By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS Staff Journalist More than a half million signers of the Manhattan Declaration, a document urging Christians to stand for life, marriage and religious liberty, are protesting a decision by Apple, Inc. to pull the app from iTunes after a small pro-abortion, pro-same-sex marriage activist group accused the document of promoting "bigotry" and "homophobia." The Catholic News Agency (CNA) is reporting that Apple is continuing to resist a barrage of complaints after the company quietly pulled the Manhattan Declaration app over the Thanksgiving holidays. The company pulled the app even though it had initially given it a 4+ rating, which means it displayed "no objectionable material." However, an activist group known as Change.org, an organization that supports liberal causes such as abortion, animal rights, gay marriage and environmental issues, started its own petition drive protesting the presence of the Manhattan Declaration in Apple's App Store. Their petition gathered just 7,000 signatures and yet the company bowed to the pressure and pulled the app, even though the Manhattan Declaration was signed by nearly 500,000 people. Spokesperson Trudy Muller told CNA that the company “removed the Manhattan Declaration app from the App Store because it violates our developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people.” In a blog entitled, "Apple Finds Christianity Offensive to Large Groups of People, Removes App," Catholic blogger Matthew Warner called the decision a "huge mistake." "Apple is making a huge mistake choosing to make this entirely traditional and innocuous declaration their example of what constitutes 'offensive to large groups of people.'  Not only because the language used in the Manhattan Declaration is more civil and has been more thoughtfully chosen than that used in just about any other app, but mostly because of what they are calling so offensive: Christianity. There is nothing in the Manhattan Declaration that isn't completely in line with Christian teaching. To call it offensive is to call Christianity offensive." Three of the drafters of the declaration, Chuck Colson, Dr. Robert George, and Dr. Timothy George, sent a letter to Steve Jobs, President of Apple Inc, last Monday but have not yet received a response. As a result, The Manhattan Declaration has launched a new petition drive and social medial campaign to make all orthodox Christians aware of what Apple has done. Click here to sign the petition. © All Rights Reserved, Living His Life Abundantly®/Women of Grace®  http://www.womenofgrace.com