Free Republic

It’s difficult to see how the nationwide legalization of gay marriage could have any kind of significant negative repercussions for anybody who’s not gay. Difficult – but not impossible. Because now that the US government formally recognizes marriage equality as a fundamental right, it really shouldn’t skew the tax code so as to give millions of dollars in tax breaks to groups which remain steadfastly bigoted on the subject. I’m talking, of course, about churches.

Freedom of religion and the government "qualified" church Last week’s Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges opens another can of worms that is driving rhetoric in a way that misdirects people from the reality of its affect on religion and the free exercise thereof. No, this does not come from a lawyer, it comes from a missionary who, for more than 20 years, has delved into the legal entities that churches have embraced, essentially transforming their structure. And the change occurred innocently by way of the non-profit organization enticement. Here are some salient points: There is only one Law...

Take government out of the equation and offer up "Civil Unions," "Free Choice" and "Benefit Distribution Licenses." The Supreme Court has ruled that gay marriage is the new norm. But the real question is, should the government have any say in what constitutes marriage at all? What if there was a way to stop the controversy? What if we took government out of the business of marriage completely? We have seen, over the past 6 years, government remove any signs of “Faith” from our schools, our government offices, our memorials, our military and our foreign policy. But why then, are...

Nearly 5,000 people have signed a petition protesting a proposal to turn a Catholic hospital chapel into a Muslim prayer room.

THE FALL OF ORTHODOX ENGLAND Vladimir Moss It is true what I say: should the Christian faith weaken, the kingship will immediately totter.Archbishop Wulfstan of York, The Institutes of Polity, 4 (1023).INTRODUCTION: ENGLAND, ROME, CONSTANTINOPLE, NORMANDY On October 14, 1066, at Hastings in southern England, the last Orthodox king of England, Harold II, died in battle against Duke William of Normandy. William had been blessed to invade England by the Roman Pope Alexander in order to bring the English Church into full communion with the “reformed Papacy”; for since 1052 the English archbishop had been banned and denounced as schismatic...

Troubled and Trusting: A Sunday Prayer after the Supreme Court Ruling on Marriage Last Friday the Supreme Court of the United States handed down a ruling that requires the legal recognition of same-sex marriage in all fifty states.As Christians, we are not of this world, but we are in it and we care about and are concerned for what happens here. And so on Sunday at Desert Springs Church, in Albuquerque, NM, we prayed in reflection on the Supreme Court’s decision for our nation, for the church, and for everything in-between. Here’s how we addressed the Lord when we gathered...

While the Supreme Court of the United States ruled Friday that same-sex marriage is legal in all 50 states, several religious leaders in Corsicana said Monday they will not hold a same-sex wedding service in their churches. ... Pastors of several churches cited Biblical teachings for their stance. ...

The Sword and the KeysKey to resolving the issues regarding how the church must relate to the state is an understanding of the distinct functions Scripture assigns to each authority. Church and state are actually both ministers of God that are appointed to fulfill certain tasks. Historically, human beings have always run into trouble when the state attempts to do the work of the church and the church attempts to do the work of the state.

Time Magazine wasted no time in calling for the end of tax exemptions for religious institutions, with writer Mark Oppenheimer firing the initial salvo.  Oppenheimer writes the “beliefs” column for The New York Times, in which he studies religious matters with the alacrity of a medical examiner performing an autopsy: God is dead, let’s find out what killed Him. I have a different view on the subject, that God’s not dead, but attempts to kill Him surely result in self-impalement on His extremely sharp sword.  Churches don’t need tax-exempt status for God’s sake, but for society’s sake, and I offer...

The Supreme Court's ruling on gay marriage makes it clearer than ever that the government shouldn't be subsidizing religion and non-profits Two weeks ago, with a decision in Obergefell v. Hodges on the way, Sen. Mike Lee of Utah introduced the First Amendment Defense Act, which ensures that religious institutions won’t lose their tax exemptions if they don’t support same-sex marriage. Liberals tend to think Sen. Lee’s fears are unwarranted, and they can even point to Justice Anthony Kennedy’s opinion in Friday’s case, which promises “that religious organizations and persons [will be] given proper protection.” But I don’t think Sen....

The free will God has given to man has led to the inevitable. Same-sex marriage is now the law of the land in the United States thanks to a 5-4 vote by the Supreme Court, making June 26, 2015, a red-letter, landmark day in American history. By Friday's ruling, all states are now required to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples and all 50 states must recognize same-sex marriages performed in all other states. The 14 states that had not been forced to succumb to "societal progress" must now do so — by law. Is anyone surprised? You shouldn't be....

While the witch-hunt against Confederate flags, statues, paintings and even stained glass windows continues to distract the masses, it’s really the churches Big Government most covet Now that Gay Day June 26th has come to pass, and Barack Obama had the White House flooded in the colours of the gay rainbow, Sundays will never be the same. Sunday, that is, as the day Christians come to church to worship the Creator. The progressives want Sunday, and as sure as Lucifer is now calling the shots, they will be coming for it. Sunday, the day of rest, will ultimately become the...

When it comes to American Catholic opinions about climate change, a recent poll shows a major gap between whites and Latinos. The Public Religion Research Institute reports that by margins of approximately 20 percent, Latino Catholics are likelier than white Catholics to believe that there is such a thing as global warming; that it’s “due to human activity”; and that it “constitutes a crisis or a major problem.” What’s causing this discrepancy? A false god, suggests writer Patricia Miller. “White Catholics don’t accept the scientific consensus on climate change because it clashes with their other god: the free market,” declared...

More than 100 leaders respond to Supreme Court legalizing same-sex marriage. A coalition of evangelical leaders assembled by the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission has released the following: As evangelical Christians, we dissent from the court’s ruling that redefines marriage. The state did not create the family, and should not try to recreate the family in its own image. We will not capitulate on marriage because biblical authority requires that we cannot. The outcome of the Supreme Court’s ruling to redefine marriage represents what seems like the result of a half-century of witnessing marriage’s decline through divorce, cohabitation, and a...

Millennials who stand up for family, marriage, and the foundational institutions of civil society make possible a new cultural counter-revolution. The question is, will you join it?Editor’s note: This article originally appeared June 18 at Public Discourse, the online journal of the Witherspoon Institute—eight days before the Supreme Court ruled on same-sex marriage and the release of Marvin Olasky’s cover story on churches facing the LGBT juggernaut. It is reposted here with permission.It seems that the Supreme Court will probably strike down the conjugal marriage laws of our states. It seems Anthony Kennedy may have finally made up his mind...

Friday’s Supreme Court decision is unadulterated judicial activism. As Chief Justice John Roberts said in dissent: “Today’s decision rests on nothing more than the majority’s own conviction that same-sex couples should be allowed to marry because they want to. . . . Whatever force that belief may have as a matter of moral philosophy, it has no more basis in the Constitution than did the naked policy preferences” in other rightly condemned activist decisions. Nothing in the Constitution requires the redefinition of marriage in all 50 states, and five unelected justices do not have the authority to redefine marriage everywhere....

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) said Friday in an emailed statement that the Supreme Court made a “grave mistake” in it’s decision to legalize gay marriage across all 50 states. Walker, a potential 2016 Republican presidential candidate, said the Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges left the American people with only one alternative. “I believe this Supreme Court decision is a grave mistake,” Walker said. “As a result of this decision, the only alternative left for the American people is to support an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to reaffirm the ability of the states to continue to define marriage.”...

Unbelievers don’t “struggle” with same-sex attraction. I didn’t. My love for women came with nary a struggle at all. I had not always been a lesbian, but in my late twenties, I met my first lesbian-lover. I was hooked and believed that I had found my real self. Sex with women was part of my life and identity, but it was not the only part — and not always the biggest part. I simply preferred everything about women: their company, their conversation, their companionship, and the contours of their/our body. I favored the nesting, the setting up of house...

What was the same-sex marriage case that was decided by the Supreme Court?The Supreme Court issued its ruling on the case of of Obergefell v. Hodges, which is consolidated with three other cases—Tanco v. Haslam (Tennessee); DeBoer v. Snyder (Michigan); Bourke v. Beshear (Kentucky). These cases challenged two issues concerning whether the Fourteenth Amendment must guarantee the right for same-sex couples to marry.What issues was the court asked to decide?The two issues that were answered in this case are:1. Does the Fourteenth Amendment require a state to license a marriage between two people of the same sex?2. Does the Fourteenth Amendment require a state to recognize a marriage between...

Same-sex marriage bans are no longer legal in America, the US Supreme Court ruled 5-4 today. So the question becomes: How will gay rights and religious rights be balanced? Here's what the justices said in today's majority opinion and four dissents.Many quotes follow "Many who deem same-sex marriage to be wrong reach that conclusion based on decent and honorable religious or philosophical premises," said Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the majority in Obergefell v. Hodges, "and neither they nor their beliefs are disparaged here." "It must be emphasized that religions, and those who adhere to religious doctrines, may continue to...