By Tony Perkins
A&E wanted a reality show. Trouble is, they
weren't ready for the realities that came with it. Anyone who's watched “Duck
Dynasty” (and there are close to 90 million of you) knows the Robertson family
stands unapologetically for Christ. And if they didn't know, they found out in
May, when patriarch Phil Robertson told the network, “God and guns are part of
our everyday lives [and] to remove either of them from the show is
unacceptable.”
For four years, “Duck Dynasty” has been a lifeline to
Americans tired of television's steady diet of liberal propaganda. In an
industry trying to out-sleaze the competition, the Robertsons had a different
formula for success: speaking and living the truth. It's a decision too many
Americans have been afraid to make in our culture of political correctness. That
all changed with this show, when the Robertsons gave viewers the courage to make
the right choice.
Today, that courage has never been more essential, as a
group of extremists set out to destroy “Duck Dynasty” – and with it, the
family's powerful platform for faith. Thursday morning, the internet was
bursting with stories on Phil's marriage comments – which, for all the hysteria,
could have been boiled down to this: Christian Believes What the Bible Says.
Apparently, it's headline news these days to actually embrace the teachings of
your religion. In the GQ interview that kicked off the controversy, the family
patriarch was blunt about his support for natural marriage and used the book of
Corinthians to explain it: “Don't be deceived,” he said. “Neither the
adulterers, the idolaters, the male prostitutes, the homosexual offenders, the
greedy, the drunkards, the slanderers, the swindlers – they won't inherit the
kingdom of God. Don't deceive yourself. It's not right.”
Of course, the millions of people tuning in to “Duck
Dynasty” would find Phil's comments completely consistent with the values they
expect from the Robertsons. The reason the Robertsons and others have come under
attack for speaking openly about biblical truth is because too many Christians
have been intimidated into silence by the cultural elite and vocal homosexual
activists. And the evidence suggests the Left wants to keep it that way. Anxious
to keep the liberal bullies at bay, A&E's knee-jerk reaction was to drop
Phil from the show.“His personal views in no way reflect those of A&E
Networks, who have always been strong supporters and champions of the LGBT
community. The network has placed Phil under hiatus from filming
indefinitely.”
In case Americans missed it in the firing of Craig James,
the suspension of Dr. Angela McCaskill, and the persecution of wedding vendors
across the country, these are the totalitarian tactics of the Left. Phil spoke
directly from Scripture and said – not only what most people believe – but
what's obvious from nature and common sense. But these activists are so afraid
of the truth that they'll do anything to silence it – including becoming an
enemy of the very freedom they claim to champion. “I remember when TV networks
believed in the First Amendment,” Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal ® said. “It is
a messed up situation when Miley Cyrus gets a laugh, and Phil Robertson gets
suspended.”
The Left knows that if it can intimidate the Robertsons,
stars of the most popular cable show in TV history, no one will dare challenge
the lies liberals are spreading in our schools, the media, our public policy,
and even in some churches. Unlike other attacks, this one gets to the heart of
the debate, which is the freedom of Americans to articulate biblical principles
on any issue. In this brave new world of selective tolerance, have Christians
lost the right to quote from the Bible? If so, then there's a clear double
standard at work.
GLAAD, the same rabidly pro-homosexual group targeting
Phil Robertson, didn't seem to mind when extremist Dan Savage cursed at
Christian teens during a high school journalism session. In fact, six months
later, GLAAD gave him an award. Yet when the Robinsons, who don't have a hateful
bone in their bodies, express their sincerely held religious beliefs, it's
grounds for suspension. “Phil and his family claim to be Christian,” the
organization said, “but Phil's lies about an entire community fly in the face of
what true Christians believe.”
In the end, this is about a lot more than A&E's hit
show. It's about who we're going to let define Christianity: GLAAD or the Bible?
Despite the criticism, Phil has been unbending. “My mission today is to go forth
and tell people about why I follow Christ and also what the Bible teaches, and
part of that teaching is that women and men are meant to be together.” The Left
can hunt these hunters, but if they think they can intimidate this family,
they've got another thing coming. By taking on Duck Dynasty, they're “taking on
all of us,” Sarah Palin warned. So far, she's right. Thousands of people are
racing to the Robertsons' defense. You can too! Click over to FRC's petition
and take your Duck
Stand.
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