When Preaching Becomes a 'Hate Crime'

Imagine that you are listening to your pastor preach about biblical morality.He quotes from Romans 1 and tells the congregation that homosexuality is a sin.He isn't yelling or inciting a riot, nor does he offer even a hint of malice in his words.He is simply stating a Christian doctrine.A few minutes later two uniformed police officers show up, march to the front of the church, handcuff the minister and drag him out of the building. He is arrested and jailed for violating laws against "hate speech."It sounds like one of those cheesy doomsday movies they used to show to church youth groups in the 1970s. You know, Big Brother Antichrist sets up his headquarters in the United Nations building and starts stamping his bar code on everyone's forehead. Ridiculous, right?If a controversial law that was passed on May 3 in the U.S. House of Representatives is adopted by the Senate, the outlandish film plot could become a reality right here in the good ol' U.S.A. It looks as if Big Brother is alive and well and working in Congress.The Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007, or HR 1592 for short, was passed on the National Day of Prayer on May 3?at the same time Christians were asking God to forgive us for our national sins.Andrea Lafferty of the Traditional Values Coalition called the ironic timing "a slap in the face" to God-fearing people.Harry Jackson, a pastor from Washington, D.C., who directs the High Impact Leadership Coaltion, says HR 1592 is no more than "a surreptitious attempt by some in Congress to strip the nation of religious freedom and the ability to preach the gospel from our church pulpits."Some people will say Christians are overreacting. After all, hate crimes happen. People have been attacked and even killed because of their race?or because they were gay. But conservative lawmakers have pointed out that we already have tough laws on the books to punish hate crimes. What's new about this sweeping legislation is that it places gay people in a protected category and could lead to regulating speech that might be linked to a hate crime.
Here are the facts about this dangerous bill:
* The legislation creates two federally recognized minority groups that are vaguely defined by "sexual orientation" and "gender identity." That means homosexuals and transgendered people get special protection?not only from violence but also from "hate speech."
* If a violent crime against a homosexual or transgendered person can be traced back to "hate speech," including, I suppose, a radio message from James Dobson or an article they read in Charisma magazine, then the offending preacher, publisher or columnist could be found liable.
* If you take all of this to its insane conclusion, a Christian ministry that offers compassionate prayer for the healing of homosexuality could be accused of "hate"?since the ministry maintains in its literature and seminars that homosexuality is an unhealthy behavior.
Will police begin dragging preachers out of their pulpits for quoting a Bible verse?It sounds preposterous?but given the current spiritual climate in Washington, I wouldn't assume that America's time-honored freedoms of speech and religion are safe.We should recall the case of Ake Green, a Pentecostal pastor who went to jail for a month because he described homosexuality as a "cancerous growth in the body of society" during a 2003 sermon he preached in his modern, sophisticated, enlightened nation of Sweden.In July of that year Green preached on sexual immorality to some 50 members of his small-town Borgholm Pentecostal Church, then subsequently published the sermon in the local newspaper. He was later charged with hate speech against homosexuals and sentenced to jail. He was finally acquitted of the crime after two years of litigation, but socialist leaders in Sweden's government made it clear that Christian views on morality are not welcome.In fact, Morgan Johansson, Sweden's Minister of Public Health, recently declared in a public debate in Gothenburg that Christians are welcome in Swedish politics?but only as long as "they do not quote the Bible."Who is guilty of the real hate crime here?It appears that gay activists,European socialists and now U.S. lawmakers think they have the right to promote legislation that could unleash a wave of harassment,intimidation and religious censorship on people of faith.Thankfully,we have a president who has pledged to veto this bill.He needs our prayers as he makes another courageous but unpopular decision.
(J. Lee Grady is editor of Charisma. A Senate version of HR 1592, called S 1105, will be coming up for a vote soon).
http://www.faithnews.cc/articles.cfm?sid=7945
As in the days of Noah...