What Happened to Freedom of Speech and Religion?

There is a great article at the Creation Moments website. Here is a snippet.

To a large extent, Christians are shut out of the pagan academic marketplace. Certainly, creationists are shut out of the public school system. Even Intelligent Design (ID) has been censored from academia. In the spring of this year, Iowa State University denied tenure to an overwhelmingly qualified professor because of his work on a pro-ID book. Professor Guillermo Gonzalez had published 350 percent more peer-reviewed papers than the standard required, and his department had nominated him for an award for outstanding research achievement in early 2004. He was a rising star. But after his ID book came out in late 2004, his 2006 tenure application was denied.

This is one of the things that really chaps my hide. Freedom of religion to me should include everyone. And (since there are certainly some irreligious intelligent design advocates) freedom of speech should include everyone. More and more our culture is not just proclaiming "separation of church and state" (which isn't actually in the constitution). Instead our culture is proclaiming separation of the Judeo-Christian God and anything public. For example, this summer my family and I went to an international day at our local library. Much to my horror it opened with a prayer to a Hawaiian goddess. Not just a mention of this dance was used in prayer to such-and-such Hawaiian goddess. No. It was a full blown statement of this is a prayer we are praying to the goddess in Hawaiian and this is what it means. Now imagine if at the start of the program there had been a prayer in Latin to Jesus that was translated and identified as such. There would have been an uproar of protest. And maybe I should have protested. I was so shocked I didn't know what to do. My husband and I did talk to our kids about it afterward.

I pray that God help me remember to be bold for Him no matter what the culture says. For we are to be set apart.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! Remember to thank God who gives all good things. I am especially thankful for salvation in Christ, my loving husband, and the opportunity God has given us to participate in the bringing up of two young souls.

Janet Folger's Letter From Jail

Nov. 20, 2010

To the Resistance:

I'm writing this letter from prison, where I've been since the beginning of 2010. Since Hillary was elected in '08, Christian persecution in America has gotten even worse than we predicted.
When the so-called "Fairness Doctrine" was signed into law, my radio program was yanked off the air along with all the others that dared discuss moral issues on Christian radio. The networks just couldn't bring themselves to air a pro-abortion program or one that advocates the homosexual agenda for the government mandated "balance" because broadcasting lies went against their basic beliefs – I don't blame them.

We knew "Thought Crimes" was in danger of becoming law back when it passed Congress in 2007, but thankfully, President Bush kept his promise to veto it. But, tragically, Hillary signed that most dangerous bill in America – ushering in the criminalization of Christianity. And now, even my book, "The Criminalization of Christianity," has been banned as "hate speech" just as I predicted when I wrote it back in 2005.

When the "Employment Non-Discrimination Act" ("Thought Crimes" for the Workplace) became law, businesses and ministries were targeted by homosexual activists and were forced to close when they wouldn't comply with a law forcing them to hire those opposed to their beliefs on moral issues.

If you would like to read the rest of the article, go here. I thought it was really good. If you want to stop the above article from becoming a reality, give to the Huckabee campaign by clicking on the ticker above. Today is the big November 20th drive. Let's all do our part.

The Harsh Truth About Public Schools (Part 2)

This is the second part of my thoughts on Bruce Shortt's The Harsh Truth About Public Schools. If you would like to read the first part, go here. The thing I found most interesting in the second half of the book was the section starting on page 320 about all of the "but"s people use to squirm out to taking their children out of public school.

"But our government school is different."
Read the book. If you still think that the federal laws, court decisions, and teacher's unions do not assure that your government school teaches a secular humanist world view, read the book again.

"But my child is salt and light."
If this was being said of well grounded college students with a great Christian world view, I might agree. To expect a 8-year-old to withstand the constant spiritual battery of a government school let alone change it is mind boggling. Children must be trained before they can be sent out.

"But we can't just withdraw from culture."
". . . if all Christians withdrew their children from government schools, sending children to government schools would no longer represent the cultural norm - we would have changed it."

"But our pastor hasn't said it's a problem."
Really, if you can't think and reason for yourself, I feel very bad for you and worry about your spiritual well being.

"But our government school has some Christian teachers."
Even Christian teachers are bound by the law, curricula, etc. that make getting a Christian education via government schools impossible. All they can provide is a less corrosive environment. They cannot teach Christian values such as you matter because God created us and loves us. They cannot teach that there is right and wrong and God decides what is right and wrong.

"But what about socialization?"
Christian children can't be Christian and be just like the world. That said, there are plenty of ways to let your kids interact with other kids and grown-ups. Church, karate, going to the dog park, going to the library, inviting people over for dinner, etc. are all examples of this.

"But what about extracurricular activities?"
Really if cheerleading and chess club are more important to you than your children's spiritual well fare, I feel sad for your kids. That being said there are 4-H, boy scouts, church choir, etc. that anyone can participate in.

"But what would my family and friends think?"
WHO CARES?! God's opinion is the only one that matters.

"But we went to public schools and we turned out just fine."
I went to public schools too. I didn't get pregnant or do drugs or get involved in the occult. I also don't think that I reached my full spiritual potential in school despite reading the Bible daily and having Christian parents who made sure that we did at least know the Bible. And government schools get worse every year because of new court decisions, laws, etc.

"But we can't afford it."
My husband and I probably live below the "poverty line", but we do NOT send our kids to public school. Be willing to sacrifice. Be creative. You can do it.

"But we can't send our children to Christian school and I don't think I am qualified to teach."
If you don't think that you are qualified to teach, read chapter 5 of the book. Also, I suggest that just as any person that knows how he/she was saved can teach the Gospel anyone who is literate and can learn can teach their children. If you need a jump start, you can always purchase curricula.

"But we can't send our children to Christian school and don't have time to homeschool."
First of all, it only takes three (or less) hours a day to homeschool your kids. Second, I think that most of us can sacrifice TV time, reading the newspaper, surfing the web, etc for the sake of our children.

I highly recommend The Harsh Truth About Public Schools for anyone who wants a thorough and well-thought-out read.