Free Republic

In a brief address aboard the papal plane en route to Krakow for World Youth Day, Pope Francis expressed his conviction that the world is at war, but it is not a religious war, since every religion wants peace. The Pope told journalists traveling with him that the world is not only insecure, it is at war. “But it’s a real war, not a religious war,” Francis said. “It’s a war of interests, a war for money. A war for natural resources and for the dominion of the peoples. Some might say it’s a religious war. Every religion wants peace....

In 2001, Arlis on FreeRepublic posted an article "Don't fight the last war" by Barry Rubin from the Jerusalem Post dated 28 Sep 2001. This is currently the only source for the article that I can find, and it's worth reviewing. Hillary Clinton in debate last year said that "We are not at war with Islam" but with radical terrorism. Unfortunately for her and for us, Islam is at war with us, and has been for 1400 years, with many pauses and hiatuses for regrouping, reconsidering, and re-arming. In the current nominating convention acclaiming her candidacy for President, there has...

Many books have been written about the success of the West, analyzing why Europe was able to pull ahead of the rest of the world by the end of the Middle Ages. The most common explanations cite the West's superior geography, commerce, and technology. Completely overlooked is the fact that faith in reason, rooted in Christianity's commitment to rational theology, made all these developments possible. Simply put, the conventional wisdom that Western success depended upon overcoming religious barriers to progress is utter nonsense. In The Victory of Reason, Rodney Stark advances a revolutionary, controversial, and long overdue idea: that Christianity...

That ‘ol Freedom From Religion Foundation is at it again, this time sending out letters to “every public school district in Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana, West Virginia and Ohio” warning them not to undertake field trips to a Noah’s Ark theme park — Ark Encounter — because they would “violate” the First Amendment. The FFRF specifically mentions the park’s owner, Ken Ham, stating he “is free to erect monuments to his bible, but public schools are not permitted to expose the children in their charge to religious myths and proselytizing.” In response, Ham lowered the admission price for kids to $1,...

There will, however, be a billboard advertising atheism at the Republican National Convention, and more than 30 smaller, pro-atheist signs at the Democratic convention. Attendees arriving in Cleveland for the Republican National Convention next week will be greeted by a giant billboard with President Ronald Reagan’s image, quoting him saying, “We establish no religion in this country.” The sign was purchased by an atheist group called the Freedom From Religion Foundation. What convention attendees won’t see, though, is an even larger sign with a pro-religion message that would have advertised the DVD release of God’s Not Dead 2. That’s because,...

Much of my wife Mary's and my time is spent traveling the country, helping to elect conservatives to the House and Senate. I am chairman of the Conservative Campaign Committee. On a rare stop back home in Florida, we decided to enjoy a day at our favorite, New Smyrna Beach. After multiple stops for gas, banking, and Walmart, we were finally on our way. It brought back fond childhood memories of hot summer family trips to the beach; mom, dad, fat Aunt Nee, and five kids all crammed into a station wagon with no air conditioning. The ritual included picking...

Opinions Lib vs non lib(Weekly debates in paper) The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to hear a case involving religious freedom and the pharmacy profession. This lets stand a Washington state law requiring pharmacies to dispense all federally approved drugs — including so-called morning-after birth control pills that some pharmacists object to for religious reasons. Was this the right decision? What are the proper limits to religious freedom? Contorted logic ------------------------- Ben BoychukThe wrong job? Let’s get one thing straight: Religious freedom isn’t a hall pass from the obligations of citizenship. If you don’t want to be a pharmacist who...

As the Juneau Assembly considers a city ordinance that would protect the rights of all, including those in the LGBTQ community, a religious group that thinks homosexuality is “sinful” is holding a prayer rally in the capital city Friday... .....According to its “Statement of Faith,” BGEA believes “... marriage is exclusively the union of one genetic male and one genetic female.” Rhoads said homosexuality is considered “sinful.” “The good news is you can be forgiven of all that and that’s what Franklin would want to say. Most people want to talk about what the Bible is against; the Bible is...

A federal judge blocked a controversial Mississippi law that would’ve gone into effect Friday, which would’ve allowed businesses and government employees to deny services to gay and transgender people based on religious grounds. U.S. District Court Judge Carlton Reeves issued a 60-page opinion in which he described the Mississippi law, known as House Bill 1523, as “state-sanctioned discrimination.” “There are almost endless explanations for how HB 1523 condones discrimination against the LGBT community, but in its simplest terms it denies LGBT citizens equal protection under the law,” he wrote. He cited many

I see regularly the slogan from the American Humanists Association: “Good Without God.” And I think….well, maybe for a while, one can be good (before men). But only because they piggyback on the Judeo-Christian values they may have imbibed. After a while, it all fades away. The reality of that fading away now hits us daily in the news. There’s not a week that goes by without some new report of violence and mayhem. Some attacks are worse than others. Just recently, the UK’s Daily Mail referred to “lawless Paris,” in an attack on innocent people, including tourists. Their sensational...

Alvin Toffler, the far-seeing futurist who predicted humanity's rising anxiety with digital and technological progress in his hugely influential 1970 book "Future Shock," has died at the age of 87, his consulting company confirmed Wednesday. Toffler — who is also credited with having coined the term "information overload" to describe people's struggle to keep up with exponentially expanding data — died Monday night at his home in Los Angeles, Toffler Associates said in a statement it released at the request of Toffler's widow, Heidi Toffler. No cause of death was given. Alvin Toffler during a talk at the Astrobiology Roadmap...

It started out with hints of official, United States governmental oppression of Christianity as soon as same-sex “marriage” became a bullet point for activists – little things like “discrimination” complaints that those choosing alternative sexual lifestyles somehow weren’t applauded as they thought they deserved. Then it became confrontational for Christians who were simply choosing to live by their beliefs – beliefs similar to those held by the nation’s founders. Bakers were penalized for not promoting homosexuality, ditto for photographers and venue owners. Government officials publicly vilified their Christian faith and ordered them, in some case, re-educated. Now two rulings have...

A local pastor said he was told his advertisements on bus benches in Colorado Springs would be barred if they use the name Jesus. Lawson Perdue, a pastor at Charis Christian Center in west Colorado Springs for 15 years, said he was told if the name Jesus was allowed, hate messages would have to be allowed, too. Perdue said his church has been advertising on transit benches in the city for the past three years, using various Jesus-related campaigns. Two years ago benches said "Celebrate Jesus," last year benches said "Experience Jesus," and now benches say "Jesus is Lord."

Accurate speech, considered "Islamophobic" or otherwise offensive to some, is now deemed "hateful" and punishable under distorted visions of law or university rules. So, apparently is the mention of God. Sometimes, those who dare to speak are silenced before they even begin.The First Amendment provides, Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. Congress is not permitted to ignore the First Amendment, but the...

Short and informative news clip about Trump's recent visit with evangelicals

I’ve been in New York this morning to attend a meeting organized by Dr. Ben Carson and others who invited Donald J. Trump to speak to evangelical Christian leaders from across the country. Governor Mike Huckabee was moderator and Mr. Trump answered questions on a wide range of issues. Dr. James Dobson asked the first question–he asked Mr. Trump what he would do concerning religious liberty issues. Mr. Trump said the number one thing he could do for religious liberty would be to appoint great Supreme Court justices and he reminded everyone that the next president could appoint up to...

Presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump is meeting with a group of more than 1,000 faith leaders in New York City. The evangelical leaders gathered during the United in Purpose and My Faith Votes summit, titled: “A Conversation About America’s Future with Donald Trump and Ben Carson.”

Donald Trump will meet behind closed doors on Tuesday with hundreds of the nation’s most prominent Christian conservatives — megachurch pastors, religious media personalities, theological writers, heads of social conservative organizations and more. Many of these Christian leaders supported other candidates, including Ted Cruz, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina in the primary season. Some have criticized the presumptive Republican nominee for his rhetoric about race and about women, his lack of an anti-abortion history and even his ownership of casinos. What would Trump have to say to earn their support on Tuesday? Several people who will be attending the meeting...

In a state ruled by a former Jesuit, perhaps we should not be shocked to find ourselves in the grip of an incipient state religion. Of course, this religion is not actually Christianity, or even anything close to the dogma of Catholicism, but something that increasingly resembles the former Soviet Union, or present-day Iran and Saudi Arabia, than the supposed world center of free, untrammeled expression. Two pieces of legislation introduced in the Legislature last session, but not yet enacted, show the power of the new religion. One is Senate Bill 1146, which seeks to limit the historically broad exemptions...

What’s it like to grow up in a conservative Christian home, come to terms with your same-sex attraction, and serve as a husband and pastor? Allan Edwards, a Presbyterian pastor based in Western Pennsylvania, shares his compelling story in this video. Allan illustrates again the power of the biblical narrative when it comes to the issue of homosexuality. He is to be commended for his openness on an issue that’s so contentious, as are these other brand-new testimonies from the UK. Allan talks about having struggled with hypocrisy and pornography. He also shares how Christians helped him along the way:...