Free Republic

It never ceases to outrage when those who abide unabashedly and unrepentantly in sin claim to be Christians. Like the two churchgoing San Diego couples whom we previously wrote about – Will and Shirley and Nate and Faith – whose idea of a small group was a casino gambling ring. They were featured in the documentary film “Holy Rollers: The True Story of Card Counting Christians.” More recently there was Alexis McGill Johnson, who this past spring became the chairwoman of Planned Parenthood, the nation’s foremost abortionist. Johnson publicly professes herself a Christian but thinks there nothing wrong with killing...

This week my denomination, through its executive committee, voted to "disfellowship" a congregation in California that has acted to affirm same-sex sexual relationships. This sad but necessary move is hardly surprising, since this network of churches shares a Christian sexual ethic with all orthodox Christians of every denomination for 2,000 years. One of the arguments made by some, though, is that this is hypocritical since so many ministers in our tradition marry people who have been previously divorced. The argument is that conservative Protestants already embrace a "third way" because we've done so on divorce. Couples divorce, sometimes remarry others,...

The Tswana people of South Africa practice polygamy. (Photo/Wikipedia) Say “family issues” to most Americans or Europeans, and they’re likely to flash on divorce, or the challenges of single-parent households, or perhaps same-sex relationships and the push for gay marriage.What probably wouldn’t come naturally to mind is polygamy. Yet in many parts of the non-Western world, polygamy is a major feature of family life, and thus a major pastoral challenge for the Catholic Church.Discussion of polygamy is likely to surface at the Oct. 5-19 Synod of Bishops on the family in the Vatican, and could be a factor in the...

A single mother, people who have been married before and couples who have been living together "in sin" were married by Pope Francis in a taboo-challenging ceremony at the Vatican on Sunday. In another signal of the openness of his papacy, Francis asked to marry 40 people from different social backgrounds who would be a realistic sample of modern couples. It comes three weeks before a major synod of the Catholic Church will discuss the divisive issues of marriage, divorce and conception.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together: Whoever lives beneath the cross of Jesus, and has discerned in the cross of Jesus the utter ungodliness of all people and of their own hearts, will find there is no sin that can ever be unfamiliar. Whoever has once been appalled by the horror of their own sin, which nailed Jesus to the cross, will no longer be appalled by even the most serious sin of another Christian; rather they know the human heart from the cross of Jesus. Such persons know how totally lost is the human heart in sin and weakness, how it...

Once upon a time there was a church founded on God’s entering into human history in order to give humanity a path to eternal life and happiness with him. The Savior that God sent, his only-begotten Son, did not write a book but founded a community, a church, upon the witness and ministry of twelve apostles. He sent this church the gift of the Holy Spirit, the spirit of love between Father and Son, the Spirit of the truth that God had revealed about himself and humanity by breaking into the history of human sinfulness. This church, a hierarchical communion,...

Doing pro-life work is often met with resistance, sometimes from where we least expect it. Whether we make the Biblical case for public pro-life action or for a boycott of companies that support Planned Parenthood, Christians have responded that there are too many societal sins to justify a focus on fighting abortion. And when we point out the urgency of God’s command to do all we can to save “those that are ready to be slain,” others defend their inaction by saying something along these lines: “Remember, all sins are equal!” It is not my intention to vilify those people....

New survey research shows that Christians who support same-sex marriage are more likely to hold permissive views on other sexual morality issues, such as divorce and pornography, similar to the general population and far different from Christians who support traditional marriage.The "Relationships in America" survey, conducted by University of Texas sociologist Mark Regnerus, interviewed 15,738 Americans between the ages of 18 and 60. From that sample, Regnerus compared the average views on a range of sexual morality issues of churchgoing Christians who oppose same-sex marriage (2,659 in the sample) and churchgoing Christians who support same-sex marriage (990 in the sample)....

"Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me!” (Psalms 19:13) If you as a believer know what you need to do to overcome lust but then do the opposite, you are acting in willful disobedience. This is presumptuous and arrogant sinning and it comes with a price. As David understood fully, by arrogantly and selfishly entering into sin, you are allowing sin to gain dominion over you. You become an “addict” to a life-dominating sin—a slave with no way out.

There was an interfaith gathering Tuesday evening to support marriage equality in Warren at Renaissance Unity Church. About 80 people were in attendance....

Amid the reports emerging out of Liberia, it’s difficult to discern what is true and what isn’t. But the fear they carry is undeniable: Fear of the disease, fear of dead bodies, fear that God himself has sent down a terrible plague to blight the people of Liberia for their transgressions.There are local reports that “armed men” are allegedly trying to poison wells “to kill in the name of Ebola.” There are reports that the government is dumping bodies by the truckload at a mass grave on the west bank of a river and nearby residents fret over water contamination. And there...

For those who do not understand the blind loyalty of people who follow Al Gore and his Global Warming crusade, you must understand that to them it is nothing short of a religious belief.That’s right; Global Warming is a religion whose god is Mother Earth. For Al Gore and other politicians, it’s just another means to control the masses, but the religious aspect of Global Warming is ultimately how they are able to convince so many people that it truly does exist and man is responsible for creating it.To really explain what it is I mean, I need to...

Rep. David Jolly (R-Fla.) announced his support for gay marriage Monday, saying that he believes it is "fully appropriate" for a state to recognize both same-sex marriages and "traditional" ones, even though he, as a Christian, believes in the the latter. When asked by The Washington Post whether he supports gay marriage, in light of a Florida judge's decision last week to overturn the state's ban, Jolly said that his personal views on marriage are that it should be limited to one man and one woman. But, he added, states should not be defining the "sanctity" of marriage.

ALEXANDRIA, La. (BP) -- There are atheists and liberals, some who are both, who believe there is no need for God in order for morality to be maintained in a society. They argue that people can act morally apart from a supreme authority. I agree that people can act morally apart from God's standard. However, the real question is why should they? If there is no supreme authority -- no God -- then why behave morally? If there is no God, there are no objective standards for moral behavior. The logical progression leads to anarchy. Everyone does what is right...

Rev Andrew Cain puts wedding pictures on Facebook as first cleric to marry same sex partner stripped of permission to work as a priestA second priest has defied the Church of England's official line to marry his same sex partner. On Saturday, the Rev Andrew Cain, vicar of St James church in West Hampstead, London, posted on Facebook pictures of his wedding to Stephen Foreshew. The wedding took place as the first priest to marry his partner, Canon Jeremy Pemberton, confirmed that he had been stripped of the permission to work as a priest in the diocese of Southwell and...

How are Christians with same sex attraction supposed to deal with lust? This question is prompted by some videos recently made available from an evangelical pastor, Danny Cortez, and his teenage son, Drew, who has same sex attraction. Pastor Cortez and his church are stepping away from their denomination (the SBC) and are now affirming same sex relationships, conforming with the broader culture. The attention surrounding same sex attraction provides an opportunity for us to acknowledge that we do not generally do a good job in teaching about sexual purity. Churches and leaders that are vocal in attacking homosexual practices...

The Church of England has reinstated the word “sin” into baptism services after a backlash from parishes who complained a new wording was “bland”, “dumbed down” and "nothing short of dire". Plans to introduce an alternative order of service using more “accessible” language, have had to be redrawn after members inundated Lambeth Palace with letters complaining the move went too far. But the church is to press ahead with plans to banish references to “the Devil” from the new format. An official explanation sent out to members of the Church’s General Synod, following a trial of the proposed wording, said...

DETROIT — The top legislative body of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has taken major steps toward recognizing gay marriage. The General Assembly voted Thursday in favor of redefining Christian marriage in the church constitution as the union of "two people," not just "a man and a woman." The redefinition will take effect only if most of the 172 regional Presbyteries approve it in voting over the next year.

Whenever the American people try to curtail abortion or maintain marriage laws, the followers of Satan will be there to fight back, promises the national spokesman for the Satanic Temple. “Lucien Greaves” told Detroit's Metro Times that he would like to help women avoid complying with pro-life laws by saying abortion restrictions violate their Satanic religious beliefs. He added that gay “marriage” is a Satanic “sacrament.” He said Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, a Republican from the party's moderate business wing, “has been trying to make it untenable for women to terminate a pregnancy.” A bill that Snyder signed – which...