Because they really ARE leaving!

My latest rant for Presidential Prayer Team will be up through Wednesday and you can see it here.  Entitled "The Chicken or the Egg?  Do Young People elave the church because of politics...or the Bible?"  it challenges one Ivy League research team's attempt to silence conservative Christians when they speak on Biblical issues with public impact. Even though the conclusions of the researchers is bogus (as I show in my article), the fact is that youg people ARE leaving, and we had better care and change something! But not the Bible.

Can't resist my own "Fluke" rant

What she said:   “Without insurance coverage, contraception, as you know, can cost a woman over $3,000 during law school. For a lot of students who, like me, are on public interest scholarships, that’s practically an entire summer’s salary. 40% of the female students at Georgetown Law reported to us that they struggle financially as a result of this policy.

“One told us about how embarrassed and just powerless she felt when she was standing at the pharmacy counter and learned for the first time that contraception was not covered on her insurance and she had to turn and walk away because she couldn’t afford that prescription. Women like her have no choice but to go without contraception.

What it meant:  "Since there are a tiny number of women who may need "the pill" for legitimate health reasons (and within the sanctity of marriage), and since there are law students who get married but do not choose to take on the responsiblities of grown ups (paying their own way in life), and since some of these married-women-with-vaginal problems and married-students-who-don't-believe-they-should-accept-grown-up-responsilibilties have chosen of the own free will to attend a Catholic law school, said Catholic law school is morally and legally responsibile to reject two millenia of its faith and teaching to accommodate the medical and convenience needs of this tiny minority of students out of tuition and donations made for religious education as well as the other 80% of unmarried future-well-paid-lawyers who just want to sleep around. But they don't really sleep around that much. They just want to sleep around about $3000 worth.  And they're not sluts."

Welcome to the Big Apple: This is not your Prairie, Laura Ingalls Wilder

Read here how the New York City Board of Education has declared war on...pretty much no one, but Christians. Finally tipping their hands to betray the logical outcome of many years of attempting to extinguish the existence of God through silence, school officials now openly declare, "We can't let anyone think we approve of such thinking!" No rabid fundamentalist Christian has ever diced the "second degree of separation" apple any finer than these Big Apple bureaucrats who are horribly afrad of guilt by association...with Christians.

Meanwhile 85% of non-fundamentalist Christians blithely offer their children on the altar of Caesar's schools because it's "the American Way," and it was "good enough" for the same generation that has brought us "emergent Christianity" and all the silliness that passes for religious education in evangelical churches.   

What is that faint sound I hear in the background?  Is it Byzantium calling?

Caesar vs. God

Here is a link to Chuck Colson's latest.  For my own commentary, here are a couple of thoughts.

1. While I am a signee of the Manhattan Declaration, and I agree that this falls under their category of "religious freedom," there is a more profound way to frame this. Is any citizen (or in the case of the Roman Catholic Church, any group) allowed to practice their faith outside of the church building when it conflicts with Caesar's (government's) priorities? I am weary of the presumption that government is religiously neutral. As one speaker says, worldview comes out our fingertips. And the government has bought into the same amoral scientific naturalism that atheists espouse. Disregard for Biblical definitions is reflected in policies and laws all over the place, aided and abetted by the news and entertainment industry's effective propaganda campaign to "normalize" aberrant behavior.

2. Outrage (such as Colson expresses here), scorn, ridicule and a bombardment with the facts have not effectively drowned out the voice of media pundits who distort every argument that contains worldview implications. As regards the media, we truly are a nation of sheep. We are incredibly easily misled. Although we must not stop speaking the truth, we must realize that only by living truly counter-cultural (read Biblical) lifestyles will we hope to make any difference. And right now, Christians appear to have more faith in political power than in the success of applied Biblical principles. This must change.

Atheism's poster child

And now, for the people who really don't mind imposing their worldview on everyone else:  the atheists!  Read about their new poster child here.

On Ash Wednesday...

...I began the day at home with the Book of Common Prayer office for the day: 
"Have mercy upon me, O God, after thy great goodness; according to the multitude of thy mercies do away mine offenses."  Psalm 2:1

...had a great season of prayer for the needs of Dove Mountain Church members with Elder Mike Ward.
"For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them." Matthew 18:20

...participated in a thoughtful and fruitful discussion withthe other elders of Dove Mountain Church about how/where/in what manner God has called us to be His church.
"But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light."  I Peter 2:9

...prayed with the staff of Dove Mountain church for church leaders.
"Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you:"  II Thessalonians 3:1

...observed healthy three-generational  interaction between mother, daughter, and granddaughter as I ate breakfast at the Johnson household

....and all this was before I spent several hours at the Santorum rally,

...graded thirty-six student composition books,

...and refereed a lively Libertarian vs. Republican debate at my weekly men's group called Choir Practice.

Lent is off to a good start.