One More Christian Baker Gets Burned by the Courts

Court rules...

His religious values form his conscience and he doesn't want to cooperate in a same-sex wedding. But bakers aren't allowed to have consciences except, no doubt, if it comes to making a cake with a confederate flag or with an image of a southern belle in a hoop skirt.

If anyone doubts that we live in an X-rated loony land these rulings illustrate it in spades. They also make it clear that big-time persecution is on the way. If homosexuals have a right to force a baker to make them a wedding cake, how much more do they have the right to force ministers to provide the wedding! "After all," say Adam and Steve, "We're Catholics and we have the right to be treated just like every other Catholic couple. It's a matter of civil rights. Fr. Orthodox is just showing his discrimination against us. It's time, like Hillary Clinton says, to force churches to change their views on abortion -- even more so on the rights of couples like us to celebrate our lust love before God."

Yup, all those backwards Christians must be forced into the new world order where sodomy is equal to marriage and abortion and contraception are sacraments. Human sacrifice, literal for the babies and figurative for bakers et al, are new world laws. Sieg Heil to the empire!

It Can Never Happen Here! Right?

Americans like to pat themselves on the back, talk about their American exceptionalism, and pride themselves on being better than the rest of the world. But the fact remains that mankind is fallen and pride "goeth before destruction." Our Founding Fathers were, in many cases, principled men who gave us a government, a republic, based on godly principles (which were not, even then, fully practiced - as slavery so tragically demonstrates). Our history is filled with examples of government and private citizens exploiting people, generally for profit. You see it in the treatment of the Indians constantly driven from land deeded to them when its value was desired by others as well as in the practice of indentured servitude and in the factories and mills populated by exploited workers. You could say our history is a record of broken promises.

But now let's come to the past 80 years. After World War II Americans looked with horror at what happened in Nazi Germany.

July 14th: Never Forget Bastille Day. It Fomented the Worst Christian Persecution Since Diocletian!

Solzhenitsyn Mourned Bastille Day. So Should All Christians.

"Tuesday, July 14 probably passes without much fanfare in your home, but the date, Bastille Day, marks the beginning of the greatest organized persecution of Christians since the Emperor Diocletian. This day, the beginning of the French Revolution, also planted the seeds for the murderous ideologies of socialism and nationalism that would poison the next two centuries, murdering millions of believers and other innocent civilians...."

The story of the uprising in the Vendée.should be in the memories of every Catholic. Those Peasant-apostles of truth fought to restore Catholic France, but most died agonizing and bloody deaths. How many Catholics know anything about their courageous brothers and sister who fought so valiantly under the banner of Christ?

Praise God, Meriam Ibrahim is Free and Out of the Sudan

Sudanese Christian Meriam Ibrahim meets Pope Francis

With so many Christians being persecuted around the world, it was wonderful to see Pope Francis meet with and encourage this brave woman and her family, victims of anti-Christian Islam. 

May God bless them as they recover from the ordeal they've suffered. And may their little ones grow into strong and holy Catholic Americans who help to change our culture of death into a culture of life. With a mom like Meriam, that seems a likely scenario. Our Lady, Queen of the Americas, intercede for them.

Sunday Meditation: The World Demands, "Crucify the Christians; Give Us Barrabbas!"

Professor Robert George gave a sobering talk at the 10th National Catholic Prayer Breakfast, one that should be a wake-up call to every serious Catholic (and Christian for that matter). He says we are living Good Friday and then asks a series of questions. Will we be like Mary and John at the foot of the cross or will we flee in terror? Will we be silent and seek to "fit in" like Peter when he denied Christ? Will we bear faithful witness or will we hide in fear and be silent? What account will we give of ourselves on judgment day? Read George's complete talk. In fact, meditate on it. Bolster your courage with the sacraments and be prepared to suffer. Good Friday is upon us, but be assured, Easter is coming. God never abandons His people.

Here's a sample: 

The days of socially acceptable Christianity are over. The days of comfortable Catholicism are past. It is no longer easy to be a faithful Christian, a good Catholic, an authentic witness to the truths of the Gospel. A price is demanded and must be paid. There are costs of discipleship—

Politics of Perversion: ENDA's Goal is Criminalizing Christianity

Gays admit ENDA game: Outlaw Christian morality

Homosexual activists have long desired to force the entire world to accept and applaud their perversion. With ENDA (Employment Non-Descrimination Act) they're well on their way to the goal helped by a morally corrupt senate that voted 64-32 assisted by ten RINOs. ENDA isn't really about protecting "gays" from discrimination. It's about discrimination against any opposition to perversion, forcing businesses, and ultimately churches as well, to shut up and put up.

While the current bill has mild protection for religious organizations,

Military Chaplains can be Court Martialed for Sharing the Faith?

It sounds insane, but with this administration anything is possible. Do you think sharing your faith is treason?

BREAKING: PENTAGON CONFIRMS MAY COURT MARTIAL SOLDIERS WHO SHARE CHRISTIAN FAITH
The Family Research Council has a petition drive to stop this violation of the religious rights of our military men and women. You can sign it here.

And while you're reflecting on this abuse

The "Gay" Attack on the Scouts and the Church

I love the Boy Scouts. All the people who hate them are the same ones who demonize pro-lifers and people of faith. When your enemies are those who advocate murdering babies and engaging in perversion, you can be proud of yourself for standing for truth. But the assault on the Boy Scouts just goes on and on. The latest media blitz involves a "gay" scout who is over 18 but is demanding to be named an Eagle Scout retroactively.

John Fenoglio, Scout executive for the Mount Diablo-Silverado Boy Scout Council, said the Eagle rank application from Ryan Andresen of Moraga, California, wasn't approved because of "membership standards," specifically "duty to God, avowed homosexuality, and the fact that he is now over 18 years of age."..."The Eagle application was forwarded, by a volunteer, to the local council but it was not approved because this young man proactively stated that he does not agree to Scouting's principle of 'Duty to God' and does not meet Scouting's membership requirements," Smith said. "Therefore, he is not eligible to receive the rank of Eagle."

The Scouts refused to award Eagle Scout and being attacked for their "bigotry and intolerance." A related issue to the battle over the Scouts determining their own policies and standards is the attack on religious freedom. An open letter recently released by Catholic priests in the U.K. says, gay marriage is biggest threat to religious freedoms since the reformation. Amen! Catholics are being denied the right to make a living unless they bend to "gay marriage." (Thomas More could tell us a few things about being persecuted for refusing to bless an immoral "marriage.") B&B operators, caterers, photographers, vineyard owners all  must bow to the demand that their facilities and services cooperate with intrinsic evils or face lawsuits. The choice?   Cooperate or close down. And we are the intolerant ones? Some days I feel like I live in an X-rated Wonderland.

Recap of Fr. Weslin's Arrest at Notre Dame: Fr. Weslin, Pray for Our Poor Country

Remember Fr. Weslin at Notre Dame? He founded the Lambs of Christ as victim souls for the unborn. And this, his last arrest, shows him as a victim not only of our secular culture of death, but the culture of death in the Church.

If his arrest doesn't bring tears to your eyes, you have no heart. Watching police handcuffing an 80-year-old priest behind his back is shocking.  But get ready, because this is a preview of the future. As you watch the video, consider the words of Cardinal Francis George in 2010 after the passage of civil union legislation in Illinois:

 "I expect to die in bed, my successor will die in prison and his successor will die a martyr in the public square."

Can't happen, you say? Look at the persecution of Christians around the world. Then look at the history of persecution of Catholics in the United States. The 18th and 19th centuries were so rife with attacks on Catholicism that the U.S. hierarchy embarked on a policy of accommodation, labeled "Americanism" and called a heresy by Pope Leo XIII. Americanism infects the Church to this day and can be seen in the speeches of Catholic politicians like John Kennedy and Mario Cuomo. It can be seen in the actions and words of clerics like Fr. Theodore Hesburgh, Fr. John Jenkins, and others. It has led inexorably to the rise of Catholic Judases like Ted Kennedy, Nancy Pelosi, Kathleen Sebelius, Joe Biden and others. 


Let us ask Fr. Weslin's intercession in the darkening days ahead for this country as religious persecution becomes more outward and more draconian. Raise your children to suffer and to pray and sacrifice for the enemies of the Church that they might be converted. All you Roman martyrs, pray for us. St. Edmund Campion and all the English martyrs, pray for us. May the martyrs of Compiegne and all the martyrs of the French Revolution pray for us. May the seven Visitandine martyrs and all the martyrs of the Spanish civil war pray for us. May Fr. Miguel Pro and all the martyrs of  the Mexican revolution pray for us. May all the martyrs throughout all the ages of history pray for us that we might be prepared for whatever comes and have the courage to endure it without abandoning the faith or hating our persecutors.


Our Lady, Queen of the martyrs, pray for us!

Pope Benedict's Address to the American Bishops

A group of American bishops is meeting this week on their ad limina visit to meet with Pope Benedict. In his address today he made it clear that Catholics have an obligation to involve themselves in the market place, including politics. He also stressed that radical secularism (and the Obama presidency is the epitome of radical secualrism) destroys Christian culture. Here is a segment of the pope's address with my comments in red:

The Church’s witness, then, is of its nature public [Catholics, don't just sit behind locked doors in the Church praying, but evangelize and act in the market place]: she seeks to convince by proposing rational arguments in the public square [Note the word "rational." Catholic truth is based on reason and appeals to those seeking truth. Those who don't care about truth will not listen, but truth-seekers will.] The legitimate separation of Church and State cannot be taken to mean that the Church must be silent on certain issues, nor that the State may choose not to engage, or be engaged by, the voices of committed believers in determining the values which will shape the future of the nation. [Don't let the State cow you into silence with the false separation argument. Fight it as the bigotry it is.]

In the light of these considerations, it is imperative that the entire Catholic community in the United States come to realize the grave threats to the Church’s public moral witness presented by a radical secularism which finds increasing expression in the political and cultural spheres. [The greatest threat to the Church in America today is the Obama administration. He wants to suppress the rights of Catholics and Christians to practice their faith in the public square. Fight despite the growing persecution.] The seriousness of these threats needs to be clearly appreciated at every level of ecclesial life. Of particular concern are certain attempts being made to limit that most cherished of American freedoms, the freedom of religion. Many of you have pointed out that concerted efforts have been made to deny the right of conscientious objection on the part of Catholic individuals and institutions with regard to cooperation in intrinsically evil practices. Others have spoken to me of a worrying tendency to reduce religious freedom to mere freedom of worship without guarantees of respect for freedom of conscience. [Catholics are being squeezed out of many occupations, especially health care. Even wedding photographers and caterers face the hobnailed boot of the Obama/Clinton/Sebelius tyranny.] 

Here once more we see the need for an engaged, articulate and well-formed Catholic laity endowed with a strong critical sense vis-à-vis the dominant culture and with the courage to counter a reductive secularism which would delegitimize the Church’s participation in public debate about the issues which are determining the future of American society. [Orthodox Catholic bloggers, take heart. You are part of the "articulate and well-formed Catholic laity" countering the "reductive secularism."] The preparation of committed lay leaders and the presentation of a convincing articulation of the Christian vision of man and society remain a primary task of the Church in your country; as essential components of the new evangelization, these concerns must shape the vision and goals of catechetical programs at every level. [Get rid of the marshmallow fluff and teach doctrine!] 

In this regard, I would mention with appreciation your efforts to maintain contacts with Catholics involved in political life and to help them understand their personal responsibility to offer public witness to their faith, especially with regard to the great moral issues of our time: respect for God’s gift of life, the protection of human dignity and the promotion of authentic human rights. [Keep the pressure on those pro-abort Catholics!] As the Council noted, and I wished to reiterate during my Pastoral Visit, respect for the just autonomy of the secular sphere must also take into consideration the truth that there is no realm of worldly affairs which can be withdrawn from the Creator and his dominion (cf. Gaudium et Spes, 36). [Obey God over man.] There can be no doubt that a more consistent witness on the part of America’s Catholics to their deepest convictions would make a major contribution to the renewal of society as a whole. [So all you dissident Catholics get with the program. Are you listening, Doug Kmiec et al?]

Persecution of Christians in Korea

50,000 Christians are in jail in North Korea for no other reason than they are Christians. Here's a portion of the article from Fides:

The recent report by Darusman presented at the UN Council for Human Rights in Geneva, explains that the judiciary system [of North Korea] lacks independence compared to the regime. Besides the ordinary courts of judicial power, there exists a "parallel justice system" in the country that does not respect any of the procedural guarantees for the accused....

All Koreans or foreigners who fall into the verdicts of these trials, are sent to prison camps where detainees are regularly subjected to torture and cruel and inhuman treatment. The political dissidents and their families, often held for life, suffer hunger and forced labor. Among them are the prisoners of conscience and religion and, according to "Open Doors", there are over 50 thousand Christians....

Freedom of religion in North Korea is totally denied, as well as of conscience, opinion, religion, peaceful association. According to the testimonies of people who escaped from the country, the regime continues an intense anti-religious propaganda, prohibits religious activities and prosecutes those involved in religious activities, including private activities. The regime states that the "Juche", the official ideology of the state, is the only system of thought and belief allowed in North Korea. Read the full article here.

Two movies are coming out in the next few months about the persecution of Catholics in Spain and Mexico during the first half of the 20th century. But persecution is not a thing of the past. Pray for those who love their Christian faith enough to suffer, and even die, for it.

More Persecution of Christians

How many Christians will be thrown out of medicine, counseling, pharmacy, etc. for daring to stand courageously for Christ. Check out this case where a counseling student working toward her masters was told to counsel homosexuals and affirm their behavior. What do you think about this type of discrimination? Do people have a right to conscience? Should doctors be forced to kill babies through abortion? Should pharmacists be forced to fill prescriptions for drugs that kill? Should counsellors be told they must affirm immoral behavior like fornication, sodomy, etc.? Christians are facing more and more persecution. We need to put on the armor of Christ and hold our ground. Pray for this young woman and for all the legal groups fighting for the rights of Christians.

More Discrimination Against Christians

So, you think you have religious freedom? Think again if the government decides your right to exercise your religion conflicts with its diversity policies. Homosexual rights trump everything these days and that's the way the activists want it. Evil is NEVER content with the right to exercise its evil freely. It must ALWAYS force those who call it evil to endorse it. So Christians, gird your loins for the growing persecution. Like Jesus said, "For if in the green wood they do these things, what shall be done in the dry?" The wood is as dry as dust and ready for the conflagration. But the only fire that has the power to destroy us both body and soul is the fire of the Holy Spirit. So hold fast to the truth.

UK marriage counselor, fired for refusing to work with gay couples

More on "Hate Crimes" Bill: Lynching the truth

Portraying the "hate crimes" bill as defending gays against discrimination is a lie. Leftists lynch the truth using any crime that involves a gay to claim a hate motivation. But when a gay murders a Christian, like Mary Stachowicz, the media ignores it and gay activists say "she deserved it." THIS IS NOT A CIVIL RIGHTS BILL. IT IS A SPECIAL RIGHTS BILL. It will deny free speech to Christians and others who object to homosexual immorality. "Gays" already are treated with special protection. When they engage in public nudity and mutual masturbation during "pride" events, police look the other way. This bill will increase hatred all right, hatred against Christians like Mary Stachowicz who cared enough to speak the truth in love. She was murdered for it. The video below has some offensive footage from "gay pride" events. It is definitely not for children, but it is information to wake up adults who think that gays' perverted relationships are equivalent to traditional marriage. They are not!



For more on the "hate crimes" bill see these articles:

Reid Supports Hate Crimes Prevention Act (Politico)

Hate Crimes Act Has Far-Reaching Effects "A member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights says the federal hate crimes bill pending in the Senate 'will do little good and a great deal of harm.'"

Talk Show Hosts May Be Accomplices Under Hate Bill "This bill imposes much stronger federal enforcement, which is a clear violation of the Tenth Amendment. It grants greater power to federal prosecutors to prosecute hate crime laws by prosecuting those who have been found innocent by local or state courts. The current bill will extend special privileges to gays and transgender individuals that are currently only granted to ethnic and religious minorities. The most dangerous part of the Bill which is a direct assault against the First Amendment is that it allows for the prosecution as accomplices in a hate crime for talk show pundits that the person who commits the alleged crime claims to influence their actions."

Call your Senators today at (202) 224-3121 and ask them to vote NO on the Sen. Leahy's amendment adding S. 909 to the Department of Defense authorization bill.

The New Civil Rights Movement: Fighting "Liberal" Persecution

I linked to an article the other day about a young man ridiculed by his California college prof for daring to stand up for traditional marriage in class. The teacher later told the students that anyone who voted for Proposition 8 was a "fascist bastard." A lawsuit is in the works. This is what passes for academic freedom on today's campuses where most professors are liberal democrats who ridicule and attack those who dare to disagree. (For a list of studies showing the liberal bias of college and university professors visit Students for Academic Freedom.)

In another case a young woman at Central Michigan University was booted off the basketball team and lost her scholarship because her lesbian coach didn't like that she wore makeup and had a boyfriend. The coach was fired from another school in 2003 for similar activities, but CMU says they'll defend the case in court.

When Crystal Dixon, Associate Vice President for Human Resources at the University of Toledo, exercised her free speech right in 2008 and penned an opinon column standing up for traditional marriage, she was put on administrative leave the same day the article appeared. Later she was fired despite the fact she had recommended both heterosexual and homosexual candidates for jobs at the university and there was no evidence of discrimination. Speaking her mind on her Christian beliefs was enough to enrage the gurus of "academic freedom."

Pro-lifers receive even more draconian treatment. Last summer a Maryland "Truth Team" was arrested for peacefully holding signs on a public highway and held overnight at the jail. All charges were dropped later showing they were spurious and unfounded violations of the free speech rights of those arrested.

In a case eerily reminiscent of the black civil rights movement a group of young people, members of Survivors (of abortion), were arrested February 12th and held overnight for standing and talking to students ON THE PUBLIC SIDEWALK outside Parker High School in Birmingham, AL. This is the city where Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote his famous Letter from a Birmingham Jail. The young adults were members of the Campus Life Tour team visiting schools to distribute literature and inform students about abortion. In January two members of the group were arrested at a public university, George Mason in Fairfax, VA, for simply giving out literature. In many of these types of cases the arrested females are strip searched and groped by male officers as an intimidation tactic. This is our tax dollars at work -- trying to eliminate unpopular speech and shut down the truth.

When I was arrested at the Spring of Life in Buffalo in the early 1990s I remember statements from the police about "teaching us a lesson" so we'd never come back. Most of us (about 150 women) were held for 24 days for blocking traffic, a minor offense. One of the jailers was angry because I put up a sign saying "Welcome to Stalag 13 prison camp." She said she asked for the duty so she could make sure we were treated well. That was irrelevant, I replied. We weren't being held because of our offense, but the reason behind our offense which made us political prisoners.

Christians need to file lawsuits in every case of persecution that arises. When Jesus said to "turn the other cheek" he was talking about forgiving our individual persecuters not the state, which was a tyranny in ancient Rome. There was no way to fight Caesar.

But in the U.S. we have a Constitutional Republic based on laws and rights. If we don't stand up for our constitutional rights of free speech and free assembly against the neo-Roman tyrants, we'll lose them. We're close to that already. So pray and fight, especially for all these persecuted Christians. St. Teresa once said that Christ has no hands but ours. The same is true of His voice. Don't let the enemies of Christ muffle His voice. Speak the truth in love and get ready for the persecution.

It's going to get worse, folks. Fight back while you can!