The 3 - November 24, 2024

On this, the most recent edition of The 3, with three stories of relevance to the Christian community, there is news out of Oklahoma, where the state school superintendent has recommended an office devoted to religious liberty and patriotism.  Also, the leader of the Church of England has stepped down in the wake of mishandling sex abuse cases. And, the Ohio Legislature has passed legislation that would ensure the privacy of females in restrooms and locker rooms.

OK school superintendent OK's new office devoted to religious liberty, patriotism

Ryan Walters is the Oklahoma Department of Education Superintendent, and he is committed to making changes in the public schools in the state. Recently, according to The Daily Citizen from Focus on the Family, Walters has proposed an Office of Religious Liberty and Patriotism.  He also has announced the formation of a new committee to align Oklahoma with anticipated federal guidelines, that may go as far as to abolish the federal Department of Education.

The Daily Citizen article notes:

According to a press release, the Office of Religious Liberty and Patriotism “will serve to promote religious liberty and patriotism in Oklahoma and protect parents, teachers, and students’ abilities to practice their religion freely in all aspects.”

The new office will support “teachers and students when their constitutional rights are threatened by well-funded, out-of-state groups.”

But, there's another way that Walters is shaking things up in the state.  The article states:

As reported in the Daily Citizen, Waters [sic] announced a plan in September to spend $3 million to place a Bible in every classroom, saying the Bible is “a necessary historical document to teach our kids about the history of this country, to have a complete understanding of Western Civilization” and “one of the most foundational documents used for the Constitution and the birth of our country.”

Leader of Church of England steps aside

The Archbishop of Canterbury leads the Church of England.  Justin Welby, up until a few days ago, held that position. CBN.com reported that Welby "...has resigned after an investigation revealed he did not inform the police quickly after he learned about decades of physical and sexual abuse by a volunteer at church summer camps."

The article goes on to say:

Anger had been mounting within the church over the lack of accountability among the church's top leaders. And members of the church’s national assembly had created a petition calling for Welby to step down over concerns that he had mishandled the sex abuse scandal.

But the strongest outcry had come from victims of the late John Smyth. The investigation revealed that Smyth, a prominent attorney, abused teenage boys and young men at the denomination's summer camps since the 1970s. Evidence indicates Smyth sexually, psychologically, and physically abused about 30 boys and young men in the United Kingdom and 85 in Zimbabwe and South Africa over the course of five decades.

Ohio legislators pass bill to keep boys and girls spaces separate

The legislature in the state of Ohio has completed its deliberation on the Protect All Students Act. The Washington Stand reports that the legislation "...is designed to keep spaces such as bathrooms, locker rooms, and overnight accommodations free from the co-mingling of males and females in schools."

The article notes that: "The Center for Christian Virtue (CCV) also expressed their support of the legislation." It goes on to quote from CCV Policy Director David Mahan, who said: “[This] is a huge victory for children and families in Ohio,” adding, “Amended SB104 is common-sense legislation that will guarantee the only people entering young ladies’ private spaces are female, not men claiming to be female.”

Meg Kilgannon of Family Research Council said: “The women of Ohio and women everywhere deserve to know that their bathrooms and locker rooms are just that — for women and girls and the young children they care for.” She added, “Given the results of the 2024 elections, and the amount of messaging around gender identity during the campaign, politicians should embrace the chance to prove they are for the safety and security of women and girls.”

The 3 - November 17, 2024

This week's edition of The 3, spotlighting three stories of relevance to the Christian community, includes a court ruling that puts the new 10 Commandments law in Louisiana on hold. Plus, a Christian missions organization as strengthened its doctrinal statement.  And, an attempt to put an Indiana law on hold that would protect children from dangerous procedures that are falsely characterized as helping a child change his or her gender, has been turned back by a federal appeals court.

Federal judge puts new LA 10 Commandments law on hold

A new law in Louisiana requiring the 10 Commandments to be posted in public school classrooms across the state has been put on hold by a federal judge, according to WORLD Magazine, which reported:

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry approved a law in June that would require all classrooms in the state to hang up the Biblical Ten Commandments alongside a statement about their historical role in shaping American education. Less than a week later, the American Civil Liberties Union sued the state, saying the law violated the First Amendment’s prohibition on government endorsing religion.

WORLD stated that: "U.S. District Judge John deGravelles...issued a preliminary injunction preventing authorities in Louisiana from enforcing a law putting the Biblical Ten Commandments in classrooms. Judge deGravelles described the law as facially unconstitutional."  The article added that the state's attorney general said she would appeal this ruling.

The Liberty Counsel website states:

Louisiana has considerable grounds for its appeal. Recent Supreme Court precedents show that displaying the Ten Commandments is not necessarily a religious endorsement. In American Legion v. American Humanists Association, the High Court wrote that the Ten Commandments “have historical significance as one of the foundations of our legal system” and represents a “common cultural heritage.” Then, in 2022, the cases of Shurtleff v. City of Boston and Kennedy v. Bremerton School District rejected and overruled the 1971 case of Lemon v. Kurtzman. The High Court replaced the “Lemon Test” by returning to a traditional First Amendment standard where courts must interpret the Establishment Clause by “reference to historical practices and understandings.”

The case now goes to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. 

Christian missions organization announces strengthening of doctrinal issues

In the face of churches and ministries compromising on their fidelity to Biblical truth, it is important that Christian entities are solid in their adherence to God's Word. One missions organization, the Association of Baptists for World Evangelism, has revised its statements of faith to make clear where it stands on important Biblical matters.

A press release published on Inspire Newswire, reports that the changes will become effective on January 1st, and it states:

This significant update comes as part of a broader effort to reaffirm ABWE’s unwavering commitment to historic, biblical orthodoxy and address contemporary cultural and theological challenges.

ABWE President Paul Davis is quoted as saying, "Our new doctrinal statement strengthens our stance on essential truths and equips our workers to faithfully proclaim the gospel in today’s changing world,” adding, “In a time when doctrinal clarity is often compromised, ABWE remains committed to defending the ageless truths of Scripture and providing the necessary theological grounding for effective ministry.”

The organization states: "The revised language provides a robust articulation of doctrines such as the Trinity, the exclusivity of Christ, and the authority of Scripture." It also notes: "Updates respond to current issues, including the biblical definition of marriage and sexuality, and the influence of false teachings."

Federal appeals court rules in favor of ban on dangerous "gender"-related treatments

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit has issued a "decision in the case of K.C. v. Individual Members of the Medical Licensing Board of Indiana," according to the website for Alliance Defending Freedom. The court decided "to uphold an Indiana law that protects children from harmful, unnecessary, and high-risk drugs and surgeries that alter their bodies to make them look like the opposite sex..."

ADF Senior Counsel and Vice President of Litigation Strategy and Center for Conscience Initiatives Jonathan Scruggs said: "...These procedures have devastated countless lives, which is why countries that were previously leaders in so-called ‘gender affirming’ care are reversing course and curtailing these experimental efforts to alter children’s bodies. The 7th Circuit was on solid ground to uphold Indiana’s law that allows children to receive the help they need—safely.”

Writing for the majority, according to TheHill.com, Judge Michael B. Brennan stated: “These constitutional arguments threaten significant consequences. Appellees ask us to constitutionalize and thus take from Indiana the power to regulate a new and heavily debated medical treatment with unknown risks..."

Attorney General Todd Rokita said on X, “By rejecting the injunction against our commonsense state law, dangerous and irreversible gender-transition procedures for minors will remain banned in Indiana..."

The 3 - November 10, 2024

This week's edition of The 3, highlighting three stories of relevance to the Christian community, includes some exit poll data that provide an indication into how religious groups voted.  Also, three states rejected attempts to allow abortion during the entirety of a woman's pregnancy. And, an attempt to prevent boys from competing in girls' sports continues to move forward after a court decision.

Early faith stats show white evangelicals, Catholics broke for Trump

I have not seen the numbers of exactly how many faith voters actually went to the polls to cast ballots in the 2024 election, but there are some indications of how various religious groups voted.  The day after Election Day, in my roundup on The Meeting House, I included this analysis of exit polling data from The Washington Post:

According to early exit polls, Catholic voters supported Trump over Harris by a double-digit margin. In 2020, Catholics backed Joe Biden, who would become America’s second Catholic president, by a five-point margin. In both years, about a quarter of voters were Catholic.

Other religious groups were more similar to 2020. About 6 in 10 Protestants supported Trump over Harris, and they made up about 40 percent of the electorate. Just under 2 in 10 voters reported no religion, and they supported Harris by a 3-to-1 margin.

Trump’s strongest religious group were voters who identified as White born-again Christians, who represented about 2 in 10 voters. About 8 in 10 of them supported him nationally, similar to his margin in 2020.

I noted that the chart of the data apparently uses "evangelical" and "born-again" interchangeably.  About one-fourth of voters indicate no religious preference.

In August, I had related this analysis from David Brody of CBN News:

In 2008, Barack Obama received 26% of the White Born Again Evangelical Vote and won. In 2016, Hillary Clinton received 16% of the White Born Again Evangelical Vote and lost. In 2020, Joe Biden received 24% of the White Born Again Evangelical Vote and won. So if Kamala Harris gets 20% or more of the White Born Again Evangelical Vote, Trump could very well lose the General Election to Harris.

The updated data at The Washington Post showed that Harris received 17% of that vote, with Trump garnering 82%.

Three states turn back pro-abortion ballot measures

The day following Election Day, Nicole Hunt, Life Issues Analyst for Focus on the Family and contributor to The Daily Citizen discussed how three states rejected ballot measures that would allow abortion during the entirety of a woman's pregnancy.  Seven states, however, passed similar measures.

In a piece at The Daily Citizen website, Nicole Hunt wrote:

Prior to Tuesday, we saw seven losses for the pro-life movement in statewide ballot measures. And last night, we saw another seven states adopt radical abortion policy into their state constitution.

While there is still much more work to do, the wins in Florida, Nebraska and South Dakota were critical for the pro-life movement.

She noted:

Pro-life advocates needed these wins.

Pro-life donors needed these wins.

And pro-life voters needed these wins.

In providing insight into the path to victory for these three states, Hunt stated: 

In Florida, the heightened threshold of 60% approval was a game changer. Ultimately the amendment failed because it only got 57% of the vote.

In Nebraska, the pro-life community brought forward a pro-life initiative to compete against the abortion measure.

In both of those states, political leaders fearlessly advocated for life and helped raise money for the pro-life cause.

In South Dakota, we saw a naturally more conservative base that wasn’t influenced by big abortion money. According to state filings, the ACLU and Planned Parenthood didn’t even put money into the South Dakota campaign.

Court case involving males competing in female sports allowed to continue

One of the issues in the 2024 election has to do with males competing in female sports. This certainly is an affront to God's created order, and numerous Christian organizations, including Alliance Defending Freedom, have stepped up to preserve the important civil rights issue of allowing females to exclusive participate in female sports.  Already, courts have looked favorably on challenges to changes made to Title IX that would redefine the word "sex" to include so-called "gender identity" and sexual orientation.

On its website, Alliance Defending Freedom reports that a federal district court just last week issued a "decision...in Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools to allow the case of four female athletes, who are challenging a state athletic association policy that allows males to compete in women’s high school sports, to proceed, rejecting the request of state officials to dismiss the case..."

Legal Counsel Rachel Rouleau stated that these four athletes "deserve access to fair competition."  She went on to say...

...Following the 2nd Circuit’s decision to allow these brave women to make their case under Title IX and set the record straight, the district court has rightly rejected the state’s request to dismiss the case and instead recognized that the girls’ ‘schools are potentially liable for subjecting the plaintiffs to discrimination under their athletic programs in violation of Title IX.’ This is imperative not only for the women who have been deprived of medals, potential scholarships, and other athletic opportunities but for all female athletes across the country. This ruling creates one fewer obstacle for high school girls to face as they pursue their athletic dreams.”

The 3 - November 3, 2024

This edition of The 3, featuring three stories of relevance to the Christian communities, includes news of an organization identifying with the devil that has expanded its telehealth abortion activities. Also, a family who left Germany in order that the children might be homeschooled, gets to stay in America for at least another year.  And, there's a reminder of the importance of constitutionally-guaranteed freedom speech in a state supreme court ruling in favor of a cake baker who reflected his deeply-held religious beliefs in the choice of the types of cakes he would bake.

Satanic Temple broadens availability of "telehealth" abortions

A poignant reminder of the nature of abortion can be found in the recent alliance between an organization that claims to be "satanic" and the abortion industry.  A piece found on Crosswalk.com states:

The Satanic Temple (TST) has announced that it has opened a second telehealth abortion clinic in Virginia, over a year after it opened its first facility in New Mexico. According to a press release, TST said that the Virginia-based abortion facility, titled "Right to Your Life Satanic Abortion Clinic," will be "free of charge" like the first one, "with patients only needing to cover the cost of medication through a third party at a very low price."

"Our dedicated staff will again be available 24/7, ensuring that patients receive the care they need when they need it," TST added.

The article went on to say:

According to a TST document shared with The Christian Post, the group explained that abortion is part of its "destruction ritual that serves as a protective rite," noting that preparations for the procedure include reading and listening to stories from people in favor of abortion as a way to "subdue any stigmas" a woman might feel entering the clinic.

TST, headquartered in Salem, Massachusetts, describes the Satanic abortion ritual as a "spiritual experience designed to instill confidence and self-worth in accordance to TST's religious beliefs."

German homeschool family receives another reprieve in order to stay in the U.S.

Perhaps you're familiar with the plight of Uwe and Hannelore Romeike; they are a family that, according to the Red State website, believed God was leading them to homeschool their children - unfortunately, homeschooling is illegal in Germany. In 2010, they received asylum in America, but then that was overturned. Finally in 2014, they were allowed to stay in the U.S. under "indefinite deferred action status."  Case closed, right?

Well, according to the article:

In September of 2023, without any prior warning or explanation, the Romeikes were told there had been a "change of orders," and they had four weeks to secure passports to begin self-deportation. One more problem: the Romeikes have had two more children while in the U.S. who are American citizens.

The article states: 

A petition was started to ask the Biden administration to reinstate the deferred action status. The petition got more than 100,000 signatures. In addition, a letter signed by 45 Tennessee lawmakers in September was sent to ICE asking for reconsideration of the Romeike's immigration status and impending deportation.

The website reports that "Rep. Diana Harshbarger...has also introduced private legislation to grant the Romeike family permanent residency..." 

Red State includes a tweet from Home School Legal Defense Association Senior Counsel Will Estrada, in which he says: 

I am grateful to God to announce that the Romeike family, who @HSLDA has been helping since they fled from Germany in 2008 & requested asylum, has received another one year stay to remain in the US! They are free to continue to homeschool & practice their faith in our nation!

He has posted the official statement from HSLDA which offered a reminder that the legal status of the family has not changed.

Jack Phillips wins at Colorado Supreme Court

Jack Phillips, the Colorado cake baker who went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court defending his right to decline a request to bake a cake celebrating a same-sex wedding ceremony, has won a definitive victory in the Colorado Supreme Court.  According to CBN.com:

...after over a decade of court battles, Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood, Colorado, recently won a major victory at the Colorado Supreme Court — something over which he’s elated.

“I didn’t know what to expect,” Phillips recently told CBN News of the legal win. “And I didn’t expect it right now, but it was good news.”

The baker first found himself in the crosshairs more than a decade ago, when he declined to make a same-sex wedding cake. After that case made its way through the courts, he again found himself facing a new battle after he refused to make a cake celebrating a gender transition.

John Bursch, Senior Counsel of Alliance Defending Freedom, stated: “The court did not address any of the First Amendment claims,” adding, “It only dismissed based on the procedural ground, although that’s enough to end the case.”  He added:

“In the meantime, we also had the U. S. Supreme Court decide the 303 Creative case on behalf of our client, Lorie Smith, and there the U.S. Supreme Court made it very clear that the First Amendment broadly protects the right of all Americans to not be forced to speak messages that violate their conscience.”

CBN noted that Bursch "said that the case helps solidify a scenario in which every American 'wins' and can exercise their freedoms to create messages that comport with their worldview."

When considering for whom you will vote on Tuesday, make sure that religious freedom is a consideration.  Troy Miller, President and CEO of National Religious Broadcasters, on Friday's Meeting House on Faith Radio, discussed the importance of free speech, reminding believers of the negative consequences if our freedoms of speech and religion are curtailed.