WASHINGTON (BP) -- GuideStone Financial Resources and the ministries it serves must abide by the Obama administration's abortion/contraception mandate or pay crushing fines, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday (July 14). A three-judge panel of the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver declined to grant an injunction blocking enforcement of the rule, rejecting arguments by GuideStone and a host of other religious non-profit organizations that the controversial mandate and its … [Read more...]
Planned Parenthood’s lengthy ‘rap sheet’
There have been 27 botched abortions at Planned Parenthood’s St. Louis clinic in the past five years. It is considered among the most dangerous abortion facilities in our land. The clinic may have been involved in Planned Parenthood’s latest scandal: selling body parts of aborted babies. None of this should surprise us. Planned Parenthood, the nation’s leading provider of abortions, has a “rap sheet” longer than your arm – all the while benefiting from millions of our tax dollars. Consider … [Read more...]
Abortion’s barbaric reality: Planned Parenthood investigations launched after video links St. Louis clinic
ST. LOUIS — Missouri elected officials are pursuing investigations of a St. Louis Planned Parenthood clinic after videos released in mid-July by The Center for Medical Progress (CMP) linked the clinic with the trafficking of aborted infants' organs. Protesters have also gathered outside Planned Parenthood clinics in St. Louis, Columbia and Overland Park, Kan., expressing their outrage that Planned Parenthood, as the CMP video alleges, would dismember pre-born babies for profit. Democratic … [Read more...]
CLC’s religious liberty conference set for July 19
FULTON – Religious liberty advocate Joshua Hawley will join Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) lobbyist Kerry Messer to defend religious liberty at First Baptist Church here, July 19. The church will host “Celebrating America: Defending Religious Liberty,” an event organized by the MBC’s public policy arm, the Christian Life Commission (CLC). Hawley, founder of the Missouri Liberty Project and a member of the legal team that defended Hobby Lobby before the United States Supreme Court … [Read more...]
Will your church’s insurance be enough?
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s Obergefell decision, churches are worried about lawsuits. This isn’t an irrational fear. I don’t think any Court will soon order ministers to perform a service that conflicts with the minister’s faith. But there is a shift in public opinion that makes it plausible in the future. The definition of ‘fairness’ is changing. In the past, if one minister or church refused to marry a couple, the couple would find another minister or church. This was “fair,” … [Read more...]
Taking steps to protect our religious freedom
There can be little doubt where the Obergefell v. Hodges ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, which redefined marriage to include same-sex couples, is headed with regard to religious liberty. The attacks on Christians – who refuse to go against their deepest held beliefs and cave to the fantasized reasoning of judicial tyrants, government hypocrites and bullying activists – are mounting by the day. For now, the targets are government workers and private business owners who are involved in the … [Read more...]
Nik Ripken: Lessons from the persecuted world for America
JEFFERSON CITY – The Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex “marriage” is seen by many as possibly triggering persecution for followers of Jesus in America. Nik Ripken is an authority on persecuted believers. “The Bible says we reap what we sow,” Ripken said. “We also cannot reap what we don’t sow. The church in America is reaping what they haven’t sown in America. …We haven’t been persecuted. How can we be so self-centered and we haven’t even lost anything yet? We need to stop … [Read more...]
One man, one woman for life, same as it ever was
Across town, the annual Gay Pride parade was setting attendance records. The usual assortment of flamboyant costumes swirled around revelers celebrating the previous day’s victory over an ancient institution they’d found confining. One straight couple said they brought their toddlers, Fox and Bear (no kidding), so they could understand both freedom and homosexuality. About five miles down the road, in the little church my mother attends, the Ledbetter clan was gathered with other great … [Read more...]
Missourians still support biblical marriage
JEFFERSON CITY – Even after the Supreme Court ruled that same-sex “marriage” is legally valid throughout the United States, most of the Missourians that are likely to vote in 2016 still believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman, according to a poll released by the Missouri Alliance for Freedom. The survey, conducted by the Kansas-City based Remington Research company, polled nearly 800 likely voters throughout the state—representing those who live both in rural and urban … [Read more...]
Presidential hopefuls react to gay marriage ruling
NASHVILLE (BP) -- Reaction among 2016 presidential candidates to the Supreme Court's nationwide legalization of gay marriage is divided largely along party lines, with all five Democrats in the race lauding the decision and at least 13 of 14 Republicans opposing it. As marriage and religious liberty moved to center stage of the campaign, one pastor and former U.S. Senate candidate urged Christians to consider supporting a candidate financially. "There are enough believers in this … [Read more...]
State resistance to marriage ruling dissipates
WASHINGTON (BP) – Three days after the U.S. Supreme Court's legalization of gay marriage nationwide, all 50 states have begun issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, and instances of publicized resistance by government officials seem confined largely to the South. Some gay marriage proponents have advocated building on the court's ruling by legalizing polygamous marriages and abolishing tax exemptions for religious institutions. Meanwhile, Southern Baptist Convention President … [Read more...]
ERLC resources ready on gay marriage
WASHINGTON (BP) – The Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission has resources available online to help Christians minister in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision legalizing same-sex marriage. In addition, the ERLC is helping sponsor a July 29 conference to equip pastors and churches to navigate the legal and cultural landscape after the high court's ruling Friday (June 26). Equip -- at erlc.com/equip -- is a joint initiative with the Southern Baptists of Texas … [Read more...]
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