Christians Stand-Up with the Manhattan Declaration

John R. Houk
© December 1, 2009

If you are a Believer in Biblical Morality as opposed to the moral relativism touted as the moral compass of Secular Humanism in America then you are in for a treat of knowledge.

A group of 140 signatories ranging across evangelicals, Roman Catholics and Orthodox Churches in America have become fed up with Leftists of the Democratic Party, RINO’s, MSM, the Hollywood pattern (which includes television), the homosexual agenda and anyone I missed encompassing the Secular Humanist agenda.

These 140 signatories have produced a document which could be deemed a manifesto for American Christians. It is called the Manhattan Declaration.

The essence of the Manhattan Declaration can be found in these words on its home page:

A Call of Christian Conscience

Christians, when they have lived up to the highest ideals of their faith, have defended the weak and vulnerable and worked tirelessly to protect and strengthen vital institutions of civil society, beginning with the family.

We are Orthodox, Catholic, and evangelical Christians who have united at this hour to reaffirm fundamental truths about justice and the common good, and to call upon our fellow citizens, believers and non-believers alike, to join us in defending them. These truths are:

1. the sanctity of human life

2. the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife

3. the rights of conscience and religious liberty.

Inasmuch as these truths are foundational to human dignity and the well-being of society, they are inviolable and non-negotiable. Because they are increasingly under assault from powerful forces in our culture, we are compelled today to speak out forcefully in their defense, and to commit ourselves to honoring them fully no matter what pressures are brought upon us and our institutions to abandon or compromise them. We make this commitment not as partisans of any political group but as followers of Jesus Christ, the crucified and risen Lord, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Friend there is a war on Christianity. Because the Leftists have successfully enticed the Supreme Court over the years to provide an incorrect interpretation of the FIRST Amendment to the Constitution, the Left has made America’s Christian foundation for the rule of law a bull’s eye for target practice. America’s reluctance to mix any kind of faith within government has led the government to the ability of extracting Christian Moral principles from our public thought processes.

Let’s face it. When State ordained prayer was forcefully removed from schools most of stalwart Christians in the back of their American mind-set were not repulsed. The First Amendment was designed not to institutionalize a particular Church as the established Church of the Land on the Federal, State or local level. Unfortunately that toe in the door of Pandora’s Box was the beginning of forbidding of anything Christian in public and NOT just our schools.

God have mercy if a graduating public High School Valedictorian wishes to share how her faith in Jesus Christ made a successful person with the best GPA in her class.

God forbid a football coach praying with his team before a game. My GOD! Even if that prayer was forced to be a moment of silence.

God forbid that Christians become upset that public funds go to support overtly religious Muslim public schools even though a Christian or two may wish to embellish in a Christian play or school supported campus Christian club.

God forbid that the Ten Commandments have been forcefully removed from many States or County Court Houses because that might be endorsing a religion when it is actually the symbol of awesome moral principles.

God forbid that cities across America may remove nativity scenes because they don’t have the monetary resources to take on the taxpayer supported ACLU in its agenda of stamping out all things Christian.

God forbid that a Christian or Christian Minister in America is on the cusp of being treated like Canadian and European Christians taking a public stand against ungodly homosexuality.

God have mercy on a Christian, Jew or knowledgeable non-religious person who publicizes how contradictory the principles of Mohammedanism with Judeo-Christian principles as well as America’s Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness embodied in our founding documents which includes the U. S. Constitution.

God forbid a Christian abhors the practice of baby murdering (aka infanticide and abortion) as the primary means of birth control in America. Does “You shall not Murder” sound familiar?

When a Christian gets to the anti-abortion issue, the typical Leftist makes the attempt to obfuscate reality. The Leftist loves to tell of the baby that is confirmed will born as a special needs child. Or perhaps the baby is the product of a horrible gruesome rape. Or perhaps a baby will come into the world of a young pregnant teen that has her future ruined if she takes responsibility for consensual sex or worse was brainwashed and molested into sex at barely emerging teen years. There is also the Leftist accusation of hypocrisy when a rabid pro-lifer becomes as evil as an abortionist by taking the life of the baby killer. Frankly it is a rare time a Leftist and I agree. Rendering evil for evil is NOT a Christian principle.

But let us face reality. When the Leftist tries to blur an acceptance of abortion with other moral issues that is the height of hypocrisy. A whopping majority of women get abortions for the mere purpose of birth control. The Left has so propagandized our society that a woman’s right to manage their body is greater than a separate life growing within a womb which more often than not is there because female hormones for a sex drive was just as strong as a male’s.

Here is Bill O’Reilly taking notice of the Manhattan Declaration.

With polls showing that more than 80 percent of Americans believe in G0d, the question now becomes: Will they rally behind The Manhattan Declaration? So far, the secular media have given it little attention, and that might well continue. But even if the manifesto gets a full airing, are people of faith as upset as some of their leadership with the secularism of America?

At this point, I simply don't know.

My fellow Christians Let us bring certainty to Bill O’Reilly: SIGN THE MANHATTAN DECLARATION

JRH 12/1/09
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MANHATTAN DECLARATION
A Summary
http://manhattandeclaration.org/images/content/ManhattanDeclarationSummary.pdf

Christians, when they have lived up to the highest ideals of their faith, have defended the weak and vulnerable and worked tirelessly to protect and strengthen vital institutions of civil society, beginning with the family.

We are Orthodox, Catholic, and evangelical Christians who have united at this hour to reaffirm fundamental truths about justice and the common good, and to call upon our fellow citizens, believers and non-believers alike, to join us in defending them. These truths are (1) the sanctity of human life, (2) the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife, and (3) the rights of conscience and religious liberty. Inasmuch as these truths are foundational to human dignity and the well-being of society, they are inviolable and non-negotiable. Because they are increasingly under assault from powerful forces in our culture, we are compelled today to speak out forcefully in their defense, and to commit ourselves to honoring them fully no matter what pressures are brought upon us and our institutions to abandon or compromise them. We make this commitment not as partisans of any political group but as followers of Jesus Christ, the crucified and risen Lord, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Human Life

The lives of the unborn, the disabled, and the elderly are ever more threatened. While public opinion has moved in a pro-life direction, powerful and determined forces are working to expand abortion, embryo-destructive research, assisted suicide, and euthanasia. Although the protection of the weak and vulnerable is the first obligation of government, the power of government is today often enlisted in the cause of promoting what Pope John Paul II called “the culture of death.” We pledge to work unceasingly for the equal protection of every innocent human being at every stage of development and in every condition. We will refuse to permit ourselves or our institutions to be implicated in the taking of human life and we will support in every possible way those who, in conscience, take the same stand.

Marriage

The institution of marriage, already wounded by promiscuity, infidelity and divorce, is at risk of being redefined and thus subverted. Marriage is the original and most important institution for sustaining the health, education, and welfare of all. Where marriage erodes, social pathologies rise. The impulse to redefine marriage is a symptom, rather than the cause, of the erosion of the marriage culture. It reflects a loss of understanding of the meaning of marriage as embodied in our civil law as well as our religious traditions. Yet it is critical that the impulse be resisted, for yielding to it would mean abandoning the possibility of restoring a sound understanding of marriage and, with it, the hope of rebuilding a healthy marriage culture. It would lock into place the false and destructive belief that marriage is all about romance and other adult satisfactions, and not, in any intrinsic way, about the unique character and value of acts and relationships whose meaning is shaped by their aptness for the generation, promotion and protection of life. Marriage is not a “social construction,” but is rather an objective reality—the covenantal union of husband and wife—that it is the duty of the law to recognize, honor, and protect.

Religious Liberty

Freedom of religion and the rights of conscience are gravely jeopardized. The threat to these fundamental principles of justice is evident in efforts to weaken or eliminate conscience protections for healthcare institutions and professionals, and in antidiscrimination statutes that are used as weapons to force religious institutions, charities, businesses, and service providers either to accept (and even facilitate) activities and relationships they judge to be immoral, or go out of business. Attacks on religious liberty are dire threats not only to individuals, but also to the institutions of civil society including families, charities, and religious communities. The health and well-being of such institutions provide an indispensable buffer against the overweening power of government and is essential to the flourishing of every other institution—including government itself—on which society depends.

Unjust Laws

As Christians, we believe in law and we respect the authority of earthly rulers. We count it as a special privilege to live in a democratic society where the moral claims of the law on us are even stronger in virtue of the rights of all citizens to participate in the political process. Yet even in a democratic regime, laws can be unjust. And from the beginning, our faith has taught that civil disobedience is required in the face of gravely unjust laws or laws that purport to require us to do what is unjust or otherwise immoral. Such laws lack the power to bind in conscience because they can claim no authority beyond that of sheer human will.

Therefore, let it be known that we will not comply with any edict that compels us or the institutions we lead to participate in or facilitate abortions, embryo-destructive research, assisted suicide, euthanasia, or any other act that violates the principle of the profound, inherent, and equal dignity of every member of the human family.

Further, let it be known that we will not bend to any rule forcing us to bless immoral sexual partnerships, treat them as marriages or the equivalent, or refrain from proclaiming the truth, as we know it, about morality, marriage, and the family.

Further, let it be known that we will not be intimidated into silence or acquiescence or the violation of our consciences by any power on earth, be it cultural or political, regardless of the consequences to ourselves.

We will fully and ungrudgingly render to Caesar what is Caesar’s. But under no circumstances will we render to Caesar what is God’s.