Free Republic

Clad in white at a Berlin church, asylum seekers Saeed, Veronica, Farida and Matin were just about to become Christians on a recent Sunday. “Do you believe from the bottom of your heart that Jesus Christ is your Lord and savior, and will you follow him every day of your life?” Pastor Matthias Linke asked them. “If so, say yes.” All four replied with a frank “Ja”, to the enthusiastic applause of the faithful at the Free Evangelical Church, and were plunged head-to-toe into a baptism basin. […] “In our diocese, there are several groups of refugees who are preparing...

The billionaire philanthropist chosen by President-elect Donald Trump to be his education secretary, Betsy DeVos, has expressed her preference in the past to give Christianity a bigger part in schooling in the United States. . . . In the recording, the Devos couple reportedly discussed how they are motivated by the Christian faith in pushing for reforms in how the youth are educated in the U.S.

A St. Cloud husband-and-wife film company is challenging the constitutionality of Minnesota’s human rights act, arguing that they will be punished for refusing wedding services to same-sex couples. In one of the first challenges since same-sex marriage became legal in Minnesota, Carl and Angel Larsen’s Telescope Media Group filed suit Tuesday in federal court against the state’s commissioner of human rights and attorney general. The complaint describes the Larsens as “Bible-believing Christians” who “believe that many see marriage as a punch line for jokes, a means for personal gratification, an arrangement of convenience, or a method of achieving social status.”...

A lot of people have seemed pretty shocked by the leftist media’s assault on Chip and Joanna Gaines. BuzzFeed, along with other liberal sites, went after the Gaines family this week for committing the crime of being Christian. Sure, they didn’t put it like that exactly. Instead they accused Chip and Joanna of attending a church led by a pastor who doesn’t believe in gay marriage. But, as anyone with even a trivial understanding of the world’s largest religion already knows, every authentic Christian church in the world teaches the same thing. There has never existed a real Christian church...

Roseman lashes out at missionaries and preachers, and all who have propagated the myth of White Jesus. All their preaching is just one more instance of “White people telling minority peoples what to say, and how to behave,” she states. “By beating individuals into submission, and calling it love, White Christians have brainwashed, and whitewashed generations of POC’s traditions,” she announces. Never mind that for most black Americans, those traditions are intimately linked to the black community’s long-standing ties with the Christian Church.

A school district in Oregon is joining many others around the country in a controversial decision to refrain from using religious-themed decorations during the holidays, including images like Santa Claus. KATU reports Santa Claus decorations are no longer welcome in Hillsboro Schools, outside Portland. The district sent this memo to staff: "You may still decorate your door or office if you like, but we ask that you be respectful and sensitive to the diverse perspectives and beliefs of our community and refrain from using religious-themed decorations or images like Santa Claus."

Efforts to redefine marriage will ultimately, and always, fail, and as in the case of Elton John and David Furnish, will be revealed as folly. As Gamaliel warned the Sanhedrin concerning the Apostles of Jesus, “[I]f their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God. (Acts 5:38b-39)” As liberals work to hold onto their perverse legal redefinition of marriage, they are not merely battling conservatism, but God Himself, and that is always a losing proposition.

The Archbishop of Canterbury has said it is time to stop repeating the popular politically correct mantra that ISIS has “nothing to do with Islam”. In a speech delivered in Paris last week, during a ceremony in which he was awarded an honorary doctorate, he argued that “If we treat religiously-motivated violence solely as a security issue, or a political issue, then it will be incredibly difficult – probably impossible – to overcome it.” He went on to say: “Until religious leaders stand up and take responsibility for the actions of those who do things in the name of their...

In the middle of March 1621, just as the Pilgrims were coming out of the devastatingly harsh winter, a guard alerted his comrades with the cry of “Indian coming!” Wearing only a loincloth as he walked into the Pilgrims’ camp, Samoset astonished the English onlookers with a hearty “Welcome!” Then speaking surprisingly clear English, he followed his friendly greeting with a request, “Have you got any beer?” The Pilgrims informed their friendly guest that they were out of beer, and offered him brandy instead. After a hearty snack of brandy, biscuit, butter, cheese, pudding, and roast duck, Samoset was ready...

LADIVOSTOK, November 20. /TASS/. Orthodoxy has been playing a major role in Russia’s life throughout the entire history of Russia, so it would not be an exaggeration to say that Orthodoxy and Russia are inseparable, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in the film Patriarch shown on the Rossiya-1 television channel on Sunday to mark the 70th birth anniversary of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia. "Orthodoxy and Russia are inseparable. And throughout our entire history, Orthodoxy has been playing a major role in the life of our state and our nation," the president said. "Our moral values rest on...

The Soyuz rocket that will launch three new Expedition 50 crew members to space Thursday was blessed at its launch pad today. Back in space, the Canadarm2 grappled the Cygnus cargo craft ahead of its release early next week.An Orthodox priest performed the traditional blessing of the Soyuz MS-03 spacecraft today before its launch to the International Space Station. Peggy Whitson of NASA, Oleg Novitskiy of Roscosmos and Thomas Pesquet of ESA are in quarantine at the Cosmonaut Hotel in Kazakhstan and are scheduled to liftoff Thursday at 3:20 p.m. EST on a two-day trip to their new home in...

What’s left now that the election is over? After witnessing all the mudslinging, lies and insults, did you wake up on Wednesday morning surprised or disappointed? Exuberant or depressed? Are you just relieved that it’s finally over? It’s time to take a deep breath and collect our thoughts. One thing is certain. None of this took God by surprise. Regardless of how we voted, or even if we didn’t vote at all, now is the time to find common ground with our neighbors and begin healing the wounds of division. Abraham Lincoln faced a similar challenge during the Civil War,...

A Time to Kill  (The Myth of Christian Pacifism)  Greg Hopkins, paperback, 302 pages,  $19.95 I was an agnostic/practicing atheist for 40 years.  I have been an active Christian for a little over 4 years.  When Greg Hopkins approached me at the Gun Rights Policy conference in Tamp, Florida, two months ago, I welcomed the opportunity to read his book and write a review. I do not write book reviews unless I have actually read the book. Readers might be surprised to know that many reviews are written by authors, as a favor to people who the author wishes...

America is the world's largest Christian nation. Russia is the largest Christian nation of Europe, and is the largest European nation (population of 143 million). The policies of the current administration are putting America at risk of war with Russia. The cold war is over. The interests that America and Russia share in common as Christian nations, is more important than what divides them. Russia has done more than America in fighting ISIS, and defending the interests of Christians in the Middle East. In response, they have been hated by anti-Christian elites in America, who want war with Russia.

In the 2016 Presidential election, America is standing at the crossroads. What our generation does in the upcoming weeks will forever determine the direction of our nation and the future of the precious freedoms we hold dear. I am greatly disturbed by both candidates running for President - Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Both of them are flawed. The crude comments made by Donald Trump more than 11 years ago cannot be defended; they are revolting. A disgrace to the American people. Something I would never want my children to hear. But the godless, progressive agenda of Hillary Clinton is...

I recently went to the Getty Villa on the Malibu coastline in California, and wandered around looking at the antiquities of ancient Rome and Greece. Currently, the display features some very intricate mosaics, decorated vases, and several funereal portraits that would apparently decorate the mummies of the aristocratic dead. What struck me most is how detailed, beautiful, and lifelike were the renditions of humans and animals. The lions snarled, the snakes writhed, the warriors flexed, and the portraits of the dead, almost all of them tragically young, gazed with hope and eagerness, and bright expressive eyes. Western art has always...

An American Hindu organization says that it will renew its pursuit to erect a statue of the Hindu god Hanuman at the Oklahoma State Capitol if residents vote next week to allow the Ten Commandments to be displayed. . . "...Hindus would love to request placing a statue of Lord Hanuman, which might become the first Hindu religious monument on public land in USA,” the Universalist Society of Hinduism in Nevada said in a statement on Wednesday.

Can European Christianity withstand assaults from radical secularism and Muslim immigration? The current trends suggest that Christianity may vanish from Europe, as happened to Christianity in North Africa in the 7th Century.

Politicians in Washington aren’t going to care much right now about a movie depicting the short life of a Christian girl, according to film producer Chuck Howard. But that’s not going to stop the Nashville resident from trying to motivate lawmakers to take on Google and dismantle what he says has become a biased media monopoly. ... faith-based film “I’m Not Ashamed,” .. film’s trailer garnered over 5 million views before YouTube removed the channel nearly a year ago. The channel was recently reinstated after The Hollywood Reporter contacted YouTube about the incident. However, the channel was hit with a...

Iranian-American Pastor Saeed Abedini revealed that Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump extended financial help of US$10,000 to his family while he was jailed in Iran for his Christian faith, while Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton did not do anything to help him.