Free Republic

A hard-fought effort to move one of Houston's iconic Christian churches from its long-standing denomination to a new, more conservative group narrowly failed Sunday, with the congregation voting heavily in favor of the move but falling short of the supermajority needed for approval. The leadership of First Presbyterian Church, which was established shortly after Houston's founding, had unanimously endorsed the move from Presbyterian Church USA to the breakaway denomination called ECO, A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians. The senior pastor, his staff, and the elected leaders from the congregation argued that PCUSA, the nation's largest Presbyterian body, had become too...

Scott Oak and his husband, Jamie Smith, said they heard Black Diamond Police Chief Jamey Kiblinger use the word "fag" repeatedly. "Cops can talk rough, and I understand things like that, but she used it to personally attack me," said Oak, who was a Black Diamond police officer. He left in 2012. His husband said that he heard Kiblinger use the slur in front of them at a work-related party back in 2011. "When she said that, other officers looked around, and she looked around and she put her hand over her mouth like, ‘Oh my gosh.’ She knew she...

Admittedly I don’t listen to Christian rap or rap of any kind for that matter, but after watching this news report I had to hear Bizzle’s new song which is a well thought out response from a Christian perspective to Macklemore’s song “Same Love.”- (the song the played at the Grammys for the big gay wedding.) And let me say Bizzle’s new song doesn’t pull any punches at all. It treads in love but it doesn’t tread lightly. It’s quite powerful actually. But first, watch this news report by KHOU on how Bizzle’s life is being threatened because of his...

A favorite tactic of this Administration is to engage in outrageous behavior, and then – with the support of its allies – put its opponents on the defensive by accusing them of engaging in the conduct of which it is in fact guilty. So, for example, the Obama Administration takes far-out positions on social issues— then labels as “extreme” anyone who stands up for mainstream values. The White House promotes monetary policies that destroy jobs– and then attacks the business community for driving “income inequality.” The latest example of this “jujitsu” maneuver involves the Health and Human Services contraceptive mandate...

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio will not be marching in the nation’s largest St. Patrick’s Day parade, deciding to skip one of his city’s signature celebrations because the event organizers refuse to let participants carry pro-gay signs.De Blasio will become the first mayor in decades to sit out the traditional march along Fifth Avenue. “I will be participating in a number of other events to honor the Irish heritage of this city,” said de Blasio on Tuesday during an unrelated press conference at City Hall. “But I simply disagree with the organizers of that parade.” …

Listen to an audio version of this column We have repeatedly warned you that the radical homosexual movement's goal is nothing less than the obliteration of the rights of those who oppose it. Homosexual activists parrot their lying talking points, constantly denying that this is the case. I can't tell you how many countless times these people have screeched and wailed at me in comments sections of my columns that homosexual "rights" will never affect Christians or any others who oppose them. This is a damnable lie. Homosexual "rights" and the free exercise of religion cannot coexist. They are mutually...

The owners of a Christian bakery who refused to make a wedding cake for a lesbian couple are facing hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines after they were found guilty of violating the couple’s civil rights. The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries said they found “substantial evidence” that Sweet Cakes by Melissa discriminated against the lesbian couple and violated the Oregon Equality Act of 2007, a law that protects the rights of the LGBT community. Last year, the bakery’s owners refused to make a wedding cake for Rachel Cryer and Laurel Bowman, of Portland, citing their Christian beliefs....

<p>NEW YORK (AP) Actors Jonah Hill, Jamie Lee Curtis and Kristen Bell are among a batch of celebrities donning Russian-language "Love Conquers Hate" T-shirts to show support for gays in Russia alarmed by a new law banning pro-gay "propaganda."</p> <p>It's part of an initiative launched Monday by the Human Rights Campaign, the largest U.S. gay-rights group.</p>

WEST POINT — Two West Point graduates were married Saturday in the military academy’s first wedding between two men...

OVERLAND PARK, Kansas (KCTV) - What a customer left behind for a waiter in Kansas has ignited a social media firestorm. The server found a message written on a credit card receipt telling him he would get no tip because he was gay. When Dr. Marvin Baker heard about a gay waiter who had been wronged by a customer at the Carrabba's restaurant at 107th and Metcalf, Baker and his homosexual partner showed up for lunch to do their part to make things right. "I was angry," said Baker. "I said this is not Christian as I know it." "I...

French Catholics criticised a constitutional court judgment denying local officials the right to opt out of conducting same-sex marriages. Antoine Renard, president of France’s National Federation of Catholic Family Associations, charged that the court was operating under political pressure in issuing its decision. “This ruling could have dramatic consequences for religious freedom both here and abroad,” he said. “It also suggests the French Constitution is old-fashioned and needs verification.” Renard’s comments came as representatives of 20,000 French mayors prepared a series of appeals against the court’s judgment on October 18 that, in effect, rejected calls for a conscience clause to...

Once more we learn of military personnel being punished for causing homosexuals in the military to feel bad. From Fox News: An Army chaplain’s assistant said she was accused of creating a “hostile and antagonistic” environment after she posted a message on her personal Facebook page calling homosexuality a sin. The soldier, who asked not to be identified, said her commander ordered her to either remove the Facebook message or face a reduction in rank and pay. “I haven’t taken it down and I won’t take it down,” she told Fox News. “It is frustrating that people are trying to...

There are many liberals who lead thoroughly decent lives. And there are conservatives who do not. But that is not the whole issue. There is something about liberalism that is not nearly as true about conservatism. The further left one goes, the more one finds that the ideology provides moral cover for a life that is not moral. While many people left of center lead fine personal lives, many do not. And left-wing ideals enable a person to do that much more than conservative ideals do. There is an easy way to demonstrate this. If a married — or even...

Episcopal Church gays and lesbians are weighing a resolution to be put forward at the next General Convention making it illegal for straight white males to be admitted to the priesthood. LA Bishop Mary Glasspool, an avowed lesbian and one of many lesbians and gays supporting the "no white males resolution", crafted her resolution after hearing a straight white male preaching a sermon condemning homosexual behavior last month. "I was shocked, stunned, blown away and mortified. I have never heard such homophobia coming from a pulpit. That was my moment to say enough is enough. "This comes down to a...

The first openly gay man in a major American team sport may turn out to be former Middle Tennessee State kicker Alan Gendreau, who hopes to get a shot at the NFL this year. And, if he’s successful, that could translate into millions of dollars in endorsements and speaking engagements, experts say. Whether it’s the Sun Belt Conference’s leading scorer or someone else, the athlete who makes sports history by coming out will likely be sought after by companies that want to appeal to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender population, whose annual buying power last year was estimated at...

Carla Hale, a teacher in Clintonville, Ohio, was fired just days after an anonymous parent informed the school that her partner's name had appeared in her mother's obituary. Update- April 24, Hale's grievance has been denied.

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis has reaffirmed the Vatican's criticism of a body that represents U.S. nuns which the Church said was tainted by "radical" feminism, dashing hopes he might take a softer stand with the sisters. Francis's predecessor, Benedict, decreed that the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), a group that represents more than 80 percent of the 57,000 Catholic nuns in the United States, must change its ways, a ruling which the Vatican said on Monday still applied. Last year, a Vatican report said the LCWR had "serious doctrinal problems" and promoted "radical feminist themes incompatible with...

Citing the recent controversy over his comments on same-sex marriage, neurosurgeon and rising conservative star Dr. Benjamin Carson has voluntarily stepped down as commencement speaker at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. The Baltimore Sun reported that Carson, who heads the department of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital, informed medical school Dean Paul B. Rothman in a letter that he didn't want to "distract from the celebratory nature of the day." "Given all the national media surrounding my statements as to my belief in traditional marriage, I believe it would be in the best interest of the students for...

Dr. Ben Carson on Friday apologized to Johns Hopkins University for “poorly chosen” comments he made last week in which he seemed to compare gay relationships to pedophilia and bestiality. The pediatric neurosurgeon’s message to the Hopkins community came after a top university official issued a statement calling Carson’s words “offensive” and saying he would meet with students who want Carson removed as commencement speaker.