The 3 - July 15, 2018

In my weekly post, highlighting three stories of relevance to the Christian community, I will be sharing information about some opposition in the United Kingdom to an upcoming Franklin Graham evangelistic event.  Also, a number of church groups were adversely affected by recent unrest in Haiti.  And, Christians are weighing in on the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

3 - Franklin Graham's upcoming event in U.K. dealt promotional blow

Franklin Graham is scheduled to visit the United Kingdom for a Festival of Hope in September in the city of Blackpool.  The task of spreading the word about the evangelistic event just got a bit tougher, according to the Faithwire website, which reports that:

As a result of increasing pressure from LGBT groups, the local governing authorities have decided to remove promotions for the event, which were placed on the side of the town’s buses.

Managing director of Blackpool Transport, Jane Cole, is quoted as saying, "Blackpool Transport is a proud ongoing supporter of the Pride and LGBT+ communities and in no way did we intend to cause any distress or upset,” adding, “All buses carrying the advert will remain off the road until they have been removed.”

The article reported on a radio interview with Franklin Graham on Premier UK, during which he said, “I’m not coming to preach hate, I’m here to preach about a savior, Jesus Christ who can make a difference in our lives if we put our faith and trust in Him,” adding, “We’re not here to preach against anyone, we’re here to talk about God.”  Franklin Graham noted that his father, the late Billy Graham, had received opposition when he went to preach the gospel in the UK.

2 - Church missions groups return from Haiti in wake of protests 

Recently, sections of the island nation of Haiti were plunged into protest as the result of a government proposal to raise the gasoline tax.  This adversely affected individuals and organizations intent on doing ministry there, according to WORLD Magazine, which stated: "A number of U.S. church mission groups stranded in Haiti amid violent protests have returned home as the capital city slowly returns to normalcy."

Groups affected include:

- Cornerstone United Methodist Church in Bear, DE, which had a group of 15 teenagers and five adults return home last Wednesday night.

Also...

- Kensington Church in Troy, MI., posted on its Facebook page Thursday morning that all its missions teams, including a group of high school students, had come back.

- Vermontville Baptist Church in Michigan, according to the story, "canceled a planned mission trip for its members after the U.S. State Department issued a travel advisory for Haiti." The church's pastor, Joseph Benedict, told Grand Rapids TV station WOOD-TV: "We decided that it would be in our best interest to maybe try and find a different place to go or at least keep ourselves out of harm’s way,” adding, “We know that God has a special plan for us. That is secure. But how are we going to get to that point? And that’s why we daily walk with Christ: to figure that out.”

- Plus, on its Facebook page, Montgomery's Frazer Church stated: "...Our missionary families are safe back home and Beryl has been downgraded to a tropical storm...Continue always to pray for Haiti and its many challenges as well as the missionaries there." The post expressed appreciation for prayers.

1 - Christian groups embrace Trump Supreme Court nominee

On Monday night, President Trump announced his nomination of Brett Kavanaugh of the D.C. Circuit Court to replace retiring justice Anthony Kennedy on the U.S. Supreme Court.  According to Bruce Hausknecht, Judicial Analyst for Focus on the Family, writing on the ministry's website, Kavanaugh has "...An originalist and textualist judicial philosophy. He does not believe – and his judicial record backs this up - in legislating from the bench." Hausknecht went on to say, "What we know so far about his 12-year judicial record appears to back up his White House nomination speech. On issues of religious freedom and life and free speech, among others, his court opinions and dissents portray a judge who deeply values our God-given rights guaranteed by the Constitution."

Hausknecht was a recent guest on The Meeting House on Faith Radio.  So was Rachel Alexander, Senior Editor of The Stream.  She visited with me prior to the announcement.  Here's what she wrote about Kavanaugh before he was nominated:

He served in several positions under George W. Bush, including legal counsel. He played a lead role under Kenneth Starr drafting the 1998 Starr Report, which recommended impeaching President Bill Clinton.

In Priests for Life v. HHS, Kavanagh opined that Obamacare’s requirement that Catholic religious organizations provide free contraceptives violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Kavanagh dissented from an opinion that required the government to obtain an abortion for an illegal immigrant teen in U.S. custody. He clerked for Anthony Kennedy.

A number of evangelical leaders and organizations have expressed support of Kavanaugh. The National Religious Broadcasters website reported that in an e-mail to the NRB membership, President and CEO Jerry Johnson stated, "As I said in my statement, filling this vacancy may be a generational opportunity to secure a strong majority on the Supreme Court committed to the Constitution, especially our First Amendment liberties..."

The NRB article added:

In light of the importance of the seat, Johnson urged NRB members to do the following:

1. Pray. “Scripture repeatedly teaches us that we are obligated to pray for governing authorities,” Johnson noted. “Please pray for the Senate as it considers this nomination, and pray for God to strengthen Judge Kavanaugh in the midst of the confirmation process, which is likely to be very difficult.”

2. Personally engage their two Senators, urging support for the confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh. “Write letters, send emails, and call their offices to make your voice heard,” Johnson said.

3. Use their platforms — broadcasting, print, digital, social, etc. — to urge their audiences to become engaged in this confirmation battle. “The involvement of your audiences could make the difference in the confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh,” Johnson stated.