{"id":29239,"date":"2016-11-09T01:09:24","date_gmt":"2016-11-09T07:09:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/?p=29239"},"modified":"2022-09-12T13:49:18","modified_gmt":"2022-09-12T18:49:18","slug":"religious-freedom-american-hallmark","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/religious-freedom-american-hallmark\/","title":{"rendered":"Religious Freedom: Still an American Hallmark?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Religious Freedom + Cultural Tolerance = ?<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\nCongress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

When the First Amendment was added to the U.S. Constitution, it was designed to erect a “wall of separation.” Not, as some think, to keep religion\u00a0out of politics.<\/em> Rather, the amendment\u00a0was added to the Constitution\u00a0to ensure that the\u00a0government is thwarted in any attempt to\u00a0limit the religious freedom of\u00a0any American citizen.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But our Constitution is under attack.\u00a0Are you aware, for example, that a recent government report, titled\u00a0Peaceful Coexistence: Reconciling Nondiscrimination Principles with Civil Liberties<\/a><\/strong>, appears to be fully committed to controlling\u00a0religious freedom\u00a0in America?<\/p>\n

In his\u00a0letter attached to the report, Martin R. Castro, chairman of the\u00a0U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, writes, \u201cThe phrases \u2018religious liberty\u2019 and \u2018religious freedom\u2019 will stand for nothing except hypocrisy so long as they remain code words for discrimination, intolerance, racism, sexism, homophobia, Islamophobia, or any form of intolerance.”\u00a0<\/em><\/span>Adds Castro, “…today, as in the past, religion is being used as both a weapon and a shield by those seeking to deny others equality.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Those statements are so far from the heart\u00a0of Christianity, that it’s hard to read them\u00a0without shaking my head. Unfortunately, in large part because of cultural tolerance<\/a><\/strong>,\u00a0many Americans\u00a0now truly believe that God’s way are archaic and intolerant. And many don’t grasp\u00a0the dangers associated with\u00a0religious freedom becoming a norm of the past.<\/p>\n

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Growing\u00a0Intolerance for\u00a0Christianity?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Despite our Constitutional protections, many government — and civic — leaders are pushing for society’s full embrace of self “truth.” Everyone, they assert, should have the right to believe and act as\u00a0they want —\u00a0without societal\u00a0condemnation. My right to abortion, says one, trumps the Christian\u00a0view that abortion is murder. My right to happiness, says another, trumps the Christian view that some lifestyle choices are “sinful” to\u00a0God.<\/p>\n

Who are you to tell me how to live, you hateful, bigoted, intolerant Christian?<\/em><\/p>\n

Sigh. I don’t know about you, but I get sad\u00a0when I hear that line. Perhaps\u00a0because I want people to be happy. I want people to feel accepted. I want people to feel good about who they are. I really<\/em> wish the world could function with each of us merrily rolling through life\u00a0with whatever belief system we pick.\u00a0But that world, very quickly (as we are daily seeing), turns into a self-indulgent mess due to a\u00a0slippery moral code. Sinful choices lead to fear, pain, and hatred. And not just hatred of others, but deep, demoralizing self-hatred. It hurts my heart that suicide rates continue to clim<\/strong>b<\/a>\u00a0in America, most markedly among adolescent\u00a0girls.<\/p>\n

For reasons I don’t fully understand, those who hate God truly believe that a world erased\u00a0of\u00a0Judeo-Christian influence will somehow lead to a utopia not possible under\u00a0God’s influence. On the one hand I respect anyone who passionately believes in and furthers a cause. But on the other, it saddens me when I can\u00a0clearly see where they are misguided. Convinced they are doing good, they\u00a0may be\u00a0hastening the downfall of America. As one lawyer plainly\u00a0put it, “Once America loses her religious freedom, all of the other freedoms will go, too.”<\/p>\n

Why? Because when a\u00a0society chooses to remove itself from the\u00a0authority of a higher power, man becomes the architect\u00a0of right and wrong. Our founding fathers clearly understood the\u00a0inherent dangers with our government holding such power.<\/p>\n

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(Source: davegranlund.com)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In an\u00a0article<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>writer Nicholas Senz penned\u00a0for\u00a0The Federalist<\/em>, Senz writes, “The First Amendment prohibits the government from establishing a religion. But when the federal government declares ideas that everyone held until five minutes ago, supported by reason and lived out with compassion, as de facto<\/em> hateful and criminal (\u201cfirst they came for the photographers and bakers\u2026\u201d), then the government is essentially creating a new public faith and forcing everyone to adhere to it.”\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

According to First Liberty Institute, some of the best\u00a0lawyers in our country are hard at work, daily\u00a0defending and\u00a0protecting\u00a0the religious freedoms\u00a0of all<\/em> Americans.\u00a0Cheerleaders banned from painting scripture verses on cheer banners<\/a>. School coaches banned for leading\u00a0their sports teams in prayer<\/a>. A U.S. Marine court-martialed for refusing to remove Bible verses in her workspace<\/a>. An Oregon bakery fined for refusing to bake a cake for a same-sex wedding<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Can\u00a0those who demand tolerance for all lifestyle choices also refuse to offer\u00a0the same tolerance to Christians? Not if the goal is true tolerance. If religious rights are removed from America, it will be to ensure control of society norms.<\/em><\/p>\n

Per the example of Jesus, we know that true Christianity offers people the freedom\u00a0to choose whether they will follow Him. You and I know that only through complete\u00a0freedom can a person\u00a0truly love Jesus.\u00a0When\u00a0the Church is guilty of coercion and hatred, it needs to repent and beg forgiveness for being so human.<\/p>\n

What Awaits Us in the Future?<\/strong><\/p>\n

As evidenced by the presidential election, our country is clearly divided on whether Christian\u00a0values\u00a0should still be respected and followed. But even if society does manage to legally remove our right to religious freedom (We must diligently fight to retain this right for all religions!), will it succeed in binding the power of Christ? Nope. It’s simply not possible. God is our creator; His influence is, and always will be, ever present.\u00a0T<\/span>he Bible tells us that if man won’t do it,\u00a0the very rocks will cry out in praise of the\u00a0creator! <\/span><\/p>\n

As f<\/span>ollowers of Christ, we are called to actively live out our\u00a0faith.\u00a0By its very nature, Christianity is missional<\/a><\/strong>.<\/span>\u00a0God directs\u00a0us to be His hands and feet. We are to get involved in the lives of others. To love, forgive, exhort, and be a blessing to others. And when given the opportunity, to help people come to a deep understanding of how much God loves us all.\u00a0<\/span>We must stay active, even in a culture that increasingly resents God.\u00a0The Bible warns us to not be surprised when society\u00a0abandons\u00a0His\u00a0principles. In John 15:18, for example, Jesus said, “If the world hates you, remember it hated me first.” <\/span><\/p>\n

What do we do with such hate when we’re trying so hard to daily get past our own human failings to reflect even a glimmer of Christ’s love?\u00a0<\/span>We might follow the example of Daniel, who, per\u00a0the\u00a0Old Testament, found himself in a lion’s den because of his unwavering commitment\u00a0to God’s standards.<\/p>\n

Daniel\u00a0trained in the courts of\u00a0the great Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar for three years to prepare to\u00a0enter into\u00a0royal service. Though pressured to conform to Babylonian thought and practices, Daniel consistently and repeatedly held fast to\u00a0his moral convictions, even to the threat of death. <\/span>Let us,\u00a0likewise, stay committed, when this crazy world pressures us to cave in or face the consequences. <\/span><\/p>\n

Those of us who believe in Him understand that God, not our government, is in control of America. He holds the globe\u00a0in the palm of His hand. Let us rest in that calm, that we might be a loving, calming influence on a world\u00a0that seems to grow ever darker\u00a0and\u00a0chaotic. Let love flow, and let it begin with those who love Jesus.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thought to Ponder<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

It’s time to grow up, grow in, and grow out. By growing up<\/em>, we take responsibility for being aware of the state of our country and our world. Where do we need to actively engage to thwart Satan’s wins, including the debate on religious freedom?\u00a0By growing in<\/em>, our Christian maturity becomes\u00a0paramount. Who is this Jesus we follow?\u00a0Why do we love Him so? How can we love others? By growing out<\/em>, we are\u00a0intentional in helping \u00a0those in need and hurt. How, this week, can you take action in growing up, growing in, and growing out? Start by getting fruity\u00a0(Galatians 5:19-23), to offer the world your best self. #growupinout<\/span><\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

This blog post has been adapted from the book\u00a0The Beauty of Intolerance<\/i><\/strong><\/a>, by Josh and Sean McDowell.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Religious Freedom + Cultural Tolerance = ? Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. When the First […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23327,"featured_media":28074,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"Are America's leaders still championing religious freedom? Or will cultural tolerance become the law of the land? Should Americans care?","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[80],"tags":[414,370,184,415,416],"translator":[],"blog-author":[78],"class_list":["post-29239","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-apologetics","tag-christian-principles","tag-cultural-tolerance","tag-god","tag-government-intolerance","tag-society","blog-author-josh-mcdowell-ministry-team"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/607\/2016\/07\/shutterstock_290626091.jpg","meta_box":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29239","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23327"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29239"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29239\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28074"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29239"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29239"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29239"},{"taxonomy":"translator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/translator?post=29239"},{"taxonomy":"blog-author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites-stage.josh.org\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog-author?post=29239"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}