Posted on 10/29/2014 10:05:10 AM PDT by Gamecock
The City of Houston will withdraw its controversial subpoenas of five pastors tied to a lawsuit over the city's equal rights ordinance, Mayor Annise Parker announced at a news conference Wednesday.
The announcement came amid a national firestorm about the subpoenas, which have prompted outrage among Christian conservatives. Parker said two meetings yesterday, one with local pastors and another with national clergy, persuaded her to pull the subpoenas altogether.
The subpoenas are part of a discovery phase in a suit filed by equal rights opponents, who largely take issue with the rights the law extends to gay and transgender residents.
(Excerpt) Read more at chron.com ...
And just why were the sermons required?
Houston, we have a problem. Never forget your Mayor’s October Surprise of 2014. This is not over, and won’t be until she is out of office.
Don’t confuse the word ‘will’ with ‘shall’ especially if the word ‘will’ doesn’t have a clear deadline with consequences.
The authoritarian would be tyrants wanted to find hard evidence of “hate” “speech”.
everyone has the right to loved or hated.....
The rights of free speech and religion far precedes “gay rights”, and is all-inclusive. “Gay rights” are group-specific and do not trump the first amendment!
Joel 0-steen must be disappointed. He gave an invocation for the Houston mayor, and his silence on this issue (in support of the pastors 1st amendment religious speech rights) speaks volumes.
These pastors erred, because this was clearly a “ripe” opportunity for them to file a civil rights lawsuits against the mayor. The type of suit she would use against them in a heartbeat, if she had the slightest opportunity to do so.
Importantly, civil rights lawsuits were intentionally made difficult to defend against, because they require you to prove a negative, that you are *not* what you are accused of.
And, if they were successful in their lawsuit against the mayor and council, it would have a profound “chilling” effect against many other anti-Christian bigots in the US.
She’ll find another way to attack them.
The pastors should sue the mayor, city manager, city attorney and city council over this. Their civil rights were violated, or attempted to be violated
Osteen thinks Obama has done a great job too
Christians aren't to go to law with each other, but I see no prohibition against sueing someone who has done you a wrong.
Many churches record the sermons for the internet these days
Yes, there is little doubt about it
And just why were the sermons required?”
Because her busy schedule does not allow her to attend church and she wanted to be able to read them for inspiration when she had spare time. /s/
Although nobody has to subpoena Osteen’s sermons.
They are on 185 channels.
I can only hope that the mayor’s office was flooded with thousands of copies of sermons on CD, DVD, books, etc...and not only from Houston, but from the entire US.
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