The 3 - June 12, 2022

This week's edition of The 3, featuring three stories of relevance to the Christian community, includes the story of five courageous baseball player who refused to bow the knee to the LGBTQ+ agenda by refusing to wear special "Pride Night" gear.  Also, the challenge filed by parents in a Virginia school district against policies that serve to separate students based on race has been turned back.  Plus, apparently, an attack on a church in Nigeria is yet another incident involving the persecution of Christians in that nation.

Baseball players opt out of team's "Pride Night" gear

The month of June has become a reminder of the demands of the LGBTQ+ community that their lifestyle choices be supported in a special way. An, unfortunately, this behavior, which runs counter to Scriptural teaching, is nothing to be proud about.

That is the perspective, it seems, of five players on the Tampa Bay Rays, who decided that wearing gear celebrating so-called "gay pride" at the team's recent "Pride Night" was a bridge too far. The Daily Citizen of Focus on the Family reported that:

Rays’ players were supposed to wear both a “rainbow burst” logo on their sleeve as well as a special “Pride” cap rather than their standard ball cap.

At least five players, with the permission of the ball club, chose not to wear the Pride emblems, and a spokesman for the group attributed their actions to their Christian faith.

According to TMZ Sports, Jason Adam, Jalen Beeks, Brooks Raley, Jeffrey Springs and Ryan Thompson – all pitchers – were the five players who opted for standard uniforms rather than donning the special “Pride Night” gear.

Spokesman for the five players, Jason Adam, stated:

“But when we put it on our bodies, I think a lot of guys decided that it’s just a lifestyle that maybe — not that they look down on anybody or think differently — it’s just that maybe we don’t want to encourage it if we believe in Jesus, who’s encouraged us to live a lifestyle that would abstain from that behavior, just like (Jesus) encourages me as a heterosexual male to abstain from sex outside of the confines of marriage. It’s no different..."

The article also noted:

In a message to Tampa news station WFLA, pitcher Ryan Thompson said, “those of us who decided not to wear the patch or hat spent a couple weeks in prayer and a deep dive into scripture on the subject at hand to come to the decision that we did.”

He added, “If I believe the Bible is infallible and that everlasting life is attainable yet I bow down to public opinion in the name of tolerance, is that love? I don’t think so.

The writer of the article, Bruce Hausknecht, who has been a guest on The Meeting House multiple times, said:

While Rays management’s consideration of the five players seems gracious and reasonable, it only does so because of how unreasonable the demands of LGBT politics have gotten today. They allow no room for dissent. But there is no virtue in not forcing people to follow wokeness and proclaim something they do not believe. It is called freedom of conscience and it is a fundamental human right.  

I agree with Bruce, and while the team did allow the players to "opt-out," you have to question the purpose for a "Pride Night" in the first place.  I wonder how many potential fans stayed away from the game that night because of the promotion?  I think back about advice given by a PR firm called the Zeno Group to large companies regarding the upcoming Roe v. Wade decision, which is applicable here, as well, I think.  This is from Newsweek:

"Do not take a stance you cannot reverse, especially when the decision is not final. This topic is a textbook '50/50' issue," the email reportedly said, according to the report. "Subjects that divide the country can sometimes be no-win situations for companies because regardless of what they do they will alienate at least 15 to 30 percent of their stakeholders... Do not assume that all of your employees, customers or investors share your view."

Challenge by parents to school's policies dismissed

Parents in Albemarle County, Virginia have found that their religious views are being disregarded and filed a lawsuit to challenge the policies of the school district.  Alliance Defending Freedom had reported earlier this year that the lawsuit was filed on behalf of "an ethnically and religiously diverse group of nine parents and their children;" the circumstances in the district were outlined on the ADF website:

In 2019, the school board enacted a policy based in critical race theory, a radical ideology that requires students and teachers to view everything and everybody through the lens of race. The policy violates students’ civil rights by treating them differently based on race and by compelling them to affirm and support ideas contrary to their deeply held moral and religious beliefs. The school district goes so far as to declare that every core subject must include teaching through its new ideological lens that emphasizes racial and religious stereotypes. It then squelches debate on the issue by mislabeling any opinion not aligned with its radical ideology as “racist” and threatens to punish dissent based on its redefinition of “racism.”

ADF reported recently that the case had been dismissed by a Virginia judge. Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Kate Anderson, director of the ADF Center for Parental Rights, stated: “The court’s dismissal of the valid concerns of parents and students challenging the Albemarle County School Board’s racially discriminatory policy is disappointing, but the case will continue on appeal. Every student deserves to be treated equally under the law, regardless of their race, ethnicity, or religion. Public schools cannot attack or demean students based on these or any other characteristics. We look forward to continuing to represent these parents and students as they stand up against a school district that continues to ignore their legitimate interests and legal rights.”

The Virginia Circuit Court judge said, "the Court finds that Plaintiffs lack standing to bring their claims, and that Plaintiffs have not stated a cause of action arising under Virginia law because their claims under the Constitution of Virginia are not self-executing and the statute on which they rely does not create a private cause of action."

Nigeria church attack is stark reminder of persecution of Christians in that country

Perhaps you caught my recent conversation with Lela Gilbert of Family Research Council, who provided details of an attack on a church in Nigeria on Pentecost Sunday - the death toll was announced at around 50, but the numbers keep changing.  She wrote at The Washington Stand of Family Research Council:

The best-known extremist groups in Nigeria are the notorious Boko Haram, which has recently merged with Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). Meanwhile, radical Islamist Fulani tribesmen have been slaughtering Christian villagers in increasing numbers for several years. These Fulani radicals attacked St. Francis Church in the horrifying Pentecost Sunday incident, arriving on motorcycles and armed with guns and explosives.

The article quotes David Curry, President and CEO of Open Doors USA, who said: 

"...I think the key thing here is that these extremists have been allowed to flourish in the north and the government has not taken strong responsive action. I think they’re culpable in these kinds of attacks because they’ve allowed the Fulani terrorist groups to grow. They’ve let them attack, murder, and seize villages without any sort of retribution or punishment.”

As Lela Gilbert points out:

In 2021, an FRC analysis of Nigeria’s agonizing struggle reported that around 12,000 Christians had been killed for their faith since 2015. More recently, Open Doors International, monitoring global Christian persecution, stated that “…In Nigeria, a Christian is killed for their faith every two hours; that’s nearly 13 Christians a day and 372 Christians a month...

In 2020, the State Department placed Nigeria on its list of Countries of Particular Concern, but it was removed in 2021. Curry, who was just placed on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, has asked the President to restore that designation. Nigeria is #7 on the Open Doors World Watch List, identifying the countries who are the leading persecutors of Christians.