From the ArcaMax Publishing, Message for Daily Living Newsletter:
http://www.arcamax.com/news/messagefordailyliving/s-638045-209283
As a youngster, my mother taught me that all of us might not be smart
but all of us can be courteous and fair. My mother was right.
History reveals that America was discovered and initially settled
primarily by Christians (as described in "The Light and the Glory" by
Peter Marshall and David Manuel; and "Original Intent" by David
Barton). Yet, while public schools and community buildings have
granted access to almost every kind of organization, in case after
case, Christian groups were being prohibited from using the same
buildings -- until they went to court and it was ruled
unconstitutional.
Jay Alan Sekulow, chief counsel for the American Center for Law and
Justice, presented the case of Amandola vs. Town of Babylon, N.Y.
Pastor John Amandola of "Romans Chapter Ten Ministries" applied to use
the Town Hall Annex for Sunday worship services and Thursday evening
Bible studies. Town Commissioner James Namely agreed, which was
understandable since his community in Long Island, N.Y., allowed a
wide variety of groups to rent town facilities -- even Christians --
until the complaint came in. Someone objected because Pastor Amandola
was conducting "altar calls" during his meetings, so the commissioner
revoked Pastor Amandola's permission -- despite the fact that the town
has no written policy about who can and cannot use their facilities.
Commissioner Namely makes all of these decisions.
Namely says that Bible studies are fine, religious organizations are
welcome, singing religious songs is OK, and praying is allowed -- but
no altar calls, no mentioning of a "specific deity," and no use of the
name "Jesus." "As if we could avoid using His name during our
services, prayers and study! It's absurd!" Counsel Sekulow states.
"The target is simply the Christian faith, it's Jesus. This is clearly
an unconstitutional distinction." Now here's the frightening part:
"We persuaded the U.S. Court of Appeals to declare the Town of
Babylon's policy unconstitutional ... but the town reacted by quickly
considering the adoption of a policy to ban all religious activities
in town facilities -- not just services involving altar calls. That's
even more unconstitutional than the old policy," states Sekulow.
In Denver, a family was forbidden to hold more than one Bible study in
their home each month, despite the fact that it was a small group and
there were no neighborhood crowding or parking problems. It seemed
that because they were Christians, they could not enjoy the same
freedoms allowed all other groups.
There's more. When the Supreme Court was debating the
constitutionality of partial-birth abortion, there were two groups
protesting. The Christians were praying that the judges would decide
that they did not have the constitutional right to perform
partial-birth abortions; the others were "pro-choice." The group
arrested by the police: the Christians who opposed partial-birth
abortion.
Regardless of your faith, don't forget Germany. Hitler persecuted
specific ethnic groups one by one. When people did not protest
(because it wasn't "their" group), the day came when everyone feared
that knock on the door.
"Freedom of religion" is a phrase to which it appears many people in
the courts and the media seem to have added another phrase -- "unless
it happens to be Christianity." Think about this: Christians initially
started all hospitals. The Salvation Army, orphanages, the Civil
Rights Movement and Habitat for Humanity were started primarily by
Christians. Twenty-five of our first 27 universities, and many other
humanitarian organizations, including public schools, were started so
people could learn to read -- the Bible.
Question: Do you believe our country would be better off without these
contributions by Christians? Question: Did you protest the movie "The
Last Temptation of Christ"? What do you think would have happened if
they had named it "The Last Temptation of Buddha," or "The Last
Temptation of Martin Luther King," or any other religious leader?
All of us should protest against any discrimination against anyone,
including Christians.
To find out more about Zig Ziglar and read features by other Creators
Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web
page at www.creators.com. Subscribe to Zig Ziglar's free e-mail
newsletter through info@zigziglar.com.
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