Must be 400 words APA format (1) scholarly citation in APA format.
- Read: Marriage Under Fire
- Watch: Learn to Fight Fair
- Read: Bonding in Marriage
- Listen: Today’s Black Robe Brigade
- Listen: Being a Conservative Crusader I
- Listen: Being a Conservative Crusader II
Topic: Respond to the following:
- What two to three principles did you take away from the various broadcasts over the past couple of weeks?
- Do you believe we are a nation abandoned by God?
- Of the lessons you learned and the insights you may have gained, how will you make practical applications as it relates to advocacy and public policy?
Learn to Fight Fair
Here’s Dr James Dobson
with
family talk.
Since there’s conflict in every
romantic relationship learning to fight fair just might be the most
important lesson any couple can master you know there’s a real difference
between healthy and unhealthy combat and marriage and everything depends on
the way disagreements are handled in an unstable marriage hostility
is usually meant to hurt and it’s often directed at the soft underbelly
of the partner’s ego with comments like you never do anything right then why
did I marry you in the first place and I think you’re getting more
like your mother every day these words strike at the very heart
of a mate self-worth on the other hand healthy conflict remain centered
on the immediate problem at hand for example it upsets me when you don’t
tell me you’ll be late for dinner or I was embarrassed when he made me look
foolish at the party last night can you hear the difference even though the
subject matter might be equally emotional intense the focus is on the specific
problem in the relationship and not on what you perceive as a basic
personality defect of your mate when couples learn this important distinction
they have the freedom to disagree and work through conflicts with
their dignity still intact to James Dobson with family talk.
Bonding in Marriage
Here’s Dr. James Dobson
with family talk. In marriage as
in courtship, there’s a simple rule
of thumb for animacy. Take your time. Some interesting
research has been done recently on the emotional bonding between husbands
and wives. According to
Dr. Donald joy, a couple bonds most closely when they
move slowly and systematically through
the various stages of animacy during their courtship and
early marriage. When later stages are
reached prematurely, such as when couples kiss passionately
on the first day, or have sexual intercourse shortly thereafter, something precious is lost in the bonding is
short-circuited. The strongest
marriages often occur where couples
have walked slowly and deliberately through the progressive stages
of physical intimacy, saving sexual consummation
for the honeymoon. This concept is
important for singles, but it also has
something to say for married
couples as well. Husbands and
wives often make the mistake of rushing
their intimacy, are taking it for granted. But they also bond together best when
they journey through the steps of intimacy regularly during
their daily lives. Touching, talking,
holding hands, gazing into one
other’s eyes and building memories
are as important to partners in their
midlife years as to rambunctious 20-year-old Soto lovers of all ages, I say slow it down,
make it last. Take your time. Dr. James Dobson
with family talk.
Today’s Black Robe Brigade
Welcome to family
talk with host, psychologist and author in my father, Dr.
James Dobson. I’m Ryan Dobson here with my co-host, Luann crane. Always good to be
here with you and all of our listeners
who carved out time to be
with us today. And Dr. It is Monday, we are all back to the
grind of the ordinary. Well, that work is
going to be done on behalf of family
talk obviously. And today, we have a very provocative program to share with
our listeners. And it has to do with something
as important as censorship of
the church by governmental agencies and particularly the IRS. And we have two very
knowledgeable guests with us who will explain that situation for us. And I hope that, that
every listener will pay close attention
today because it has major implications
for the future. And especially I hope pastors are listening
and they’re not right for a CD and we will send it to you to give to them because the
pastures are the key. They can call us or go to our website our website
as family talk.org. Our phone number
is 87773268 to five or send them a
link to the podcast. Dr. Well, first we’re joined in the studio
today by one of the lawyers who work
side-by-side with our good friend Alan Sears at the Alliance
Defense Fund. Eric Stanley is
senior counsel for ATF’s Kansas City
Regional Service Center. He’s a member
of the bar in three states
and specializes in the pellet law, free speech and
religious liberties as they relate to
constitutional law, just to name a few. Eric, Did I get it right? I think you got it
right. In Iraqi. Don’t look old enough
to be a senior counsel. Lot of experience. I can tell you what
I know a lot about this man from
my friendships. But then they DF and this man knows what
he’s talking about. Also joining
us by phone is another frequent guest on this program,
Dr. Jim Carlo. Dr. Carlo is the
senior pastor of Skyline Wesleyan
Church in California. A very courageous pasture. And I tell you what, I have great love and appreciation
for this man. So thank you
both gentlemen for being with us today. Yeah. Eric, I’m on to toss a first
question to you, and it is pretty
straightforward. Pastors are often
intimidated and even bullied when it comes
to moral issues, especially from
behind the Pope it and that has great
relevance to the church. Explain why this
intimidation is occurring. Well, it really all
started back in 1954 from the beginning of America until
950 for pastors could speak about anything that they wanted
from the Pullman. They didn’t have
to worry about a governmental agency breathing down
their neck or trying to censor
their sermons. But in 950 for with the passage of
what we call the Johnson Amendment, named after
Lyndon B Johnson, who was a senator
at the time. And just to give you a very brief snapshot
of how he did that, he was running
for re-election for the US Senate
seat for Texas. And he was being
opposed by two secular non-profit
organizations. They thought
he was soft on communism and didn’t
like his views. And Johnson tried to find some different ways to silence these non-profit
organizations. And he finally
hit on an idea. He showed up on
the floor of the Senate July second, 950 for and he offered
an amendment to an existing tax
overhaul bill that was pending
before the Senate. And that’s what we call the Johnson
amendment. And it basically says that non-profit entities
could not participate in or intervene in any
political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate
for public office. And that included
publishing or distributing
statements. And the legislative
history of the Johnson Amendment is literally
two paragraphs long in the
congressional record. Now, in a day and
age where we have 1000 page bills that are coming out of Congress. That’s pretty
extraordinary. But this
legislative history shows that Johnson
had already grease the wheels behind the scenes with the
sponsor of the tax bill. And it passed unanimously
by a voice vote, and it was added
to the bill. The bill went on to
pass the Senate and went on to pass the House and was signed into law. And suddenly overnight, this bill that was
intended to silence to secular non-profit organizations that
were opposing Johnson’s candidacy
for the Senate was applied to
churches also, because churches occupy the same non-profit status that those secular non-profit
organizations did. And prior to that, there was no such
restriction on them. There was absolutely
no restriction for the first 166 years
of American history, pastor spoke forcefully
from the pulpit. In fact, historians
have said that we owe our independence
and great degree to the moral force
of the pulpit. Pastors have spoken out on the great moral and
social issues of the day. Civil rights, women’s suffrage ending
child labor, all of these things. Pastor spoke freely
on our good friend, David Barton at wall
builders pulled some sermons for
us in the past and history and
talking about how pastures frequently spoke out during
election time. And they spoke out on candidate’s going back to the election of
Thomas Jefferson, which was the architect of the so-called separation
of church and state. Pastors are
speaking out about his candidacy
for president. And we’re saying don’t vote for him or
vote for him. And they didn’t
have to worry about the IRS or anybody
else coming in and threatening their
tax exempt status or in any way trying to
punish or censor them. And it’s been
since 950 for that this cloud of
intimidation and this atmosphere
of fear has pervaded the church to
the point now where pastors back away
from saying anything that might get anywhere close to violating
this line. So it really, it fosters an atmosphere of a lot
of chill on speech, a lot of self-censorship among the pasture it, pastors are just afraid because they don’t know
where the line is. And when attorneys argue over where the line is, which they do,
how are we to expect our pastors to know what’s
right and wrong? Sometimes it
actually didn’t even originate in the whole separation
of church and state debate that
we hear today. This came from someone that was trying
to get elected, that was trying to
silence people and then just got pushed over
on the pastors. Well, that’s right.
And I think it’s important for folks to understand the history of how this came to pass. Because for about two
or three generations now we’ve grown up
in the church and I have to kind of believing that it’s
somehow illegal or on laws that come like a constitutional
amendment has the right. That’s exactly
right. That it’s this assumption
that your pastures shouldn’t talk
about anything, quote, political
from the pulpit. And it never used to be
that way in and only started becoming that way with the Johnson
Amendment. And which was really a politically revenge
motivated bill. Hmmm. How about what
President Johnson did there when he
was a senator? Is that unconstitutional? Because it sure
sounds that way. It is. And for so many years we’ve kind
of believed the lie, so to speak, that this is a law that applies
to churches. But it really is. The more we looked
at it at ADF, we really came to
the conclusion that this is
unconstitutional. It violates not only the free exercise
of religion, it violates the
Establishment Clause because you’re
setting up the IRS as a government agency to come into a pulp
it into sensor. What a pastor says
from the pulpit. You the IRS has
interpreted and enforce this for the
last 57 years now. And they specifically
say that it applies to what a pastor says from the pulpit. And so when you set up a regime where you have the irs coming in to censor a pasture sermon that’s unconstitutional. And certainly, what
we’ve come to believe in witches truth is that the first amendment trumps the Johnson
Amendment. Jim, talk about that
chilling effect that they’re
just mentioned. Seven year history can
make quite an impact. I would like to
fellow pastor who might be supportive
of not speaking out. How’s that working out for you? Here’s our community. Our community is more
or less righteous. Today. Is our preaching, producing less or more results than in the past? The fact is too
many pastures are gripped with
fear or the fear is not ultimately of the IRS that goes deeper
than that. And that is fear
of parishioners who will say, Oh, pasture, You’re just to political will in reality. Because that
cultural myths in the mind of the
Pew Center, the eraser, effectively a very dysfunctional
church. It, the problem is, they don’t
actually recognize what biblical
preaching is like. The early pastures in America that were already referred to by Erik. Preach, three hour-long election sermon January, I’m not advocating
this pasture. Try a three hour one that will work very well. But the fact that a pasture would weigh
in on these issues, and I personally am
convinced I look at a little bit different
than my friend Eric. Eric looked at as
an attorney to legal lands and he’s
right to do that. I look at it through
the spiritual lands that we
will not have the next greatest
spiritual awakening in destination until the
puppets are free. This is a spiritual issue in Isaiah chapter 58. We need a fast to
break the yoke of fear and the cultural
myth off the pulpit. And also piu that has
really been put on us from 1954 to the
present with a straw. I’m Dr. Carlo, I’ve heard recently
that what you’re talking about really
is living out the scripture
that says love your neighbor as yourself
from the pulpit. Because if you’re a
pastor and you say, I love the people
around me, well then I want them to have the best opportunity to grow up and the
best environment for them to have
healthy families that will allow me to
speak in their lives, to teach them about Jesus. And the pastors
that aren’t talking about the
issues that are destroying families, they’re destroying
communities. They’re wrecking
Holmes clearly aren’t loving their
neighbours as themselves, could not be dated better than what
you get out. What really occurred
is remarkable. We were given. That was his seizures given to God, that
which is God. But I like the last line of the Manhattan
declaration, written by Robby George, the Catholic out of
Princeton University and Timothy George, the Dean of the
Divinity School at Stanford University in Birmingham, Alabama. The last line of
it is as follows. We will fully and
on grudgingly render to Caesar
what is seizures. But under no
circumstances will we render to Caesar
what is God? Now what had
happened is that line of what belongs to Caesar had been pushed over and over into that, which is God. Just
think for a minute. 50 years ago, if we were to shed during up a baby in the womb is wrong. Everybody was said yes. But now if you it ball but you’re considered
to be political. 30 years ago,
if we just set the practice of
homosexuality is a fan. Everybody was said yes. But now if you
say that Nepal, but now you’re being
too political. Ten years ago we
would’ve said marriage if a
man and a woman. Now if you say that Nepal, but you’re considered to be too political leader has moved in and the
result it a killing, violating impact on
pastures that had a catastrophic results
in our communities, our families and
on individuals. Just a garlands
will address that sense there
right now, who says that you
have no idea? I asked Democrats,
republicans, libertarians, independents in
my congregation as I speak out on this, my whole congregation
will divide. Well, I’d say number
one, probably all of us, most of us have people of all political ideology
than our congregation. The fact is that we’re
not committed to, any of them were
not Republican, Democrat, Independent
or anything else. We were fiercely committed
to biblical truth. What God’s word says, we must speak out on, imagine if you would, the pastures back before the Civil War
saying I can’t speak out on slavery because it would split
my congregation. The irony is that
exactly what some congregations
that and what they did and what pasture said in that timeframe. Now how do we look at
those kind of people? They sold out
on the word of God because of
political expediency. If they had it
versus truth, they chose, they chose
piece over truth. And how do we view them? I’m a part of a very
small denomination called a westerly
denomination. That Wesleyan denomination
was formed for the purpose of freeing the slaves from the south. And I spoke out
on the women’s right to vote issue, that the first
women’s right to vote Conference
was held out. What planned church
in Seneca Falls, New York and 840 gate. I can’t imagine today some pastures saying How dare pastoral
ancestors which speak out on these
political issues, a flavor out there
that can speak out on political issues like women’s right to vote. But they did because
it was morally, biblically right. And so a pastor who’s
fiercely committed a scripture is not looking to be a
weather vane. What in the world is
being fed from the Pew? He’s looking to the
Word of God to speak for God and to the culture in which
we find ourselves. Yeah, Jim, you’re
not primarily urging pastors to endorse political
candidates, right? That’s not what your, uh, your Aster mean. It may involve the
freedom to do that. But there’s a much
larger issue here. Yeah, it has to do with endorsing what God says. And God’s word
is crystal clear that the destruction
of a baby in the womb, if an animal and
horrific act. That being the
case, it is totally appropriate based up not only on biblical
authority, but our constitutional
freedoms, freedom of speech and
freedom of religion. Based upon the
First Amendment, any pastor has
the legal right to say anything he or
she wants from Nepal, but including to
say the following. For example, the
following candidates band on the
following issues. Abortion, definition
of marriage, issues of national
debt, et cetera. The scripture would teach them about those
following issues. Based upon that, as followers of Jesus Christ, fully devoted followers
of Jesus Christ, we would want
to lift up and exalt over our
nation those who would be the best
representation of what God has ordained for national
and community life. That every pastor
should have the legal right to do. Eric, should this battle they’ve sought out as a
constitutional issue. You’re an attorney,
obviously, you’re thinking
in those terms. So this eventually wind up before the
Supreme Court. Well, we think it should, because initially when this Johnson
Amendment was passed and it was
inserted into the IRS code in 950. For those
constitutional issues were never addressed. They were never debated. This past without any
legislative analysis. There was no
committee hearings. There was no attempt to discover how this would affect the
constitutional rights of pastors and churches. Am I correct in saying
that the IRS has never successfully taken away the non-profit status
from a church. Yeah, that’s a
correct statement. The IRS has only in
one reported case, revoked the tax exempt
letter of a church, which is different than the status of a church. Under the IRS code, churches do not need a tax exempt letter from the IRS to be
considered exempt. They’re automatically
exempt. They occupy that status simply because
they are a church. And that’s a nod
that Congress gave to the constitutional
freedoms of churches. They don’t want
churches to have to register with the government
in order to be considered tax exempt. And so churches
occupy that status. That status has never been taken away by the IRS. Some churches do
get a letter from the IRS saying that
they are tax exempt, but it’s not
necessary to do that. And the one case where that tax exempt letter was taken away
from a church, the church
actually went way, way, way out of bounds, put a full-page ad
in the USA today, urging Christians
to vote against a particular candidate
for president, and solicited funds to
help pay for the ad. Never argue that
that was part of their free
exercise of religion was when the that
was reinstated and the letter
was reinstated. The church never had
to pay any penalties or taxes as a
result, really. Alright, we’ve got about three or four
minutes left and we need to talk
about what people can do about this, said, Jim, weigh
in on that. What are you planning? Over? The second is extremely important day for America, for American Christianity, that they are
political freedom. We encourage people
to go to Pulpit Freedom.comma. What happened is
the ADF and AD FS over 2 thousand
Allied Attorney. Thank God for Eric
who you have on there and many others
just like him, who are willing
to defend us as pastors pro bono to stand on our
biblical authority and our constitutional
rights. The result is the ADF encourage a group
of pastors, small select group and 2008 to speak out boldly, they would in
their sermons actually challenged, by virtue of the
content of sermons, challenge the
Johnson amendment. They tape
recorded them and they sent them to the IRS. Thirty-three
pastors did that. Nothing happened
in 2009 AT for pasture to do
the same thing. Nothing happened in 20 CAN 100 pastures
did the same thing. Nothing happen. This year. We would like to
see a minimum of 500 to 1000 or more. Pastures do the
same thing. And people can earn their pastures to be bold. And I want to
encourage people to do that because if
a pastor speak, shout, be assured there’s one or two or three
or four people who are going to stay
in that congregation. I’m going to leave and go to some other church and take my tie,
check with me. And that intimidates
pastures. So if you have a pasture
really willing to speak out and
stand with him, encourage him,
by all means, pasture our
curriculum to go to Pulpit Freedom.com. There’s a one-minute
video clip people going to watch as a
place to sign up. And then we have webinars will be listed there
as well in the future, taking place each
Wednesday for pastures and Christian leaders
across America. So they can be
more informed about how to re-establish their religious
liberties that people knew in this
country before 1954. It’s Pulpit
Freedom.com and Dr. Karla will also have links to that
information at Sammy talk.org and eats. We are trained at
literally hundreds of testers will be encouraged to
get involved. And if we do not
take action, we will kinda
quickly like Canada, they want a friend of mine flew up there to preach. A week on services. Formed as he
went up there do not mentioned the
word homosexuality. Do not mentioned
the word Islam. And before long, I
suspect you will not be able to actually
define marriage. What’s ironic in this Dr. Dobson is what we’re
talking about, freedom and pop, it
applies to all pastures. They would apply to conservative
Biblical pastures, as well as we
would apply it actually to
liberal bastion. It would apply to any
faster by virtue of our constitutional protections of the
First Amendment. But on a deeper
issue with me, I want to restate
what I said earlier. I believe a
spiritual awakening that we all long for will not occur in America until a number of ingredients
come together. And one of those is an emboldening
corporate America. Dr. Carlo, I’ve experienced
that firsthand. I was in Canada not
too many months ago. And as I was going
through customs, they said, are you here
for work or pleasure? I said I’m here for
work and they said, What do you do? And I said I’m
a speaker in the customs agent
looked at me funny and she said, What are you here
to speak on? I said, Oh, I’m here
on the sanctity of human life and a
pro-life event. And she said, Are
we going to have any problems from you? And I was done. It did never dawned on me. I said No, not at all. And she goes,
Are you sure Is there going to
be a protest? I said No, there’s
no protest. This is totally peaceful. And I got question for quite some
time at customs based on my belief in the sanctity
of human life. And it was a
sock and I saw this not happen
in America, but that’s where
we’re heading. If we’re not careful,
I wish we could give pastures who
are willing to stand up an award. I would call
to Jonas Clark award one year ago, David Martin and
I did a 12 day two are called
the Next Great Awakening tour of Boston, New York, Philadelphia,
Washington DC, Harvard, Yale,
Princeton, et cetera. But the highlighted
a whole trip for me is only drove by
and Lexington, Massachusetts, the
home of Jonas Clark. He was the pasture or Paul Revere was
writing the night of the famous Midnight Ride and read the news
trying to get there. You want to get there
before the British were coming district
the destroys, the kill or get rid of. Clark, why the pastures in America we’re speaking
truth and freedom, and boldness and
righteousness and the enemy, the truth and freedom
wanted to stop that. Took Paul Revere to try to get there TO warn him. I wish we could give a
Jonas Clark award for every pastor
who’s willing to stand up in such a way. And so being the
enemies of truth and freedom will certainly
come after us. But it’s worth standing
for the truth of God as one is
called by God. Jim, just very
quick glazed. Explain what the black robe
regiment was like. Has that played
a major role in the Revolutionary War? Oh, it did. And
accuse right off of this Jonas Clark
story up and down 2020 or pastures, who, when they would
preach their sermon, conclude there, Sherman’s, they would take off
the black robe, the garments
that the clergy war back at that time. And there under
the black robes would be the attire
of military. And I pick up a musket and say
who it’s going to go fight for
freedom with me. And sometimes every may own a congregational to rise up young farmer
boys and they would go. One of my favorite
stories is the account of one
pasture who lead it, a man of his congregation
to a nearby bridge. And he turned around,
they were much gets loaded to defend
freedom and truth. And he said to
the other men, and in his church,
here, we die. And that’s the kind of person of God we’re
looking for to occupy the pulpit the day that this nation can still be turn if there’s truly freedom in Nepal, but give me liberty or give me death could
come to that. I think unfortunately
it potentially could. But I, I concluded during the Prop eight
battle here in California in 2008
at mid night, one night and June
when I wrestle with the issue of the
increased vandalism and violence I saw
against those who stood for in this case is the definition
of marriage. Did that night. There
are certain things much worse than death. And that’s showing out for 30 pieces of silver. I don’t want to be
a part of that. Alright, we’re
talking a lot of people who’d like
to know more. Where did they get it? Luann, you said
we’re going to link. We certainly
zoom the source. Dr. Carlo, you mentioned
several things. We will have those
at family talk.org. Well, thank you,
gentlemen for helping us make the case for Pulpit Freedom
Sunday and I’ve, and forming our listeners. I would love to have
both a view here on family talk and
another time before the event occurs
on October second, because we simply have to get the message out. In fact, I would
love to see 500 pastors are more
participate in it. They don’t have to endorse a political candidate. And we’re certainly
not gonna do that here at
family talk. But they do need to approach their
congregations and say, We’re going to fight for righteousness
wherever it leads us, even if it creates
some controversy. And that’s why we
need to do, you know, Jesus commanded those
who believed in him to pick up their
crosses and following. And that’s a mandate
not only for his day, but I believe for
ours as well. So I thank you, Dr. Jim Carlo
and thank you Eric Stanley for
being with us. Please do keep
us informed. Want to we certainly will delight to
be with you. Dr. adoption always is
Jim. God bless you. Bless you as well. Thank you all so much for listening. God bless. Keep standing true, and we’ll see
you next time for another edition of Dr. James Dobson family talk.
Being a Conservative Crusader – I
Hi everyone and welcome to another edition of Dr. James Dobson,
his family talk. I’m Ryan Dobson here with blue and Crane
and our host, a psychologist and
best-selling author, Dr. James Dobson Lewin. What are we going to
talk about today? We’ve all heard
about the role of the black robes brigade
in American history. You’ve mentioned
that quite a bit lately, doctor. And I just have to say I think it’s pretty
accurate to say that we have a
modern-day member sitting right here in
the studio with us. Well, we certainly do for the listeners who aren’t familiar with that term. Luann. They were pastors who used their pulpits to spread the cause of the
Revolutionary War. Many of them stripped off their black robes
and walked up the aisle and join the forces of
George Washington and the other generals. But cause of assaults
on religious liberty. And when it began to
impinge upon the church, these pastors
who had largely been pacifists who said, No, you can’t
go any further. And they went
out and joined forces and help to fight the
Revolutionary War. And so they’re
remembered as the black robe Brigade. And we do have a modern day black
robe Brigade member here with us today. And I’m pleased
to introduce our family Talk listeners to Dr. Robert Jeffress. Although I
daresay, many of the people in our
listening audience already know him, know who he is and
the people of Texas. No, I’m adamantly. He’s the senior pastor of the 10 thousand member
First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas. He also hosts his own
daily radio program and weekly
television show. Has a Doctorate
of ministry from Southeastern
Theological Seminary. And he’s written 18 books, including his
latest which is titled twilight
last gleaming. And that’s where
we’re going to talk about today. He’s made more than
600 guest appearances on various radio and
television programs. And he’s a regular guest
on fox and friends and the O’Reilly Factor and many other programs. He and his wife Amy have two grown daughters
and one son-in-law. And I tell you it is a great pleasure
to have you here. You got on a
plane, you came here and you go
home tomorrow. That’s quite an investment
for a man who is the senior pastor of 10 thousand member church. Thank you for coming. Thanks for having us, Dr. Dobson and we enjoy having family talk on
our radio station in Dallas, case CBI. So it’s going to be with
you here in person. I want to tell you how
I became familiar with your church and fell in love with your church. I came to the
Fairmont Hotel, which is just a block
or two away from you, isn’t that right
across the street? It’s still layer. This was 1974. And I came there to finish writing what wives, which their husbands
know about women. And so surely game with me and the publisher Ed
sentence there to get us away from
the phone and all the things
that were going on in my life
at that time, I was at USC School
of Medicine. And so I would write throughout the day and show you how to find
something to do. And she’s really not
much of a shopper, so she was looking
around for things to do. It was Easter
time 970 four, and she heard that
Dr. Chris well, was speaking at noon every day in the build-up
or the prelude, easter that I later he did that for
many years. Disney. He did. The priest or surfaces I grew up
attending. No, sir. Did is your resilience so you were in that church
as a little boy? I’ve spent all my life in that church till
I went away at 30 to go pastor and then came back four years
ago was pastor, that must be a thrill.
It is a thrill. It surely would
come back from these meetings and we didn’t know Dr.
Chris will. And she would tell me this somebody
you got to hear. This man is really great. And what she would outline what he
was talking about. And so I said are and I’ll go with the ends
on Sunday morning. We went and we
got acquainted with Dr. Chris well, and he was very gracious to us and
they introduced this and that was the time
when that fell in love with the First
Baptist Church of Dallas. Well, you still have
a big fan club there, dr. Johnson and
I rarely do. You’re building a
whole new facility. Why don’t you write
the church is a 148 years old. We cover six blocks
of downtown Dallas, but we decided with everything happening
in Dallas, we wanted to have
a spiritual oasis in the center of the city. So we’re involved in a $130 million re-creation of our entire
campus downtown. And God has been
so good and gracious and providing
the funding. Our members and we want to do this for
the glory of God. What you are developing quite a reputation that’s probably been out
there for a long time, but I’m becoming
familiar with it. A reputation for speaking
the truth in love, for talking about the
sensitive issues, especially the
cultural issues, and not shrinking
from things that are from the point of view of the world
politically incorrect. And you believe that’s what God has
called you to do? Absolutely. I mean, I’m a teacher and a preacher
of the Word of God. I think when
the word of God touches and intersects
with culture, we shouldn’t shrink
away from it. I believe God
has called us, Dr. Dobson to be
influencers of our culture. I’m just so amazed
at the number of Christians and even
pastors who say, Well, you shouldn’t mix politics with religion. To which I say, Well, what should you mix
it with then? I mean, all politics are based on some
set of values. And the word
politics means to govern or to influence. And I’ll find it
inconceivable to say that Christians shouldn’t try to influence the culture in
which we live. I believe that’s our
mandate as Christians and pastor is rather
than politics. I like the words
public policy. Yes, we should try to
influence the culture. There’s wickedness
all around us. Are we not gone to
speak up for that? And since when did
the church get skittish about talking
about right and wrong? Well, the biggest danger I see Dr. Dobson among Christians today is
political passive this, and it’s this idea, well, the end is
coming anyway. Why should I try to
affect public policy? It’s like
rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. And when anybody says
Christian shouldn’t get involved in
politics or policy, I have to ask them
the question. Do you think
God cares about millions of babies being murdered every
year in the way, do you think
God cares about the rampant immorality that’s engulfing
our country. Do you think God
cares about his name being outlawed
for mentioned in the public square? The god I know
hasn’t changed. He’s the same yesterday,
today and forever. And if you believe God cares about those things, then you just answered
the question, why Christians need to get involved in policy? Many people in the pulpit are afraid to talk
about those things. They talk about the unborn child and
protecting and child and abortion and
things related to it. And then he get hit
People criticism. That’s right.
Yeah. They do and they’re afraid of losing their tax exempt status. And in my book, twilight last
gleaming, I have a chapter for
pastors only. I point out the
fact, Dr. Dobson, there’s never been a
church in history that’s lost its tax
exempt status. Not one people don’t,
they don’t know that. There’s never been a
church even find by the IRS for anything the pastor said in
the pulpit, not one. And yet our friend
Barry Lynn and others want to try to intimidate
past are saying, boy, if you do this, you’re going to lose
your tax exempt status. Now, I don’t believe
we ought to endorse politicians from
the pulpit. See that adds a politics, that model,
that’s politics. But we ought to talk
about the issues. Ought to be
willing to do what the profits are bolded. And that is to
point a finger in the face of the
culture and say, thus says the Lord, that’s the only hope
for our nation. Dr. Jeffery, the idea that you shouldn’t
mix religion and politics is implying there are things that
you shouldn’t bring your faith into. You’ve got a 10
thousand member church trying to lead them in the ways that the
Lord is there. Any area that you don’t think we ought
to bring our faith? Well, for example, right? I mean, I think
liberals are guilty of politicizing what
are biblical issues. But I think a lot
of conservatives quite honestly make the mistake of Byblos sizing political issues. I mean, there are some
political issues. I mean, I know the
Bible well enough. I could argue
either side of those issues
using the Bible. But there are
some issues that the Bible doesn’t
stutter about. The sanctity of life, the sanctity of marriage. And I believe on
those issues that the Bible strongly
speaks about, we need to speak clearly as Christians and pastors, it’s worth everything
to hear you say that. To have a pastor who is as influential as you are and being in the role
responsibility that you have to be able to say
what you just said. I wish every church
understood that well. And what I believe those listening who
aren’t pastors, members of
churches can do is encourage your pastor
lovingly to speak out. And when he
does speak out, form a shield
around him to protecting from
the criticism both from within
the church and from without
the church. Listen, I think one of the biggest mistakes Christians are
making today, they’re adopting
what I talk about in the book actually came
from Francis Shaffer. This silo mentality of spirituality that
says our faith is okay for us
individually, but to use our faith
to try to influence other people
or the culture at large that’s
un-American, un-Christian, and it may be illegal, were taught. And yet Francis
Shaffer said, God not only cares about religious things
and religious people. Interested in government. He’s interested
in the world. Jesus is Lord, not
just over the church. He’s lord over government and over the universe. We need to start
acting like that. And yet, would
it be too simple though to say Dr. Jeffery, that just many of us,
we don’t like conflict. We don’t like
confrontation. We don’t want to step
out from the crowd. We just kinda
want to blend in and we want everybody
to like us. So some of these
debates are things that just maybe
a typical mom or dad may not be comfortable waiting into sitting next to someone at
the soccer game. Well, that’s right.
And yet the cost of doing nothing is
incalculable. I mean, the way we’re going as a country
right now, My friend, or
when loops are, after he read the
manuscript of my book, he called me and he
said, You know, Robert, you and I went to
Dallas Seminary and we always heard
that as preachers, our job is to
preach the word of God and leave the other stuff to
other people. And everyone said, I
still believe that. But he said, you know,
if you and I don’t do a few other things other than preached
the gospel. We may no longer have the freedom to
preach the gospel. And that’s why
I’ve written this book, twilight
last gleaming. I don’t believe
we’re going to ultimately save America. America is going
to collapse one day because the Bible says The world is going
to collapse. But even though
we can’t prevent America’s ultimate
collapse, we can delay it being the salt and like God
commanded us to be, to give our country an
opportunity to hear the gospel and know
Christ as Savior. So to me it’s
not an either or thing as a pastor, am I going to evangelize or am I going to be involved in social issues? It is a both and that
were called today. One of my favorite
illustrations from the scripture
along the line and what we’re talking
about has to do with what happened
to John the Baptist. Jesus set of John
the Baptist, that no greater man has
been born of woman. Yet here he was in Harrods prison
at the mercy of, of a vicious, ungodly man. And while he was there, he observed that Herod was involved with
another woman. And he looked him in the
eye and said to him, it is not lawful for you to have your
brother’s wife. I mean, imagine that
cost him his life. So Luann, if it makes
us uncomfortable, There’s your model
right there. Yeah, it might cost
you your life. So what are you gonna
do? Remain silent. I mean, I can’t
yet Dr. Dobson, there are people
today, Christians, pastors who would say, John the Baptist
had no right to talk to an
unbeliever and try to impose
his own values on an unbeliever. That’s just
remarkable to me. The Old Testament
prophets, Isaiah, Jonah, all of them not only spoke to their own people, they spoke to
ungodly rulers, to an ungodly culture. We pray all of the time. Lord, thy kingdom
come thy will be done on earth as it’s
being done in heaven. We are praying for God’s
will to be done now, that means there’s
Christians. We’ve got to try
to influence the world so that God’s will is done not just in the
church house, but in the courthouse
and every other avenue, a lot less gone to, to John the
Baptist’s again, where people were coming out to see him in
the wilderness. And in column a
generation of vipers, they were hardly
godly people. A generation of vipers
and told him to go bring back meet for
repentance, cetera. I mean, he was talking to, not to the church, not to his followers. He was talking to the
culture at large. I think that’s
our obligation. Well, and I talk
about in my book, the threefold
calling of a pastor. I believe folks, that the preservation
of America, proclamation of the
gospel depends upon the local church
fulfilling that’s calling the local church is the hope for America. But the local churches fulfilling their mission depends upon pastors fulfilling their calling. It’s a threefold calling is to be a preacher
of the Word. So many sermons today
could have been just as easily delivered
by Deepak Chopra. Is that good a man of God? We’re to preach the Word. Where to be evangelists. The Bible says equipping people to share
their faith. But we’re also called
the B a profit. And that’s the
missing ingredient today being the profit. Dr. Jeff, there are
pastors out there saying, I believe you, I’ve
got that fire. And yet if I go
about my pulpit on Sunday and start
preaching these things, I’m ever going to
make a budget again. I’m going to have
half my charge leave because
we’ve conditioned congregation
members to come for a program and to come verso not for these
three things. What do you say
to pastors? And we’re barely
making it as it is. If I get involved in
this, we’re done. Well, I would say,
first of all, people are hungry to hear a man of God who
has conviction. I think you will
be surprised. I’ll be honest with you. I went 15 years
in my ministry without ever talking
about social issues. And I say that
to my shame. I thought my job
was to preach the Word and not get involved in these
other things. I went 15 years
without doing that. And in my church
in Wichita Falls, we had a controversy in the local community about these two gay books. Heather has to mommy’s
and daddy’s roommate and library and brought
them to me and said, What are you gonna
do about this pastor and I was preaching and Genesis 19 about Sodom and Gomorrah. I’d already done my
sermon for the week. And one of my
application points was, we cannot afford to condone what God
is condemned. And when I stood up there before in the pulpit, I said, my conscience will not allow me to
remain quiet on this. I had those two library
books and I said, I’m not going to
give these books back on keeping them. What that caused
a firestorm in our city About My not returning those
library books, but went into a
national controversy. Pbs came and did a, an hour documentary on
this pastor who had split a town and
how they were divided over these issues. They interviewed
the authors of the book, all of this, it was a two-year
controversy that ended up in a
federal lawsuit. And I wish I could
say r9 that during that time the church
exploded in growth. It didn’t. We recalled hateful
and bigoted for two years in the newspaper and the letters
to the editor. But I knew I was doing what God had
called me to do. And whether or
not your church grows or declines. That’s really
not the issue. We’re all going
to stand before the judgment
seat of Christ, and we’re going to
give an answer to God for what we’ve
done with the flock. He’s interested to God bless you for
that, whoever is. You have written this book that you mentioned, that this is your latest isn’t That’s
right out of 18. Twilight last gleaming. How America’s last days can be your best days. Are we in America’s
last days? Or Dr. Dobson? Alan
combs on Fox News. Our friend asked me about this the
other night. He said No, wait
a minute from this tide or you,
harold camping, that guy who’s predicting the date of the rapture, I said on harold camping
without the dates. Don’t know when this
is going to happen. It may be ten years
or 1000 years. But I know America
is going to end and I believe why
we can’t prevent it, we can delay it. Now my own feeling is we’re probably closer to the end than anyone
would like to imagine. And the reason
I believe that is I believe there had been three
explosive decisions by the Supreme Court in the last 50 years that
if so weak and our spiritual and
social structure as a nation that are
implosion is inevitable. And I talk about
those three decisions in the
book, you know, in 960 to angle
versus Batali, which removed
the voluntary prayers from the school. All of the decisions that have cascaded down from that decision that have
made government not neutral but hostile
toward Christianity. And then in 1973, of
course, Roe v Wade, that has resulted
in 40 million unborn children at least being murdered in
the way I think is closer to 50.
That’s right. And what’s interesting is, we’re hearing
this year, nobody cares about
social issues. It’s about the economy. I quote a study in
my book that says, if those 40 million
children had been allowed to live and grow into
productive citizens, we would no longer have a social security
or medicare crisis because
those children would be pain
into the system. One estimate says
there had been $70 trillion
lost and gross national product
from the murder of 40 or 50 million
unborn children. So there are children of those children to guess. If it goes, that goes all the way back to 1973. So it may be 80
million Americans that disappeared
as a result of that one stupid, arrogant decision by the US Supreme
Court lets it, you can’t kill
20% almost of your population
and not have economic repercussions
of that. So that’s a
second decision. And then the third
decision, 2003, which are listeners
may not be as familiar with the
Lawrence versus Texas decision in which
the Supreme Court really paved the way
for same-sex marriages. Most people believe
that this prop eight ruling that will eventually go to
the Supreme Court, that Justice Kennedy will use the same
reasoning he did in the Lawrence decision
to strike down all state laws prohibiting
same-sex marriage. Now think about it. When you first of all, remove prayer and make government hostile
toward Christianity when you allow for
the murder of the unborn and when you absolutely redefined the most basic
institutions of society, marriage and the
home, if so, destroyed the spiritual and
moral structure of our nation that we’re going to collapse
on ourselves. We are going to implode. It’s only a question of
when we talked about the church not being directly involved
in politics, at least not naming candidates from
the pulpit. And so I don’t
want to go there, but I do want to say that we have an
election coming up. And you better think about the Supreme Court
and who will be appointed by the
various candidates that are putting
themselves forward. Because if, if we
lose that and we get two more very
liberal justices in the next four years, or maybe three or four. This country won’t
come back from that. That’s right. And both
political parties and candidates for those political
officers are being very clear about what kind of justices they
will nominate. So you really need to do your homework and study. They’re making it
very clear what the litmus test are going
to be for Justices. Dr. Jeffery. So this
time has gone by far too quickly and you have come here
to be with this. I’m not going
to let you get away with one program. Let’s, let’s pick up here next time talking a little more
about your book, twilight S last gleaming. How America’s last
days can be your best. We’ve talked about it
being the last days. Perhaps. Nobody
knows the date, but we can all
see that we’re moving towards some
kind of climax. But we haven’t
talked about how they can be
your best days. And I’m going to ask you to do that next time. I’ll look forward to it. That sounds great.
We’ve got a lot of friends in your
church and we also have a lot of friends
at Casey BI and there’s an affiliation between the church and
that station. And then of
course in Dallas, there’s also kW ERD
and Katie x. G, who also carry
family talk. Please convey are regards to them for what they’re doing and our
great appreciation for carrying our program. I certainly well, Dr. Dobson, blessings to you. Thank you. And I will invite all of our friends
to be with us tomorrow for more with
Dr. Robert Jeffress, that Ryan what a pleasure it has been to make his
acquaintance today? Well, we said earlier
he might be new to us, but to so many of our listeners are
already fans. And if you’d like
to get a copy of the book we
discussed today. Again, the title is
twilight last gleaming. We have that
available here at family talk requested
at Dr. James Dobson.org or when you call us and that number to call 87773 to 6825. Thanks so much
for listening. And this is Ryan Dobson
saying, God bless, and we’ll see you next time for another edition of Dr. James
Dobson family top.
Being a Conservative Crusader – II
Thanks so much for
stopping by today for this edition of Dr. James Thompson
family talk. I’m Luann crane here with my co-host,
right enough. And and our host,
a psychologist and author and my dad, Dr. James Dobson and I am excited to
get started today, dad million
because we have another day of
conversation planned with a new friend who is a passionate defender of righteousness
and the culture. Wasn’t that a
good program? Yes. Yeah. Happy thoughts. Dr. Robert Jeffress
did a good job. We’ve invited him
back this time. In fact, we only met right before that
broadcast last time, and we have many
mutual friends, but the first time he’s
been to family dog, Dr. Jeffery is
the senior pastor of First Baptist Church
of Dallas, texas. And it’s quite true
that he is not at all shy preaching the truth of
Scripture two is 10 thousand member
congregation every Sunday morning. Dr. Jeffery is also an
accomplished author. His newest book was the topic of our
discussion last time, and it says untitled
twilight last gleaming. How America’s last days can be your best days. Now, we’ve already covered a lot of ground
with the men, talked at length about how the Lord
has called him. And really all
of us to take a stand in a
public square for the Judeo-Christian
values that are so close to our hearts and our foundational to the future of
this country. Well, dr, this would
be a good time to just remind
folks that if they missed that
conversation last time, they can listen in or
request a CD copy of our first day with Dr. Jeffery, dr. James
Thompson.org. Well, Dr. Jeffery
will welcome back to family talk. My goodness that
the program went by too fast
last time zone. It is good to
have you here as somebody thinks I want to talk to you about, let’s plunge right in. Okay. You’ve had a
very interesting life and so of I, you grew up in the
church and so did I. You found the Lord when you were four years old? Found the Lord
when I was three. So B2B year, I’ve always
known ever had I, not only that, but you tell a story in the book about B
and on a game show. And so was I know, yeah, I don’t like
Nadella said story. We had gone to our
first passed right. And I didn’t have
enough money for a car. We needed a new car
and I thought, well, what’s the best way to
get some quick money? And so I thought,
well, I’ll go on a game show. And so I watched
for the program that gave away
the most cash. And I taped the show every day and
watched it at night, learned how to
play it, and took last money we add in our
checking account, flew to Hollywood,
went over to Mark good some productions
and they had 250 people trying out for three spots
on the show. I auditioned,
got on the show, went to CBS The next
day tape five Shows was the five-day
champion on the show, got
enough money. Most of it for a
car, flew home. It’ll all night
and got there in time to reach the
next morning. What was the name
of this hill? Oh, I don’t want
to insult anybody. Know. It’s called card sharks. And a ours in
my first church as a pastor and I was
afraid to tell my conquered that I’ve got it down or so-called
guard sharks guy. I didn’t telling body, but when it started
airing nationally, they picked up real quick. Did you ever hear of a program called
Let’s Make a Deal? I was on Let’s
Make a Deal. Come in and I was, came on as a giant banana in a full banana
out areas. And it was back when I was a youth minister back in 990 for it first Madras, Dallas and anything I did, I went $350 that day. And what’s so funny
is Dr. Dobson, the show’s keep
playing on forever, never on the work. They even keep
playing today. And not long ago, they were playing my Let’s Make a Deal thing from 25 years ago and a little child and the church rain
in and said, Mommy, mommy, the pastors on TV and he’s a banana. So be sure and I will find you
owe me out too, because I was on it. Do what you want and
let’s make a deal. Absolutely. Shirley
and I were we had a friend who
had tickets and she couldn’t use them
and gave them to us. We had no idea
what we were doing and we went down there and like you were in this big
auditorium where they were choosing the
contestants and surely had these cloth
burns all over her. I mean, they’re
everywhere in her hair and on her shoulder. And I was carrying a sign that said My wife
is for the Berg. I’m really, really funny. Yeah. That is great stuff. I was 960 a day and
I had just finished my work at USC and we were broke as church mice. And I thought, you know, how nice it would be
that when a new car. Yeah. Because what we had was really
pretty beat up. And and so surely
is very vibrations and she began putting on her antics and she got
them to choose us. So we were
contestants and we had three doors to choose from. You
know, how that works? Yes. And they brought out a vacuum cleaner and they said If you can
get within $3, so the cost of this
vacuum cleaner, then you get a new Camaro. Are you hitting? I make green. Mouth was watering. Irs has come marrow
sitting out there and I could win it if I
could get what then $3. And so we had to
make our choice and I missed it by $25. I don’t want it
anywhere near. And so I got $3
and a vacuum. That’s all I got. We went home just sick. Absolutely sick because
we had blown it. You have given me great
cover from now on. Anytime anybody
I says May, I can say Well, Dr.
Dobson did it to you. Well, I didn’t I
didn’t give anything. If somebody could send us the film of you on,
let’s make a deal. You know, I had a crooked I was a weird
looking guy and I don’t know who
you can make money off that line. Didn’t do that. But if the telephone
start ringing, that family talk all of
a sudden you’ll know they started their doctor adopts this program. We were only 30 minutes
away from that show. Yeah, it was in Burbank? Yes. So it was easy for
us to go with. That’s the only
time I ever did. It was not profitable. Now, I want to ask you question that you
answer in your book. We talked last time about the fact
that we’re not going to endorse
political candidates, either on family talk or the First Baptist
Church, cetera. But call it at least
not from the pulpit. I have indoor somebody personal and I
have to yeah. Yes, but without linking it to a non-profit
organization. But we can talk about some principles try
that you need to implement in choosing
the candidates that you vote for. Or have. We don’t want to get cross a line
in the summer. I’m that’s illegal, but talk about and you
know, is a pastor, Dr. Dobson, I don’t
like my people want me to tell them
for whom to vote. I think that they feel like they’re
competent to make up their own mind that they can
figure that out. But they do look to
all of us who are in spiritual
leadership for some criteria to use and
selecting the candidate. And one of the
chapters in my book, twilight S last
gleaming is about how a Christian
should vote. And I give for questions I believe we ought
to ask about any candidate, especially
for precedent. Question number one, is the candidate a Christian? I’ve been amazed at
how many people have taken me to task for
that question saying, Oh, you shouldn’t
even consider a candidate’s faith. It was John Jay, the first Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court, who said, God has given us
both the privilege and the duty in this Christian nation to prefer and select
Christians as our leaders. Now I don’t believe
being a Christian automatically qualify somebody to be precedent, but I do believe given
the choice between a competent Christian and a competent
non-Christian, it make sense to vote for a competent Christian? Wouldn’t it give
you comfort to know somebody is in the Oval Office
who is being led not only by
the best advisors, but by the Holy
Spirit of God, there is great benefit. Having a Godly leader
of the proverb says, when the godly rule,
the people rejoice. So that’s question
number one. Question number
two, how does the candidate’s faith
impact his policies? There’s some
candidate to say my personal faith has no impact on my
public policy. Now, I say any
professing Christian who would say his
personal faith has no impact on how
he would govern is either a shallow Christian or a dishonest politician. I mean, if our faith is really important to us, it impacts every part of our life, including
our vocation. Question number
3, how does the candidates policies
align with the Bible? We said in the
last program, I, I don’t think
that the Bible speaks to every
political issue, but the Bible does
speak clearly about issues like the
sanctity of life, the sanctity of marriage, the treatment of the poor. And I believe we have
every right to measure a candidate’s
policies against the unchanging Word
of God, absolute. And then question
number four, how does the candidate
view the Constitution? Is he a constructionist that is believing that judges he would
appoint ought to abide by the words
of the Constitution? Are, Is he an
expansionist, one who believes that
judges had the liberty? To create imaginary rights for some group
of Americans while erasing the
very real rights of other Americans that are
in the Constitution. And we’re seeing that
run a muck right now. The idea of expansionism
in the constitution, we are taking away
the rights of the church were taken
away the rights of Christians in
order to grant these imaginary rights
to some individuals. And so I think especially in this next election, dr. Dobson, this is going to be an
important question. Dr. Jeff, what do you say to people who
would call you a one issue voter on something like the
sanctity of human life. All I’ve got to
at least or no. Here’s how I would
answer that. Ryan. And I think many people would be surprised when we
answer this ways. Christians, I would concede that is
conservatives. Many times we make a mistake of what I
call Byblos sizing. What are political issues? I don’t believe the
Bible speaks to every political issue
in America today. And I think that take such a hard line against secondary issues of which there’s room for
disagreement. I think it really
diminishes our witness, but I think we ought
to can see that. Yes, I’m going to stand
firm on the issues that the Bible talks
about and say, there are a few
of those issues that are really crucial, like the sanctity of life that protects
the unborn, like the sanctity
of marriage that protects the most
important institution, the most basic institution in American
society, the home. And I believe those are important issues
to stand for. Dr. Jeffery earlier
this month, there was a presidential prayer breakfast
in Washington DC. This is not the
National Day of Prayer, which occurs the first
Thursday in May. This is a completely
different thing. I’ve been to that
prayer event. The number of times
the President speaks, the Vice-President
often speaks and then they bring
other people. And for me, the House
or Senate or somebody like Mother Teresa was there one year
when I was there. But on the most recent presidential
prayer breakfast where President
Obama spoke, he took the teachings
of Jesus and I think twisted them to endorse
his tax policy. And man, it was a stretch
and it offended me. Did you read or hear
about what he did there? I did. Yeah. You just said that the Bible doesn’t
speak to every issue. Well, this was an
example of it. Yeah. I didn’t speak
to that thing. I’m sure, you
know, having to do with the taxes and how they’re allocated
than a lot of things that the Bible didn’t really
address at all. That’s exactly
right. And I mean, I can make the
point about taxes. I can use the story of Joseph to support
high taxation, and I can use the story of Rehoboam to support low taxations bottom and you can argue
it either way. But I think that is prostitute in the
Bible to try to use the Bible to speak to either conservative
or liberal policies that aren’t really the
message of Scripture. That’s a strong statement. I think the issue is, we ought to speak
clearly about the issues about which the Bible speaks clearly. I agree. Another issue
that I’ve really look forward to talking to you about it has to do with religious liberty, which everybody’s
talking about it today. Who would have
believed it? Was six months ago? It was all about the economy and taxation
and other things. And now the social issues have come to the fore. And one of those issues that especially the
Catholic Church, but also evangelicals
are talking about, has to do with the
intrusion of government into the church and then to the religious
institutions. Talk about bright,
as you’ve said, We’re not here to endorse or denounce any candidate, but it is absolutely sure that there
is an attempt by this administration
to reach into the church
and to limit churches rights under
the Constitution to freely exercise
their religion. People who think that
this latest attempt to control the
contraception issue is a Catholic issue. They were making a
big mistake to think this is solely
limited to Catholics. It was this administration that just a few months ago was in court arguing that religious exclusions
for hiring practices in churches
ought to be removed. Yeah, that’s the one where the Supreme
Court struck it. Absolutely nothing. Yeah, but it was amazing. My friend kelly
Shackelford was there giving one of
the arguments against the
administration, but to hear that if the administration
had its way, that they would
remove those religious exclusions, which means churches would have to hire homosexuals. They would have to do
things that violate their most core beliefs. And that is where
we’re going unless we stand up and say
enough is enough. And that’s why I believe
it is absolutely paramount for
Christians to get involved in
this process. And again, we’re
speaking people who are Democrats,
Republicans, independents. I understand that. But understand this. In the last election, 2830 million
evangelical Christians sat at home and
didn’t vote. Election was won by
10 million votes. Do you put part of the responsibility
for that on pastures didn’t urge their
parishioners to register and vote? Yes, I do. And I think it extends
beyond pastors, elders, deacons,
to church leaders. Again, nobody wants
to come to church and hear political
sermon every week. Our job is to preach
the word of God. But the word of
God so Often intersex culture
and where we are, we must stand up. We must speak about
these issues and we must encourage our
people to be solved. When Jesus said You are the salt of the earth, salt was a preservative. Salt, did not prevent
the rotting of made. It only delayed it, it only gave them meet
a longer shelf-life. Eventually the meat
had to be thrown out. Well, when Jesus said where the salt
with the world, we are the
preserving influence in this world today, we’re not going to prevent America’s collapse or
the world’s collapse. But we can give America more time so that we have an opportunity to
preach the gospel. Think about the
story about Jonah. God said to Jonah, he was going to destroy the wicked city
of Nineveh. That was a pronouncement. And yet in Jonah three, God changed his mind. No, I don’t
understand that. That’s above my
pay grade to understand how
God did that. But because of the
preaching of Jonah, because of the repentance of the Nineveh bytes, God delayed is judgment
against Nineveh. Now, interestingly, he ultimately
destroyed Nineveh, but he gave Nineveh more time because of the righteous
actions of Jonah. That’s what we need
to do for America. Where did you get the courage to
talk like this and a breach like
this and to write like this in twilight
S last gleaming, where did that come from? Well, I, first of all
don’t pretend to be the only are doing
this doctor dance and not in a that are not. There are many
pastors who are out there taking
courageous stands. But there was
something about when I hit my 40th birthday and then
my 50th birthday, I did the arithmetic
and I took the age 80 and I
subtracted my age. And I said, you
know, whether or not Americas in its
last years. I’m in my last years. Either he’s coming
around going, but sooner or later I
am going to meet him, they end is coming for me. Even if it
doesn’t come for America right away. I want to be able
to hear the words, well done, good and
faithful servant. I don’t care what
people think about me. I love my church members. I really don’t care what they think about
me though. I give an account to
God for what I do. And I believe
when a man of God understands
that truth that we answered to
God and God only, it gives you a
great courage, just like you Dr.
Dobson on me, we’re all people who
have learned from you about taking
unpopular stands. Well, it’s been a pleasure to carry the banner. I feel like the Lord
is pleased with me. I don’t really care
who criticizes me. Frankly, criticism
from the church and my brothers and
sisters bothers me more than the worst that the media and the
far-left can do to me. But I’d like to ask you to address the subtitle
of this book. It is how America’s last days can be
your best days. At the end of the
program last time I said I was going to
ask you about this. How can a world
falling apart? And I think in Proverbs it says it’s the
foundations be destroyed. What can the righteous do? We all get
caught up in it. When everything crumbles? How can those be
good days for us? You know, our mutual
friend Bob bail says, every life is either self-focused or
God focused. It’s one or the other. It can’t be both. If our life is self-focus, if it’s about pleasure and profits and the
avoidance of pain, then surely we
are going to be disturbed by what we’re
seeing in the news. Our whole world is
being threatened. Our life has got focused. If our agenda here is to make disciples
for Christ, if that’s our agenda, then we can see how these collapsing
world circumstances actually help us
spread the gospel. Think about
Paul. He was in prison because of an
ungodly Roman Empire, much more hostile to Christianity
than America is. And yet he said, I rejoice
in this situation. I want you to know that
my imprisonment has turned out for the
progress of the gospel. Now if Paul’s goal in
life had been pleasure and the avoidance
of pain and peace. Why his imprisonment
was a great tragedy. But Paul had a purpose in life bigger than himself. He turned to those
Philippians and Chapter 2, and he said In
the same way, in the midst of this crooked and
perverse generation, you were to be
children of light, holding out the
word of life. And you know
what Dr. Dobson, the darker the background, the brighter the light. And that’s why these days can be our best days. As the world becomes
more and more hopeless, it makes the hope
of the gospel shine that much
more brightly. And you’ve really
taken advantage of those opportunities that we mentioned
last time. All of the appearances
you’ve done on television and radio, many of those are secular and what we would consider perhaps hostile to our Judeo-Christian
beliefs. But you actually have, in a sense, one over some of those people
haven’t yet. Well. We did. God has given some great opportunities, again that pale in
comparison to Dr. Dobson. But I think when God opens those doors
of opportunity, we need to take them. And what I’ve found
is that so many, even non-Christians, they know something’s not right in our country. They know things
aren’t working. You know, the
latest wrong track, right track poll
showed 73% of Americans think
our country is headed on the
wrong track. I think if we will respond to people
graciously, we don’t have to be
foaming at the mouth. Fundamentalist, we
can be gracious. We can be firm though
in our convictions, people will listen to us. You know, I like
to think about the example of Jesus. I call it the
perfect example of the velvet
covered brick. I mean, he was soft
when it came to people, but he was hard and
his convictions people can tell if you
come with compassion, can yes, they can. And I think I’d
never have, we had a better time in American history right now to share the gospel than we do in
this culture. And that’s why I
say Dr. Dobson, these last days for
America really can’t be our best days as
long as our life has got focused and
not self-focused. Let’s in this
second interview, right where we started The first when you arrived here in preparation for the first program, Ryan, you came in, we all sat down and Laura, your wife, came in with
little Lucy Rose, who’s just a few weeks
old now in her arms. And it was a very
special moment. Going back to that, you worry about this next generation that’s
coming up, the kids that are
around our knees today, that that really does put a lump in my
throat I’m going to make is committed in even if it cost
me my life. That’s not the worst thing that could happen to me. But I worry about
those kids. Know what the world
is going to be like in 2030 years? Yeah. I do. I have two daughters and some point
in the future, we’ll have grandchildren
like you have. And yes, I’m
concerned about what their world is
going to be like. And that’s why I’m
not ready to give up. Just like you’re not
ready to give up. My book is not
doom and gloom. It’s saying we do have an opportunity to
make a difference. But Dr. Dobson,
it’s going to mean we don’t retire
from the cause. It means we don’t give up. It means we are willing
to push back against evil with every ounce of strength God gives us. That is our calling, that’s our responsibility, our opportunity
as Christians. It’s been very
inspirational talking to you today
and yesterday. And I look forward to
visiting your church. One of these days, when is the new facility
going to be done? We opened on Easter
Sunday up 2013, so we’re just about a
little more than a year away and we would love to have you and
shortly there, we’ll put you up at
the Fairmont Hotel. Bless you, my friend, and give our regards
to our friends at Dallas First
Baptist Church. Thank you, Dr. Dobson. Well, it’s been
wonderful getting to know you Pastor and Luann. I hope every parent
and grandparent, every Christian
Listening is ready to make a stand for righteousness
in the culture. Well, I could
have said Ryan, Lucy is dependent, isn’t. A great way to
get started is by reading Dr.
Jefferson’s book, again, the title,
twilight last gleaming. I would urge
you to request that when you call us
our phone number here, family talk,
877732682587773268, 25. Or look for that title at Dr. James Dobson.org. Well, thanks
for listening. This is Ryan Dobson
saying God bless, and we’ll see you again for another edition of Dr. James Dobson
family talk.
MARRIAGE
UNDER FIRE
J a m e s C . D o b s o n , P h . D .
July 2011
Newsletter
July
2011
Dear
Readers,
Behold,
the
institution
of
marriage!
It
is
one
of
the
most
marvelous
and
enduring
gifts
to
humankind.
This
divine
plan
was
revealed
to
Adam
and
Eve
in
the
Garden
of
Eden
and
then
described
succinctly
in
Genesis
2:24,
where
we
read,
“For
this
cause,
a
man
shall
leave
his
father
and
mother
and
cleave
to
his
wife,
and
they
shall
be
one
flesh.”
With
those
20
words,
the
Creator
announced
the
ordination
of
the
family,
long
before
He
established
the
two
other
great
human
institutions,
the
government
and
the
church.
Notice
that
there
is
no
mention
in
this
verse,
or
any
other,
of
same-‐sex
marriage.
More
than
5,000
years
have
come
and
gone
since
that
point
of
origin,
yet
every
civilization
in
the
history
of
the
world
has
been
built
upon
it.
Despite
today’s
skeptics
who
claim
that
marriage
is
an
outmoded
and
narrow-‐minded
Christian
concoction,
the
desire
of
men
and
women
to
“leave”
and
“cleave”
has
survived
and
thrived
through
times
of
prosperity,
peace,
famine,
wars,
epidemics,
and
every
other
possible
circumstance
and
condition.
It
has
been
the
bedrock
of
culture
in
Asia,
Africa,
Europe,
North
America,
South
America,
Australia,
and
even
Antarctica.
Given
this
unbroken
continuity,
one
might
begin
to
suspect
that
something
mystical
within
human
nature
must
be
drawing
the
sexes
together—not
just
for
purposes
of
reproduction
as
with
animals—but
to
satisfy
an
inexpressible
longing
for
companionship,
intimacy
and
spiritual
bonding.
Indeed,
how
can
it
be
doubted?
It
finds
its
expression
in
the
institution
of
marriage.
Marriage
represents
the
very
foundation
of
human
social
order.
Everything
of
value
sits
on
that
base.
Institutions,
governments,
religious
fervor
and
the
welfare
of
children
are
all
dependent
on
its
stability.
When
it
is
weakened
or
undermined,
the
entire
superstructure
begins
to
wobble.
Admittedly,
there
have
been
periods
in
history
where
homosexuality
has
flourished,
such
as
in
the
biblical
cities
of
Sodom
and
Gomorrah,
in
ancient
Greece
and
in
the
Roman
Empire.
None
of
these
civilizations
survived.
Even
where
sexual
perversion
was
tolerated,
marriage
continued
to
be
honored
in
law
and
custom.
But,
as
we
all
know,
liberal
forces
within
the
American
culture
are
working
night
and
day
to
bring
about
a
redefinition
and
complete
restructuring
of
marriage.
As
you
have
heard,
the
New
York
State
legislature
voted
to
legalize
same
sex
marriage
on
June
24th,
making
it
the
sixth
state
in
the
union
to
take
this
momentous
step.1
How
ominous
this
is
for
the
welfare
of
the
nation.
“With
one
vote,”
wrote
Family
Research
Council
president
Tony
Perkins,
“New
York
forced
more
Americans
to
bow
to
its
twisted
definition
of
marriage
than
the
combined
population
of
Massachusetts,
Connecticut,
Vermont,
New
Hampshire,
Iowa,
and
the
District
of
Columbia.
And
none
of
it
would
have
been
possible
without
the
political
cowardice
of
New
York
Republicans.”2
It
is
true.
Passage
of
the
legislation
had
been
made
possible
by
Republican
legislators
who
abandoned
their
earlier
opposition
after
being
enticed
by
huge
campaign
contributions
from
Wall
Street
and
from
homosexual
activists.3
Former
Republican
National
Committee
chairman,
Ken
Mehlman,
raised
a
million
dollars
for
the
campaign,4
and
leftist
millionaire
Tim
Gill
and
his
Gill
Action
Fund
sweetened
the
deal
with
enormous
contributions.5
A
few
words
describe
the
flip
flopping
by
four
members
of
the
GOP
—
they
are
“bought
off,”
“duck
and
cover,”
“self
serving,”
and
“caved
in.”
There
was
jubilation
in
the
State
Capitol
as
Governor
Andrew
Cuomo
strode
onto
the
Senate
floor
to
wave
at
cheering
supporters
who
crowded
into
the
galleries
to
watch.
Among
those
celebrating
the
victory
four
days
later
was
President
Barack
Obama,
whose
administration
has
been
working
behind
the
scenes
to
2
promote
the
redefinition
of
marriage.
While
he
has
professed
from
the
days
of
his
campaign
not
to
support
same
sex
unions,
these
are
his
candid
reactions
to
the
decision
in
New
York.
“This
administration,
under
my
direction,
has
consistently
said
we
cannot
discriminate
as
a
country
against
people
on
the
basis
of
sexual
orientation.
And
we
have
done
more
in
the
two
and
a
half
years
that
I’ve
been
in
here
than
the
previous
43
presidents
to
uphold
that
principle…”
“What
I’ve
seen
happen
over
the
last
several
years,
and
what
happened
in
New
York
last
week,
I
think
was
a
good
thing.
Because
what
you
saw
was
the
people
of
New
York
having
a
debate,
talking
through
these
issues.”6
This
is
phony-‐baloney.
In
what
context
did
the
people
of
New
York
have
a
“debate”
about
same
sex
marriage?
They
had
no
say
in
it.
Marriage
was
hijacked
by
liberals
and
political
powerbrokers
in
New
York
and
throughout
the
country.
Ultimately,
they
had
their
way.
Speaking
again
of
the
President,
The
New
York
Times
reported
a
couple
of
weeks
ago
that
he
is
on
the
verge
of
publicly
endorsing
same-‐sex
marriage.7
The
White
House
has
been
debating
when
to
come
out
of
the
closet
for
some
time.
The
Times
also
said
Obama
recently
attended
a
fundraising
“Gala
with
the
Gay
Community,”8
and
hosted
a
“gay
pride”
reception
at
the
White
House.9
Sounds
like
the
fix
is
in,
doesn’t
it?
You’ll
recall
that
the
President
also
ordered
the
Department
of
Justice
not
to
defend
the
Defense
of
Marriage
Act
(DOMA)
in
the
courts,10
despite
the
fact
that
in
1996,
the
Senate
passed
that
legislation
by
a
vote
of
85-‐14,11
and
the
House
of
Representatives
approved
it
by
a
342-‐67
margin.12
Then
President
Clinton
signed
the
bill
and
it
has
been
the
law
of
the
land
for
16
years.13
Because
the
Department
of
Justice
has
been
ordered
not
to
defend
DOMA
against
attack,
it
may
soon
be
struck
down
by
the
courts.
That
would
affect
the
citizens
of
nearly
every
state
in
the
nation.
Obama,
acting
like
an
autocratic
Justice,
simply
overrode
the
actions
of
the
Congress.
The
Separation
of
Powers
prescribed
in
the
Constitution
was
ignored.
Clearly,
the
President
is
committed
to
homosexual
activism,
including
implementation
of
a
radical
social
experiment.
The
family
is
facing
formidable
foes
in
every
dimension
of
the
culture.
The
most
powerful
among
them
are
the
federal
and
state
courts,
which
are
determined
to
impose
their
will
on
the
American
people.
The
U.S.
Court
of
Appeals
for
the
9th
Circuit
is
a
prime
example
of
this
threat,
which
may
soon
declare
Proposition
8
unconstitutional.
That
amendment
was
enacted
by
7
million
Californians
who
declared
marriage
to
be
exclusively
between
one
man
and
one
woman.14
If
Proposition
8
is
overturned,
the
case
will
likely
go
to
the
U.S.
Supreme
Court,
where
anything
could
happen.
If
there
ever
was
a
time
when
Christian
people
should
fight
for
what
they
believe,
this
is
it.
Solidarity
is
critical.
And
yet,
regrettably,
some
Christian
leaders
are
saying
that
the
battle
has
been
lost,
and
that
the
family
of
the
future
will
be
increasingly
compromised.
Some
have
even
told
their
constituencies
to
get
used
to
same
sex
marriage.
They
are
tragically
wrong.
We
have
striking
new
evidence
that
public
support
for
marriage
as
an
institution
involving
one
man
and
one
woman
is
rock
solid,
despite
what
the
cultural
elites,
politicians
and
judges
are
trying
to
accomplish.
Divorce
is
still
a
serious
problem,
of
course,
but
the
majority
of
Americans
believe
in
the
traditional
definition
of
marriage.
Further,
it
isn’t
losing
ground;
it
is
gaining
support.
Consider
these
findings:
The
Alliance
Defense
Fund,
led
by
my
valued
friend
Alan
Sears,
recently
commissioned
an
organization
called
Public
Opinion
Strategies
(POS)
to
conduct
a
national
survey
on
marriage.
POS
regularly
provides
polling
for
members
of
Congress,
the
Wall
Street
Journal,
National
Public
Radio,
Fortune
100
companies
and
many
others.
In
response
to
the
request
by
the
Alliance
Defense
Fund,
POS
surveyed
more
than
1,500
adults
in
May
2011
and
found
that
62
percent
of
Americans
agreed
with
the
3
statement,
“I
believe
marriage
should
be
defined
only
as
the
union
of
one
man
and
one
woman.”15
Only
35
percent
disagreed!16
Other
developments
validate
these
findings.
Voters
in
thirty-‐one
states
have
participated
in
statewide
elections
for
the
purpose
of
defining
marriage.
All
31
of
them,
without
exception,
have
defined
it
exclusively
as
being
between
one
man
and
one
woman.17
The
results
were
the
same
whether
they
were
in
large
states,
small
states,
liberal
states,
conservative
states,
prosperous
states,
poor
states,
industrialized
states
and
agricultural
states.
The
majority
of
the
electorate
came
to
the
same
conclusion.
Here’s
more
hard
evidence.
In
30
of
the
31
states
referred
to
above,
63
million
Americans
voted
on
constitutional
marriage
amendments,
and
40
million
of
them
(63
percent
of
total
voters),
affirmed
marriage
as
the
union
between
a
man
and
a
woman.18
In
the
31st
state
(Maine),
voters
overruled
their
state
legislature
and
governor—who
had
signed
a
same-‐sex
marriage
bill—and
restored
marriage
as
one
man
and
one
woman
in
their
state.
Can
there
be
any
doubt
how
the
majority
of
our
citizens
feel
about
this
issue?
Despite
this
good
news,
I
am
still
deeply
concerned
about
the
institution
of
the
family.
It
is
because
I
fear
the
people
will
not
be
permitted
to
make
decisions
for
themselves
and
the
country.
Given
the
imperious
courts
and
the
influence
of
liberal
politicians,
the
wishes
of
the
American
people
could
be
overridden.
It
is
a
battle
for
the
very
soul
of
the
nation.
What
would
be
the
consequences
of
losing
this
cultural
war?
It
would
be
a
social
and
international
disaster
for
six
reasons
as
spelled
out
in
my
book,
Marriage
Under
Fire.
1.
The
legalization
of
homosexual
marriage
would
destroy
the
traditional
family.
When
the
State
sanctions
homosexual
unions
and
gives
them
the
blessing
of
the
law,
the
younger
generation
is
confused
about
sexual
identity
and
quickly
loses
its
understanding
of
lifelong
commitments,
emotional
bonding,
sexual
purity,
the
role
of
children
in
a
family,
and
from
a
spiritual
perspective,
the
“sanctity”
of
marriage.
It
is
reduced
to
something
of
a
partnership
(cohabitation)
that
provides
attractive
benefits
and
sexual
convenience,
but
cannot
achieve
the
intimacy
described
in
Genesis
2:24.
Cohabitation
and
short-term
relationships
are
the
inevitable
result.
Ask
the
Norwegians,
the
Swedes
and
the
people
from
the
Netherlands.
This
is
exactly
what
is
happening
there.
Indeed,
more
than
80
percent
of
the
children
in
some
areas
of
Norway
are
born
out
of
wedlock.19
It
comes
down
to
this:
same-sex
marriage
and
de-facto
marital
unions
destroy
the
Real
Deal.
These
two
entities
cannot
co-exist
because
they
represent
opposite
ends
of
the
universe.
It
is
also
true
that
the
introduction
of
gay
marriage
will
set
the
table
for
polygamy
because
there
is
no
place
to
stop
once
that
Rubicon
has
been
crossed.
Historically,
the
definition
of
marriage
has
rested
on
a
foundation
of
tradition,
legal
precedent,
theology
and
the
overwhelming
support
of
the
people.
After
the
introduction
of
marriage
between
homosexuals,
however,
it
will
be
supported
by
nothing
more
substantial
than
the
rulings
handed
down
by
individual
judges
or
by
a
black-robed
panel
of
justices.
After
they
have
reached
their
decisions
and
made
them
the
law
of
the
land,
the
family
will
consist
of
little
more
than
someone’s
interpretation
of
“rights.”
Given
that
unstable
legal
climate,
it
is
certain
that
some
self-possessed
judge,
somewhere,
will
rule
that
three
men
or
three
women
can
marry.
Or
five
men
and
two
women,
or
four
and
four.
Who
will
be
able
to
deny
them
that
right?
The
guarantee
is
implied,
we
will
be
told,
by
the
Constitution.
Those
who
disagree
will
be
characterized
as
hate-mongers
and
bigots.
(Indeed,
those
charges
are
already
being
leveled
against
Christians
who
espouse
biblical
values!)
How
about
group
marriage,
or
marriage
between
cousins,
or
marriage
between
daddies
and
little
girls?20
Anything
allegedly
linked
to
“civil
rights”
will
be
doable.
The
legal
underpinnings
for
marriage
will
have
been
destroyed.
What
will
happen
then,
if
marriage
becomes
anything,
or
everything,
or
nothing?
The
short
answer
is
that
the
state
will
lose
its
compelling
interest
in
marital
relationships
altogether.
After
marriages
have
4
been
redefined,
divorces
will
be
obtained
automatically,
will
not
involve
a
court,
and
will
take
on
the
status
of
a
driver’s
license
or
hunting
permit.
With
the
family
out
of
the
way,
marriages
will
occur
without
legal
entanglements
or
commitments,
and
its
meaning
will
be
destroyed.
2.
Children
will
suffer
the
greatest
harm.
The
implications
for
children
in
a
world
of
decaying
families
are
profound.
Because
homosexuals
are
rarely
monogamous,
children
in
those
polyamorous
(meaning
“many
lovers”)
situations
will
typically
be
caught
in
a
perpetual
coming
and
going.
Such
instability
is
devastating
to
kids,
who
by
their
nature
are
inherently
conservative
creatures.
They
like
things
to
stay
just
the
way
they
are,
and
they
hate
change.
Some
have
been
known
to
eat
the
same
brand
of
peanut
butter
throughout
childhood.
More
than
10,000
studies
have
concluded
that
kids
do
best
when
they
are
raised
by
loving
and
committed
mothers
and
fathers.
They
are
less
likely
to
be
on
illegal
drugs,21
less
likely
to
be
retained
(held
back)
in
a
grade,22
less
likely
to
drop
out
of
school,23
less
likely
to
commit
suicide,24
less
likely
to
be
in
poverty,25
less
likely
to
become
juvenile
delinquents,
26and
for
the
girls,
less
likely
to
become
teen
mothers.27
They
are
healthier,
both
emotionally
and
physically,
even
30
years
later,
than
those
not
so
blessed
by
traditional
parents.28
(There
is
more
to
say
here
about
the
welfare
of
children,
but
we
must
move
on.
Marriage
Under
Fire
spells
out
the
additional
ramifications.)
3.
Public
schools
in
every
state
will
have
to
endorse
homosexuality
in
its
curriculum.
With
the
legalization
of
homosexual
marriage,
every
textbook
will
be
obsolete
and
every
public
school
in
the
nation
will
be
required
to
teach
this
perversion
as
the
moral
equivalent
of
traditional
marriage
between
a
man
and
a
woman.
Textbooks,
even
in
conservative
states,
will
have
to
depict
man/man
and
woman/woman
relationships,
and
stories
written
for
children
as
young
as
elementary
school,
or
even
kindergarten,
will
have
to
give
equal
space
and
emphasis
to
same-sex
relationships.
How
can
a
child,
fresh
out
of
toddlerhood,
comprehend
the
meaning
of
adult
sexuality?
The
answer
is
they
can’t,
and
they
shouldn’t,
but
it
is
happening
in
California
and
Massachusetts,
already.29
Social
propaganda
to
elementary
school
kids
and
beyond
is
already
the
order
of
the
day.
World
Net
Daily
posted
this
blog
on
July
5,
2011,
titled,
“California
lawmakers
demand
schools
teach
‘gay’
history.”
A
bill
devised
by
a
homosexual
California
lawmaker,
Mark
Leno,
requiring
schools
to
promote
homosexuality
and
other
alternative
sexual
lifestyles
to
children
without
parental
permission
or
even
knowledge
has
been
approved
by
the
legislature
and
is
on
its
way
to
Gov.
Jerry
Brown.
Critics
say
the
vote
to
approve
SB48
could
create
a
vast
new
opportunity
for
indoctrinating
children
into
such
roles.
“May
this
brash
attack
upon
children’s
innocence
finally
motivate
parents
to
remove
their
children
from
the
government
school
system,
and
get
them
into
the
safe
havens
of
church
schooling
and
homeschooling,”
said
Randy
Thomasson,
president
of
SaveCalifornia.com,
a
leading
statewide
pro-‐family
organization
promoting
moral
virtues
for
the
common
good.
Teachers
also
will
be
required
to
portray
homosexuality
positively,
“because
to
be
silent
can
bring
the
charge
of
‘reflecting
adversely’
or
‘promoting
a
discriminatory
bias.’”
School
boards
will
have
to
adopt
textbooks
and
other
materials
based
on
their
positive
advocacy
for
homosexuality
and
parents
–
because
the
teachings
are
a
part
of
the
state’s
core
curriculum
–
will
be
neither
notified
nor
given
the
option
of
withdrawing
their
children
from
the
teachings,
he
said.
5
“This
sexual
brainwashing
bill
would
mandate
that
children
as
young
as
six
years
old
be
told
falsehoods
–
that
homosexuality
is
biological,
when
it
isn’t,
or
healthy,
when
it’s
not,”
Thomasson
said.30
4.
Adoption
laws
and
foster-care
regulations
will
be
obsolete.
From
the
moment
that
homosexual
marriage
becomes
legal,
courts
will
not
be
able
to
favor
a
traditional
family
involving
one
man
and
one
woman
in
matters
of
adoption.
Children
will
be
placed
in
homes
with
parents
representing
only
one
sex
on
an
equal
basis
with
those
having
a
mom
and
a
dad.
Even
the
polyamorous
couples
won’t
be
excluded.
The
prospect
of
fatherless
and
motherless
children
will
not
be
considered
in
the
evaluation
of
eligibility.
It
will
be
the
law.
It
has
happened
already.
The
latest
Census
data
reveal
that
more
than
25
percent
of
gay
and
lesbian
couples
are
raising
children.31
5.
The
gospel
of
Jesus
Christ
will
be
severely
curtailed.
The
family
has
been
God’s
primary
vehicle
for
evangelism
since
the
beginning.
Its
most
important
assignment
has
been
the
propagation
of
the
human
race
and
the
handing
down
of
the
faith
to
children.
Malachi
2:15
reads,
referring
to
husbands
and
wives,
“Has
not
the
Lord
made
them
one?
In
flesh
and
spirit
they
are
His.
And
why
one?
Because
He
was
seeking
godly
offspring.
So
guard
yourself
in
your
spirit,
and
do
not
break
faith
with
the
wife
of
your
youth”
(NIV).
You
can
be
certain
that
if
same
sex
marriage
is
legalized
and
the
rest
of
the
gay
agenda
is
achieved,
the
church
will
be
subjected
to
ever-increasing
oppression
and
discrimination.
That
has
already
happened
in
some
European
countries
and,
to
a
lesser
degree,
in
Canada.32
At
stake
is
the
right
of
pastors
to
preach
their
understanding
of
the
Scripture,
to
hire
people
who
share
their
theology,
to
fire
those
who
do
not,
and
to
have
uncensored
Bibles.
Could
the
independence
and
mission
of
the
Conservative
church
be
threatened
in
these
and
other
critical
areas?
I
don’t
know.
I
can
only
tell
you
what
the
New
York
law
means
for
religious
liberty.
According
to
the
Alliance
Defense
Fund,
“(It)
does
not
protect
individuals.
It
does
not
protect
private
business
owners.
It
does
not
protect,
for
example,
a
bed
and
breakfast
owner
who
is
using
their
own
private
personal
property
in
the
type
of
intimate
setting
that
a
bed
and
breakfast
is.
It
does
not
protect
licensed
professionals.
For
example,
it
does
not
protect
counselors.
It
also
does
not
protect
lawyers
–
you
may
have
a
family
law
attorney
who
does
not
want
to
do
a
same-‐sex
divorce
because
of
their
deeply
held
religious
beliefs.
It
does
not
protect
fertility
doctors
who
may
have
a
strict
belief
and
only
want
to
help
[heterosexual]
married
couples
because
they
believe
a
kid
deserves
both
a
mom
and
a
dad.”
The
dominos
from
this
decision
are
just
starting
to
fall.
One
newspaper
is
reporting
that
the
New
York
Department
of
Correctional
Services
is
already
rewriting
its
rules
for
inmates’
“conjugal
visits,”
which
will
now
be
open
to
homosexual
“spouses.”
Prisons
will
provide
the
condoms.33
And
this
is
just
be
beginning.
Can
churches
be
far
behind?
6.
The
culture
war
will
be
over,
and
the
world
will
become
“as
it
was
in
the
days
of
Noah”
(Matthew
24:37,
NIV).
This
is
the
climactic
moment
in
the
battle
to
preserve
the
family,
and
future
generations
hang
in
the
balance.
This
apocalyptic
and
pessimistic
view
of
the
institution
of
the
family
and
its
future
will
sound
alarmist
to
many,
but
I
think
it
will
prove
accurate
unless—unless—God’s
people
begin
an
even
greater
vigil
of
prayer
and
petition
for
our
nation.
6
Marriage
is
a
sacrament
designed
by
God
that
serves
as
a
metaphor
for
the
relationship
between
Christ
and
His
Church.
Tampering
with
His
plan
for
the
family
is
immoral
and
wrong.
To
violate
the
Lord’s
expressed
will
for
humankind,
especially
in
regard
to
behavior
that
He
has
prohibited,
is
to
court
disaster.
Excerpted
from
Dr.
Dobson’s
book,
Marriage
Under
Fire.
Used
by
Permission.
One
thing
is
certain.
This
is
NO
time
for
Christian
people
to
throw
up
their
hands
in
despair.
The
moral
principles
in
Scripture
have
guided
this
great
nation
since
the
days
of
its
founding,
and
we
must
remain
true
to
them.
This
is
a
moment
for
greater
courage
and
wisdom
than
we
have
ever
been
called
upon
to
exercise.
If
we
now
choose
to
stand
by
idly
while
our
foundational
social
order
is
destroyed,
the
family,
as
it
has
been
understood
for
millennia,
will
be
gone.
And
with
its
demise
will
come
chaos
such
as
the
world
has
never
seen.
If
you
read
or
hear
from
Christian
leaders
who
are
saying
traditional
marriage
is
headed
for
the
ash
heap
of
history
and
we
should
just
get
used
to
it,
pray
for
them
and
for
the
protection
of
the
American
family.
Thank
you
for
reading
along
with
me
this
month.
I
felt
it
was
important
to
set
the
record
straight
in
regard
to
the
views
of
the
American
people
and
the
risks
posed
for
the
nation.
Also,
please
pray
for
us
when
you
think
about
this
ministry.
A
letter
such
as
this
one
on
a
controversial
topic
can
always
be
expected
to
bring
a
flurry
of
hostile
responses.
Part
of
our
mission,
however,
is
to
“speak
the
truth
in
love,”
and
we
will
continue
to
accept
that
challenge.
Protect
your
marriage,
if
you
are
indeed
married,
and
remain
determined
to
go
the
distance
together.
Shirley
and
I
have
discovered
that
our
relationship
grows
sweeter
as
the
years
roll
by.
What
a
gift
that
is
from
the
Lord.
God’s
blessings
to
you
and
yours.
Your
friend
in
Christ,
James
C.
Dobson,
Ph.D.
President
ENDNOTES
1 “New York Becomes Sixth State to Legalize Same-Sex Marriage,” Fox News, June 24, 2011.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/06/24/gay-marriage-headed-to-vote-on-ny-senate-floor/
2 Tony Perkins, “A New York State of Blind,” FRC Washington Update, June 27, 2011. http://www.frc.org/washingtonupdate/a-
new-york-state-of-blind
3 Michael Barbaro, “Behind N.Y. Gay Marriage: An Unlikely Mix of Forces,” New York Times, June 25, 2011.
4 Sam Stein, “Money Was the Key Ingredient in New York’s Gay Marriage Bill, Huffington Post Politics, June 27, 2011.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/27/money-gay-marriage-bill-new-york_n_885546.html?view=screen
5 Ben Smith, “Stealth Campaign Pays Off for Gay Marriage Proponents,” Politico.com, June 25, 2011.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0611/Stealth_campaign_pays_offs_for_gay_marriage_proponents.html?showall
6 Remarks by the President at Reception Observing LGBT Pride Month,” East Room, June 29, 2011.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/06/29/remarks-president-reception-observing-lgbt-pride-month
7 Sheryl Gay Stolberg, “Obama’s Views on Gay Marriage ‘Evolving,’” New York Times, June 18, 2011.
8 Ibid.
7
9 Ibid. Fred Lucas, “Obama Praises Homosexual Spouses in Gay Gathering at White House,” CNSNews.com., June 30, 2011.
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/obama-praises-homosexual-spouses-gay-gat
10 Brian Montopoli, “Obama Administration Will No Longer Defend DOMA,” CBSNews.com, February 23, 2011.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20035398-503544.html
11 “U.S. Congress Roll Call Votes 104th Congress, 2nd Session September 10, 1996.
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=104&session=2&vote=00280
12 Final Vote Results for Roll Call 316: HR 3396,” July 12, 1996. http://clerk.house.gov/evs/1996/roll316.xml
13 Kim A. Lawton, “Clinton Signs Law Backing Heterosexual Marriage,” Christianity Today, October 28, 1996.
http://www.ctlibrary.com/ct/1996/october28/6tc080.html
14 Final yes vote was 7,001,084 according to the California Secretary of State’s office. See
http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/sov/2008_general/ssov/10-ballot-measures-statewide-summary-by-county
15 Married to Marriage: 62% of Americans Say It’s One Man, One Woman,” Alliance Defense Fund Press Release, June 16,
2011. http://www.adfmedia.org/News/PRDetail/?CID=27539.
16 Marriage Survey Results Survey http://oldsite.alliancedefensefund.org/userdocs/ADF-POS_Survey_Results_Summary
and State Marriage Amendment Vote Percentages as of June 2011.
http://oldsite.alliancedefensefund.org/userdocs/MarriageAmendmentVotePercentages
17 Marriage Survey Results Survey http://oldsite.alliancedefensefund.org/userdocs/ADF-POS_Survey_Results_Summary
and State Marriage Amendment Vote Percentages as of June 2011.
http://oldsite.alliancedefensefund.org/userdocs/MarriageAmendmentVotePercentages
18 State Marriage Amendment Vote Percentages as of June 2011.
http://oldsite.alliancedefensefund.org/userdocs/MarriageAmendmentVotePercentages
19 Stanley Kurtz, “Death of Marriage in Scandinavia,” Boston Globe, March 10, 2004.
http://www.boston.com/news/specials/gay_marriage/articles/2004/03/10/death_of_marriage_in_scandinavia/
20 For evidence that same-sex marriage advocates want to expand marriage beyond just same-sex couples, see “Beyond
Same-Sex Marriage,” signed by several hundred same-sex marriage advocates. http://www.beyondmarriage.org/
21 “Family Matters: Substance Abuse and the American Family,” The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at
Columbia University, March 2005, p. 17. http://www.casacolumbia.org/articlefiles/380-Family%20Matters
22 David Popenoe, Life Without Father (New York: Free Press, 1996) cited in Sara McLanahan, “Father Absence and the
Welfare of Children,” Network on the Family and the Economy. http://apps.olin.wustl.edu/macarthur/working%20papers/wp-
mclanahan2.htm. Also see Nan Marie Astone and Sara S. McLanahan, “Family Structure, Parental Practices and High School
Completion,” American Sociological Review 56 309-320, 1991.
23 Gunilla Ringback Weitoft, Anders Hjern, Bengt Haglung, and Mans Rosen, “Mortality, Severe Morbidity in Children Living
with Single Parents in Sweden: A Population Based Study,” The Lancet, 36: 289-295, 2003.
24 Susan Larson and David Larson, M.D., M.S.P.H., “Divorce: A Hazard to Your Health?” Physician, May/June 1990, p. 16.
25 Robert Rector, “Marriage: America’s Greatest Weapon Against Poverty,” The Heritage Foundation, September 16, 2010.
http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2010/09/marriage-america-s-greatest-weapon-against-child-poverty
26 Cynthia Harper and Sara McLanahan, “Father Absence and Youth Incarceration,” Journal of Research on Adolescence, 14:
pp. 369-397, 2004.
27 B. Ellis, “Does Father Absence Place Daughters at Special Risk for Early Sexual Activity and Teen Pregnancy?” Child
Development, 7: No.3, May/June 2003.
28 Judith Wallerstein, Catherine E. Ross and John Mirowsky. “Parental Divorce, Life-Course Disruption, and Adult Depression.”
Journal of Marriage and the Family 61 1034-1035 (1999).
29 See Claudia Cowen, “Bill Mandating California Schools Teach Gay History is a Lesson in Controversy,” Fox News, June 30,
2011 http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/06/30/gay-history-in-califronia-schools-lesson-in-controversy/?test=latestnews; Drew
Zahn, “’Gay’ Curriculum Challenges Student’s Faith,” WorldNetDaily, September 19,2009
http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=110248; Bob Unruh, “Judge Orders ‘Gay Agenda’ Taught to Christian
Children,” WorldNetDaily, February 24, 2007 http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=40339; Diana Jean Schemo, “Lessons on
Homosexuality Move Into the Classroom,” New York Times, August 15, 2007
http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0F1EFC3D5B0C768DDDA10894DF404482&fta=y&incamp=archive:article_
related.
30 Bob Unruh, “California Lawmakers Demand Schools Teach ‘Gay’ History,” WorldNetDaily, July 7, 2011.
http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=319225
31 “One-Quarter of Gay Couples Raising Children,” ABCNews.com, June 23, 2011. http://abcnews.go.com/Health/sex-couples-
census-data-trickles-quarter-raising-children/story?id=13850332
32
See Jonathan Petre, “Church ‘Could Be Forced to Bless’ Gay Weddings,” London Telegraph, October 6, 2006.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?
xml=/news/2006/06/10/nbless10.xml&sSheet=/news/2006/06/10/ixuknews.html; “High Court Considers Barring Christian
Foster Parents,” WorldNetDaily, November 13, 2010. http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=227553; “Government to Pastor:
Renounce Your Faith!,” WorldNetDaily, June 9, 2008. http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=66704; “Homosexual Sues Church for
Right to be Employed as Youth Worker,” The Christian Institute, April 3, 2007.
33 Tony Perkins, “Washington Update,” June 29. 2011. http://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=WU11F23&f=PG07J01
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