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Tuesday, April 24, 2018

Bible Banning Despite 1st Amendment


John R. Houk
© April 24, 2018

I have been seeing Social Media posts claiming California has legislation in the works to ban the Bible. I chalked the information up to Fake News or maybe – cough – Russian bots trying to rile up Conservative Values supporters.

After all, how in the world can secularist and/or atheist Lefties believe they can get away with such a huge violation of the First Amendment, RIGHT?

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. (U.S. Constitution - Amendment 1; USConstitution.net)

Ever heard of the book Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury? The book is one of my favorites from my Sci-Fi teen reading days. It should be bought and become required reading for every household to understand the power of State totalitarianism. The book is classic with a 1966 movie based on it AND HBO is coming out with a modern version I believe sometime in May 2018. Here is a less than a minute trailer:


Posted by HBO
Published on Jan 11, 2018

HBO Films presents Fahrenheit 451. In a terrifying care-free future, a young man, Guy Montag, whose job as a fireman is to burn all books, questions his actions after meeting a young girl...and begins to rebel against society. Starring Michael B. Jordan, and Michael Shannon. Coming Soon. READ THE REST

Perhaps the Leftist legislators will ban Fahrenheit 451 along with the Bible to make sure their citizens remain ignorant of political totalitarianism.

Before you pooh-pooh the idea of the California State legislators banning books, here is the Assembly Bill No. 2943 California Legislative Information published 03/23/2018 09:00 PM.

The Bill no where mentions the Bible or the morality of the Christian Faith. However, using commercial practices as a pretext AB 2943 declares all things associated with the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) lifestyle is a part of the natural order of existence. Thus, the law prohibits any action to change the LGBTQ lifestyle as illegal. I was going to cross post the entirety of AB 2943, then I realized after copying the Act to a separate Word Document that consumed 18 pages, the reading would be a bit mundane. Here is a relevant excerpt affecting Freedom:

AB 2943, as amended, Low. Unlawful business practices: sexual orientation change efforts.


This bill would include, as an unlawful practice prohibited under the Consumer Legal Remedies Act, advertising, offering to engage in, or engaging in sexual orientation change efforts with an individual. The bill would also declare the intent of the Legislature in this regard.


SECTION 1.

The Legislature finds and declares the following:

(a) Contemporary science recognizes that being lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender is part of the natural spectrum of human identity and is not a disease, disorder, or illness.

(b) The American Psychological Association convened the Task Force on Appropriate Therapeutic Responses to Sexual Orientation. The task force conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed journal literature on sexual orientation change efforts and issued a report in 2009. The task force concluded that sexual orientation change efforts can pose critical health risks to lesbian, gay, and bisexual people, including confusion, depression, guilt, helplessness, hopelessness, shame, social withdrawal, suicidality, substance abuse, stress, disappointment, self-blame, decreased self-esteem and authenticity to others, increased self-hatred, hostility and blame toward parents, feelings of anger and betrayal, loss of friends and potential romantic partners, problems in sexual and emotional intimacy, sexual dysfunction, high-risk sexual behaviors, a feeling of being dehumanized and untrue to self, a loss of faith, and a sense of having wasted time and resources.

AB 2943 goes on as pertaining to the LGBTQ lifestyle, to verify LGBTQ morality protections and villainize (perhaps illegalize) Biblical Values by using numerous Leftist social organizations declaring homosexual choice as normal. You can muddle through the entire Bill to read what I mean. Just to be clear, there are some good consumer protections in the Bill pertaining to commerce. The good is heavily obscured though by the intent to make it easy to sue distributors of Christian materials – which would include the Bible – that homosexuality is natural rather an unnatural abomination as stated by the Creator of all that exists.

When the Leftist legislators cite all these Leftist organization that embrace the fundamental transformation of America, they don’t include the kind of people that were in charge of their reports and findings. Here are some details they conveniently left out:

This article first appeared in the CHRISTIAN RESEARCH JOURNAL, volume 38, number 01 (2015). The full text of this article in PDF format can be obtained by clicking here. 

SYNOPSIS

“Reparative therapy,” “conversion therapy,” and “sexual orientation change efforts” (SOCE) are terms used to describe any efforts to redirect homosexual tendencies toward heterosexual behavior. These processes are strongly opposed by organizations such as the American Psychiatric Association and other counseling groups. The opposition to SOCE approaches is based on three assumptions these groups make. (1) Homosexuality is today considered a normal variant of sexual behavior and not a mental illness. (2) There are no good data to indicate that SOCE approaches have been successful. (3) Traditional religious prohibitions about homosexual behavior are outmoded and need to be revised to be in accordance with modern science. Proponents of SOCE argue that there have been many successes in changing homosexual behavior and desires in a number of individuals. [Bold text by Blog Editor]

Professional groups argue that there are no good peer- reviewed studies, but also prohibit their members from being involved in these studies. Policy statements attacking these treatments are not written by an unbiased group; one major statement was written by a team that (with one exception) were all homosexual or bisexual, with all members of the team being well-known homosexual activists.  …


A 2009 report issued by the American Psychological Association8 restated the organization’s opposition to SOCE efforts and left the impression that this was an impartial and unbiased report. The truth is far different: of the seven members on the task force, five were openly homosexual, one was bisexual, and all seven were active in the “gay rights” movement.9 The composition of the group created an obvious and overwhelming bias toward a homosexual-friendly report. Appropriate Therapeutic Responses dismisses any religious considerations, looks only at peer-reviewed literature that supports their position, and recommends only therapy that encourages acceptance of homosexual behavior.

READ ENTIRETY (Sexual Orientation Change Efforts: What’s Being Repaired? By Donald F. Calbreath; Christian Research Institute; 7/20/16)

I don’t care how many Humanist arbiters of reconstructed normal there are, the Final Arbiter is God Almighty – The Creator of all existence.

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This is NOT FAKE NEWS: California Pushing Bill to Ban Sale of Bibles (Video)


APRIL 20, 2018


Not only are California legislators pushing the bill to ban the sale of Bibles, they are also targeting any Christian books which speak against homosexuality and how to overcome the urges of that lifestyle.

From 1.cbn.com

One Step Closer to Law: Could a California Bill Ultimately Lead to the Banning of Bibles?


Published on Apr 20, 2018

California bill would criminalize the sale of Bibles and material considered to be offensive to the homosexual community.

A pro-LGBTQ bill is quickly making its way through the California state assembly after it was approved on the floor Thursday. The bill now goes to the state Senate for a vote.

If passed, Assembly Bill 2943 could ultimately threaten free speech and freedom of religion for Christians.

It uses the state’s consumer fraud statute to restrict religious freedom and free speech when it comes to issues of homosexuality and gender identity.

This means the bill would make it illegal to distribute resources, sell books, offer counseling services, or direct someone to a biblically based model for getting help with gender confusion and homosexuality.

Randy Thomasson with SaveCalifornia.com says the bill is very broad and could affect just about anything helping people overcome same-sex desires.

“So, this is a pastor speaking, you pay a ticket to hear him speak. He speaks about overcoming same-sex desires. Hey, that could be outlawed. A church sells a book about overcoming same-sex desires. There’s a sale, there’s a transaction, that could be banned,” Thomasson said.

“This is very expansive, very tyrannical and absolutely squashing free speech, religious freedom and basic choice of people. This is an anti-freedom, anti-American bill,” Thomasson told CBN News.

Essentially, churches and Christian schools that share biblical teaching on the subject would be open to a lawsuit.

CBN News asked Thomasson if this bill could eventually lead to a ban on Bibles or even books from other faiths like the Koran.

“Well, you could see this law going into effect. A church bookstore selling the Bible, of course, selling a book about marriage or sexual purity or overcoming homosexuality or overcoming trans-sexuality. You could see a member of the public or even a member of the state government coming and saying, ‘Hey, that’s illegal,'” Thomasson answered.

“Even the Muslim community should be against this, too, because of what is said about sexual perversity in the Koran,” Thomasson also said.

If AB 2943 clears California’s Senate and is signed into law, it would negatively impact Christian counselors, bookstores, church conferences, as well as medical and health professionals.

The bill also seeks to ban biblically based counseling for those wanting to get help.

It comes six years after California deemed it illegal for minors to receive counseling for same-sex attraction, even if they and their parents wanted help. Now, this bill would also address adults.

“AB 2943 would start by saying, ok, nobody can get counseling to overcome same-sex desires… ok, so no help for adult children, adults who were molested as kids and now they are adults and they say I want help to overcome these feelings. No help for you,” Thomasson explained.

The bill states that “contemporary science recognizes that being lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender is part of the natural spectrum of human identity and is not a disease, disorder, or illness.”

Mat Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel, told CBN News that what makes this bill especially dangerous is that California often leads the charge in pushing the LGBTQ legislative agenda.

California was one of the first states to ban “conversion therapy” for minors. Shortly afterward, Oregon, New Jersey, and Vermont passed similar laws.

“People have the right to seek the counsel of their choice, but this bill substitutes the government for personal choice. The implications are staggering, and the result is harmful,” Staver said in a statement to CBN News. – source

So, will they ban the Qur’an as well??

Come Lord Jesus!
MARANATHA!
__________________________
Bible Banning Despite 1st Amendment
John R. Houk
© April 24, 2018
___________________________
This is NOT FAKE NEWS: California Pushing Bill to Ban Sale of Bibles (Video)

About Absolute Truth from the Word of God

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MD USA

Bio: I am a Jewish Christian who was born-again in 1983. Yeshua is my life. Writing about Him is my passion. My subject matter varies. Sometimes I write on Bible Prophecy. Other times on apostasy in the church. And often times I address the political climate of our country and our world. My greatest love is writing about my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I pray that some of my articles will fall in the hands of my Jewish people. If you would like to bless us with a gift, please send to: Geri Ungurean P.O. Box 1031 Savage, MD 20763 Your generosity is most appreciated! Shalom


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