OAK GROVE – Pastor Randy Messer of First Baptist Church here walked into a classroom in the Horn of Africa and heard voices, crying out and pleading to someone, but he saw no one. But as Messer stepped further into the room, he found the source of these cries. A group of young pastors had come to class earlier, where they knelt on the floor praying and crying out to the Lord. These would be Messer’s students for the next several days. “How powerful that was,” Messer said. “The presence of … [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...]
Well-respected Emery defends traditional marriage
I first met State Sen. Ed Emery where you might expect to meet a Christian gentleman, who is as confident in his conservative views as he is respected by Democrats and Republicans alike (Emery is a Republican): At a weekly Bible study held by the Capitol Commission at the State Capitol. Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) sponsored their breakfast that morning. So MBC Executive Director John Yeats and I were privileged to join Emery and about 60 other lawmakers and staffers – including Lt. … [Read more...]
Underwear at the Oscars, liberalism, religious liberty
Perhaps you saw it when it happened on TV or you saw pictures of it later in the media. You know news is being made when Hollywood’s elite sit for a moment in stunned silence followed by a smattering of nervous laughter. I think, perhaps, many of them even knew a line had been crossed. I am referring to Neil Patrick Harris, who hosted the Oscars Feb. 22 that was beamed around the world on ABC, who stood on stage in nothing but his underwear. Several emotions came over me: shock, … [Read more...]
Law sheds light on reading the Bible in schools
MARSHALL – A small town in Missouri briefly became a flashpoint of religious freedom when inconclusive reports hit media outlets that a student at Bueker Middle School here was told he was not allowed to read his Bible during his free time. A seventh grader there told his parents and WDAF-TV in Kansas City a teacher told him he could not read the Bible at school. However, there has not been validation of the accusation and the principal has since made public comments assuring the Bible and … [Read more...]
New law strengthens students’ religious rights
JEFFERSON CITY – Even as one Missouri school district is tightening faculty religious expression after a costly lawsuit, students in the state now enjoy even stronger religious freedom protections. Governor Jay Nixon signed the bill known as the Missouri Student Religious Liberties Act July 2. It passed by extreme majorities of 131-16 in the House and 30-1 in the Senate. “Under the new law, school districts are prohibited from discriminating against a student on the basis of religious … [Read more...]
Pro-life, religious liberty bills on Gov.’s desk
JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri will likely become just the third state in the United States to require a 72-hour waiting period before an abortion as a pro-life and pro-religious liberty bill make it out of the legislature in the session’s final days. The 72-hour waiting period measure, HB1307, passed the Missouri Senate 22-9 May 13 and sailed through the House the next day with a vote of 111-39. It’s now in the hands of Gov. Jay Nixon, said Kerry Messer, founder of the Missouri Family Network … [Read more...]
State judges grant ‘divorces’ to two same-sex couples
JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri circuit court judges have granted “divorces” in at least two cases involving female couples who were “married” in other states that, unlike Missouri, recognize same-sex “marriages.” The controversial rulings signal a new line of attack by same-sex marriage advocates against the Missouri Constitution which was amended by voters in 2004 by a 71-29 percent margin defining marriage as between one man and one woman. Same-sex marriage proponents’ inability to convince … [Read more...]
State judges grant ‘divorces’ to two same-sex couples
JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri circuit court judges have granted “divorces” in at least two cases involving female couples who were “married” in other states that, unlike Missouri, recognize same-sex “marriages.” The controversial rulings signal a new line of attack by same-sex marriage advocates against the Missouri Constitution which was amended by voters in 2004 by a 71-29 percent margin defining marriage as between one man and one woman. Same-sex marriage proponents’ inability to convince … [Read more...]
Hobby Lobby attorney: Return to self-government
HANNIBAL – As a member of the legal team that defended Hobby Lobby before United States Supreme Court, University of Missouri law professor Joshua Hawley told participants at the Missouri Baptist Convention’s Worldview Conference, April 3, that they must bring their faith to bear in the public sphere. “We are charged to carry into politics and into public God’s purpose for government and political society,” Hawley said, “to advocate for a truly just society, for human freedom, for the … [Read more...]
Nixon Harms MO Taxpayers
JEFFERSON CITY – The attorney for four taxpayer plaintiffs told a circuit judge that every citizen of Missouri is harmed when a governor can use an executive order to create new tax breaks for his political supporters. The argument was made during an hour-long hearing here April 3 before Cole County Circuit Court Judge Jon Beetem, in which plaintiffs were seeking a temporary restraining order (TRO) against an executive order by Gov. Jay Nixon regarding the filing of combined tax returns … [Read more...]
JUDGE WON’T HALT NIXON ORDER – FOR NOW.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The attorney for four taxpayer plaintiffs told a circuit judge that every citizen of Missouri is harmed when a governor can use an executive order to create new tax breaks for his political supporters. The argument was made during an hour-long hearing in Cole County on April 3 before Judge Jon Beetem, in which plaintiffs were seeking a temporary restraining order (TRO) against an executive order by Governor Jay Nixon regarding the filing of combined tax … [Read more...]
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