The LGBT agenda will now add churches to its hit list. Bakeries and flower shops were the lead in to a full blown attack on Christianity, which has been the intended target all along.
Religious freedom is now in real danger as the erosion of our culture continues on every front.
Religious leaders must come to grips with the fact that they need to take concrete action to protect the freedom of their flocks to practice their religion without harassment either from the state or militant anti-religious groups.
From Tim Wildmon, President
American Family Association:
Because of judicial activism, Christian ministries can and should take steps to protect their religious freedoms. No longer can even churches believe they are immune to the compulsive and aggressive nature of the homosexual agenda.
AFA strongly urges your church and other Christian ministries to consider three recommendations immediately:
- Adopt a clear statement of faith regarding human sexuality and marriage.
- Clarify that weddings in your church are Christian worship services.
- Adopt a policy that clearly restricts the use of ministry facilities to the ministry’s religious purposes.
AFA makes several resources available to aid your church pastor, leadership and ministry in protecting itself against the coming storm of homosexual activism.
- American Family Studios has produced a short documentary that provides legal analysis of the dangers posed to religious liberty by the ruling. Watch it here.
- Read and print this article written by AFA General Counsel Pat Vaughn. It will help your church understand the dangers of doing nothing. Will a gay marriage storm crush your church?
- Alliance Defending Freedom has produced a handbook that will walk your church through every step of adopting strong marriage policies, including sample resolutions and statements. A Legal Guide for Churches, Christian Schools, and Christian Ministries ( Excerpt below).
As Christians, we can and must guard our religious freedoms while showing Christ’s mercy to people in bondage to homosexuality. Avoiding problems in the future depends on what we do today.
Please use the resources provided to insure your church or ministry is ready for the certain dangers ahead. May God bless our efforts, as we stand on His word.
In the culture, in the courts, even in casual conversation, it is increasingly obvious that we have lost sight of over 200 years of social and legal tradition that has secured our fundamental freedoms – namely, freedom of speech and religion.
A new concept – that “sexual liberty” trumps religious freedom – has begun to impact churches, ministries, and individual Christians across this nation.
This concept has led to the passage of sexual orientation, gender identity ordinances (SOGIs). SOGIs elevate sexual special interests over our cherished fundamental freedoms, especially religious freedom. These ordinances place terms like “sexual orientation” or “gender identity” in the same category as race or religion. But they are not designed for the innocent purpose of ensuring all people receive basic services. Rather, their practical effect is to legally compel Christians to accept, endorse, and even promote messages, ideas, and events that violate their faith.
Those promoting these ordinances use public sympathy – gained through misleading rhetoric about “discrimination” – to silence dissenting voices. And no ministry will remain immune if they remain true to Scripture’s teachings about sexuality and gender.
Alliance Defending Freedom created this manual to help you prepare for the legal intrusions some of your fellow believers and Christian leaders around the country have already faced, and for other threats on the near horizon.
Alliance Defending Freedom exists to help you deal with a variety of legal challenges facing churches, religious nonprofits, and believers today, including issues not specifically addressed in this manual: civic engagement of churches and pastors, zoning, tax exemption, equal access to government facilities or programs, and the right to live out your faith in your business, workplace, or school. You can explore the basics on these issues at: www. AllianceDefendingFreedom.org/Church.For the complete .pdf file, go here
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