FIC Blog

This year, Ḥanukah begins the night before Thanksgiving, an unusual occurrence. Typically, Ḥanukah begins in December; all too often it is treated by the larger culture as “the Jewish Christmas,” with all of the commercialized trappings at shopping malls this season. The problem is that the real meaning of Ḥanukah is diametrically opposed to what secular American culture has turned it into.

The Ḥanukah story begins with Alexander the Great’s conquest of the Near East, spreading Greek culture across what had been the Persian Achaemenid Empire, stretching from Greece and Egypt in the west to present-day Uzbekistan and Pakistan in the east.  This region was later divided into several competing empires that continued to spread Greek culture throughout the region.  At first, the Land of Israel fell under the rule of the Ptolemaic Empire based in Egypt, changing hands several times before coming under the control of the Seleucid Empire, which controlled present-day Syria, Iraq, Iran, and part of Turkey.  It was during this period that the Torah was translated into Greek, known as the Septuagint.

We tend to think of Ancient Greece as the cradle of civilization, spreading science, art, and culture across the ancient world.  While this is certainly part of the story, there was a darker side to Hellenistic Greek civilization.  Hellenistic (and later, Roman) culture allowed for the exposing of unwanted newborn children, including girls and those with disabilities, to be pecked at by vultures.  Hellenistic culture often elevated pederasty, relations between adult men and teenage boys, to a higher level than marriage. Hellenists idolized the physical body, with nudity a central feature of both the public bathhouse and gymnasium. And being a nudity-centered culture, perhaps no other civilization idolized the male foreskin and condemned circumcision as much as the Hellenists (and their Roman successors).

This set up a cultural conflict between Judaism and Hellenism.  Many Jews voluntarily assimilated into Hellenistic culture to varying degrees, adopted Greek names, did business in nude bathhouses, participated in gymnasia, worshipped Greek deities, and even attempted to undo their circumcisions in an operation known as epispasm.  Around 173 BCE, these Jewish Hellenists (mityavnim) gained power in Jerusalem.  The more militant Jewish Hellenists, led by the High Priest Menelaus, allied themselves with the Seleucid emperor, Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and together persecuted Jews who kept to Jewish tradition.

Antiochus issued decrees in an attempt to compel Hellenization and wipe out Judaism.  He forbade on pain of death observance of the Sabbath, of Rosh Ḥodesh (the first day of each month, which determines the Jewish calendar and holidays), Torah study, and circumcision.  He also ordered that pigs be sacrificed in the Beit ha-Mikdash (Holy Temple) in Jerusalem, which he re-dedicated to Zeus instead, and mandated that everyone worship the Greek deities or be executed.  Many Jews were martyred for refusing to commit idolatry or keeping mitzvot, including circumcising their sons and not eating pig meat.

The Maccabean revolt began in 167 BCE in Modi’in, northwest of Jerusalem, when a Seleucid official attempted to force Matityahu, a kohen (Jewish priest), to offer a pagan pig sacrifice.  When Matityahu refused, a Jewish Hellenist willingly came forward to offer the pig.  Matityahu then slayed both the Seleucid official and the man who was about to offer the pig, turned to the assembled crowd and announced, “Follow me, all of you who are for G-d’s law and stand by the covenant.” (1 Maccabees 2:27)

To make a long story short, Matityahu and his five sons fled to the Judean hills and organized a successful guerilla war against the mighty Seleucid Empire.  In late 165 BCE, the Beit ha-Mikdash was liberated and, according to the Talmud (Shabbat 21b), the Maccabees found just one flask of oil for the menorah, which should have lasted a single day, yet a miracle happened and it lasted eight days.  This miracle represents the spiritual victory over forced Hellenization.

It would be years before the Maccabees finally defeated the Seleucid Empire and obtained a measure of peace.  The Hasmonean dynasty would themselves become Hellenized, eventually leading to their downfall at the hands of the Roman Empire a century later.  Yet the victory over forced Hellenization endures to this day.  The Maccabean revolt is the first recorded example in human history of a minority successfully fighting against an intolerant majority culture determined to wipe out their religious practices and compel assimilation.  Had the Maccabees not succeeded, the monotheistic idea would have been extinguished, and the religious history of the world would have been vastly different.

The increasing secularization of America—and even more so, Europe—is making contemporary civilization resemble the Hellenistic societies of 2200 years ago. While we achieve ever more progress in science and technology, our moral values are increasingly resembling Hellenistic ideology. They had a religiously syncretistic society where people were expected to worship others’ deities; we have a society where children are told that mommy is of one religion, daddy is another, and you can be some of both. They practiced infanticide to dispose of unwanted babies; we use abortion to the same ends. They practiced pederasty; we may reject relations between adults and teenagers but practice something even the Greeks could not fathom, namely same-sex marriage. They pranced around naked in public; we see similar behavior today at a pride parades. They wound up persecuting people whose religious practices dissented from their polytheistic and body-centered culture; we are now doing the same with the Obamacare HHS contraceptive mandate.

And perhaps most dramatically, the Hellenists of yore were militant “intactivists” who attacked the biblical commandment of circumcision as “genital mutilation” and sought to eradicate it.  They are back with the same old antisemitic arguments from 22 centuries ago, with a certain number of self-hating assimilated Jews once again leading the charge to ban the mitzvah (examples here and here).  Intactivists have taken center stage in many pride parades across the United States and Canada, marching under banners that say “Foreskin Pride,” and “His Penis, His Choice.”  Some parade the body part in question naked at these pride parades, while others parade in male genital costumes or white suits with immodest blood stains in the crotch area.  Others organize naked bike rides through heavily Orthodox Jewish neighborhoods.  And many promote “foreskin restoration,” just like the Hellenists.

From draconian legislation in Massachusetts proposing 14-year prison terms for both parents and mohelim, to a ban on the ballot in San Francisco, to numerous measures across Europe, the danger of the intactivist movement to religious liberty—and not just Jews and Muslims—should be self-evident.  And one week before Ḥanukah, they came to Hartford and other northeastern state capitals to promote the criminalization of brit milah.  And like 2200 years ago, they will not go unchallenged.  Together, we will stand up against this evil.

This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your seed after you: every male among you shall be circumcised. And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of a covenant between Me and you. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every male throughout your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any foreigner, that is not of your seed… And the uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.  —Genesis 17:10-12, 14

Happy Ḥanukah!

Trinity College in Hartford is the third most expensive private school in the country: an education here carries a nearly $50,000-a-year price tag. For that kind of money, parents of prospective students could probably be forgiven for thinking that a school founded in the 1800s by an Episcopal bishop, with an official motto “For Church and Country” and a study abroad campus in Rome in close proximity to a convent, of all places, might be at least marginally preferable to any number of purely secular institutions. That appears not to be the case. In the past week, the school has hosted its 15th annual (really! Fifteen years!) LGBT film festival, as well as contraception crusader Sandra Fluke.

LGBT film festival

The film festival, titled “EROS (Encouraging Respect Of all Sexualities)” and scheduled to precede the “National Transgender Day of Remembrance” on Nov. 20, received a full-page feature in the Hartford Courant. My earlier post for FIC Blog was written to bring more exposure to the arts as a hot battleground in the culture wars, arguably hotter even than politics, and I intend to keep shining light into this sometimes-neglected corner.

It is extremely curious to me that of all the Greek words for love – options including agape, which is often used to describe an ideal, sacrificial, Christ-like love, or philia for affectionate, virtuous friendship – someone chose eros, which usually though not always has a sensual connotation and has the most tenuous connection to logic. How often are we lectured that the LGBT movement is not all about sex, and that is just our prurient obsession? What an odd choice. We didn’t tell them to do that. Note to festival organizers: you aren’t really helping your cause there.

The Courant included some insight from director Marta Cunningham on the motivation behind her documentary “Valentine Road,” about the 2008 slaying of 15-year-old Larry King by a classmate who perceived King as hitting on him. Says Cunningham:

“It was shocking to me, the level of apathy and indifference. It was just kind of local news.”

Where have we heard this before? Oh, yes. I look forward to Cunningham’s next film on the Kermit Gosnell trial. Moving along, though, the Courant’s description of the film continues:

“The movie delves into not just the characters…but also both of their family lives. Both boys’ mothers were habitual drug users. King moved from an adoptive home to a group home. [Brandon] McInerney was the focus of custody battles between his parents, who both had histories of violence.”

I haven’t seen the film, so what follows is speculation, but not of an unreasonable kind. Both boys clearly had a dysfunctional upbringing. I am sure it is not a controversial suggestion that a child who learned violence at home would turn to violence as a solution to discomfort and teasing. Would it be controversial to suggest that maybe the traumatic family life that so scarred Brandon McInerney was also at least partly responsible for Larry King’s coming out at the tender age of 10, before most children even experience puberty? Is the film brave enough to go there, or does it stubbornly tow the party line that the very idea is bigoted and intolerant and therefore anathema? Who wants to bet life or money on it? Crystal Nieves, Trinity’s “Queer Resource Center” coordinator, says,

“Our youth need love stories and stories of growth and personal triumph just like everyone else. It is incredibly isolating and debilitating to the development of young LGBTQ people to not have stories in their lives and characters who are like them and share their experiences.”

Nieves might be a little surprised to know that I agree: all young people need heroes, especially those with intense personal struggles. That’s not a luxury. The problem is if these heroes are all pigeonholed into essentially the same vogue, politically correct narrative. What are the chances that youth will be exposed to people like Joseph Prever, a.k.a. “Steve Gershom,”  who are attempting to live a heroically Christian life, as opposed to active dissenters trying to remake Christianity in their own image? Anyone else want to hazard a guess?

Now we get to the most alarming part of the article. “Nieves said she hopes the festival will be able to coordinate with area high schools to bring youths to screenings,” where they will be admitted for free. She laments that most movies of this kind are rated R or, if made for TV, shown late at night (wonder why!). It is not unheard of for such collusion to be done deliberately under parental radar. If you are a parent of a local high school student and believe that your child was shown one of these films without your prior knowledge or permission, or a student who was made to participate against your will, FIC is interested in hearing from you.

Sandra Fluke applauds Blumenthal

The young Empress of Entitlement whose fifteen minutes are beginning to feel more like fifteen hours was at Trinity on Nov. 14, where she stumped for Richard Blumenthal’s deceptively-named “Women’s Health Protection Act of 2013” in front of a reported crowd of 100. Capitol Watch reports:

“Fluke pointed to recently-enacted restrictive laws over women’s health in Texas and Wisconsin and said that some places still “insist on taking the progress women and men have both made and moving it backward.”

Nevermind that the HHS mandate is as sexist as it gets, placing the entire burden of “free” contraception on women, covering nothing for men, but it seems that Fluke’s concept of progress embraces surgery using rust-covered implements and pills dispensed from unmarked containers. I’m sure empowered women everywhere will line right up to contract tetanus and STDs or to have a life-threatening overdose. How does one fix such deep disregard for women and utter lack of common sense? I don’t think it can be fixed, and I would argue it has everything to do with the savage butchery that Wendy Davis and Planned Parenthood fight so hard to protect. When a “medical professional” can dismember a five-month-old preborn baby, it stands to reason that cleanliness and order might not be a huge priority.

Unsurprisingly, Fluke is also on board with the LBGT movement. There is plainly a connection between the causes célèbre of the political left, to those who have eyes to see and ears to hear.

I have a heart, not a stone one but a real, beating, fleshy one, so I bear no ill will toward Miss Fluke. However, I do wish she’d take a cue from a very sharp woman in the legal field, professor Helen Alvaré.  I look forward (cough, cough) to her invitation to speak at Trinity, which I assume I haven’t missed.

Stop “Intactivists” from criminalizing male circumcision, including Jewish brit milah

Family Institute of Connecticut Action fights for the religious liberty of all of Connecticut’s citizens, not just Christians. We will be responding to an attack on the religious freedom of Connecticut’s Jewish community tomorrow. Although it is short notice, we invite as many FIC members as possible to join us.

Opponents of circumcision (also known as “intactivists”) will be rallying near the Capitol on Tuesday, November 19. These groups include Intact Connecticut and Bloodstained Men. Intactivists have been promoting draconian legislation criminalizing all male circumcision, including religious circumcisions. One bill in Massachusetts, which would have sentenced both parents and mohelim to 14-year prison terms, received a public hearing as the “Massachusetts State Prohibition of Genital Mutilation Act.” In San Francisco, intactivists were able to petition to get a ban on the city ballot before the state pre-empted them with its own legislation. These proposals explicitly forbade any religious exemption. The Massachusetts legislation had the following clause:

… no account shall be taken of the effect on the person on whom the operation is to be performed of any belief on the part of that or any other person that the operation is required as a matter of custom or ritual.

We are organizing a counter protest to stop this grave menace to religious liberty before it takes hold in Connecticut. Although time is short, we ask you to join us:

Date: Tuesday, November 19
Time: 10:00 (The “intactivists” plan to remain until 3:00 in their white suits with immodest blood stains. FIC will be there for the first hour, 10 am, or however long people can stay.)
Place: Intersection of Capitol Avenue and Lafayette Street, Hartford, near the state Supreme Court building opposite the Capitol

The Family Institute of Connecticut Action has learned from a reputable source that Connecticut’s senior senator, Richard Blumenthal, will join others to introduce a bill in Congress to federally override the intent of democratically elected officials in far off states like Wisconsin and Texas. To take away the right of a citizenry to govern themselves, especially over something as basic as “reproductive rights” – the states must be passing real doozies of abortion laws.

Let’s take a look . . .

Texas has passed a law preventing abortions after 20 weeks – the point at which neurobiologists, scientists and surgeons
agree an unborn baby can feel and react to pain (for the comfort of our pro-abortion readers. . . you may substitute with the word “fetus”). Whoa, ho, ho . . slow down there Texans! You may ban the torture of animals being de-limbed alive, but that procedure on humans is, as Blumenthal’s pal Nancy Pelosi would say . . . “sacred”.

In Colorado, Heather Surovik is leading a ballot-measure to have her 38 week son who was killed by a drunk driver, recognized as a person in that state:

“Brady was eight pounds, two ounces – he was a person! And Planned Parenthood and the media are trying to take the focus off of Brady, to ignore him to push their own agendas. Let me be clear: this amendment is about Brady, and his life, and justice for women who have suffered the tragedy that I have suffered. “

Crazy. Town.

Of course, reasonable people know that laws like these are common sense measures that moderate extreme and permissive abortion regimes.

No doubt, different regions of the country handle the sensitive issue of abortion differently.  For example, in Connecticut, a teen can have an abortion but can’t enter a tanning both without her parents knowing.  Ahem, gulp.

But to the voters of Texas, Colorado, New Mexico and numerous other states, whom our dear Senator must think very small and ignorant, his response is “can’t have that” and proposes to expunge their state laws. Extreme, indeed.

No doubt Senator Blumenthal is simply obeying his masters at NARAL and Planned Parenthood, I mean . .  . you do not earn a 100% rating from such organizations unless you really “work it”.   But we wonder what other important federal and state matters go untended as Senator Blumenthal continues his “me too” politicking in Washington DC.

Others may wish the Senator to direct his attention to immigration, insurance, defense, veteran affairs, Medicare and other important issues for Connecticut; but our Senator has a sweet tooth for abortion, so we humbly ask his support for the enforcement and enhancement of laws that prohibit the transportation of minors across state borders to procure abortions.  You see . . . Connecticut (his home state) has a problem.  Our lack of parental consent laws have made us an obvious haven for out-of-state minors seeking abortions with their over-age escorts.  A terrifying prospect for many New England parents and their children.  But we won’t be sitting by the phone.  Instead we’ll pray for conversions of heart, continue to work the democratic process, and wonder if senators in other far off states will look at CT laws and in turn, question their reasonableness.

Do you want to do more?  Contact Senators Blumenthal and Murphy and ask them to support a vote on the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act introduced by Senator Lindsey Graham and co-signed by at least 36 other senators.  A similar version has already passed in the House.

My living room has seen a great deal of political activity in the last 4 and half years.  The tea party has plotted and planned and vetted and organized from my couches and chairs.  Yes, vetted.  Politicians have made their way through my little condo, facing the firing line of tea party activists from every district and far flung corner of Connecticut.  A gathering of 40-50 of the most active and influential members of the conservative grassroots movements in Connecticut would always bring the politicians out to seek the support and approval of our so-called irrelevant and fringe group.  And our meeting on March 24, 2012 was no exception.  That was the day former 4th District Congressman Christopher Shays walked through my front door, seeking support of the tea party for his candidacy for Senator.

It was a tough and well-informed crowd.  From the Second Amendment advocates, to the financial hawks to the Family Institute of Connecticut Action, each person came prepared with questions about Congressman Shays’ voting record and stances on issues.  We put him through the ringer, with sharp questions and a deep well of background information.  It wouldn’t be much of a stretch to say we knew more about his positions on issues over the years than he did.  Still, Shays handled the firing squad with dignity and aplomb, deftly answering our questions, eloquently escaping from tight spots, and gracious, most of the time, to his detractors.

I’m sure everyone in the room remembers a particularly heated exchange between an FIC Action representative and Congressman Shays where Shays literally got down on his knees, and with a resonantly shaking voice spoke in passionate opposition to a matter regarding social values.  Their two faces could not have been more than 6 inches apart by the end, so much so that I damn near intervened, contemplating using my position of power as hostess to stop the exchange before it came to blows.  I did not, and it did not, but it was a powerful moment, one where the moderate Shays showed he actually had some vim and vigor to him, and one in which he realized that we aren’t the uninformed dumb hicks that the media keeps telling people we are.

A mutual understanding was born.  It was at this moment we turned away from the past and toward the future.  Shays wanted our support, and frankly, we were looking for someone to support.  Every one of us was willing to compromise a bit on some things.  “I’ll take a half a loaf, as long as it’s a scrappy half a loaf” I told him directly.  We don’t want spineless, gutless, throw money at people and pander to the big government spenders.  The Second Amendment crowd wanted assurances he wouldn’t champion gun bills he knew nothing about (a request that was neither unreasonable nor a fear that was not based on past actions).  The social conservatives wanted social issues left to the states.  That was it.  We neither demanded nor expected lock-step allegiance to our particular causes.  Heck, the people in the room from the tea party movement had differing views on differing issues.  We did not then and never have demanded purity on every issue.  What we demanded then, and still do, is adherence to principle.  If we know where you are coming from, and you have principles, and you agree to actually stick to them, we’ve got the potential for a great relationship.  Shays assured us that while we may not agree on every issue, we agree on our fundamental principles.

The meeting ended with people accepting literature and bumper stickers and placing their emails on his contact list.  And as Shays was enjoying my mother’s curry pasta salad, he wrote on my living room wall.  Yes, my living room wall.  Anyone that has been to my house in the last four years has seen it, and left their mark.  Dozens upon dozens of patriotic sayings, goals and aspirations of our fledgling tea party movement, well wishes from supporters, and even words of encouragement from politicians, are all written on my living room wall.  As Shays was winding down our multi-hour meeting, with a fragile “meet me half-way” understanding in place, he picked up a sharpie, headed to the wall and wrote, “God Bless America and the Tea Party Movement. Christopher Shays 3/24/12.”

Doesn’t sound like we had much trouble seeing eye to eye on things, does it?  So the next time Shays pops his head up from his foxhole to criticize us grassroots activists, remember this: not only were we willing to compromise, we reached out to him, we extended the hand of friendship, and he took it.  What happened to Shays’ candidacy had nothing to do with our unwillingness to compromise, but rather his unwillingness to refuse to compromise.  The electorate has changed, you can’t be mealy mouthed and get past us anymore.  We demand people with principles that are unashamed to actually stick by them.

Our friends at St. Ann’s Church in Avon have alerted us to this event which we strongly encourage Family Institute of Connecticut members to attend:

Defenders of Faith Ministry Presents: The Catholic Church in The Public Square November 10, 2013 On Sunday, November 10, 2013, at 2:00 PM, the Church of Saint Ann [289 Arch Street] Defenders of Faith Ministry will host A Forum: The Catholic Church in the Public Square. Presenters will be Jim Vicevich, the Radio Host of Sound Off Connecticut, and Michael Culhane, the Executive Director of the Connecticut Catholic Conference. The Forum will be moderated by Chris Keating, Capitol Bureau Chief of The Hartford Courant. See the insert in this week’s bulletin for more information. Please note that seating is limited. E-mail (saintann4@yahoo.com) or call the church office reserve a seat. A reception will follow the presentation

According to the bulletin insert, there will be a free will offering to benefit the Lupus Foundation (the illness that Jim Vicevich is fighting) and the forum itself “will address issues of religious freedom rights, rights of conscience and first amendment rights.”

This very likely means the HHS Mandate, which is why FIC strongly encourages all of our members to attend this event.

The Health and Human Services (HHS) Mandate forces religious organizations and believers to provide and pay for abortion-inducing drugs, contraceptives and sterilizations in violation of their faith. It is being litigated now, but unless the courts stop it, the rule permitting this outrageous attack on our First Amendment right to religious liberty is going into effect.

Educating the public about the danger posed by the HHS Mandate was the single biggest project undertaken by FIC in 2012: four rallies, almost forty speeches in dozens of churches, op-eds, media appearances and more. Never before or since has FIC given this much attention to a federal issue.

The reason is that, if we lose this battle, we lose the First Amendment as we have known it. If our First Amendment right to free exercise of our religion means anything, it means the federal government cannot coerce us to pay for and provide abortion-inducing drugs in violation of our consciences.

Another reason we took on this fight is FIC’s storied history in protecting religious liberty in the State of Connecticut. In 2009, FIC helped turn back an outrageous attack by our state government against the freedom of the Catholic Church to manage its own affairs. FIC played a key role in utilizing the backlash from that outrage to pass into law the strongest religious liberty exemptions to same-sex “marriage” in the entire nation.

We were not alone in those fights. Then-Bishop of Bridgeport William Lori learned much about secularist hatred of religious liberty during those battles in Connecticut, insights he now applies to the federal fight against the HHS Mandate as the Archbishop of Baltimore. In 2012, FIC awarded Archbishop Lori the Charles Stetson Award for Pro-Family Courage because of his fortitude in leading the fight for religious liberty on the national stage.

These are just some of the Connecticut connections between recent fights for religious liberty in our home state and the federal fight to save our First Amendment liberties that are threatened by the HHS Mandate. As with the Connecticut attack on the Catholic Church, the HHS Mandate seems to target one particular denomination in a way that is a threat to the religious liberties of all of us, no matter what our beliefs.

That is why we encourage all our members to attend the Jim Vicevich event this Saturday, November 10th at St. Ann’s We hope to see you there.

Family Institute of Connecticut returns to Jesus Fest this Saturday, November 9th, 9 am to 4 pm at the Lifestyles Expo in Tolland:

The JesusFest Pavilion will consist of displays by Christian churches, ministries, schools, businesses and more (similar to the display barns when JesusFest was at the agricultural center). Due to the acoustics of the dome, live Christian music and speakers aren’t feasible, but quieter Christian visual arts, dramatic arts, youth group demonstrations and other Christian activities are planned.

Go to Jesus Fest’s website for more information. Hope to see you there!

Remember the 2010 Enfield graduations battle, when FIC scored a victory for the principle that the First Amendment requires churches be treated equal to other organizations in the public square, only to see the Board of Education goof up their own case?

In a July 20, 2012 email alert to our members FIC noted what we thought was the end of that battle:

Freedom also took a hit in Enfield this week, where the ACLU has bullied the school board into accepting an unfavorable settlement in the lawsuit over holding high school graduations at First Cathedral. “I don’t agree that this is a settlement,” Board of Education member Kevin Fealy told the media. “Deep pockets with nothing to lose have the opportunity to push us into a corner.”

But it turns out that may only be the end of the Enfield phase of the battle.

In our July 1, 2013 email alert, FIC noted:

In 2010, we helped the town of Enfield stand up to the ACLU over their right to hold a graduation in a Baptist church. (The principle we fought for in Enfield may still be upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in a nearly identical case [Doe v. Elmbrook].)

The Court has not yet decided whether to hear Elmbrook. However, there is another case currently before the Supreme Court on public prayer, Greece vs. Galloway. Some experts believe the Court may issue a broad pro-religious freedom ruling in Greece vs. Galloway that would cover the Elmbrook graduation case (therefore vindicating the principle FIC fought for in Enfield).

And this is why our friends at the National Day of Prayer Task Force is issuing a National Prayer Call for tomorrow, Wednesday, November 6th, and asking for your participation in a 1 pm conference call on that day:

Urgent Call to Prayer

Join Shirley Dobson and a panel of special guests as we pray for legislative prayer in America. Asking for God’s blessing on public meetings is a cherished American tradition that began more than 225 years ago. And yet on November 6, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a pivotal case regarding the long-standing constitutional right to have legislative bodies open with a voluntary prayer. The outcome of this case could substantially impact our freedom to pray in this nation.

WHAT’S AT STAKE:

1. The continuation of the public prayer tradition that began with our founding fathers.
2. The freedom of community volunteers to pray according to their faith in a public setting without censorship.
3. The preservation of freedom of speech in the face of one “offended” person’s demands for censorship.
4. The foundational American principle of freedom of religion.

Alliance Defending Freedom and its allies are defending public prayer before the U.S. Supreme Court on November 6. In support, the National Day of Prayer Task Force is issuing a clarion call to prayer and asking you to join with us on this National Prayer Call for the future of America. As part of the prayer call, an attorney with Alliance Defending Freedom will share more about what this case means for our nation and what we can expect.

WHEN: Wednesday, November 6
TIME: 1:00-2:00 p.m. Eastern Time Zone
HOW: Call 712-432-0075 (enter PIN: 4961322#)

Go here to learn more about Town of Greece v. Galloway.

Art is powerful. It has the potential to communicate with us at a subconscious, visceral level. Music was long considered to be an essential component of a well-rounded education, but the visual arts should not be discounted.

If I seem to be preaching to the choir, consider that when school budgets are tight, art and music programs have a tendency to be first on the chopping block, although it has been proven that the benefits of such programs can far exceed the obvious and immediate.

Enter the conservative artist. To choose this professional path is to be lonely. Consider a small sampling of the news that comes my way on a regular basis:

“The biggest change in this new “Company” would be the central character of Bobby. Whereas he has always been a straight man struggling with commitment issues and multiple girlfriends, he has been reconceived by Mr. Tiffany as a gay man with commitment issues and multiple boyfriends.”

And:

“In fact, second violinist Chris Marchant says he has lost track of the number of times the all-male string quartet turned down offers to perform nude during their 2012 summer stint in Provincetown, Mass.”

And:

“While he does not propose an explicit revision of Catholic teaching, his stance that “I am no one to judge” is in itself a significant departure…”

(Sigh. Alex, seriously?)

Now who’s stuck in the closet, desperate to get out?

My field attracts a disproportionately liberal crowd, for reasons I do not fully understand. This is not all bad; it can encompass a range of good, bad, and ugly. At one end, you have that sympathy for the oppressed and resentment of censorship (at least in theory) that leads one to observe that the Stalinist and Taliban regimes kept very tight control over music and musicians. At the other, you have rampant support for abortion, same-sex marriage mimicry, et cetera, all typically undergirded by the fallacy of modernism and strange definitions of progress – which you would think would be hard to maintain while making a living lagely, if not entirely, by playing excellent music of dead European men on technology that has remained essentially intact and barely improved-upon for centuries. For all the merits of new art, the merits of the old stuff are manifest.

With all this in mind, it still felt incredibly awkward to walk into a venue and see this:

The title of art is not illegitimate given the skill involved, but let’s call this what it is, based on the evident purpose: propaganda. Note the “choice” buzz language. At the bottom right are the words “Make clinics teen-friendly.” At the bottom left are what Bob Ross, may he rest in peace, might have called “happy little condoms” in candy pastel colors (how old are these ‘teens’ again?). And, while I am not one to glamorize or glorify teen pregnancy, I cannot help but notice that the words with negative connotations are exclusively on the side of the pregnant girl, while the positive words are exclusively on the side of the non-pregnant one. Take a look at the street signs and which way they are pointing.

While I was a little surprised by the audacity of the painting and its prominent display location, I can’t say I am surprised in general. Charter Oak Cultural Center also ran a photo exhibit on the theme of transgendered, homeless teenagers. I’ve seen the exhibit. The photos themselves are low-key. You know what they look like? People. People who are deserving of compassion and a place to call home. I get that. If that’s the point, then God bless the artist for pricking our collective conscience, as artists are always in a unique position to do. But, as usual, that isn’t the half of it. Here’s the line from the article wherein the train goes off the rails:

“There would be a tremendous benefit to society at large if we could expand the notion of what it means to be a man or a woman and move away from a binary expression of gender.”

Sorry if I don’t agree that what will really help these young people is somebody using their plight to advance trendy pseudoscience, as though the rest of us will just forget that persistent nuisance called reality. I happen to think that the pernicious ideology that would virtually obliterate sex differences would be incredibly destructive to them and to society at large. I would seem to be in good company with Dr. Paul McHugh of Johns Hopkins University. Commenting on the decision to stop ‘treatment’ by sex change operations, he said, “I concluded that Hopkins was fundamentally cooperating with a mental illness.”

In the exterior lobby of Charter Oak, there is a poster thanking donors to the Greater Hartford Arts Council. Because the GHAC receives financial support from the city of Hartford, which is listed in its Form 990 as a major contributor, it is probable that this and other projects are at least partially funded with tax dollars. Complaining is one option, but it can be difficult for conservatives within the field to merely complain because of the feeling that, somewhere along the line, we could unintentionally be shooting ourselves, our friends, and everyone else in the foot. That is quite a burden of guilt. We must increase our positive contributions to American culture and find ways to get around any establishment stonewalling we might encounter. I certainly haven’t got it all figured out and am open to ideas. For now, the most important advice I can offer to conservative artists is this: find each other and stick together. Also, go out on a limb — enter those competitions and shows. Take first steps toward that project idea you have nursed in the secrecy of your heart. Look for opportunities to grow and improve. To the conservative public, my advice is this: if you’re not already, be our patrons and champions to the extent you are able. Show us you understand and value our role in society, and we’ll never forget it.

From our friend Chris O’Brien, Connecticut Right to Life’s Vice-President for Legislative Affairs:

Every year conservatives are told that Connecticut voters are not conservative. They say that voters here are pro-choice, liberal, and support the current regimes in office. As a result, we have constantly had candidate after candidate trotted before us in the polls that do not express our views- and Lose.
Well, if these candidates don’t seem to be able to win with their “moderate” to “moderate-liberal” views, then do they really know who THEY are appealing to?

Are there really few pro-life Republicans in Connecticut? Is gun control favored by most residents? What about parental notification of abortion, homosexual education in our schools and other recent trends?

Do all Connecticut residents in urban areas think alike? Or are there more conservative Democrats than we think?

I’m asking for your help to conduct an exit- poll this election day.
We’ll have dozens of volunteers around Connecticut – in small towns and large cities – asking voters to fill out the brief survey. It will ask a broad range of questions, but focus on conservative topics. We will reduce as much bias as possible and the survey will be brief enough to fill out in approximately one minute.

You will not be campaigning. You will not be asking for votes or distributing information. Just asking voters for their input – AFTER they vote. You will collect the response on the spot.

The results will help us educate candidates and also inform us what kind of educational goals we should establish in the next year. I’m looking for volunteers to carry this out, as well as others you know who can assist with this project. Please contact me directly to ask for more information.

– Chris O’Brien
203-558-5817