Day: January 18, 2013

“Religious Freedom Day” – not so much!

Peanut Gallery: “Words mean things.” And President Obama choses his words very carefully. That’s why his substitution of the word worship for freedom in his Religious Freedom Day proclamation (Jan 16) was important – and the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty called him on it.

Religious Freedom Rally
Religious Freedom Rally

Perhaps this mismatch between words and deeds can be explained by the phrase “freedom of worship,” which the President uses in the first sentence of his proclamation. Religious freedom certainly includes worship, but it extends beyond the four walls of a church. If it is not to be an empty promise, religious freedom must also include acting on one’s deepest religious beliefs when one is feeding the poor, caring for the sick, educating the young, or running a business.

The Becket Fund focused on the HHS mandate affecting churches and religious institutions but the word switch (worship for religion) would also limit evengelism beyond the four walls of a church.

So what is he up to? Maybe he thinks if he says it often enough and long enough people will accept the change… and stay in their place? Out of sight and out of mind.

I don’t think God is going to go for that.
_______________________________________________

The report from Christianity Today is found below –

Becket Fund Pushes Back on Obama’s ‘Religious Freedom Day’ Proclamation

by Jeremy Weber, blog.christianitytoday.com

Today (Wed, Jan 16), President Barack Obama continued the tradition of observing Religious Freedom Day with a presidential proclamation. But this year, the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty critiqued his use of “freedom of worship” rhetoric—a debate that first arose in 2010.

“Foremost among the rights Americans hold sacred is the freedom to worship as we choose,” begins Obama’s proclamation (full text at bottom), which later asserts “religious liberty … is a universal human right to be protected here at home and across the globe. This freedom is an essential part of human dignity, and without it our world cannot know lasting peace.”

Becket challenged the president’s statement in light of the Affordable Care Act’s contraception mandate, which currently faces 43 legal challenges (many led by Becket) based on religious freedom concerns. Continue reading ““Religious Freedom Day” – not so much!” →

Morning Reading: Luke 6.6-11 NLT – making enemies

Reading: Luke 6.6-11 NLT

president-ronald-reagan-right-handOn another Sabbath day, a man with a deformed right hand was in the synagogue while Jesus was teaching. The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees watched Jesus closely. If he healed the man’s hand, they planned to accuse him of working on the Sabbath.

But Jesus knew their thoughts. He said to the man with the deformed hand, “Come and stand in front of everyone.” So the man came forward. Then Jesus said to his critics, “I have a question for you. Does the law permit good deeds on the Sabbath, or is it a day for doing evil? Is this a day to save life or to destroy it?”

He looked around at them one by one and then said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored! At this, the enemies of Jesus were wild with rage and began to discuss what to do with him.

Prayer: Lord Jesus – You made enemies by doing right. I confess, however, that I have made enemies by doing wrong. Please forgive me and show me how I can make right the wrongs I have done. For Your Name’s sake, I ask it. Amen.

Spiritual Song: “Lord Reign in Me” (YouTube)