Free Republic

"I support the right of people to believe what they do and say what they wish—in their pews, homes and hearts." So says an influential New York Times journalist. In other words, "Keep your religion in the closet." In his Jan. 10 Times editorial, "Your God and My Dignity: Religious Liberty, Bigotry, and Gays," Frank Bruni writes, "I've been called many unpleasant things in my life, and I've deserved no small number of them. But I chafe at this latest label: A threat to your religious liberty." He finds it "absurd" that the simple act of two men or two...

January 18, 2015 Why the Left Wants Conservatives to View Francis as a Liberal By Gene M. Van Son In an opinion piece at The Week on January 13 entitled “The Republican Party’s War with the Pope has finally started,” Damon Linker states, “It looks like 2015 is shaping up to be the year when Catholic Conservatives declare war on Pope Francis.” Pope Francis’s soon to be released encyclical on the environment, says Linker, will touch off the war. Linker goes on to say that Ross Douthat’s op-ed in the NY Times late last year about the possibility of schism...

St. James Episcopal Church in Wichita, Kan., plans to host a “Chili for Choice” fundraiser for Planned Parenthood on the 42nd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, helping to pay for abortion while other churches are encouraging participation in pro-life events, including a march in the Kansas capital. The fundraiser supports Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri with “an evening of stimulating conversation, refreshments and CHILI!” The ticket costs range from the $20 “income-sensitive” option to the $1,000 “Scorching Serran Patron.” Until 1967, the Episcopal church condemned both abortion and infanticide. But in 1967, the church embraced abortion law reform and...

The United Methodist church is settling a complaint against a retired bishop who performed a same-sex wedding in Alabama, and a church leader said the agreement showed the denomination doesn’t have to be divided by differences over gay marriage. Church statements issued Monday said the case against retired Bishop Melvin G. Talbert had ended with a settlement that the denomination calls a “just resolution.” Official Methodist teaching doesn’t allow same-sex marriages, and there’s been discussion of splitting the denomination over disagreements about whether the position should be amended as society changes. Talbert is retired, but he still holds the title...

A self-described Jewish atheist named Dylan Chenfeld is behind the ”I Met God, She’s Black” t-shirts that have recently been sported on major celebrities, The Huffington Post reported on Saturday.

A Wichita church will be hosting a celebration of abortion for Planned Parenthood. St. James Episcopal Church will celebrate 42 years of abortion with Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid Missouri on January 22, 2015 for their Chili for Choice. January 22, 2015 will be the 42nd anniversary of legalized child killing through abortion under the Supreme Court’s Roe vs. Wade decision. According to the most recent abortion stats, in 2011, Guttmacher, reports that 1.06 million abortions were performed nationally.

Which offense is more serious? Denying a lesbian communion at a Catholic funeral? Or a female Episcopalian bishop hitting and killing a bicyclist? The Washington Post has picked (A). In 2012, they splashed across the front page (with a picture) that lesbian activist Barbara Johnson was denied communion at her mother's funeral. On December 30, the Post buried a hit-and-run-bishop story on page B5 with the headline “Bishop put on leave after fatal crash: Episcopal diocese says Heather Cook drove car that killed bicyclist.” .......

As the year 2014 comes to a close, Bondings 2.0 takes a look back at the worst and the best news in the Catholic LGBT world. If you want to keep up-to-date on the latest news about the ups and downs of the relationship between the Catholic Church and the LGBT community, please consider subscribing to this blog. To do so, enter your email address in the “Follow blog via email” box at the top of the column on the right-hand side of this page, and press “Follow.” You will then receive an email every time the blog is updated,...

I am a white, privileged, well-off, 61-year-old former Republican religious right-wing activist who changed his mind about religion and politics long ago. The New York Times profiled my change of heart saying that to my former friends I’m considered a “traitorous prince” since my religious-right family was once thought of as “evangelical royalty.” You see, only in the Mafia, the British Royal family and big time American religion is a nepotistic rise to power seen as normal. And I was good at it. And I hated it while hypocritically profiting from it—until, that is, in the mid-1980s, I quit. These...

The Reverend Harry Knox insists that pro-lifers are the wolves in sheep’s clothing Jesus warned about, and that we bear false witness. The not-very-reverent Rev. Knox heads up the largest faith-based pro-abortion organization in the nation, the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (RCRC). Churches like the United Methodists, Evangelical Lutheran, Presbyterian USA, and Episcopals, as well as a host of more well-known liberal churches are the composite of this campaign for death in the name of the One who came to bring us life. The RCRC is a shame to the reality of Christianity as it manipulates the truth of...

The church needs to focus more on art and less on religion and converting people in an effort to become less “churchy,” according to Stanford University’s Dean for Religious Life, The Very Reverend Dr. Jane Shaw. “I think people are always slightly surprised that I’m not very churchy as a person,” Shaw told the Palo Alto Online in an interview. “I don’t think church is to be more churchy. I think church is about, anyone should be welcome. I’m really interested in how you welcome many different kind of constituencies, certainly not convert them, not even necessarily to do religion...

First it was that all atheists can go to Heaven. Then it was that communist economics is Biblical. Furthermore, he and the church believes theistic evolution--"God is not a magician." (God made everything, then everything made everything. Adam and Eve's parents were apes.) The church needs to dialogue about the Sacrament of Marriage concerning divorce and unnatural marriage. Basically, the church has become RC-Lite and "all things to all sheeple." Now, he says that all dogs go to Heaven! What about other pets? Let me tell you that cat fanciers are being rubbed the wrong way! Rumors are that the...

While there are plenty of Bible verses to mention while discussing immigration, President Obama on Tuesday quoted one which isn't so great, mainly because it's not real. "The good book says don't throw stones at glass houses, or make sure we're looking at the log in our eye before we are pointing out the moat in other folks eyes," Obama said during a speech in Nashville. One problem, though: The Bible never mentions glass houses. In addition to his biblical misquote, Obama also tied his immigration policy to the Christmas story, saying, "If we're serious about the Christmas season, now...

Today, Planned Parenthood sent two Black women out front to push support for abortion in Ohio. They were opposing Ohio’s pro-life Heartbeat legislation due for a vote this week. HB248 would generally prohibit an abortion of an unborn human individual with a detectable heartbeat. The heartbeat is detected usually around six weeks gestation. Speaking for abortion giant Planned Parenthood which was founded in eugenic racism was an African American mother of six who said that her decision to have an abortion should not be judged. Samantha Williams began her speech on the south lawn of the Ohio Statehouse by saying,...

Pope Francis equated Christianity with Islam while leaving Turkey. “We have our share of fundamentalists” too. The pope also said fighting poverty and hunger were key to defeating Islamist killers. Ugh. The Jerusalem Post reported: Pope Francis said Sunday that equating Islam with violence was wrong and called on Muslim leaders to issue a global condemnation of terrorism to help dispel the stereotype. Francis, the leader of 1.2 billion Roman Catholics, told reporters aboard his plane returning from a visit to Turkey that he understood why Muslims were offended by many in the West who automatically equated their religion with...

As many as 7,800 people have resigned from the Lutheran Church in Finland since the parliament approved a law legalizing same-sex marriages on Friday, which was backed by Kari Mäkinen, the Archbishop of Turku and Finland. Mäkinen reportedly said that he was "rejoiced" by the passage of the law, YLE News reported on Sunday. "I know how much this day means for rainbow people, their loved ones and many others. I rejoice with my whole heart for them and with them," the Archbishop said. "We are in the same situation as our neighboring Nordic churches: our concept of marriage needs...

Even though San Francisco has been known to be home of the radical gay agenda, and where selective abortion based upon sex has been pushed by government officials, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi seems to think the city is on par with Biblical scripture. During a Thanksgiving day speech at the San Francisco Interfaith Council, Nancy Pelosi stated that San Francisco is the “model” for living the gospel (20:30-20:42): “And I think that we have to challenge all of us in public policy, certainly not in San Francisco which is the model of living the gospel, but in public policy to say,...

Kasich justifies his “very conservative” decision to expand Medicaid and implement Obamacare… I mean, that’s what we’re supposed to do in life, right? Help our neighbor. Help people…that’s my whole philosophy in the state. Medicaid is another one we did…making sure that people could get health care. … There’s a, kind of a big faith-based component of the conservative movement…so, to me, that’s very conservative. On issue after issue, Kasich is severely conservative. Guns Kasich received an “F” rating from the NRA after voting for Bill Clinton’s 1994 Assault Weapons Ban (AWB).

Southern Democrats are joining others in the party who say that a return to advocating to lift people out of economic hardship and emphasizing spending on education and public works will re-energize black voters and attract whites as well. "It's time to draw a line in the sand and not surrender our brand," Rickey Cole, the party chairman in Mississippi, said. He believes candidates have distanced themselves from the past half-century of Democratic principles. "We don't need a New Coke formula," Cole said. "The problem is we've been out there trying to peddle Tab and RC Cola." Cole and other...

ERICK ERICKSON FRONT PAGE WRITERS FEATURES E-LETTERS COFFEE & MARKETS GATHERING FRIENDS RedState Gathering Set For Atlanta in 2015! Click here for more information. « BACK | PRINT RS FRONT PAGE CONTRIBUTOR Planned Parenthood becomes a religion By: streiff (Diary) | November 24th, 2014 at 04:00 PM | 14 RESIZE: AAA Share on Facebook 107 175 SHARES abortion clergy One of the most pernicious things the advocates of various deviancies and social pathologies are fond of doing in finding morally corrupt alleged “clergy” and getting them to endorse whatever perversion is in vogue. We’ve seen the homosexual marriage fascists to...