Free Republic

There is a line from John Adams of which conservatives, particularly those of a moralistic bent, are fond: "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people." The surrounding prose is quoted much less frequently, and it is stern stuff dealing with one of Adams’s great fears - one that is particularly relevant to this moment in our history. John Adams hated democracy and he feared what was known in the language of the time as "passion." Adams's famous assessment: "I do not say that democracy has been more pernicious on the whole, and in the long run,...

According to Dr. Joel Mathews, the phrase "In God We Trust" was first printed on our coins in 1864 and on paper bills in 1957. It had been proposed that "Our Country, Our God, Our Trust" be used, but that was shortened to be able to stamp the motto onto coins. Kansas State University Polytechnic's March Civic Luncheon began with Kansas Weslyan University's Dr. Philip Meckley asking: o How can we look at comparative religious traditions? o How can we live with differences for the sake of our human community? Matthews, a K-State Polytechnic instructor, began the lecture by saying...

Governor Rick Scott signed HB 43, known as the “Pastor Protection Act,” into law on Thursday, March 10. This law protects clergy, churches, and religious organizations and their employees from civil action for refusing to perform same-sex marriages. Rep. Scott Plakon sponsored HB 43 and began drafting the bill before the bizarre U.S. Supreme Court 5-4 opinion regarding marriage. Rep. Plakon said that a majority of the bill came from a similar Texas law. The law provides that churches or religious organizations, related organizations, or certain individuals may not be required to solemnize any marriage or provide services, accommodations, facilities,...

The Missouri Senate has passed a proposal creating religious protections for those objecting to gay marriage. The Republican-led Senate voted 23-7 Thursday for the proposed constitutional amendment after this week halting a Democratic filibuster that lasted 37 hours. The measure would prohibit government penalties against those who cite religious beliefs while declining to provide wedding-related services to same-sex couples. The religious protections would apply to clergy, religious organizations and some businesses such as florists and photographers. Senate Democrats criticized the proposal as discriminatory against same-sex couples.

Once upon a time there lived a man. Not just any ordinary man, this was a very great man, in his mind the greatest, ever; and he would let you and everybody else know it too. He was an alpha male named Nimrod and he was a mighty hunter in defiance of God. The time was long ago, before the people of the earth were divided into different peoples and nations; and all the people of the earth were one. The people, however, had become disillusioned and insecure in their existence; and they were afraid of things they feared would...

Police in Philadelphia have arrested a group of juveniles in connection with attacks on Roman Catholic High School students. Sources tell Action News that the attack on a Roman Catholic student last month was caught on surveillance video. That video was in part what led to the arrest of the four juveniles. Police tell us all four juveniles have admitted to their involvement in that attack. Police say that during questioning one of the four juveniles admitted to also being involved in an attack on another Roman Catholic student, Jimmy Fallon, who was jumped the same week as the other...

The Obama administration’s interpretation of religious liberty would devastate free-exercise protections and relegate minority religions to second-class status. The danger posed by this interpretation has already manifested itself in a lower-court decision. The administration maintains that courts should reject religious-liberty claims unless a judge determines that “as a matter of law,” a plaintiff would suffer a “substantial” theological burden if he did not receive an exemption. The Supreme Court will rule on that interpretation of religious liberty in an upcoming case: Little Sisters of the Poor v. Burwell. In the Little Sisters case, the Obama administration urges the Court to...

Tomorrow is an important day in the United States. Millions of people across the nation will be voting in our primary elections to choose a nominee for the post of President of the United States. This next presidential election is especially crucial for our nation. Our country has become highly divided along many different lines. The way in which the next president leads and the values he or she possesses will play a big part in determining the future success or failure of this country. With the weight of this heavy responsibility in mind, the questions must be asked: Should...

>Are you a religious extremist? For years, world leaders have been endlessly proclaiming that we need to eradicate “extremism”, but what actually is “extremism”? Many would point to the ISIS jihadists over in the Middle East that are beheading people that don’t agree with them as examples of religious extremists, and I think that very few people would argue with that. But our politicians (especially the liberal ones) rarely use the term “Islamic terrorists” anymore. Instead, they tend to use the term “religious extremists”, and that has a much, much broader connotation. In fact, if you are a Bible-believing Christian,...

Over the last few weeks, Reverend Graham has spoken out numerous times.... Yesterday, he made a scathing post on Facebook to Mitt Romney. This is interesting for several reasons, but let’s check out his post first. Said Rev. Graham, “I’m 63 years old and I’ve never seen anything like this. This Republican presidential campaign has not only sunk to new lows, but the Republican establishment seems to be desperate to pick their own candidate.”

“Sunday Reflection” is a regular feature, looking at the specific readings used in today’s Mass in Catholic parishes around the world. The reflection represents only my own point of view, intended to help prepare myself for the Lord’s day and perhaps spark a meaningful discussion. Previous Sunday Reflections from the main page can be found here. For previous Green Room entries, click here.This morning’s Gospel reading is Luke 15:1–3, 11–32: Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So...

Leading up to the 2008 presidential election, I let it be known to anyone who would listen that I was going to vote for Barack Obama. After years of leftist activism, it was exciting to be able to vote for a candidate who embodied much of what I believed to be true. For me, the previous eight years under President Bush had been a wasteland of oppression, war-mongering, and greed. Obama presented me with the voting opportunity to help usher in a new age of compassion, justice, and equality. This is, in large part, why I read with interest the...

A couple of years ago I visited Canada to record television interviews about my book Christian Endgame. Prior to the recording, some of the Christians in the green room told me to be cautious about saying that Christianity is the exclusively true religion. When I inquired why, I was told that it is considered intolerant in Canadian society to claim Christianity is the only way to God. The Christian program executives were concerned about receiving legal reprisals from the Canadian government for broadcasting “intolerant” religious statements. I don’t know exactly what Canada’s laws are concerning alleged statements of religious intolerance,...

Church of Cheetah Missouri Synod? Perhaps not as ridiculous as it sounds according to the U.K. Independent. That newspaper suggests that chimpanzees tossing rocks at trees could be a primitive form of religous practice. They provide a video of this "ritual" but to your humble correspondent, it looks like nothing more than a bunch of dumb monkeys idly tossing rocks around. However, the idea of chimp worship is no more ridiculous than the Independent aping a lot of other news outlets last December when they published a story about how 2016 will be the HOTTEST YEAR ON RECORD. So rather than be branded...

Viktor Karsenov (38), a resident of the city of Stavropol in southern Russia, is facing repercussions for the opinions he wrote in a debate on religious faith on VK, the largest social network in Russia, back in 2014. Karsenov, an avowed atheist, wrote in a post that "there is no God. If I say that the collection of Jewish legends termed the 'Bible' is bullshit, that's a sign that for me that's how it is." Another user of the VK social network issued a complaint to the police against Karsenov, accusing him of hurting the feelings of the religious. According...

Will President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry falsely declare that the Islamic State is not guilty of genocide against Christians and other religious minorities in the areas it controls? If so, they will show contempt for the truth. The omnibus spending law Obama signed in December included the following language: "Not later than 90 days after enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State ... shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees an evaluation of the persecution of, including attacks against, Christians and people of other religions in the Middle East by violent Islamic extremists and the...

Once upon a time there lived a man, a great man. He was an alpha male named Nimrod and he was mighty in defiance against God. The time was long ago, before nations had come into existence and all the people of the earth were one. The people, however, had become disillusioned and insecure in their existence; and they became afraid of things they feared would befall them in the future. So they sought a ruler that could unify them. Now Nimrod was well aware of the insecurities of the people; and because he was a great one, greater than...

For almost a quarter of a century I have spent my days working with utopians. The utopian is motivated to create heaven on earth because he is convinced that there is no other option. Put simply, the utopian believes there can be no heaven in the sense that it is described in the Bible because there is no supernatural realm. This commitment to naturalism is a philosophical commitment. It isn't based on science. In fact, it flies in the face of science. To paraphrase Josh McDowell, we only have three options when it comes to the origin of the universe....

snip To understand these words "civilization" and "culture," the best book to read is T. S. Eliot's slim volume Notes Towards a Definition of Culture (1948). Once upon a time I commended that book to President Richard Nixon, in a private discussion of modern disorders, as the one book which he ought to read for guidance in his high office. Man is the only creature possessing culture, as distinguished from instinct; and if culture is effaced, so is the distinction between man and the brutes that perish. "Art is man's nature," in Edmund Burke's phrase; and if the human arts,...

WASHINGTON—Possibly the biggest tribute to late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, 79, during his funeral Mass Saturday, Feb. 19, may have come during the homily offered by his son, Fr. Paul Scalia, who preached about the blessings his father received during his life and the salvation that faith in Jesus Christ offers flawed people such as his dad. Every funeral is a reminder of the thin "veil" that is between this world and the next one, between this time and "eternity," and between the "opportunity for conversion" and the moment of judgment, Fr. Scalia told the attendees at the Basilica...