Today the kids and I will formally withdraw the colors — taking down our large Bears banner in front of the house to mark the end of the season for our team. My only concern is that the performance of the Bears lends credence to the Mayan prediction of the end of the world in 2012. As God’s team, it is only natural that the apocalypse would begin with this catastrophic season for the Bears — and countervailing success of the Packers. For Bears fans, we will now welcome the End of Times . . . if it will only happen before the Packers win a second Superbowl.
Submitted by Gene Howington, Guest Blogger
Augusta State University (ASU) of Georgia was taken to court by a clinical psychology student, Jennifer Keeton, who refused to do coursework necessary for completing her degree. The coursework in question dealt with LGBTQ population. “In her brief, Keeton describes herself as a Christian who is committed to the truth of the Bible, including what she believes are its teachings on human nature, the purpose and meaning of life, and the ethical standards that govern human conduct. She holds several beliefs about homosexuality that she views as arising from her Christian faith. She believes that ‘sexual behavior is the result of personal choice for which individuals are accountable, not inevitable deterministic forces; that gender is fixed and binary (i.e., male or female), not a social construct or personal choice subject to individual change; and that homosexuality is a ‘lifestyle,’ not a ‘state of being.’” ASU’s officials became aware that Keeton held these beliefs when she expressed to professors in class and fellow classmates in and out of class that she believed that the GLBTQ population suffers from identity confusion, and that she intended to attempt to convert students from being homosexual to heterosexual. Keeton also said that it would be difficult for her to work with GLBTQ clients and to separate her views about homosexuality from her clients’ views. Further, in answering a hypothetical posed by a faculty member, Keeton responded that as a high school counselor confronted by a sophomore student in crisis, questioning his sexual orientation, she would tell the student that it was not okay to be gay. Similarly, Keeton told a fellow classmate that, if a client discloses that he is gay, it was her intention to tell the client that his behavior is morally wrong and then try to change the client’s behavior, and if she were unable to help the client change his behavior, she would refer him to someone practicing conversion therapy.” Keeton v. Anderson-Wiley, 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 10-13925, D.C. Docket No. 1:10-cv-00099-JRH-WLB (Dec. 16, 2011)
This raises some interesting questions concerning free speech, free exercise and educational and professional accreditation.
Continue reading “Science and Education Win . . . in Georgia”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) sees a war on religion being waged by the elitist, secular Left. Paul claims the “separation of church and state” is a phrase taken out of context from Jefferson’s letter to the Danbury Baptists. According to Paul, courts have misread and distorted the meaning of the first amendment so that children are banned from praying in school, courthouses are prohibited from displaying the Ten Commandments, and citizens are prevented from praying before football games.
Continue reading “Ron Paul And The Separation Of Church And State”
Happy New Year’s Eve to all of our blog family. We will be spending New Year’s Eve at home this year — preparing for our annual New Year’s party on January 1st. I will be toasting to everyone on our extended blog family. It has been quite a year with a number of changes on the blog, including the addition of our extraordinary team of weekend bloggers. We are now approaching 10 million hits and 10,000 posts. It is hard to believe how far we have come on the blog and yet manage to retain our civility and good humor. I am deeply appreciative to each and every one of you — your contributions and camaraderie on this blog.
Respectfully submitted by Lawrence Rafferty (rafflaw)-Guest Blogger
Earlier in the month, Cardinal Francis George of the Archdiocese of Chicago angered gay rights activists by making an unfortunate comparison between the gay rights movement and the Ku Klux Klan. “Cardinal Francis George, the Archbishop of Chicago, this week told a Chicago news station that he agreed with a local Roman Catholic church’s objections to the city’s recently-adjusted Gay Pride Parade route passing by its doors and warned that the parade could “morph into the Ku Klux Klan.” George made the comment Sunday on Fox Chicago when asked about Our Lady of Mount Carmel’s complaints that the parade passing by its Belmont Avenue location would force the church to cancel its morning mass. The church recently launched a petition urging the city to force parade organizers to adjust their plans. “I go with the pastor,” George told Fox. “He’s telling us that he won’t be able to have services on Sunday if that’s the case. You don’t want the gay liberation movement to morph into something like the Ku Klux Klan, demonstrating in the streets against Catholicism.”‘ Huffington Post
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
The World Trade Center cross was discovered in the debris of the collapsed buildings by construction worker Frank Silecchia who declared “it’s an act of God.” The cross was removed from the debris pile, erected on a concrete pedestal, and placed nearby in a prominent position during the years of reconstruction. During the removal, Fr. Brian Jordan, a Roman Catholic Franciscan priest, blessed the cross with holy water. In june, 2002, Archbishop Leonardo Sandri, the Vatican’s third-highest-ranking cleric, and New York’s Cardinal Edward Egan participated in a ceremony at the cross.
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Christians For A Moral America really do not want you to see the Hobbit. It appears that really bad things come in really small packages. Producer Sir Peter Jackson is a self-proclaimed atheist. It would appear that he would have been better off proclaiming that he was an orc.
Continue reading ““Satan’s Little Helper”? Christian Group Calls For Boycott Of Movie “Hobbit””
The New Year brings a host of new laws that kick in on the first. For citizens in Utah, the New Year will bring an end to Happy Hours. That’s right, the heavily Mormon state has continued its harassment of citizens who drink and outlawed “drink specials.”
Continue reading “The Day Happy Died: New Year To Bring End To Happy Hours In Utah”
It seems like every election we have another extreme religious figure who becomes a campaign issue for a candidate. Obama had Rev. Wright and McCain had Rev. Hagee and Parsley. Sarah Palin has an actual Kenyan witch hunter. Now Ron Paul has his own embarrassing association. The preacher is Rev. Phillip G. Kayser, a pastor at the Dominion Covenant Church in Nebraska, who has a following in Iowa. The Paul campaign issued a press release (that it later removed from its site) heralding the endorsement of Kayser. The problem is that Kayser believes that gays should be executed according to biblical law. It was a a highly destructive endorsement for Paul who is attracting civil libertarians to his campaign. No one can stop someone from endorsing you, but the campaign clearly sought this endorsement from an extremist with reprehensible views. Unlike Wright, Kayser is not Paul’s personal minister, but the press release made him Paul’s problem in reaching out to civil libertarians.
Continue reading “Paul’s Preacher Probem: Meet Phillip G. Kayser”
In a disaster for many parents during the holiday, Build-a-Bear has issued a recall for roughly 300,000 “Colorful Hearts Teddy” bears due to a choking hazard. The culprit, shown left, contains “substandard fabric” in some runs that may allow an eye to break free, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Continue reading “Recall-A-Bear: Popular Children’s Store Recalls 300,000 Colorful Hearts Teddy Bears”
On the heels of the release of papers that contradict him on his claims regarding his first divorce, Newt Gingrich is now being challenged by a former and a current member of Congress who say that it is not true, as Gingrich has claimed, that he did not lobby Congress after leaving as Speaker of the House of Representatives in 1998.
Continue reading “Former and Current Members of Congress Contradict Gingrich Claims That He Did Not Lobby Congress After Leaving As Speaker”
Catholic bishops in Illinois have followed their colleagues in other states and shutdown adoption centers rather than comply with anti-discrimination laws requiring equal treatment for gay couples. Despite my support for gay rights and same-sex marriage, I have previously written that anti-discrimination laws are threatening the free exercise of religion. There is a possible distinction between areas like tax exempt status as opposed to contracting with the state. While I strongly disagree with this tenet of Catholic faith, I do not believe that religious organizations should be forced to abandon such principles under anti-discrimination laws as a general matter. Yet, it becomes a more difficult argument in the context of a state contract where the church has decided to compete for government contracts.
Continue reading “Catholic Church In Illinois Closes Adoptions Centers To Avoid Anti-Discrimination Laws”
In Lahore, Pakistan, police arrested Amanat Masih while he was in church on Christmas day. Masih, 50, was arrested for blasphemy — the second such arrest based on what he insists are trumped up charges by one man. He was previously sent to jail for more than three years for blaspheming Islam.
Continue reading “Pakistani Police Arrest Christian For Blasphemy in Church on Christmas”
We have previously seen fights between monks at Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The video below, however, shows monks going Medieval at Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity — taking brooms and sticks to each other in the ongoing dispute of who has rights to the holy ground. The response of the Palestinian police chief is rather interesting.
Continue reading “When Monks Attack: Orthodox Priests Go Medieval At Church of the Nativity”