Tag Archives: Freedom of religion

by Anthony Baker | April 24, 2018 · 10:17 am

The Magnificent Fifty: Foundation of Faith (Tennessee)

Nashville, Tennessee (Artist: Susan Cassidy Wilhoit)

Tennessee Constitution, Article 1, Section 3 (1870)

That all men have a natural and indefeasible right to worship Almighty God according to the dictates of their own conscience.

Tennessee is my home State. I am thankful that the Constitution of my State affirms my right to worship Almighty God according to the dictates of my conscience. However, federal law trumps State law, and one day this freedom may be taken away in its entirety. Nevertheless, the right to worship God is not a right given by Tennessee or Washington, D.C.; it is a commandment given by the Almighty, Himself.

Should the right to worship according to the dictates of my own conscience be denied, including the right to publicly speak the name of Jesus, I will have to echo the words of Peter in Acts 4:20, “We cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”

The dictates of any constitution will have no bearing on the command to “go into all the world and preach the gospel,” including Tennessee.

Go Vols! 🙂

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Filed under America

Tagged as America, Bryan College, constitution, First Amendment, Freedom of religion, Susan Cassidy Wilhoit, Tennessee, The Magnificent Fifty

by Anthony Baker | March 28, 2018 · 8:19 am

The Magnificent Fifty: Foundation of Faith (California)

Sacramento, California (Artist: Susan Cassidy Wilhoit)

California Supreme Court (1980)

Freedom of Religion is so fundamental to American history that it must be preserved even at the expense of other rights which have become institutionalized by the Democratic process.

Devin Walker v. First Orthodox Presbyterian Church, 760-028.9

To read the “introduction” to this series, CLICK HERE.

Just a Reminder, and a Warning

Not that long ago President Obama was all to happy to point out that America was no longer a Christian nation. Some went even further and proclaimed that America never was a Christian nation.

Trump says that together we can “make America great again.” Clinton says that American has always been great because we are “good.” Both ignore the truth.

The most important thing about America is that we cherish freedom. But from where do we get that valuation? Frankly, it comes from truths that should be “self evident”: We were created by God and endowed with certain unalienable rights.

And when it comes down to rights, one of the most important, if not the most important, is freedom of religion. However, it must be understood that even though America was founded in such a way as to protect the individual’s right, the foundation on which this right was secured was not irreligious or secular – it was the very gospel of Jesus Christ.

“It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ. For that reason alone, people of other faiths have been afforded freedom of worship here.” – Patrick Henry

You see, pluralism does not guarantee anything. Other religions could not have been the basis for our founding documents. America was unique in that it was founded with Christianity at its core. Why is this important? If for no other reason Jesus never forced anyone to follow him, and that is why “people of other faiths have been afforded freedom of worship here.”

Just in case you didn’t get that, it is precisely because of Christianity other religions have the right and freedom of worship in the United States. The founding fathers understood this.

So, go ahead, force Christianity and all its followers into the back alleys and into hiding. Go ahead, make it criminal to be dogmatic and evangelical. Go ahead, become like Russia and ban all forms of religious speech outside of government-sanction meeting places – for safety’s sake. Go ahead, let another religion/non-religion come to the forefront and drown out the gospel of Grace, then you will have no religious liberty at all, only the thing you mistakenly think Christianity is – and you will be forced to comply.

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Filed under America, Christianity

Tagged as America, Clinton, Freedom of religion, general election, pluralism, Trump

by Anthony Baker | October 30, 2015 · 1:06 pm

I Support Coach Joe Kennedy

This week a high school football coach in Washington was fired from his job,

not because he molested a student;
not because he stole from the locker room;
not because he posted offensive language on the school’s website;
not because he exposed himself to other teachers while in the teacher’s lounge;
not because he was encouraging excessive violence on the field;
not because he was conspiring with terrorists;
not because he threatened the coach of another team;
not because he tried to contaminate the food in the concession stand;
not because he was caught cheating;
not because he was caught paying students to play;
not because he cursed a player’s parents during a game.

No, the reason he was fired was because he dared to kneel and silently pray on the 50 yard line of the ball field AFTER the game. The audacity!

Congress begins with prayer, and the most liberal president we’ve ever had attends national prayer breakfasts, but a high school football coach can’t silently pray on his own time for fear that it might send the message that a public school endorses religion? Makes perfect sense, doesn’t it? Not.

Now, the school where Coach Joe Kennedy USED to work, Bremerton High School, DID give him an option: he could pray silently alone inside the school, in a room chosen by the administration, just not on the field.

Senator Lankford of Colorado stood on the senate floor and said the following: “Government doesn’t have the authority to confine your faith to the location of government’s choosing.” However, this is where we are heading if people of ALL faiths don’t stand up and speak out.

This is STILL America. We are STILL unique in the world with regard to religious freedom. Don’t let those who want to prohibit the expression of faith in public – our Constitutionally-affirmed right – get away with this.

1 Comment

Filed under America, Christian Unity, Culture Wars, current events, Prayer

Tagged as faith, Football, Freedom of religion, Joe Kennedy, prayer

by Anthony Baker | June 17, 2015 · 12:53 am

Things I Stand “For”

Judgmental Piranhas

There is an unending current full of piranha-like detractors, each taking a bite out of the weary and flailing defenders of normality left floating in the sea of change. After the sinking of the USS Common Sense, many are floating aimlessly, constantly being bitten by those who preach the disemboweling and gutless philosophy of never standing in opposition to anything.

Those who bite into the abandoned ask, “Why do you have to be against everything? Is that all you want to be known for? Being against stuff?” Schools of cultural relativists nibble away the backbone as Laodicean leaches suck away the strength of drowning Watchmen. With judgmental tones and a self-righteous sense of moral superiority they demand, “Quit standing against everything; stand for something!”

How are the above attacks judgmental in nature? They declare any attempts to defend righteousness as unrighteous, even un-Christlike. How are they harmful? Bit by bit, bite by bite they gnaw away at one’s resolve, one’s courage, and one’s determination to stand in opposition to the destructive flotsam beating against the foundations of society.

With the Flow

So, I have decided that it might be in everyone’s best interest to go with the flow and quit standing in public opposition to destructive ideologies and cultural perversions. Instead of standing against things, I will stand for things. The latter, of course, will appear less bigoted and more conducive to this culture of affirmation.

Theoretically, as I float along in the cultural current, instead of getting beat up by the wreckage of broken lives, I can point out the positives (cue the happy music), holding up anything worth saving above the waves.

The following, therefore, are what I would call the “pitch-covered baskets” (think baby Moses) worth saving from the crocodiles. In other words, instead of a “judgmental” and “negative” standing AGAINST, these are some things I am going to be standing FOR:

The rights of the unborn (I positively support pro-life initiatives).
Strengthening the traditional, nuclear family and heterosexual marriage.
Religious freedom and protection from government coercion.
Freedom of speech.

In addition, I will stand for…

Term limits and reduced salaries for Congress.
Major reductions in the size of our government.
The immediate revocation of citizenship and subsequent deportation of any American who wants to replace the U. S. Constitution with Sharia Law and/or makes threats against the people of the United States.

And I’m FOR a couple of other things, like…

Mandatory psychiatric evaluations for most Hollywood celebrities, especially former child stars who swing naked on demolition equipment, perform mournful songs about dead pet blowfish, and dress like stuffed animals.
Spray tan for everyone! Call it the “Dolezal Amendment.” One race and benefits for all!

Who Will?

Unfortunately, it really doesn’t matter whether we stand FOR or AGAINST something, too few are willing to make ANY kind of stand at all.

“And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.“ – Ezekiel 22:30

Those who DO decide to stand will need a “shark suit” from heaven (Ephesians 6:13).

Speak Out While You Still Can

What I am about to write is definitely dangerous.

I am having a hard time finding the words to say. I have written and re-written stuff for the last 5 hours. The problem is that there is no easy way to say what I want to say. I am not a radical. I am not a conspiracy kook. What I am is someone who watches what is going on in the world, in light of history, and is terribly disturbed by what potentially lies ahead. Please watch the following video, and then read my thoughts on the matter.

Nobody wants to label the whole religion of Islam as dangerous. To do so runs the risk of being labeled “Islamaphobic.” But just in case no one noticed, the reason the police didn’t stop the peaceful Muslims from clogging the streets of France is because of the fear that some radical will burn a police station, behead a cop, or start a riot that leaves the city in ruin. Why shouldn’t that make me nervous? Since when did the police of any country run in fear of Christians?

The Norm?

What will we allow to become the norm in this country? Sure, there are the humanists and the atheists who would like to see no public display of religion; but most Americans would just prefer that a person be able to hold whatever belief their conscience dictates, exercising their faith in peace. However, if the norm becomes fear of speaking out or questioning anything about any religion; fear to enforce certain laws because it may offend a Muslim; or fear to even draw a cartoon depicting a particular “prophet” (that got a lot of people killed, you know); then freedom will cease to exist. That is not the norm I want to get accustomed to.

Another video.

You see, it is coming to a point where we are going to have to speak out for freedom, or we will not be able to speak out at all. Fear and intimidation is running rampant all over the world. Just look at how people are being jailed for speaking out in Europe against Sharia law.

No Sharia!

To not speak out in this conflict of cultures is to allow Islam the opportunity to replace our Western form of government with a system of laws that go against everything our forefathers fought for. There will be no place in an Islamic state, should it go that far, for those who seek freedom of religion, freedom of the press, freedom of thought, or equal rights for all. Freedom of religion is a core value in American society, but we should beware of those who would use that freedom to usurp the freedom of all others. Already, intimidation and the fear of retribution is robbing us or our of public discourse in the arena of ideas.

A concluding thought

As a concluding thought, the above videos spoke of laws in other countries that limited religious expression outside of the home, church, synagogue, or mosque. We should be thankful we are still allowed to express our faith anywhere, not just inside the walls of our own homes and churches. But make no mistake, there are those in this country who would love to have us be just like France and Austria. They have already succeeded in removing many expressions of faith from the public arena in the name of “separation of church and state.” Understand that unless we have the right to full, unrestrained discussion, only the most intimidating bullies will be aloud to speak. Speak out while you still can.

Sharia threat bandwagon keeps rolling on | Sarah Posner (guardian.co.uk)
States Move To Ban Islamic Sharia Law (npr.org)