Several Democrat senators have used the confirmation hearings of the most exclusive club in America to lay down an unconstitutional requirement for qualification to public service.
At a hearing in June, Sen. Bernie Sanders questioned the fitness of Wheaton College alumnus Russell Vought for the post of deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget. Mr. Vought had written an article in which he said Muslims "do not know God because they have rejected Jesus Christ his Son, and they stand condemned."
Sen. Sanders accused Mr. Vought of religious bigotry, saying, "In my view, the statement made by Mr. Vought is indefensible, it is hateful, it is Islamophobic, and it is an insult to over a billion Muslims throughout the world."
Last week, progressive lawmakers showed more of their disdain for Christians during the hearing for President Trump's Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals nominee, Amy Barrett, a law professor at Notre Dame – and a devout Catholic.
"Whatever a religion is, it has its own dogma," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.). "And I think in your case, professor ... that the dogma lives loudly within you, and that's of concern[.]"
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) asked Ms. Barrett, "Do you consider yourself an orthodox Catholic?" The implication is that being an "orthodox" Catholic" disqualifies you from being a judge.
Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) condemned the nominee for speaking before a "hate" group – the Alliance Defending Freedom, Christian attorneys who litigate religious freedom cases. Obviously a dangerous group.
This line of questioning – or perhaps more accurately, this "inquisition" – amounts to a religious-based exclusion of Christians simply because of what they believe. There were no accusations of harmful behavior or violence toward anyone. Apparently, faith is enough to draw the ire of today's Democrats.
It should be pointed out that the claim of exclusivity – i.e., that one's religion is true while others are false – is not unique to Christianity. Islam is well known for holding that view, except that sharia law, unlike Christianity, demands not that you love the nonbeliever, but that you tax, enslave, or kill him. However, the Senate will not interrogate Muslims on their beliefs, because that would constitute "Islamophobia."
Our Founding Fathers were well aware of the dangers of religious bigotry. They wisely included in the Constitution a provision to protect us against it. Article Six says, "[N]o religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States." Have these senators ever read the document to which they took an oath?
They are so caught up in a growing societal trend of hatred for Christianity and what it represents that they seem unaware of their dangerous bias.
Kim Davis, clerk of probate for a Kentucky county, spent a week in jail because she refused to sign a marriage certificate for two lesbians. She claimed that it would violate her conscience and her commitment to God.
Aaron and Melissa Klein, who own a small family bakery called Sweet Cakes by Melissa, were fined $135,000 for refusing to bake a "wedding cake" for a gay couple in 2013.
Hundreds of such cases now dot the legal landscape of our country. If law and politics are downstream from culture, the senators who were willing to impose a religious test in open defiance of the Constitution are reflecting adherence to a toxic culture. A virulent new bigotry is coursing its way through our nation, overriding the highest law of the land. It would seem that we are in not a post-Christian era, but a distinctly anti-Christian one.
In August 2012, a young man tried to commit mass murder at the Family Research Council. The would-be killer was later convicted of domestic terrorism. He told the FBI that he chose to attack the Family Research Council because the Southern Poverty Law Center had designated the FRC an anti-gay hate group. The SPLC continues to put Christian organizations that support marriage or oppose abortion in the same category as the KKK.
This growing hatred of all things Christian is a consequence of the sexual revolution, which created the politics of promiscuity and called for a world without the God who says "no." As the repository for traditional sexual morality, Christianity is viewed as the mortal enemy of the "gay rights" movement, the abortion industry, and the new transgender obsession.
Those who were once thought of as hardworking, God-fearing people living lives of Christian decency and common sense are now slandered as "deplorables" and "extremists" by the elites of the Democratic Party and the media that enable them.
The entertainment world, sports, colleges and universities, major corporations, government bureaucracy, and even members of the United States Senate have bought into this cultural hedonism. There is no room for Bible-believing Christians in their new world.
It is often said that Christianity thrives in persecution. If so, then it may be about to see its very best days in the United States of America. Is suffering the slap in the face that will awaken the church from its infatuation with comfort and compromise?
It seems likely that we will soon know.
1 Dead, 7 Injured In Tennessee Church; "Clown Mask"-Wearing Shooter Identified As Sudanese Immigrant
Authorities have identified the shooter as Emanuel Kidega Samson, 25, of Murfreesboro. Little is known about Samson or his motivation - other than that he is a black male, and that he wore a clown mask during the assault, before turning his gun on himself. According to the Washington Times, Samson has been
Update (3 pm ET): Nashville Mayor Megan Barry has isued a statement about the deadly shooting at a baptist church in nearby Antioch Tennessee today. Antioch is a separate municipality that is governed by the city of Nashville's government.
This is a terrible tragedy for our city," she said. "My heart aches for the family and friends of the deceased."
According to a report from ABC, the gunman “began indiscriminately shooting” after entering the church. He was confronted by a church usher and eventually shot himself during the struggle.
Update (2:45 pm ET): In a disturbing update reportedly gleaned from police scanner chatter, the as-yet-to-be-identified assailant in a church shooting in Antioch, Tennessee was reportedly wearing a clown mask at the time of the attack, which left one woman dead and seven other people inured, not including the shooter, who police say shot himself. In an ominous sign, the involvement of the clown mask harkens back to the rash of evil clown sightings across the US last fall, a phenomenon that inspired a mini-hysteria. Perhaps this incident suggests that, just in time for the Halloween season, the phenomenon is set to reoccurr, possibly in an even more malevolent form.
Notably, a remake of the horror movie "IT", which features an evil clown named Pennywise, was released two weeks ago.
The shooter is expected to survive, and will hopefully cooperate with police to provide clues as to his motivation.
* * *
Update (2 pm ET): One victim has died and seven are being treated for their wounds according to the latest news out of Antioch, Tennessee. The Metro Nashville Police Department said one woman was shot dead in the parking lot, and six other “innocents” were shot, while a seventh was "pistol whipped". The shooter, who reportedly shot himself, is being treated for his wounds at a local hospital. Police described the shooter's wounds as non-life threatening. It’s understood the shooting occurred shortly after 11 a.m, according to local reports and Russia Today.
Update: “Medical personnel are treating 8 wounded churchgoers shot at Burnett’s Chapel Church of Christ,” Nashville Fire Department said in a tweet Sunday. “Shooter among wounded.”
Medical personnel are treating 8 wounded church goers shot at Burnett’s Chapel Church of Christ. Shooter among wounded.— Nashville Fire Dept (@NashvilleFD) September 24, 2017
This is a mass casualty situation. All of the wounded have been transported to area hospitals. The majority are older adults.— Nashville Fire Dept (@NashvilleFD) September 24, 2017
As we detailed earlier, At least six people were shot at Burnette Chapel Church of Christ in Antioch, Tennessee, according to Metro Nashville Police.
A woman living next door to the church told WKRN two people came up to her door and said, “Someone is shooting at us at the church.”
Her husband went to the church and saw a victim that had been shot in the back. He saw someone lying in the doorway, and “some other people that were shot.”
No comments:
Post a Comment