November 2014
Craftsmen for Christ Page 13
UCSF Abortion Class
Page 15
Caregiver Danger Signs
Find Freedom
Page 16
Page 20
Each issue of The Ambassador has a section called “In The News” in which we seek to inform our readers about issues and situations that they need to know about. Some of those stories are about religious liberty. Recent news has pushed this issue to the forefront. In recent months, there have been all too frequent news reports of beheadings, torture and severe persecution of Christians in other nations. While saddened, Americans have typically sensed a protection from those kinds of horrors. “It could never happen here in America!”, many say. Christian preachers and leaders have long been warning us that the tide is turning in our own land. The two news items below illustrate the change in religious liberty. America is no longer the safe haven of a Judeo-Christian God-fearing people. Atheism, Radical Islam, Homosexual agendas, and rampant and readily accepted immorality tears at the fiber of this nation. Political correctness and “Tolerance” have weakened the foundation of the American church. It is time for a change. It is time to roll up our sleeves and choose a side. Houston, We Have A Problem…And A Constitution! By Emily Conley, Social Content Editor Actually, Houston, we have several problems: The city of Houston passed a law that would allow members of the opposite sex to use each other’s restrooms, in the name of “prohibiting discrimination,” known as HERO (Houston Equal Rights Ordinance). Voters weren’t so thrilled, and responding by petitioning to repeal the ordinance or at least, put it up for a vote. They got over 50,000 signatures, more than three times the required number. The city secretary, (who is entrusted by law to examine and certify petitions) certified them as sufficient. But the mayor and city attorney defied
the law, claimed less than the required number of signatures was valid – and threw out the petition. In response, several petitioners organized a lawsuit. That didn’t sit too well. The city attorneys issued subpoenas to five pastors, demanding they turn over any speeches, writings, or sermons on gender identity, homosexuality, or mentioning the mayor, Annise Parker, who identifies as a lesbian. The pastors are not party to the lawsuit. Asking them to turn over their constitutionally protected sermons and other communications simply so the city can see if the pastors have ever opposed CONTINUED ON PAGE 15
Idaho Pastors Face Jail Time, Thousands in Fines for Not Performing Gay Weddings By Anugrah Kumar Christian Post Contributor Two ordained Christian pastors in Idaho have filed a federal lawsuit and a motion for temporarily restraining Coeur d’Alene city officials from forcing them to perform same-sex wedding ceremonies or face prosecution for violating “nondiscrimination” laws. Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys filed the lawsuit and the motion on behalf of Donald Knapp and his wife, Evelyn, who run Hitching Post Wedding Chapel and have been required by city officials to perform gay ceremonies or face months in jail and/or thousands of dollars in fines. The city says its non-discrimination ordinance requires them to perform
same-sex wedding ceremonies because the courts have overridden Idaho’s voterapproved constitutional amendment that affirmed marriage as the union of a man and a woman. “The government should not force ordained ministers to act contrary to their faith under threat of jail time and criminal fines,” ADF Senior Legal Counsel Jeremy Tedesco said in a statement. CONTINUED ON PAGE 17
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