Free Republic

A recently-introduced bill in the state of Illinois would change the definition of “abused child” to include minors whose parents object to their children receiving puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, transgender surgeries, and abortions. House Bill 4876, which was introduced in early February, also shields doctors from liability if they prescribe such treatments to minors who do not have parental consent — and empowers the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) to step in and, if they deem it necessary, remove children from their biological parents based on the new definition of an “abused child.” According to the legislation,...

Our neighbors to the North continue to be the Ghosts of Legislative Future if we don’t get our act together. During the first session of the 44th parliament, Bloc Québécois party leader Yves-François Blanchet, introduced a private members bill that would remove religious exceptions to the law that criminalizes hate speech. If someone is charged with hate speech in Canada, they can defend themselves in court by arguing they were, in good faith, making an argument based on their religious beliefs. At present, in Canadian Criminal Code, the “religious exemption” in Section 319 states: “No person shall be convicted of...

Sacramento, Calif., Nov 3, 2009 / 06:45 am (CNA).- A think tank has compiled and analyzed reports of the harassment, intimidation, and “gross expressions of anti-religious bigotry” shown in reaction to the successful passage of Proposition 8. If partisans of marriage redefinition continue to increase in power, the analysis warns, those who seek the preservation of marriage as a union of man and wife may risk paying a price legally, socially and economically. The Heritage Foundation’s Oct. 22 report “The Price of Prop 8,” authored by researcher Thomas M. Messner, said that many individuals and institutions who defend the...

Christians in the UK Facing Increasing Official Discrimination: Poll By Hilary White LONDON, June 3, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) – A poll conducted by the Sunday Telegraph has found that thousands of Christians in Britain fear losing job promotions and are being harassed at work because of their religious beliefs. The poll has been released at the same time that reports that Britain is becoming increasingly hostile to Christian believers are increasing. In the Telegraph poll, one in five said they had faced “opposition” at work because of their beliefs. Over half said they had suffered from some kind of “persecution” at...

The real schismatics and bigots "I grew up in the Episcopal Church. I hope I don't cry when I talk about this. But the issue is: Are we going to follow Scripture?" So an anguished Katrina Wagner, a member of the leadership of Truro Episcopal parish, told Washington Post reporters Bill Turque and Michelle Boornstein. They have been covering the sad Christmas story of the breakup of the Episcopal Church in Northern Virginia. Nine parishes have voted to secede from the American church. What forced the break was the installation at the National Cathedral of Katharine Jefferts Schori of Nevada...

THEY came under cover of darkness like the night riders of the old Ku Klux Klan. They drove down the back roads of rural Alabama, looking for wooden churches in forest clearings. When they found them, they kicked in the doors and set them alight. Four Baptist churches scattered 15-20km around the tiny town of Boligee, near the Mississippi border, were burnt in this manner this week. All had black congregations. Five churches in Bibb County, farther to the east, were destroyed or badly damaged by fire last Friday. Of those, four had predominantly white congregations and the fifth was...