Just getting the Supreme Court to hear your case is like a Hail Mary pass to a stadium across town. But, by the grace of God, that's what happened. We filed this appeal and the Supreme Court granted our emergency injunction in just three days, sending ripples across the nation to other governors like Gavin Newsom.

Along with legal advice, you also offer resources for people who wish to challenge laws independently, like the federal COVID vaccine mandates. What is your hope in providing these resources?

We live in a world different from anything I ever imagined. No one could have dreamed that in the United States of America, our vaccination status would potentially limit what we’re able to buy and sell or where we can travel. It's a radical liberty issue, and we want to educate people on what they can do where they are and empower them to stand up to this.

This movement has awoken many Americans, churches, and pastors to the growing threats of assault on our freedom and liberty. Being involved is no longer just a hobby or a personal interest. It's a matter of survival and preserving our ability to follow the calling of God in the United States of America.

Even with this re-awakening of Christians, we still have people of faith saying they won’t participate in elections. What is your response to those people?

If people are wanting to save America and to have a spiritual revival, voting is not at the top of the list of priorities, because, at the end of the day, Jesus Christ is a savior. Only changing the hearts of people throughout America is what's going to change this nation. It's a spiritual warzone.

But, as to why people should vote, I have a few reasons. First,  Romans Chapter 13 commands — not suggests, but commands — us to be good citizens. It's indisputable that good citizenship involves voting and voting responsibly.

Second, and even more important than voting, is living out our testimony. If the church is filled with the love of Jesus, people are going to care about people outside their church walls. They're going to care about the preborn and the sick. And voting is an obvious manifestation of having a genuine love of Christ and being concerned for others. It's an inherent part of our testimony in the free world. That testimony is crucial for the light and love of Christ to shine through us.  

If you have a Christian biblical worldview, the massive amount of abortions in the country is itself a compelling reason for all of us to register to vote.

thenewstalkers

We Are Experiencing ‘The Greatest Assault On Religious Freedom’

bla bla bla ....bla bla bla

While it’s relative, for this country it is the worst in our lifetime for sure, possibly ever here.  Repression of religious liberty is strictly a democrat thing so it’s natural that the depressors refuse to acknowledge what they are doing to us.  

We Are Experiencing ‘The Greatest Assault On Religious Freedom

Where? How? Because health insurance pays for contraceptives? You know that no religious conservatives are being forced to buy contraceptives or forced to get abortions. How exactly are anyone's religious freedoms being attacked? I read the seed and they do not give a single specific as to how any religious person is being forced to do anything against their will or conscience.

These tired weak 'Boy who cried wolf' seeds just show how spineless and whiny some right wing Christian conservatives have become. Their main complaint seems to be that people don't respect them and validate their beliefs as much as they used to. Awwww, poor babies.

Playing the victim is a standard fascist propaganda technique.  Mussolini employed it as a tactic to gain power, as did Hitler.  Trump's entire campaign and presidency was based on grievance disinformation, which continues to this time.  Their phony claim of religious oppression opens the pathway for extremists to engage in the exact same type of oppression they falsely claim to be victims of at such time as they may gain power. 

Is there any doubt that the reactionary extremists engaged in this  propagandistic fakery would impose ruthless oppression against anyone not a member their ideological sect should they gain the authoritarian command they seek?  None whatsoever.

The fascist technique is to deny that there are victims of their secular progressive laws against religious beliefs and observances.  The denial by the secular progressive urban elites of the blatant and obvious bigotry and intolerance they display toward belief and any expression of it is very well known and is in fact the very point of the Christian Post article here.  

The fascist technique

... is on full display in the lies contained in Comment 3.1.1.   

A quick check of the party platform comparisons above shows the secular progressive democrats inclination to discriminate against believers and make laws restricting the freedom and religious liberty of believers, particularly if they are evangelical Christians or ultra Orthodox Jews.  

secular progressive democrats inclination to discriminate against believers and make laws restricting the freedom and religious liberty of believers

What laws? Please be specific. I could worship at a Mosque, Church, Synagogue, Temple, Mormon Church, Satanic Church, I can give up all the electronics and live like the Amish, hell, I can even start my own religion if I wanted to, how exactly are any believers being denied their right to worship the way they want to?

No one is being forced to do anything they don't want to. Even the traffic and speed laws aren't "forced" on anyone who chooses not to drive, but if you want to speed around on public roads in a several thousand pound metal killing machine then you have to follow basic safety laws and regulations. If you don't want to get vaccinated, that's your choice, just don't work for a company that requires vaccinations. No one is forcing anyone to get abortions, no one is forcing anyone to use contraceptives, no one is forcing anyone to give up Christmas or Easter or any other holiday they want to observe.

Without an actual example of where religious freedoms are being threatened this seed and all the tired useless seeds you've posted that preceded it are nothing but lies and whiny bullshit cries of victimhood.

... lies and whiny bullshit cries of victimhood ...

Well stated.  

a crack down on the practice of belief and expressions of faith

What crack down? No person in this country is being preventing from believing how they want to believe or expressing their faith, as long it doesn't violate some generally applicable law, like "no human sacrifice" or something.

It was unthinkable to conceive of a time when churches all across the nation were being told they couldn’t open their doors for service. Yet, this was the reality.

Right. But it wasn't "all across the nation" and it was not because of religious belief. It was because of Covid. It had nothing to do with religion, and everything to do with trying to stop the spread of a dangerous, highly contagious disease. At least be honest about the situation.

the Supreme Court granted our emergency injunction

Yeah, but only on the point of whether or not it was necessary to shut down churches completely.

Any time a religious right is infringed by government, it is subject to Strict Scrutiny by the Court. To survive review, the law must address a compelling government interest and be narrowly tailored to achieve that interest using the least restrictive means. Laws usually fail under such scrutiny.

Controlling Covid is undoubtedly a compelling government interest, but the steps California had taken were not narrowly tailored to address that problem.

The Court still permitted the state to impose limits defined as a percentage of building capacity and to restrict indoor singing, as these limits went directly to the need to protect public health. The state's previous actions in this case had lacked any kind of rational discretion and went to an irrational extreme. But again, it was about the pandemic, not some kind of crack down on religious practice. At worst, government failed to prioritize keeping churches open as much as possible.

And in California, when the numbers of infections and deaths plummeted (after vaccines but before the Delta variant) all of those restrictions were removed. And at the state level, even though numbers went back up, the restrictions did not return.

No one could have dreamed that in the United States of America, our vaccination status would potentially limit what we’re able to buy and sell or where we can travel.

Sure they could. Vaccines are old technology and they have been required for all sorts of things for a long time. None of that has any connection to religion, though.

This movement has awoken many Americans, churches, and pastors to the growing threats of assault on our freedom and liberty.

In my opinion, any church or pastor with common sense and a spine recognizes that our religious freedom is just fine. We live in the best country in the world for religious freedom.

The religious people I have been around for the last almost two years have recognized that there is a public health crisis, and that as Christians - not to mention just being decent people - we have a responsibility to do what we can to help. Sometimes that means fewer people inside a church building.

It's a matter of survival and preserving our ability to follow the calling of God in the United States of America.

No. No it isn't. That's dumb. The survival of religious people is not at risk from the government. And no one is being prohibited from following God. Holy Cow! That's ridiculous. 

It's indisputable that good citizenship involves voting and voting responsibly.

It also involves doing everything you can to not spread deadly diseases. No mention of that, I notice.

How can the same people declare "America is the greatest country in the world" one day and then turn around and claim they are victims of religious oppression by the government on the next day? It makes no sense. At all.

This movement has awoken many Americans, churches, and pastors to the growing threats of assault on our freedom and liberty. Being involved is no longer just a hobby or a personal interest. It's a matter of survival and preserving our ability to follow the calling of God in the United States of America.

If people are wanting to save America and to have a spiritual revival, voting is not at the top of the list of priorities, because, at the end of the day, Jesus Christ is a savior. Only changing the hearts of people throughout America is what's going to change this nation. It's a spiritual warzone.

But, as to why people should vote, I have a few reasons. First,  Romans Chapter 13 commands — not suggests, but commands — us to be good citizens. It's indisputable that good citizenship involves voting and voting responsibly.

Second, and even more important than voting, is living out our testimony. If the church is filled with the love of Jesus, people are going to care about people outside their church walls. They're going to care about the preborn and the sick. And voting is an obvious manifestation of having a genuine love of Christ and being concerned for others. It's an inherent part of our testimony in the free world. That testimony is crucial for the light and love of Christ to shine through us.   

You ignored everything Tacos! wrote and did not even have the courtesy to formulate a personal reply (that means you writing your own words in consideration of what he wrote) but instead simply quoted part of your seed as if Tacos! did not read it.

Simply repeating a claim does not make it more compelling.

It’s typical, though. Clearly this seeder does not expect an actual conversation on the topic. Cut and paste is all I ever get.

Show me where my comment was factually incorrect:

TiG @4.1.1 - You ignored everything Tacos! wrote and did not even have the courtesy to formulate a personal reply (that means you writing your own words in consideration of what he wrote) but instead simply quoted part of your seed as if Tacos! did not read it.

You are on a public forum.  Your posts are subject to criticism.   If you choose to play intellectually dishonest games you should expect to be called out on it.   If you do it endlessly and frequently, you will find the rebukes to be harsh.

Get used to it.

Then why bother?

I think Tacos! wrote his post @4 for public consumption and not strictly to XX.   XX's post @4.1 was equivalent to mindless heckling.

Who are these “placeholders” we can’t see that you are responding to?  

thenewstalkers

I guess if America is "experiencing the greatest assault on religious freedom", I should be happier to be living in China where my wife and her extended family have no concern about being openly devout Buddhists.  LOL.

China is far more dangerous to be a practicing Christian in than the USA is.  

The USA is far more dangerous to be a practicing Muslim than Turkey.     Religions (and thus the acceptance or rejection of same) vary per geography.   So if you are surrounded by Muslims, you likely will not fare well as a Christian or Hindu.   Similarly, Christians are not very accepting of Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, etc.

This is all pretty obvious;  it is human nature that has been demonstrated repeatedly by recorded history and by simply walking around with one's eyes open.

For Christians, the USA is a pretty safe place to be.   They are the majority (by far) with 65%-70% of the population identifying as Christian.   If you really want to be engulfed with Christianity, Romania might be your place.

It's "dangerous" to be a Christian in China if you contravene the law.  China does not permit proselytizing, and Christians proselytize.  China does not permit advertising a religion, and China considers putting a cross up on top of a steeple to be advertising.  There are many churches in China - I've seen them.  Just follow the rules and you can be a Christian in China.  There are about 28 million self-identifying Christians in China.  That number is almost the total population of Canada.  There were Christian students in the private high school where I taught for my first 6 years here, and many of them openly and fearlessly wore necklace crosses.  When in Rome, do as the Romans do.  (That's why I don't get into trouble here even though I'm not a Communist.)  The Christian pastors in China who get into trouble are those who refuse to follow the rules.

China is far more dangerous to be a practicing Christian in than the USA is.  

The way you often go on about losing religious liberty or christian persecution here, one would think the US itself is most dangerous for christians. 

The Christian pastors in China who get into trouble are those who refuse to follow the rules

Some christians here seem to think they should be above the rules, or scream persecution when rules are applied to them.

China does not permit proselytizing, and Christians proselytize.  China does not permit advertising a religion, and China considers putting a cross up on top of a steeple to be advertising. 

China seems to have it right.

No observing Christian can accept and follow the rules set forth by the Communist party of any nation including China.  We will operate as per our beliefs come what may irregardless.  It is our great commission to proselytize and get our message to every living being on the planet simultaneously before the end and we are willing to endure persecution and extinction threatening events in order to get it done and end this world as we know it.  

"No observing Christian can accept and follow the rules set forth by the Communist party of any nation including China."

Good.  28 million Chinese Christians do.  If observing Christian proselytizers are not happy with China's rules they can go peddle their beliefs, pound their bibles and knock on doors somewhere else.  Give Saudi Arabia a try, or Iran, or how how about Afghanistan, they could use some "Christian" charity these days. 

No one ever said that.  The USA can still do better than it’s presently doing in protecting religious liberty.  

The USA can still do better than it’s presently doing in protecting religious liberty.  

How so? It already has religious liberty. 

You expect a hundred million Chinese Christians to move to other countries if they can’t worship after chairman Xi or follow his dictates?  You realize that there aren’t many if any foreign missionaries there.  Almost all the work done there is by indigenous populations.   I do though contribute to mission work of my church to smuggle local language Bibles into China and help fund short wave radio and secure internet programs all across that nation.  

Not as much as we did before 2009 or through 2017-2020.  

The USA is multicultural and multi-religious.    Get used to it.   The USA continues to diversify from straight, white, male-centric, Anglo-Saxon Christian dominance.

100 million?  You mean 28 million.  And I think they're staying in China.  Just because they aren't as "Christian" as YOU are, they're still Christians, they aren't atheists, they aren't Buddhists, they aren't Muslims, they aren't Jews, they go to their churches and pray to Jesus, they openly wear crosses, and if you would want them to proselytize you are condemning them to be dealt with the same as the Falun Gong.  I'm wondering if I should report you to my friends in the police and government for smuggling. 

Empty talk. You haven't demonstrated how.

I meant what I said and the numbers I’m using are 15 months old or so. 

Protestant Christianity is booming in China

President Xi does not approve

Sep 15th 2020

https://www.economist.com/img/b/300/177/90/sites/default/files/20200919_WOC577.png 300w, economist 400w, economist 600w, economist 640w, economist 800w, economist 1000w, economist 1280w" >

TEARING DOWN crosses from church spires may not sound the best way to win a promotion. But in Xi Jinping’s China, it might do the trick. In 2014 Xia Baolong, the Communist Party chief in Zhejiang, a coastal province, oversaw a campaign to remove more than 1,500 crosses from places of worship in the province. Bibles were confiscated; pastors were locked up. It certainly did Mr Xia’s career no harm. A long-time ally of the president, he was promoted first to a plum job in Beijing and then, in February, to a new assignment as head of the office overseeing Hong Kong and Macau affairs.

As for China’s Christians, their numbers continue to grow. The government reckons that about 200m of China’s 1.4bn people are religious. Although most practice traditional Chinese religions such as Taoism, and longer-standing foreign imports such as Buddhism, Protestant Christianity is probably the fastest-growing faith, with at least 38m adherents today (about 3% of the population), up from 22m a decade ago, according to the government’s count. The true number is probably much higher: perhaps as many as 22m more Chinese Protestants worship in unregistered “underground” churches, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Notre Dame. As China also has 10m-12m Catholics, there are more Christians in China today than in France (38m) or Germany (43m). Combined, Christians and the country’s estimated 23m Muslims may now outnumber the membership of the Communist Party (92m). Indeed, an unknown number of party members go to church as well as local committee meetings.

economist

I’m not there but you doing as you suggest would not even be a surprise to me. We believers smuggled Bibles and other religious publications into Russia and the Warsaw Pact for the duration of the Cold War and will do so into China during the new one.  Between smuggling, the secure internet, and other technology we intend to get our message in or force them to take every publication, radio and computer from every Chinese person not a part of the communist party in order to stop the spread of the word of God to that 20+% of the world’s population.  Mao’s cultural revolution little book and pol pot here we come! Then God will use the very rocks upon the ground to cry out His message.  Freedom and openness is so much better a choice along with democracy, voting, individual rights than that alternative 

Yes, they pulled the commercial signboards off the top of the steeples, but allowed them to be displayed on the sides of the buildings.  I've seen them.  My eyes don't lie.  As for numbers, nobody has an accurate count of Christians.  I've seen figures from 1% of the population to 5.4%.  

LOL.  Obviously I was joking.   Who you are and your whereabouts and all other info about you and what you've been saying, writing and doing is probably already known, because the Chinese parts in your cellphone, automobile, TV set, refrigerator and washing machine have already sent all that information up to the many Chinese spy satellites in the sky and have been retransmitted to Beijing where there are hundreds of thousands of Uyghurs chained to their computer desks recording that information.

…Even prior to Joe Biden becoming the 46th President of the United States, the Biden crime syndicate had a history of doing business with the CPP.

Since taking office, President Biden has relaxed some Trump restrictions while continuing his decades-old insistence that China is not our enemy and that a strong China is a good thing.

Emboldened through its relationship with the compromised U.S. President, China (Chinese Communist Party – CCP) on Wednesday aggressively re-acted to President Joe Biden ’s inclusion of democratic Taiwan in his forthcoming online democracy summit, with no invitation extended to Beijing while fining Taiwanese companies that have donated to the island’s “secessionist” Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

“China firmly opposes the U.S.’s invitation to the Taiwan authorities to participate in the so-called Democracy Summit,” foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a regular media briefing in Beijing.

“We solemnly urge the U.S. to … stop providing a platform to “Taiwan independence” forces,” Zhao said, adding: “Those who play with fire get burned.”

Zhao’s comments came after China launched a nationwide probe into the activities of companies under Taiwan’s Far Eastern Group, which is a donor to Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the party of president Tsai Ing-wen.

Some of the companies had been fined for environmental and other violations, amid a crackdown on “diehard secessionists.”

“We will never allow [companies] that support Taiwan secession … or those that bite the hand that feeds them, to make money [here],” China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman Zhu Fenglian told reporters.

Taiwan secessionists, their affiliated enterprises, and their investors must be punished, he said.

What makes China’s comments and threats against Taiwan concerning is the fact that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has never ruled over the island nation.

Nor have they formed part of the People’s Republic of China, and Tsai has repeatedly rejected Beijing’s insistence on “unification” under CCP rule, saying Taiwan’s 23 million people have no wish to give up their democratic way of life or self-rule as the 1911 Republic of China government…

read more: trendingpolitics

Why I don't pay any attention to sources that are not credible - this from Media Bias Fact Check:

.

Trending Politics

It is for that reason that I favor that site.  The lousier rating MBFC has for a site, the more I use it because they do.  They rate Town Hall, NewsMax, and OAN among other mainstream conservative sites the same way.  Soon Fox News will be there too no doubt.  

What surprises me is that for many years I had considered The Christian Science Monitor to be the most unbiased news medium in North America.  We used it as our model for content, format and guide for when I was editor of my university newspaper because for year after year back then it won the award for being the most unbiased news medium in North America, but that award is no longer presented for obvious reasons.  I just saw that the CSM rating by MBFC put it just one millimeter to the left of centre - almost dead centre on their bias rating double pointed arrow.  That tells me that MBFC HAS to be reliable, but you can wallow in your super-biased conspiracy theory, misinformation and propaganda spreading media, it's good reading for a laugh when I have the patience to bother reading it. 

So we can assume that you are no longer a conservative as that term is understood in the USA and Canada on any issue anymore? Based on your disdain for conservative media…

No, XX, my dislike is based on extremism and outright lies and misleading the public, and I use my own independent judgement to determine it.  I'm not a conservative or a liberal (even though I vote conservative), I'm a centrist, or independent, if you will.  You know very well that there were things about Trump that I applauded, and there are things about Biden that I really dislike.  I owe no loyalty to either side.  I loved Justin Trudeau's father, Liberal Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, and I don't like Justin Trudeau at all and preferred Harper back then.  I dislike Marjorie Taylor Green as much as I dislike Ilhan Omar.  I admire Liz Chaney and the other Republicans who actually HAVE principles and live by them, and am dumbfounded by the fact that their party is attacking them, as much as I'm dumbfounded by the Democrats coddling their "Squad" that includes Rashid Tlaib who is so "American" that she wrapped herself in a Palestinian flag wen she was voted in.

In the movie Dirty Dancing Johnny (Patrick Swayze) told "Baby's" (Jennifer Grey's) parents "Don't put baby in the corner." and I suggest you don't do the same with me.

Some people simply cannot comprehend how someone can not be integrated with a single political party (to be one of the conformists to said party ... to have an authoritative body providing one's thinking and supplying one with phrases to mindlessly parrot).

No, XX, my dislike is based on extremism and outright lies and misleading the public, and I use my own independent judgement to determine it.  I'm not a conservative or a liberal (even though I vote conservative), I'm a centrist, or independent, if you will. 

Thank you Buzz, I think I'm slowly becoming one as well, the extremism on both sides has become intolerable... Just no room for reasonableness anymore... Just hate for labels... no one wants to speak to ideals they want to propagandize and weaponize and force you to agree with them or declare you the enemy...

Exactly like it was in society in 1859... You were either for slavery or against slavery there was no in-between...

Today you are either for race hatred or you are not, there is no in-between...

I'm getting out of the corner....

Actually I was referring to various media that exists to provide an alternative to the lamestream media and how the other member had responded to it as much as to the individual choices.  

There is no place for race hated in this country.  Those that hate based on race no matter their race or the one they hate need to be isolated from the rest of society and peacefully silenced by shunning so that they can’t poison the well of public discourse.  BLM and the KKK both qualify for total shunning and ignore.  

There is no place for race hated in this country.  

Very true Jeff, but watch where this line goes....

Those that hate based on race no matter their race or the ones they hate need to be isolated from the rest of society and peacefully silenced

They hate you, so what you just said it that YOU need to be silenced as well as YOUR advocation for their silence

by shunning so that they can’t poison the well of public discourse

You just advocated for your own as well!!!! given the plain meaning of the sentence that preceded this one!!!!

 BLM and the KKK both qualify for total shunning and ignore.  

If this is truly an equal society, then you just judged yourself and set what should be your own punishment as well!!!!

HATE IS THE SAME, NO MATTER WHICH DIRECTION IT COMES FROM....

Your schtick is EXACTLY the same as theirs...

“RESOLVED, That the Republican Party has and will continue to enthusiastically support the President’s America-first agenda.”

This was the Republican platform of 2020. L'etat, c'es moi.

As for religious liberty, you obviously have forgotten Muslims. Of course, most of the evangelical right does, except to denigrate.

The Republican platform in 2020 is the same one we had in 2016.  
as to religious liberty, Muslims are not excluded at all from it.  There is opposition to theocracy in the form of sharia law supplanting any civil law in a locality, state, or federal level.  I support states putting bans of sharia shariah law supplanting US law within the given state.  

The Republican platform in 2020 is the same one we had in 2016.

Not quite the way I or a great many people read it. It essentially reads as a cult manifesto.

I wasn't thinking of sharia, I was thinking more along the lines of a good percentage on the right, (who are very much tolerated by the trumpublican party) who would ban Muslims and Jews outright. You better clean up your own house first.

Ridiculous and ludicrous projection of others is the content of post 7.1.1.  The most recent GOP platforms are mainstream American documents.  See post 1.1.  

The 2020 Platform contains no such thing, Resolved, we will not adopt a new platform. Resolved, the Republican party will continue to support ... America First agenda.

Seems pretty clear that the only 'platform' was whatever Trump wanted.

As it should have been.  He was and will be the nominee.  

So you agree that your post concerning the contents of the 2020 platform is incorrect. Thank you.

The Republican Party took an unusual approach to writing its convention platform for 2020 It decided notto write one

Rather the GOP is reusing its platform from four years ago which was written before Donald Trump became president That means Republican delegates will not go through the usual process of deliberating over policies and principles to determine what the party stands forin2020as Democrats recently did

vox