I recently testified at a Missouri House Judiciary Committee hearing on a bill requiring those who file separation of church and state-related lawsuits in Missouri to reveal the identity of the plaintiff. I was there to urge passage of the bill as a matter of religious liberty for all. But State Rep. Mark Ellebracht (D-Liberty), who sits on the committee, had something else in mind when he questioned my testimony. Here is what I said to the committee: “The Freedom from Religion Foundation … [Read more...]
Will Missouri reject New York’s savagery?
New Yorkers are willing to kill babies at birth. Such barbarism became reality when New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, signed a bill Jan. 22 legalizing abortion up to birth. Praise God Virginia lawmakers had enough of a conscience to reject similar savagery Jan. 28. Now it is Missouri’s turn to speak – with a roar. Missouri has a national reputation of being among the strongest pro-life states. Twelve pro-life bills have been introduced in this session in the Senate and another 22 in … [Read more...]
MBC attorney explains what happens next in Baptist Home, MBU cases
KANSAS CITY – Pathway Editor Don Hinkle interviewed Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) chief legal counsel Michael Whitehead following the 3-0 decision by the Western Division of the Missouri Court of Appeals in the convention’s 17-year case involving The Baptist Home and Missouri Baptist University (MBU). What did you find most interesting in the opinion written by Judge Rex Gabbert and affirmed by the other two judges? In depositions 15 years ago, pastors and former MBC presidents … [Read more...]
Pro-LGBTQ laws may pose problem for Mo. Baptists
The Ad Council, a non-profit that has, for the most part, stayed out of super-charged political debates, has joined the crusade to convince lawmakers to force well-meaning Americans to give up their freedom of conscience when disagreeing with LGBTQ demands. Known for public service advertising like “Don’t drink and drive,” the Ad Council recently produced free advertisements implying widespread discrimination against LGBTQ people. The radio ad is running nationwide. It represents the … [Read more...]
School choice, politics, demographics, killing babies
Gov. Mike Parson declared the week of Jan. 20-26 School Choice Week in Missouri. Southern Baptists have traditionally favored school choice provided there are no federal strings attached. Southern Baptists hold to the true meaning of “separation of church and state:” the government is not to meddle in the affairs of the church and the church will not “drink from the government trough.” Two critical issues face the church as it thinks through the idea of school choice. First, we must ask: … [Read more...]
Is Supreme Court poised to make history in cross case?
A Missouri city is an interested spectator in a legal battle over the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. However, the outcome for the city of Ozark will be decided 1,047 miles away in Bladensburg, Md., in a case involving a 93-year-old World War I monument featuring a cross. More importantly, the U.S. Supreme Court – set to hear the case Feb. 27 – may see it as an opportunity to demolish the so-called “endorsement test” used by “activist” judges in their … [Read more...]
A Christmas cantata provides sweet memories
It was Advent 1964. I trusted Jesus as my Lord and Savior earlier that year. I was 10 years old. With Christmas approaching, I looked forward to one of the most anticipated Sunday evenings that Grace Baptist Church in Springfield, Tenn., would have – a Christmas cantata titled, “The Night the Angels Sang.” John W. Peterson’s 1958 cantata that heralded the angelic announcement of Jesus’ birth as told in Luke 2:8-20 was to be presented following months of rehearsals by the choir. I sat and … [Read more...]
Thanksgiving memories cherished, not forgotten
Thanksgiving at the Hinkle home has always been much like yours. Family, food and football are enjoyed. When I was a boy, dad and I would arise early, don layers of clothing and head out across the colorful fields and dales on Uncle Paul’s farm where we had built a new home. The only thing we carried was granddaddy’s 16-gauge Stevens shotgun made in 1927 (That was the same year Babe Ruth smacked 60 home runs for the New York Yankees). It was on those crispy, cold Thanksgiving mornings dad … [Read more...]
Teach your children well as Election Day approaches
Proverbs 22:6 reminds us: “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.” With that truth in mind, election season is a great time for parents to teach some basic civics to their children. After all, we are citizens of two kingdoms – earthly and heavenly (where our ultimate allegiance must be). However, God expects us to be good citizens in both. The idea is for parents to teach their children to change the world, not be molded by it. Children … [Read more...]
No MBC prophet, but a ‘worm,’ glorifying God in public policy
Why am I involved in public policy? I’d really prefer not to be. I’m a newspaper editor, first and foremost. I know for certain that is the work God called me to do. But I have learned over the years in serving Him, God will often present us with unexpected opportunities to make Him known. That is where my public policy work comes in. I have told many of our state leaders that I am not a lobbyist. I have no money. I really don’t feel like I have any influence. I stand on principle guided … [Read more...]
Tax exemptions, free speech, manure and mule muffins
With most major newspapers in Missouri criticizing the long-standing, common-sense idea of churches having federal tax-exemptions, I wonder if their reasoning is based on a lust for more taxes or do they just hate faith-based institutions? Are they consumed with socialist ideology, blinding them to the truth? The media clamors for their First Amendment rights, yet argue against pastors having theirs, lest their church lose its tax-exempt status. Now comes Georgetown University Professors … [Read more...]
It is about free speech, not tax exemptions
They came as no surprise. Several of the state’s largest newspapers recently unleashed a torrent of criticism against Missouri Attorney General Joshua Hawley after he said the unconstitutional Johnson Amendment should be repealed. The Kansas City Star blurted that Hawley was “shilling” for votes, while the St. Louis Post-Dispatch whined that the misappropriated so-called “wall” of separation of church and state was being “breached.” I’ll spare you further examples of their faux … [Read more...]
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