Tag: Religious Freedom

“He was grieved in His heart,” said Franklin Graham.  “… I can’t help but think that the heart of God is grieved as He looks at our world today.”

“A lot of the hate speech laws that we have in Europe today are cut-and-paste from Soviet times and communist countries. Even though these communist regimes have all collapsed, the legacy of censorship that they introduced has continued on to this day.”

All this begs the question as to by what authority does Colin Bloom assert that calling someone else an unbeliever or a heretic is ‘extremist’? Christians should be very concerned about the definition of extremism proposed by Bloom and should have no hesitation in speaking out about it.

"If they openly speak of Biblical teachings about sexuality, hell, the uniqueness of Christ—they are in danger of losing their job, being canceled by the wider culture, and even being ostracized by churchgoers who hope to make some kind of peace with the hostile culture."

“We are concerned about the focus of the school and the manner in which it has approached LGBT issues. We believe that this has infringed upon our rights as parents to raise our son in accordance with our deeply held Christian beliefs.“

What would it take to reclaim a Christian culture — a culture of worship of Jesus Christ alone, where the Bible is the foundation of morality and law, and where people love others more than themselves?

"Americans appear increasingly comfortable lashing out against church buildings, pointing to a larger societal problem of marginalizing core Christian beliefs, including those that touch on hot-button political issues related to human dignity and sexuality"

“Our freedom of religion is under attack; God’s natural order is under attack. The family unit in general is being attacked from every angle. And they’re starting with the youth.”

“The government can’t control a counselor’s speech. Washington’s counseling censorship law violates freedom of speech and harms counselors as well as clients,” said John Bursch, ADF senior counsel and vice president of appellate advocacy.

"I've warned Canadians for a very long time—and I'm warning Americans as well—that you will be ruled by what you tolerate. If you tolerate corruption, you will be ruled by corruption. If you tolerate perversion, you will eventually be ruled by perversion."

What have we come to as a church when someone proclaiming the obvious truth from God’s Word is fired and threatened by those who claim to be followers of Christ

“Dr. Lacy and the thousands of other Christian medical professionals we represent believe every life is sacred and full of inherent value, and that assisted suicide ends an innocent human life without justification."

They help the faithful fulfill their mission without having to betray deeply held Scriptural convictions or bow down to leftist, secular mandates. Their eternal impact cannot be overstated. And it comes at a cost.

Jesus died for our sins on a Roman cross, was buried, and on the third day, God raised Him from the dead! He’s not dead, He’s alive! Thank you, Aaron Brooks, for being unashamed of the Gospel..."

“Anyone concerned about academic freedom, Christian freedoms and free speech should be deeply concerned by what has happened to me.”

“… A lot of people have been praying for this for a long time, and I think America is ready to just enjoy the religious freedom once again.”

"Millions of people around the world are free to do this without interference, but I was treated like a criminal and convicted under a Russian law directed at terrorists."

“This case has represented a disturbing trend in our society which is seeing members of the public and professionals being prosecuted and reported as potential terrorists for refusing to celebrate and approve LGBTQ ideology."

This requires the nonprofit to hire some non- ministerial employees who don’t agree with the organization’s beliefs or face significant penalties if they don’t comply to this new hiring practice.

The bill was introduced after the city of West Lafayette considered an ordinance in 2022 that would have fined unlicensed counselors $1,000 per day for engaging in “conversion therapy.”

The Queensland Police Service have now painted a clear target on every sincere Christian who holds to the teaching of Premillennialism by connecting this belief to terrorism.

“She has the guts to stand up for what’s right. And they have absolutely no right to fire her for it! We need many more like her … This is a crime against children. It just shows how upside down the world has become.”

“I am determined however, to raise awareness on the danger and harm that ‘conversion therapy’ bans are and will cause, not just to churches and society in Malta, but all around the world."

He challenged other believers and asked a key question: if we aren’t willing to stand for Truth in the workplace, do we think we would confess Christ when persecution increases?

Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, who was arrested in December, said she still wants her day in court to pursue full dismissal of her charges in light of claims by authorities that criminal prosecution for her silent prayers could resume at a later date.

This is more than a fight over a pink cake with blue frosting. It is about forcing Christians who believe God’s Word to deny the very truth of the Bible and act against those truths.

“The leadership at that police department claims to be Christian. But I just don’t understand why they would say that an outspoken Christian is the same thing as a racist."

In Malta, a man was arrested for saying that God rescued him from a homosexual lifestyle. They said telling his true story amounted to “conversion practices.”

How we understand the different environments in which believers and persecution interact is vital for ministry. For instance, in mission efforts, it is important to locate the persecutors.

If God were to abandon the West how could we complain, given that we have contemptuously pushed Him away so often, so publicly and so shamelessly?

“Over the past four years, nearly 300 men and women have given their life to Jesus Christ while incarcerated at the Decatur County Detention Center. All glory to GOD!”

"I assisted with abortions in hospital as part of my army medical training, but now I pray for those who perform abortions, because I realise how harmful abortion is to women and families, and that every single human life is valuable—no matter how small.”

“What the activists describe would already be illegal. This ban is all about silencing and criminalising anyone who questions or opposes homosexuality.” 

During 2022, according to the report, 5,621 Christians worldwide were killed for their faith, with 90% of these killings occurring in Nigeria.

“I cannot help but wonder why the students who filed the lawsuit attend Christian colleges and universities whose faith commitments state clearly what they believe about human sexuality."

It’s about killing children and many people making a lot of money from it! It’s all about people shaking their fists at God to try to justify doing whatever they want regarding sex and its consequences.

“Prayer is simply talking to God, and Isabel Vaughan-Spruce was arrested for praying silently on the sidewalk. This persecution of Christianity is being seen more and more throughout the Western world.”

“I want to thank Kirk Cameron for taking a stand for the voice of Christians to be at the table in today’s cancel culture where it seems ‘anything goes’ until it comes to Jesus Christ.”

Humanists and progressives have injected repulsive sexual ideas into practically every aspect of culture, and yet they claim to have a problem with saying the name of a federal holiday out loud. 

“I hope what has happened will protect other Christians who find themselves unfairly on the wrong side of the law for speaking Biblical truth.”

The reality is that this is a very religious piece of legislation. This Act effectively establishes a religion regarding the moral subject of marriage: the religion of humanism.

“At best, these reports demonstrate your lack of care for the service members you lead,” he warned. “At worst, it demonstrates an active distain for and hostility toward them.”

"This underscores once again how critical it is that we elect the right people to offices of leadership. Our very way of life and the future of this nation depends on it.”

The Biden State Department once again has refused to designate Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC), despite Christians being killed by militant Muslim groups almost daily with no effective intervention by the Nigerian government.

Identity politics, “wokeness” and critical theory push the same worldview. They are closely related, and the Body of Christ needs Biblical discernment to recognize such destructive ideas, even when at first glance the ideas seem appealing. 

What we do here really does matter for eternity. Jesus will honor those who prove their faithfulness in difficulty. Be faithful. Be obedient. Run the race well. He is worthy and He is worth it.  

Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, said: “We call on chaplaincy teams and leaders across the U.K. to not be ashamed of the Christian faith“

"Jesus was the answer for me, and I believe the world needs to know and experience this hope. That is why I do what I do, to help everyone to find the light of Jesus out of the darkness we all live in."

This Greek court has ruled that free speech does not apply to Tsiartas’ beliefs based on the Bible (and this is certainly not the first time this has happened).

As Pompeo suggested, is the Biden Administration's apathy regarding the genocide of Christians in Nigeria, rooted in their opposition to Christianity as a whole?

Going forward, pastors will face tremendous external pressure to compromise, and those who do will be held up by society as examples of good and acceptable Christianity.

The two Christians’ release from Evin came days after chaotic scenes in the prison, as fire spread through ward 7, claiming the lives of at least four prisoners. 

McCormick called this a “thinly veiled exercise in virtue signaling” by the SEC. He went on to say the exhibition center “bowed to public pressure, spurred on and whipped up by political leaders online.”

"We don’t live in Pakistan; we don’t live in Saudi Arabia. I am Christian, and by default I believe that Muhammad is a false prophet. I should be allowed to say that in the U.K. without being stabbed or repeatedly arrested.”

“They entered the sanctuary while the congregation was singing a hymn, halted the worship service, registered the names of all present and detained several ministers"

Overall they would criminalise prayer, consensual conversations, quoting certain Bible passages, and some preaching among other things. This amounts to a shocking infringement of fundamental freedoms.

"Their so-called tolerance and diversity are only extended to those who know better than to question the latest woke manifesto regarding sexuality and abortion.”

The underlying values of our culture are in opposition to the requirements of Jesus, and this makes the message of perseverance under pressure especially important.

“I hope this outcome acts as an encouragement to other Christian professionals that it is more than OK to share your faith and that freedom is worth fighting for"

Although Beaton’s ruling does not overturn Louisville’s Fairness Ordinance, it does ensure that the city cannot enforce the law against Nelson’s business in the future.

“Religious freedom is meaningless if it does not grant religious institutions the right to govern its own members and fill its own offices according to its own beliefs."

As we’ve seen, these protections have been shattered since Obergefell. This bill, which would enshrine the shattering of these liberties into federal law, must not pass.

ADF attorneys have dubbed SB 5722 the “Counseling Censorship Law,” saying that it is “a selfish attempt by the government to further a political and ideological agenda by abusing its power.” 

“It’s bizarre that a U.N. official would imply that religious Americans are being manipulated or exploited into believing that radical LGBT policies might come into tension with religious freedom.“

My love for God before I went to prison was sincere and genuine, but until it was tested, it was unproven. But during my worst time, I cried out, “I love You, Jesus.”

“We have been fighting in the courts against this transgender mandate since 2016, and Friday’s unanimous ruling only further protects the rights of health care professionals across this country."