Category Archives: Religious Freedom

May 2015 Newsletter

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Indiana RFRA Pits the Sexual Revolution against Christianity

In an April 21, 2015 speech in the Hillsdale¹ College Center for Constitutional Studies and Citizenship in Washington, D.C., David French outlined and expanded upon four critical truths that were obvious in the attack on the Indiana Religious Freedom Restoration Act. They are:

1. The battle is not between gay rights and religious liberty – although religious liberty is certainly at stake – but between the sexual revolution and Christianity itself.
2. Not a single orthodox denomination is making or even contemplating such changes, meaning tens of millions of Americans will remain – indefinitely – opposed to the continued expansion of the sexual revolution.
3. Cultural conservatism is showing increasing strength at the grassroots.
4. Conservative grassroots and conservative public intellectuals are united. There is no wavering among America’s most influential conservative writers and thinkers.

Conservative Muscle: Observations by Mr. French

  • Cultural conservatives answered the Left’s attempted Chick-fil-A boycott with a “buycott” that swamped stores nationwide, even causing some to run out of food for customers eager to show support for a beloved restaurant, owned by people who share their moral principles.
  • Leftist pressure against Hobby Lobby failed. Customers were either supportive of the owners or indifferent to politics, and boycotts had no effect on Hobby Lobby’s bottom line or its willingness to fight. Not only did Hobby Lobby win its Supreme Court case, its owners are set to open a massive new Museum of the Bible near the National Mall.
  • Efforts to drive Phil Robertson – of Duck Dynasty fame – off the air after controversial comments on sexual morality failed, giving cultural conservatives a victory in a medium (cable television) seen as almost uniformly hostile to orthodox Christianity. While Robertson has remained a polarizing figure (and often says things that make many of his supporters uncomfortable), there has been no serious repeat efforts to remove him from the air.
  • In Houston, leftist government officials were forced to backtrack within days after issuing subpoenas requiring area pastors to turn over the contents of their sermons and other communications. The public outcry was so swift and so great that the city capitulated even before a judge could rule on motions to quash.
  • Even in Indiana, as Republican politicians quickly caved to corporate and media pressure, the grassroots response in support of Memories Pizza soon swamped the Left. A GoFundMe (sic) account set up to support the owners raised more than $800,000 in small donations in a matter of days (including over $200,000 in one day), putting the pizza restaurant in a far superior financial position than it had enjoyed before the controversy. The message was clear: Cultural conservatives are not, in fact, culturally isolated but rather have the support of millions of Americans who oppose leftist bullying.

¹ “The Battle of Indiana and the Promise of Battles to Come,” by David French, Imprimis April 2015, Hillsdale College Reprinted by permission from Imprimis, a publication of Hillsdale College.

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September 12, 2014 Radio Commentary

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15 Seconds

Radio Commentary, 90.7, 91.7 New Life FM, September 12, 2014 – By Sue Ella Deadwyler

Anyone living in the Israel knows first-hand the value of the tiniest bit of time. Phone calls in Israel are often cut short, so folks can run for their lives. In some places, residents have just over a minute to get to a bomb shelter, but others living within range of Hamas rockets have only fifteen seconds to find shelter before the barrage hits.

On July 17th Israel sent ground troops into Gaza to degrade Hamas military capability and destroy a series of well-stocked sophisticated underground tunnels built to invade Israel.   Because of enemy attacks, Israel set up Operation Protective Edge to defend the civilian population against rockets and missiles from Gaza. When the threat ends, Operation Protective Edge will end. That’s happening in the Middle East, but results are felt around the world.

Recently the U.S. State Department issued this warning: “In much of the Middle East, the Christian presence is becoming a shadow of its former self.” Though the current threat in the United States doesn’t require sprinting to bomb shelters within 15 seconds, Christianity is under attack and could use a specialized Operation Protective Edge in this country. Continue reading →

July 18, 2014 Radio Commentary

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Freedom of Religion & Hobby Lobby

Radio Commentary, 90.7, 91.7 New Life FM, July 18, 2014 – By Sue Ella Deadwyler

Good morning, Jim.  Nineteen days ago, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld religious freedom pertaining to limited sections of Obamacare. The court ruled that Hobby Lobby and other privately owned businesses that object to paying for abortion-causing contraceptives or sterilization are not required to pay for those services. It’s important to know that Hobby Lobby’s health coverage DOES pay for 16 contraceptives mandated by Obamacare, but does NOT pay for the four “morning-after pills” that may induce abortion soon after conception.  In this case, the court upheld religious freedom in the workplace, despite constant pressure to redefine religious liberty as “freedom to worship” at home or at church, but not in public.

Hobby Lobby CEO David Green explained, “This legal challenge has always remained about one thing and one thing only: the right of our family businesses to live out our sincere and deeply held religious convictions as guaranteed by the law and the Constitution. Business owners should not have to choose between violating their faith and violating the law.” Continue reading →

May 2014 Newsletter

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SCADPads: Preparing US for Third-World Housing?

135 Square-Feet Homes Fit In 8 x 16 Parking Spot
Putting SCADPads to a test this month in Atlanta are a dozen students, including a male design for sustainability student who said, “I want to live in a parking garage
because there are so many out there that can be reused and re-purposed.”

Garage Becomes Eco-Friendly Village/Community
Georgia Power says SCAD participation in its Commercial Energy Efficiency Program resulted in a $245,466 rebate for eco-friendly practices. 41 SCAD buildings incorporating energy efficient upgrades saved 614,570 Kwh of electricity, enough to take 51 homes off the grid for a year.

Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) explained that students designed and developed SCADPads for use by families who will be pressured to move from spacious rural settlements into cities. A micro-housing display of three tiny homes, sits atop the SCAD building parking deck at 1600 Peachtree Street. Wheels on the units are hidden to conceal their identity as mini-mobile homes. The Atlanta display is from April 12 through June 1. It may go to Houston next.

Spurred by the World Health Organization’s projection that cities will house 60 percent of the population by 2030, SCAD’s program coordinator Scott Boylston explained, “If you look at where parking garages are located in cities, they’re usually centrally located. There are usually many, many floors, so they provide an amazing view. It really transforms the way we see neighborhoods. The idea (sic) that the garage becomes a village — a community.”

Picture this. A grown man standing with out-stretched arms can almost touch the side walls and ceiling in the 135 square-foot space, which includes a bed, sitting area, bathroom with toilet, shower and sink, and kitchen with a refrigerator and freezer hidden inside cabinet drawers. There’s no room for hanging space, so clothes are folded and stored in drawers. Urging folks to get used to it, SCAD Dean Steven Aishman commented, “They are practical, reusable, and they’re able to address the idea of urban living.”

They’re okay for students, but inadequate for family life.

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