Commentary by Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
In what is certainly a troubling precedent, the media is once again fanning the flames of hate by censoring Duck Dynasty star Phil Robertson for what he said during a sermon he gave in church on Easter Sunday.
CBSHouston.com, along with a variety of other news outlets, is reporting that Robertson was giving an Easter Sunday sermon at Whites Ferry Road Church in West Monroe, Louisiana when he defended himself against statements made earlier this year about homosexual activity.
In the sermon, Robertson said media outrage over the views he aired in a GQ interview absurd.
Why was the media so upset with him? “Cause instead of acknowledging their sin, like you had better do, they railed against me for giving them the truth about their sins. Don’t deceive yourselves,” Robertson said.
He then mocked the media for not realizing that some of the statements he made during the interview were quotes from the Bible, such as the verse from 1 Corinthians 6:9 which he stated from the pulpit: “Neither the sexually immoral, nor the idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes, nor homosexual offenders, nor thieves, nor greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”
When he pronounced these words, he received a round of applause from the congregation.
“The news media didn’t even know it was a verse! They thought I was just mouthing off. ‘Is homosexual behavior a sin?’ The guy asked me. I said, ‘Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Don’t be deceived.’
He then went on to confess to the congregation that this biblical verse covered many of the sins he committed in his past life.
“We’ve all been there,” he told the congregation. “The reason we’re here today is to remind us of the gospel that’s preached.”
It’s one thing for the media to attack Robertson for what he said during a public interview, but to try to censor his speech inside the confines of a Christian church is clearing crossing the line into territory no one should allow them to go. This is a direct assault on the Christian faith as well as being a mean-spirited attempt to censor what Christian pastors and priests are permitted to say from the pulpit. Allowing this to occur only opens the door to utter chaos as anyone with a cellphone can now record a sermon they don’t like and feed it to the media “thought police.”
Do we really want to go here?
It’s time to put a stop to this runaway train wreck called the “gay rights” movement – and their allies in the PC media – that are out to eradicate all opposition to their point-of-view rather than encourage peaceful coexistence in a pluralistic society. They need to be reminded – in court if necessary – that the constitution guarantees all Americans the right to their beliefs. Unless they intend to shred the very constitution they used to achieve the gains they have made thus far, Christian churches must remain sacrosanct; otherwise, this is no longer America.
Anyone foolish enough to throw away these precious freedoms is only guaranteeing that one day they will also lose their own.
© All Rights Reserved, Living His Life Abundantly®/Women of Grace® http://www.womenofgrace.com
