The 3 - August 30, 2020

This edition of The 3, with three stories of relevance to the Christian community, features news from around the world, including a man in Pakistan who is facing death for violating the country's "blasphemy" laws.  Also, China is continuing to dismantle crosses from church buildings.  Plus, Idaho's new law banning biological males from participating in women's sports has been put on hold, but two women who have been adversely affected by the influx of males claiming to be transgender will be allowed to participate on behalf of the law in a lawsuit filed against it.

Pakistani man faces death due to blasphemy laws

The same charge that was leveled against Pakistani wife and mother Asia Bibi has now been used against a Pakistani man because he allegedly posted negative comments against the founder of Islam, Mohammed, on Facebook. The Christian Post reports that:

The London-based Centre for Legal Aid, Assistance and Settlement, an interdenominational aid agency serving persecuted Christians in Muslim-majority Pakistan, reports that Sohail Masih in the Nowshera Virkan in Punjab province was arrested on Aug. 5.

CLAAS-UK Director Nasir Saeed, stated: "This is not the first case of its kind, and several Christians... have been charged with blasphemy for sharing or having blasphemous contents either on their phone or on their computers...”  Masih was charged under 2 sections of the Pakistani Penal Code, one of which, 295-C, is the one that was used against Asia Bibi.

According to BBC.com, Asia Bibi, who was sentenced to death for blasphemy and released from prison by the nation's Supreme Court in 2018, is now living in Canada. News of her freedom set off protests that the BBC describes as "violent." She was in France not too long ago to promote her book, and said, "I left of my own volition because I was in danger there. Anything could have happened to me at any point. So that's why I left my country. But I have the same love for my country in my heart now. I still respect my country and I want to see the day when I'm able to go back." The article says:

Ms Bibi called on Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan to free anyone unjustly accused or convicted of blasphemy and to ensure that the charges are investigated properly.

"Innocents should not be punished for no reason and people who are innocent, in prison, should be freed," she said.

Over 900 crosses and counting removed from Chinese churches in 2020

The oppression of Christianity, even in state-sanctioned churches, continues in China. According to a piece at the ChristianHeadlines.com website, more than 900 crosses on church buildings in just one province of the massive country were "forcibly removed."  The article reports that:

Bitter Winter, which monitors religious liberty violations within China, says 906 crosses were pulled down by cranes and other machines in the province of Anhui from January through July. Anhui has the second-largest Christian population in China, Bitter Winter said.

All 906 cross removals involved churches within the legal but heavily restricted Three-Self Patriotic Movement.

According to a church member quoted on the Bitter Winter website, government officials have cautioned Christians that, "Protesting cross demolitions means protesting against the government.” The same church members stated that "all crosses taller than government buildings must be demolished because they overshadow state institutions..."

Idaho ban on transgender athletes put on hold by judge

A new Idaho law that prevents males who claim to be "transgender" from participating in women's sports has been put on hold by a state judge, according to Politico, but there is some positive news about which Alliance Defending Freedom reported.

The Politico article said that:

Idaho Chief Judge David C. Nye, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, said those suing Idaho over the law "are likely to succeed in establishing the Act is unconstitutional as currently written." Nye also knocked the Trump administration's own position on transgender athletes, saying that an Education Department threat to schools this year is "of questionable validity."

The Idaho law is the only prohibition in the country against transgender student athletes participating in sports that match their gender identity. The Trump administration has filed a brief in the case supporting the law, which went into effect July 1.

But, as ADF pointed out, in the same order, it gave two athletes the opportunity to intervene in the case, stating: "Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys represent the two collegiate athletes, who run track and cross-country at Idaho State University in Pocatello. The two women, Madison Kenyon and Mary Kate Marshall, are long-time athletes, well familiar with the difference in strength and speed between comparably gifted and trained male and female athletes."

ADF Legal Counsel Christiana Holcomb said: “The Fairness in Women’s Sports Act is good law because it seeks to protect girls and women across Idaho. Our clients have already experienced the deflating experience of losing to a male runner, and this should not be allowed to continue.” She added: “In one year, 275 high school boys ran faster times than the lifetime best of World Champion sprinter Allyson Felix. As long-time athletes, these young women deserve and will now have a voice in this lawsuit and the opportunity to protect the future of girls’ and women’s sports in Idaho.”

The 3 - August 16, 2020

This week's edition of The 3 continues to glance at restrictions on worship in California and provides an update to the response to restrictions by Grace Community Church, pastored by John MacArthur.  Also, a new document has been released that takes aim at what is called "cancel culture."  Plus, a handful of colleges and universities have altered their policies toward speech on campus.

MacArthur files lawsuit, receives positive temporary court reprieve

This past week, Grace Community Church in California, under the leadership of John MacArthur, filed a lawsuit against California Governor Gavin Newsom, Attorney General Xavier Becerra, and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, according to CBN.com, in order “to prohibit California from enforcing its unconstitutional and onerous coronavirus pandemic regulations” against the church.

The church, in a press release, stated that "Judge James Chalfant denied almost all of the County’s requests, agreeing with Pastor MacArthur and the Church that it is the County’s burden to show why it should be permitted to infringe on the constitutionally protected rights of churches to freely exercise religion. The judge did also express concern for some safety protocols." Legal counsel for the church "offered to comply with mask wearing and social distancing indoors until the matter could be fully heard, rather than the County simply rushing to shut down the Church."  

Then, late Saturday night, the California Court of Appeal set aside the judge's order, saying, according to Yubanet.com, in a story linked to Grace to You Executive Director Phil Johnson's Twitter feed:

The Court of Appeal’s decision temporarily upholds the County’s Health Officer Orders prohibiting indoor worship services in order to protect congregants and the community as a whole from transmission of the highly contagious and potentially fatal COVID-19 virus.

The Sunday morning indoor service at Grace Church went on as scheduled, presumably because the church viewed the appeals court ruling as bringing the status back to square one. After agreeing to masks and social distancing, the service featured none of the above, since the city had violated the original agreement by filing an appeal.  The Christian Post reported:

MacArthur told the attendees Sunday, “We agreed … look, we’ll comply for a few weeks. They asked that for three weeks. We’re not wanting to be defiant. We will do what is reasonable. That was not enough for the city. They went to the appellate court Saturday late, and had that order removed.”

A hearing is set for September 4.

In a related story from the Golden State, according to The Christian Post:

San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow confirmed late last month he will not prosecute churches for holding worship services or for singing in church, which was deemed unlawful by an order from California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

In many counties, pastors have had to decide between revolting or abiding by the order.

Newsom’s order to ban or limit church gatherings has led to lawsuits from churches and even a federal court ruling in May, where District Judge John A. Mendez ruled that Newsom’s order is legal during the COVID-19 crisis.

Christian leaders, other participate in Philadelphia Statement, responding to "cancel culture'

The proliferation of what has come to be known as "cancel culture" has sparked a number of academicians and thought leaders, including Christian ministry leaders, to attach their names to a document called the Philadelphia Statement.  The Daily Signal reported that the statement said, in part: "If we seek to change our country’s trajectory; if we desire unity rather than division; if we want a political life that is productive and inspiring; if we aspire to be a society that is pluralistic and free, one in which we can forge our own paths and live according to our own consciences, then we must renounce ideological blacklisting and recommit ourselves to steadfastly defending freedom of speech and passionately promoting robust civil discourse."

Some familiar names have endorsed the document, including Professor Robert George at Princeton University, who was one of the original co-creators of the Manhattan Declaration, which was a statement of affirmation for life, marriage, and religious liberty.  The founder of the Alliance Defending Freedom, Alan Sears, and its current President, Michael Farris, are signers of the Philadelphia Statement, as well as Dean Nelson, chairman of the Frederick Douglass Foundation.  Other notable signers including recent Meeting House guests Mike Gonzalez of the Heritage Foundation and former Vanderbilt law professor Carol Swain, who were mentioned in the Daily Signal article.  The website for the statement also indicates that Colson Center head and Breakpoint speaker John Stonestreet also signed on to the document.

The Statement also notes:

A society that lacks comity and allows people to be shamed or intimidated into self-censorship of their ideas and considered judgments will not survive for long. As Americans, we desire a flourishing, open marketplace of ideas, knowing that it is the fairest and most effective way to separate falsehood from truth. Accordingly, dissenting and unpopular voices—be they of the left or the right—must be afforded the opportunity to be heard. They have often guided our society toward more just positions, which is why Frederick Douglass said freedom of speech is the “great moral renovator of society and government.”

Good news for free speech on campus as college students return to school

Students are returning to campuses nationwide, and while the learning environment will certainly be different due to COVID-19 and its accompanying safety protocols, the Alliance Defending Freedom has continued to take steps to make sure that free speech is guaranteed on campus. On behalf of its client, Young Americans for Liberty, ADF's website notes that it has sent 26 letters "to schools in 14 states in response to official policies that violate students’ rights protected by the First Amendment. Many of those policies directly violate state laws known as 'FORUM acts,' which expressly protect students’ free speech on campus. The latest schools that have made policy changes as a result of the letters they received are Jacksonville State University in Alabama, St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, and the College of Charleston in South Carolina."

For example, at Jax State, according to ADF, the school has "removed an unconstitutional policy that required its students to notify the school in advance before engaging in any expressive activity..."

Two other schools, Santa Rosa Junior College in California and Western Illinois University, had already changed their policies in response to the letters that had been sent out.  

ADF Senior Counsel Tyson Langhofer, who is director of the ADF Center for Academic Freedom, stated: “The colleges and universities that have made policy changes so far should be commended for their willingness to quickly conform their rules to the U.S. Constitution and applicable state laws, and they serve as an example to other schools who should likewise desire to respect the constitutionally and legally protected freedoms of their students.”

The 3 - August 9, 2020

On this week's edition of The 3, featuring three stories of relevance to the Christian community, there is news out of Portland, as an anti-Bible campaign emerged in the midst of the protests.  Also, Chinese state-sanctioned churches are preparing to re-open, but the pre-requisite is to follow Communist Party directives.  And, another California church is at odds with government authorities, as a local judge has said that the church could not hold indoor worship services.

Portland protesters burn Bibles

The violence in Portland continues to be a problem, even after the withdrawal of Federal agents.  A CBN News story said:

While CBN News was there, windows were smashed, buildings defaced, and fires burned nightly around the courthouse, but Portland mayor and police commissioner Ted Wheeler ignored the conduct, even joining the protesters in calling for federal police to leave the area.

Wheeler has since taken protesters to task and reminding them that they are contributing to the re-election of Donald Trump.  Meanwhile, as the story, posted last Monday, points out: "Tensions eased somewhat over the weekend as federal agents were replaced by...police officers who must follow much more restrictive rules of crowd control measures. But that didn't stop protesters from burning American flags and even Bibles. How that relates to racial justice wasn't immediately clear.

The story quoted Pastor J.W. Matt Hennessee from Vancouver Avenue First Baptist Church Portland, who said: "We need to pray for the ability to listen, to learn and to find out how God wants us to engage and to do that in a very, very like, intentional way for us to be able to be used by God, as instruments in this space..."

Author and commentator Eric Metaxas has been on the forefront of decrying this behavior that has disrespected the Bible.  A Christian Post article chronicled Eric's appearance on Tucker Carlson's show on Fox News recently:

In an interview with Fox News opinion host Tucker Carlson on Thursday, Metaxas stressed that he wasn't suggesting everyone living in the U.S. must identify as Christian. Instead, his point was that the Bible is more than a sacred book; it's "what led ... to freedom and self-government" that most Americans cherish.

“We’ve forgotten that freedom is utterly impossible on the American model without the values we got from the Bible,” said Metaxas, a bestselling author and radio host, in response to images of rioters burning stacks of Bibles in Portland last Friday night.

Metaxas went on to say:

“All of the Founders understood that the Bible wasn’t just a sacred book for some people. It was what gave us the West and what led to the idea of freedom and self-government,” Metaxas said, asserting that those who are attacking the Bible and Christianity are “attacking foundational ideas” that built the nation.

Chinese churches allowed to reopen after COVID only after swearing allegiance to leader

The reopening of churches is not only an issue in the United States, but the nation of China has some troubling guidelines in its progress to reopening, according to a Bitter Winter article referenced by the Christian Post.  The article, released last week, says that:

In mid-June, the Religious Affairs Bureau of Zhengzhou, the capital of the central province of Henan, issued a list of 42 requirements for places of worship to start functioning after the coronavirus lockdown has been lifted. On top of scrupulous adherence to the epidemic prevention measures, people who want to enter religious venues must register online, cross-referencing their health code, and provide their personal details, including name, gender, ID card, and phone number. Venues must intensify patriotic education and study China’s religious policies and other regulations, and implement the “four requirements.” Those that fail to meet the prerequisites are not allowed to reopen.

The article reports that these types of requirements were seen throughout Henan province.  In June, churches in one particular county in the province were given their "marching orders:"

They all were to extol President Xi Jinping for “the right way to lead people in defeating the epidemic” and praise China for its single-party rule while slandering the United States and other countries. “I had to preach as the state required,” one of the preachers said. “Otherwise, the church would not have reopened.”

These restrictions, of course, are for the government-sancition, Three-Self churches.  The article says: 

“The government said that churches must preach about national affairs if they want to reopen,” a Three-Self church member from Henan’s Sanmenxia city commented. “With Xi Jinping’s speeches as the main content, it’s better for churches not to reopen.”

The Christian Post article said:

It was previously reported that Communist authorities converted a number of state-approved Three-Self churches into cultural centers promoting Xi's socialist values.

Amid the coronavirus outbreak, poor Christian villagers in several provinces were ordered to renounce their faith and replace displays of Jesus with portraits of Chairman Mao and Xi or risk losing their welfare benefits.

In recent years, hundreds of Christians have also faced arrests, detentions, imprisonments, and church attacks.

California judge places halt to church's indoor services

The law firm, Tyler and Bursch, reported on its website on Friday that, "A Ventura County Superior Court judge issued an emergency temporary restraining order today against Godspeak Calvary Chapel and its Pastor Rob McCoy. The church has been holding indoor worship services asserting its constitutional right to the free exercise of religion."  A hearing has been set for August 31; the firm states, "The church intends to present expert witnesses for the purpose of establishing that the State of California and the County of Ventura lack a compelling interest for the prohibition of indoor worship services and that the decision to prevent indoor worship services, while allowing other indoor activities, is arbitrary and without a rational basis."

The VCStar.com website reported that in mid-July, the county's Public Health Officer, Dr. Robert Levin "...ordered the closure of indoor activities at places of worship as well as for protests, offices offering non-essential services, malls, salons, barbershops and gyms. That followed a similar action by the state after the county and others were placed on a state watch list because of concerns over progress in curtailing the disease."

The law firm's website says that, "We believe that COVID-19 can be fought with far less restrictive measures than banning all healthy persons from church and our expert witnesses will prove that," citing statistics that the risk of death for Ventura County residents under age 65 is .18%, based on reported cases.

The 3 - August 2, 2020

This week's edition of The 3, highlighting three stories of relevance to the Christian community, shines the spotlight on a group of senators who called on President Trump to undergird the First Amendment rights of people of faith during the COVID-19 situation.  Also, with recent attacks on churches and religious symbols, some churches may sense a need for relief; the Department of Homeland Security has recently announced a new effort designed to enhance church security.  And, a letter sent to the NCAA urges the governing body of collegiate sports not to support a boycott of the state of Idaho because of its law that mandates that athletes compete in sporting events based on their biological gender.

Senators speak out on First Amendment protections for churches, urge COVID-19 relief to be conditional on respect for religious freedom

It has certainly been discouraging to see how churches in a number of states have not been afforded the same opportunities to assemble under the law as other forms of gathering.  In addition to multiple lawsuits that have been filed against states by churches, with some yielding a positive outcome, now members of the U.S. Senate have asked the President to take action against state and local government officials that do not allow church participants to exercise their First Amendment rights.

The National Religious Broadcasters website announced that 10 U.S. Senators wrote a letter to that effect, stating:

In their letter, the senators urged the President to support proposals in Congress to place restrictions on any forthcoming COVID-19 relief funding to states and localities that prevent churches, houses of worship, and religious schools and institutions from reopening with appropriate CDC implemented guidelines.

“Such executive action would send the nation and government leaders a clear and unequivocal message that religious liberty matters, and that no state or locality can unilaterally strip away protected constitutional rights,” they said.

NRB CEO Troy Miller said, in part, "we’re seeing special restrictions on the First Amendment right of faithful Americans to exercise their religion – even when done in compliance with safety precautions found in CDC guidance..."

Department of Homeland Security provides assistance for churches under duress

There is great concern over a spike in attacks on churches around the world; noted author and commentator Eric Metaxas is quoted on the Family Research Council website as saying: "There is something about it that is an unbridled, roaring fury...and if you don't treat it in the way that it needs to be treated, if you don't deal with it with some force, really then you are allowing other people to be harmed." The FRC site said that Metaxas "ticked off examples throughout history of rebels wanting to overthrow authority and then turned their attention to the church -- people in France, Russia, China. They all 'found themselves swept up in a rage that had no bounds and that could never be satisfied.'"

The Christian Emergency Network website pinpointed several attacks on churches, including, a Florida church statue being beheaded, an attack on a pastor in Virginia, and arsons in California and Florida. Mix that with the burning of Bibles in Portland by protesters and it is not too far of a reach to think that churches and religious artifacts are in danger.  

The Department of Homeland Security has announced its Cybersecurity and Infrastructure (CISA) Faith-based Website, which, according to CEN, provides access to information that supports efforts to secure churches or ministry gatherings whether large or small. In addition, the website contains a self-assessment tool that is designed for individuals as well as security teams with little or no experience to take the first step in knowing their risks and capabilities to develop customized security plans even in the midst of escalating civil unrest.”  CEN expressed its appreciation for the DHS efforts, and highlighted resources that it provides in order that churches can keep their attendees safe.  

Christian groups part of effort to keep males identifying as transgender out of women's sports; letter recently sent to NCAA

A letter was sent this past week to the NCAA by over 300 female athletes, in association with a coalition called Save Women's Sports, which supports a recently-passed Idaho law that, according to ChristianHeadlines.com, "requires biological sex – and not gender identity – to be used in determining who plays on high school and college teams." The letter urges the NCAA to, according to the article, "reject calls for a boycott of Idaho due to a new law that protects the integrity of women’s sports."

The organization was founded by powerlifter Beth Stelzer; WORLD Magazine says that some of the allies of the group include Concerned Women for America, the Heritage Foundation, Family Research Council, and Alliance Defending Freedom, as well as liberal groups.  The article relates:

Stelzer says biological males are competing as females in swimming, wrestling, track and field, cycling, soccer, softball, powerlifting, and other sports, robbing females of opportunities, medals, scholarships, records, sponsorships, and even participation. “I never would’ve started powerlifting if I’d known I’d have to compete against males,” she told me.

Recently, Concerned Women for America announced its support for this letter, with Penny Nance, CEO and President of the organization saying:

“Female NCAA, professional, and Olympic athletes who signed this letter speak for all women and girls across America who simply want to compete against other female athletes. This is what Title IX achieved over 40 years ago. The NCAA has no business overturning that victory by promoting inequity in women’s athletics.

“This is not a left or right issue. Women and girls, regardless of political affiliation, deserve to have the laws that protect us respected and followed, ensuring equal opportunities and benefits in sports for all female athletes.”