Dear Editor,
We are in a place in America today that few could have imagined just five years ago. Oh, we knew where things were eventually headed, but to see it progress so swiftly these past several months has been truly shocking. In a nation that was founded primarily for the purpose of religious freedom, we are facing the erosion and possible outlawing of that very freedom.
Private Christian businesses have been told they must produce products and services that directly violate their religious beliefs. Churches have been told who they must allow to use church owned property for weddings and other celebrations. Christian schools are being told by the courts who they must hire and what benefits they must provide, including abortion on demand. Pastors in Texas were subpoenaed by the court to turn over every sermon they had preached that contained comments regarding same-sex marriage, as well as any private emails or other conversations they had regarding the subject.
We are not talking about China or Cuba or some other religiously oppressed country — we are talking about here in the United States of America. We cannot afford to stay silent and sit idly by any longer! If don’t stand up and speak up now, we face the very real likelihood of losing our religious liberties forever.
I encourage every fellow-pastor and person of faith to attend the Stand for Religious Liberty rally at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 22, being held on the courthouse lawn in Warsaw. This rally is not a protest “against” anyone or anything. It is simply a gathering of those who support the preservation of our God-given inalienable right to religious liberty.
Pastor Mark Fishburn
Pierceton