’ve already seen the effects of such “non-discrimination” laws in the past, and they almost invariably end in marginalizing or attacking Christians simply for being Christians.

Christian counselors have been punished for declining to counsel same-sex couples, Christian chaplains have been disciplined for refusing to turn their worship service over to individuals who openly engage in homosexual behavior, and Christian ministries have been penalized for choosing not to allow their facilities to be used for same-sex commitment ceremonies. Keep reading… »