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| Image from Central Christian Ocala |
Roots in Ripon
Chuck Roots
24 April 2017
This gathering of concerned
citizens brings in several hundred people on a Thursday at 6:00am where prayer
is the primary focus. There is always a featured speaker, and this year was no
different. Joshua Charles is a concert pianist, a best-selling author, an
accomplished historian, and is earning his law degree at the Regent University
School of Law. “In his book, The
World’s Most Important Book, Joshua examines
how the Bible has greatly impacted many areas of human life, from art, to
music, to government, healthcare, and works of compassion. No book
(referring to the Bible) has exerted
greater influence.” (taken from the program pamphlet). He has authored a second
book, entitled, Liberty’s Secrets: The
Lost Wisdom of America’s Founders. I picked up a copy of this book, and am
anxious to get started on it, especially because Joshua Charles has done a
thorough job of researching his topic as evidenced by the talk he gave. And
this man is only twenty-nine years old!
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| Author Chuck Roots |
Apart from the keynote
speaker, there was a corporate prayer printed in our program, which was
actually a responsorial prayer, led by Ron Van De Pol, president and CEO at Van
De Pol Enterprises, Inc., (Stockton, CA), and is also the Vice President of
Alliance Petroleum Corporation.
Having been asked to lead in
such prayers myself in the past, I was particularly taken by the opening
section of the prayer which minces no words as to the condition of the human
race and its not so glorious relationship with the Living God.
“We are flawed people,
but know you love us unconditionally and your mercy endures forever. Within the
span of a few decades, You have been removed from the schoolhouse, the
courthouse, and the marketplace. On our watch, the mention of Your name and
those who openly serve You are no longer welcomed in a nation that once revered
your Holy Word (the Bible). We have forsaken You and
ignored the wisdom and warnings of those You have sent to establish the only
nation in world history founded on the principle that ‘God created all men
equal,’ free, and with rights no man
could take away.”
Those of us in the audience would then respond
with, “LORD, hear our prayer.” Please understand, that at the end of this first
reading I was uncomfortable joining in with others in asking the Lord to hear
our prayer! Think about it! Is it not true that there is a wholesale attempt
throughout our nation to eliminate God from the schoolhouse, the courthouse,
and the marketplace? Christians and Jews in the United States of America are being
harassed and attacked both verbally and physically. Love of God and Country has
become taboo in the hallowed halls of academia, the very institutions where the
expression of belief and thought should be encouraged and celebrated; not
ridiculed, demonized, and besmirched.
The report of religious violations taken from an
article in 2012, lists the following as some of the cases reported where
Christians and Jews are having their faith criticized and stifled by those in
authority.
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A federal judge threatened “incarceration” to a high school
valedictorian unless she removed references to Jesus from her graduation
speech.
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City officials prohibited senior citizens from praying over
their meals, listening to religious messages, or singing gospel songs at a senior
activities center.
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A public school official physically lifted an elementary
school student from his seat and reprimanded him in front of his classmates for
praying over his lunch.
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Following U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ policies, a
federal government official sought to censor a pastor’s prayer, eliminating
references to Jesus, during a Memorial Day ceremony honoring veterans at a
national cemetery.
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Public school officials prohibited students from handing out
gifts because they contained religious messages.
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A public school official prevented a student from handing
out flyers inviting her classmates to an event at her church.
·
A public university’s law school banned a Christian
organization because it required its officers to adhere to a statement of faith
that the university disagreed with.
·
The U.S. Department of Justice argued before the Supreme
Court that the federal government can tell churches and synagogues which
pastors and rabbis it can hire and fire.
·
The State of Texas sought to approve and regulate what
religious seminaries can teach.
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Through the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, also
known as Obamacare, the federal government is forcing religious organizations
to provide insurance for birth control and abortion-inducing drugs in direct
violation of their religious beliefs.
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The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs banned the mention
of God from veterans’ funerals, overriding the wishes of the deceased’s
families.
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A federal judge held that prayers before a state House of
Representatives could be to Allah but not to Jesus.
This is no
cry of “Wolf!” where there is no wolf. This is a cry for sanity where secularists and progressives are destroying our nation. God,
please forgive us, and help us return to being one nation, under God!
Indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for All.
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