The World Now

California Legislature Sends Same-Sex 'Marriage' Bill to Governor

2007-09-11T14:20:20Z

From CitizenLink.com

9-10-2007

California Legislature Sends Same-Sex 'Marriage' Bill to Governor

The California Senate voted 22-15 Friday to redefine marriage as between any "two persons." AB 43 now goes to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has until Sept. 30 to sign or veto it.

The outrageous measure is among seven bills that soon could be headed to the governor. The legislative session ends Friday. Schwarzenegger needs to be persuaded to veto all seven.

"He should get hundreds of thousands of phone calls. We know that makes a difference," Dr. James C. Dobson, founder and chairman of Focus on the Family Action, said at the end of his radio program Friday. (Listen to the program online.)

Specifically, the bills would: teach public school children age 5 and older to be accepting of homosexuality, cross-dressing and bisexuality; end local oversight of school discrimination policies; legalize same-sex "marriages"; and allow HIV-positive men to donate sperm, with no guarantee that the child conceived in the process would be HIV-free.

TAKE ACTION
Call Gov. Schwarzenegger's office and urge him to veto all seven bills. You can contact his office at (916) 445-2841. Select "7" to speak with a staffer. Tell them you want the governor to veto all seven of the bills opposed by Focus on the Family Action. If you call after hours, you can leave a message. You do not need to list the bills by number.

FOR MORE INFORMATION
View our fact sheet on the seven bills.

California Legislature Sends Same-Sex 'Marriage' Bill to Governor

2007-09-11T14:20:20Z

From CitizenLink.com

9-10-2007

California Legislature Sends Same-Sex 'Marriage' Bill to Governor

The California Senate voted 22-15 Friday to redefine marriage as between any "two persons." AB 43 now goes to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has until Sept. 30 to sign or veto it.

The outrageous measure is among seven bills that soon could be headed to the governor. The legislative session ends Friday. Schwarzenegger needs to be persuaded to veto all seven.

"He should get hundreds of thousands of phone calls. We know that makes a difference," Dr. James C. Dobson, founder and chairman of Focus on the Family Action, said at the end of his radio program Friday. (Listen to the program online.)

Specifically, the bills would: teach public school children age 5 and older to be accepting of homosexuality, cross-dressing and bisexuality; end local oversight of school discrimination policies; legalize same-sex "marriages"; and allow HIV-positive men to donate sperm, with no guarantee that the child conceived in the process would be HIV-free.

TAKE ACTION
Call Gov. Schwarzenegger's office and urge him to veto all seven bills. You can contact his office at (916) 445-2841. Select "7" to speak with a staffer. Tell them you want the governor to veto all seven of the bills opposed by Focus on the Family Action. If you call after hours, you can leave a message. You do not need to list the bills by number.

FOR MORE INFORMATION
View our fact sheet on the seven bills.

States Chip Away at Abortion

2007-09-11T14:17:50Z

From CitizenLink.com:

9-10-2007

States Chip Away at Abortion
from staff reports

Incremental steps have tangible results.
State lawmakers will begin pre-filing bills in the next couple of weeks for legislative sessions that open in January, and in most states, pro-life lawmakers will file parental-notification, clinic-regulation and informed-consent legislation.

In South Carolina, senators soon will consider a bill requiring that women seeking an abortion be given and allowed to see ultrasounds of their preborn babies. Oran Smith, president of the Palmetto Family Council, said the bill has bipartisan support.

"We have a Legislature that's relatively conservative," he told Family News in Focus, "The vote that was taken by the South Carolina House on the measure back in the spring was overwhelmingly in favor of the bill."

Because of South Carolina's efforts to restrict and regulate abortion, the state now has only three abortion clinics. The news is even better in Mississippi, where Forest Thigpen of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy said the state's last abortion clinic is hanging by a thread.

"We've required minors to get permission from their parents; we've required the clinics to have strong regulations, strong protections for the women who come in," he said. "All of that together has, I think, had a tremendous impact on the number of clinics and the number of abortions."

Denise Burke, an attorney with Americans United for Life, said there's a virtual avalanche of incremental abortion restrictions descending on state houses.

"With the United States Supreme Court saying that incremental laws are important and are constitutional," she said, "you're going to see a flurry of activity in about 45 states next year."

IRS Finds Focus on the Family Faultless.

2007-09-11T14:08:20Z

After a 12-month audit of "Focus on the Family" and it's founder/leader, James Dobson, the IRS has found that they are guilty of no wrong.

Falsely accused of wrong-doing by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), and Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the IRS investigated Focus on the Family for 12 months to see if its tax-exempt status should be withdrawn. According to the findings, Focus on the Family has done nothing wrong and none of the allegations were substantial.

Shame on CREW and AUSCS.

To read more, go to:
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLtopstories/A000005434.cfm

MTV Will Air Bisexual Dating Show

2007-09-10T13:16:57Z

From CitizenLink.com -- read the full article here.

9-7-2007

MTV Will Air Bisexual Dating Show

Just weeks after its own survey showed teens place high value on family and faith, MTV is rolling out a bisexual dating show.
A Shot At Love With Tila Tequila, which is scheduled to premiere on the cable network Oct. 9, will feature 16 heterosexual men and 16 lesbians competing for the attention of the show's namesake.

From CitizenLink.com -- read the full article here.

Planned Parenthood Sued over Botched Abortion

2007-09-10T13:10:31Z

From CitizenLink.com

9-7-2007

Planned Parenthood Sued over Botched Abortion

An Alliance Defense Fund allied attorney served a lawsuit Wednesday on behalf of a Nebraska woman who suffered three seizures and nearly died Aug. 17 after undergoing an abortion at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Lincoln.
According to the complaint, physicians at a local hospital who performed an emergency hysterectomy on the woman hours later in order to save her life stated that they had never before seen such extensive wounds to a uterus and surrounding tissues.
"Women should fully know about the dangers of abortion -- that it's not just a baby's life that's at stake. Our client doesn't want this horror to happen to anyone else. She believes that women have the right to know that they could be risking their lives," said lead counsel and ADF-allied attorney Jefferson Downing. "If not for the heroic work of the paramedics and the physicians at the hospital, this woman could have hemorrhaged to death."
According to the complaint, 40-year-old "Jane Roe" was about 10 weeks pregnant when she went to the clinic. As soon as the abortion began, the woman says she cried out in pain, told the Planned Parenthood staff that something was terribly wrong, and pleaded for the abortion to be stopped. According to the lawsuit, the abortionist refused and ordered his staff to forcibly hold the woman down while he continued with the procedure.

Pray for the woman -- obviously she didn't want a hysterectomy. The worst part of this is that when she decided (whether for the right reasons or not) not to continue murdering her baby, she was forcibly restrained while the doctor murdered her baby against her wishes.

Pray for everyone who participated in that murder (and the so many others!) that they may see what they have been doing, and repent before the Holy God, who will have justice on the Lamb's Day of Wrath.

International Conference Tackles Assisted Suicide

2007-09-10T13:07:42Z

From CitizenLink.com -- read the full article here.

9-7-2007

International Conference Tackles Assisted Suicide
by Jennifer Mesko, associate editor

Leaders from around the globe will share strategies for saving lives.
The first International Symposium on Euthanasia, "Current Issues and Future Directions," is set for Nov. 30-Dec. 1 in Toronto. It is being organized by the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition of Canada, and will allow leaders to discuss strategies for stopping the euthanasia movement.
"The conference is going to bring together leaders and people concerned about euthanasia from all around the world," said Rita Marker, executive director of the International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide. "We definitely have to be concerned about what is happening everywhere."

From CitizenLink.com -- read the full article here.

President Bush Proclaims National Days of Prayer and Rememberance (9/7, 9/9)

2007-09-10T13:04:52Z

A Proclamation by the President of the United States of America

During this year's National Days of Prayer and Remembrance, we honor the thousands of victims who died in the brutal and ruthless attacks in New York City, Pennsylvania, and at the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. Our Nation remembers with gratitude the firefighters, police officers, first responders, and ordinary citizens who acted with courage and compassion to save the lives of others, and we pray for the families whose loved ones were taken from them.

Never forgetting that terrible day, we remain determined to bring our enemies to justice, defy the terrorists' ideology of hate, and work to make our world safer. We honor the members of our Armed Forces who died while taking the fight to our adversaries, and we are grateful for those who continue to protect our Nation and our way of life. Their courage, sacrifice, and dedication help preserve our freedom. We pray for their safety, for all those who love them, and for the peace we all seek.

We remain a hopeful America, inspired by the kindness and compassion of our citizens and our commitment to freedom and opportunity. During these days of prayer and remembrance, we reflect on all we have lost and take comfort in each other and in the grace and mercy of our Creator. May God guide us, give us strength and wisdom, and may He continue to bless our great country.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim Friday, September 7, through Sunday, September 9, 2007, as National Days of Prayer and Remembrance. I ask that the people of the United States and their places of worship mark these National Days of Prayer and Remembrance with memorial services, the ringing of bells, and evening candlelight remembrance vigils. I also invite the people of the world to share in these Days of Prayer and Remembrance.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this fourth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand seven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-second.

GEORGE W. BUSH

Take Action: U.S. Senate Votes to Support Abortion Overseas

2007-09-10T13:01:07Z

From CitizenLink.com

9-7-2007

Take Action: U.S. Senate Votes to Support Abortion Overseas

by Jennifer Mesko, associate editor

Dr. Dobson thanks President Bush for his pledged veto.

The U.S. Senate voted 53-41 Thursday to use taxpayer money to support overseas organizations that perform or promote abortion. In response, President Bush reaffirmed his pledge to veto any legislation that weakens his pro-life policies.

On Monday's radio broadcast, Dr. James C. Dobson, founder and chairman of Focus on the Family, will thank the president for taking a strong stand for life.

The Mexico City policy -- named after the city where it was announced by President Reagan -- was rescinded by President Clinton and reinstated by Bush. The Senate bill would kill the policy.

"Once again, this Congress is threatening to abolish long-standing pro-life policies that protect preborn children," said Carrie Gordon Earll, senior bioethics analyst for Focus on the Family Action. "Thankfully, once again, President Bush is standing in the way with a veto threat. As the president has demonstrated in the past, he's willing to use his veto pen to defend pro-life policies, and for that we are grateful."

In May, in identical letters to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Bush wrote, "I will veto any legislation that weakens current federal policies and laws on abortion, or that encourages the destruction of human life at any stage."

Companion legislation passed the House in June, and the measure now heads to House-Senate negotiations.

During a brief Senate debate Thursday, Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., spoke in favor of the president's pro-life policy.

"It's a gut-check issue about where you stand on life," he said, "where you stand on whether or not we should be using taxpayer funds for abortion."

LISTEN TO DR. DOBSON
To find a station or to listen online, visit the Focus Web site.

TAKE ACTION
Thank President Bush for taking a stand for the preborn. If you are a CitizenLink Daily Update subscriber, click on the blue "Thank the President" button in the e-mail to be automatically logged in to our Action Center. Otherwise, click here.

ACLU Unmoved by Jesus' Court House Companions | Christianpost.com

2007-09-07T14:38:24Z

Read the full article: http://christianpost.com/article/20070906/29201_ACLU_Unmoved_by_Jesus%27_Court_House_Companions.htm

A city courthouse in Louisiana recently mounted portraits of 15 of history's preeminent lawgivers alongside its painting of Jesus Christ in an attempt to appease a legal group trying to force the removal of the portrait.

(Photo: AP Images / Judi Bottoni)

Inside the Slidell City Court House in Slidell La. a suburb of New Orleans workers view the portraits of more than a dozen historic figures have been added to a courthouse display of Jesus, far right, that ran afoul of civil libertarians Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2007.

The American Civil Liberties Union, however, has not been persuaded to drop the lawsuit against the city of Slidell and maintains that the display violates the separation of church and state.

"The question of whether Jesus needs to come down is the same question," Marjorie Esman, ACLU's new executive director, said Wednesday, according to The Times-Picayune newspaper of New Orleans. "You can't cure a problem by dressing it up."

Slidell City Court in Louisiana added the framed portraits of famous legislators to its print gallery including those of Confucius, Hammurabi, Moses, Charlemagne, Sir William Blackstone, and others last Friday, one week before a scheduled court hearing at which the Louisiana ACLU will ask a federal judge to remove the Jesus portrait.

"The purpose of the display has always been to use art to emphasize the importance of following the law in order to have a peaceful society. Slidell officials believe this expansion should reassure courthouse users or visitors that this is and always has been the legitimate purpose of the display," said Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) senior legal council Mike Johnson in a statement.

ADF is a legal alliance which defends and advocates for religious liberties. Attorneys at ADF are representing Slidell City Court Judge James Lamz, the city of Slidell, and the parish of St. Tammany.

INDIA: Hindu Radicals Turn Church into Hindu Temple - VOM Sources

2007-09-07T14:31:15Z

From the Voice of the Martyrs:

INDIA
Hindu Radicals Turn Church into Hindu Temple - VOM Sources
On August 19, members from the Hindu radical group, Hindu Ikyavedi, attacked a congregation gathered for prayer and vandalized their church building in Bangalore, India. According to The Voice of the Martyrs' contacts in India, prior to the attack, Pastor Koshy Thomas and his family were threatened and told to stop conducting worship services. VOM contacts report, "On August 18, two members of the Hindu radical organization, Hindu Ikyavedi, threatened to burn Pastor Thomas and his family to death if they did not vacate their home and stop worship services. The next day they barged into a prayer meeting, abused the believers using filthy language and assaulted the pastor's wife and another believer. They snatched a Bible from another man's hand and threw it out of the building." After the believers were evicted from the church, the attackers vandalized the building. VOM contacts added, "The radicals vandalized the church building by drawing Hindu symbols, the trishul, swastika, Sanskritic Om and slogans such as 'Jai Shri Ram and Hindu Dharma is ours, who is Yesu?' They also conducted a Hindu religious rite inside the church and locked it." Pastor Thomas has been pastoring the 50-member Indian Pentecostal Church for about a year. Pray God protects and provides for the pastor and believers in this area. Ask God to use the testimonies of Christians in India to draw non-believers into fellowship with Himself. Joshua 1:9; 2Timothy 1:7

UZBEKISTAN Church to Lose Building and Legal Status - Forum 18 News

2007-09-07T14:28:56Z

From the Voice of the Martyrs:

UZBEKISTAN
Church to Lose Building and Legal Status - Forum 18 News
Grace Presbyterian Church in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, may lose its church building and legal status after authorities filed a lawsuit aimed at annulling the sale of the building. Forum 18 News reports, "Grace Presbyterian Church, led by Pastor Felix Li, bought a former cinema in Tashkent's Khamza District in April 1999 from the city department of the State Property Committee. However, on July 24, 2007, the same department lodged the complaint to annul the sale. On August 13, 'without warning,' Justice Ministry officials arrived for a check-up on the church's financial activity, and whether its activity as a whole is in accordance with the church's statute. If violations are found, the church could be stripped of legal status and the right to conduct any religious activity." Christians in the area believe the "church check-up" is a step towards revoking legal status. Meanwhile, Forum 18 also reported, "Police in Uzbekistan have launched a manhunt for Pentecostal pastor, Masket Djabbaebergenov, who went into hiding after a criminal case was launched against him in early August to punish him for his religious activity." If convicted, the pastor could spend up to six year in prison. Pray for Christians in Uzbekistan. Ask God to protect and provide for Grace Presbyterian Church and Pastor Masket, who is in hiding. Joshua 1:9, Psalm 91

AFGHANISTAN UPDATE - South Korean Hostages Released - Media Reports

2007-09-07T13:40:00Z

From the Voice of the Martyrs:

AFGHANISTAN
UPDATE - South Korean Hostages Released - Media Reports
Praise God! On August 30, Taliban extremists released the remaining South Korean hostages they had held for more than five weeks. The Taliban kidnapped 23 Korean aid workers when they were traveling by bus from Kabul to Kandahar. The group's pastor and another male hostage were killed, and two women were later released. Pray for the safety and release of the remaining hostages. Pray the Holy Spirit will comfort the released hostages, especially the families of the two Christians killed. Pray the testimony of these believers will draw others into fellowship with Christ. Isaiah 54:14, Psalm 107:20

Florida Chaplain Fired after Praying in Jesus' Name

2007-09-07T13:37:24Z

From CitizenLink.com

9-6-2007

Florida Chaplain Fired after Praying in Jesus' Name
from staff reports

Hospital says he was not 'respectful of various faith beliefs.'
A Florida chaplain claims he was fired from the hospital where he worked because he prayed in Jesus' name. The Rev. Danny Harvey was chaplain at Leesburg Regional Medical Center for more than seven years, but was forced to resign for what the hospital said were "concerns" raised by patients.

Harvey does not take God lightly.

"He's done everything for me," he told a Fox affiliate in Orlando, Fla. "He is my Savior; He is my Redeemer; He is the Restorer of who I am."

But those beliefs appear to have cost him his job. In a statement, hospital officials said Harvey's pastoral care was "not consistent with and respectful of various faith beliefs."

Harvey said he never pushed his faith on anyone.

"If you were Jewish, I would get somebody from the Jewish synagogue; if you're Muslim, I'd do my very, very best to get someone there to meet your need," he said. "But if you ask me to pray, I'm not talking to you, I'm talking to my God that I know through Christ."

Bruce Hausknecht, judicial analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said Harvey may have a case under the Civil Rights Act.

"If he's been there for years ... I would consider a few complaints as amounting to nothing," he told Family News in Focus. "Theoretically, he could bring a federal lawsuit alleging religious discrimination."

Hausknecht said asking a Christian chaplain not to pray in Jesus' name is like asking a carpenter to work without a hammer.

Take Action: California Legislature Takes Up Batch of Bad Bills

2007-09-07T13:33:35Z

From CitizenLink.com

9-6-2007

Take Action: California Legislature Takes Up Batch of Bad Bills

by Jennifer Mesko, associate editor

Dr. Dobson says, 'They have outdone themselves this time.'
The California Legislature is at it again -- trying to coerce schoolchildren to accept homosexuality and overturn voters' support for traditional marriage.

Those outrageous measures are among the seven bills that soon could be headed to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's desk. He needs to be persuaded to veto all seven.

"He should get hundreds of thousands of phone calls. We know that makes a difference," Dr. James C. Dobson, founder and chairman of Focus on the Family Action, said on a radio program to be broadcast Friday.

Joining Dr. Dobson on the program are Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, and Tom Minnery, senior vice president of government and public policy at Focus Action.

Specifically, the bills would: teach public school children age 5 and older to be accepting of homosexuality, cross-dressing and bisexuality; end local oversight of school discrimination policies; legalize same-sex "marriages"; and allow HIV-positive men to donate sperm, with no guarantee that the child conceived in the process would be HIV-free.

One of the bills, AB 43, is another attempt to force same-sex "marriage" onto the residents of California. In 2000, 62 percent of voters passed a constitutional amendment that states, "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."

According to news reports, the American Civil Liberties Union dispatched letters to its activists last week, urging them to pressure Schwarzenegger on this year's batch of pro-gay bills. The governor needs to hear from the pro-family side, as well.

The end of the legislative session is Sept. 14. The governor has until Sept. 30 to sign or veto any bills.

"We've got to get the governor to veto these bills," Minnery said.

TAKE ACTION
Call Gov. Schwarzenegger's office and urge him to veto all seven bills. You can contact his office at (916) 445-2841. Select "7" to speak with a staffer. Tell them you want the governor to veto all seven of the bills opposed by Focus on the Family Action. If you call after hours, you can leave a message. You do not need to list the bills by number. You may also send a message through the governor's Web site. (Note: The governor's Web site has been up-and-down for the past day or so.)

FOR MORE INFORMATION
View our fact sheet on the seven bills.

To learn more about these bills and other state issues, visit the California Family Council Web site.