Sir William Jones, the renowned eighteenth-century English jurist and scholar, once remarked of his native England, “We live in the midst of blessings till we are utterly insensible of their greatness and the source from whence they flow.”

Sadly, the same could be said of the American people today. Even with all the problems we face today, we are blessed to live in the most prosperous, secure, politically stable, and free nation in the history of the world. Yet too many turn their backs on our national foundations, indignantly sneer at the biblical morality we once shared, and speak with contempt of the founding fathers and other faithful men who have—by their vigilance and sacrifice—secured, maintained and preserved our republic for future generations.

What was, to paraphrase Sir William Jones, the source from whence our blessings of liberty, prosperity, and security flowed? What was the source of our national greatness?

In his first Thanksgiving Proclamation, President George Washington unequivocally answered: “It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor.”

That, indeed, was the unanimous opinion of the founding fathers who appended their names to the Declaration of Independence exactly 245 years ago. In fact, Independence Day in early America was celebrated as a day of national thanksgiving to God.

Our founders attested to God’s intervention on our behalf during the War for Independence and His goodness in guiding them as they created a nation rooted in the idea of liberty under God’s law and built upon His unchanging Word. They believed the American people should come together to extend gratitude and worship to God for His protection, favor, and blessing.

Writing to his wife Abigail immediately after joining with his fellow delegates in voting for independence, John Adams presciently foresaw both the importance of the event in which he had just taken part and the traditions that would be celebrated by successive generations of Americans:

I am apt to believe that [Independence Day] will be celebrated, by succeeding generations, as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the Day of Deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations [fireworks] from one end of this continent to the other from this time forward forever more.

Yes, John Adams predicted that Independence Day would be celebrated with fireworks, parades, sports, and guns! How’s that for a prediction come true?

But also notice that John Adams says Independence Day ought to be celebrated by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. God, who is the source of all blessings, deserves our worship and thanksgiving today. He has given us our liberty, and He has allowed us to live in a nation that has done better than any other in offering opportunity to all and empowering everyone to exercise their rights freely.

As you celebrate Independence Day, take a few minutes to pray with your family, thanking God for all He has done for the United States of America and asking Him that our nation may reclaim its founding principles.

Join with me in following the wisdom of President Washington, who over two centuries ago encouraged his countrymen to acknowledge God’s providence and authority, obey His law, be grateful to Him for the blessings we have been given, and humbly ask him for his continued protection and favor.

Standing with you this Independence Day,

Nathan Winters
Executive Director

It’s not often that we hear of government bodies agreeing on a decision. But yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a UNANIMOUS judgement in favor of children and religious freedom.

What happened? Here are the facts.

The case: Fulton v. City of Philadelphia

Catholic Social Services (CSS) is a longstanding faith-based nonprofit that serves the foster children of Philadelphia. They exist to help children in need, particularly hard-to-place children, find forever homes. They have many guidelines for the families who are receiving children in their homes – including that there be a married mom and dad in the home.

Their beliefs are essential to their identity and cannot be separated from their work. But the city of Philadelphia thought otherwise.

When the city discovered CSS’s beliefs about marriage, they forced the organization to make a decision: change your beliefs, or the city will stop contracting with you.

CSS chose a third option: seek legal help.

The organization rightly recognized that this was a violation of their constitutionally protected religious freedom, and – represented by our friends at Becket Law – they took that argument to court.

After years of litigation, Catholic Social Services ultimately got their day in court before the U.S. Supreme Court last year. And today, the Justices issued their verdict: Philadelphia violated CSS’s religious freedom.

The implications: good news for children and religious freedom

This decision is good news not only for CSS, but for the many children they serve. When CSS is allowed to participate in Philadelphia’s foster care system, it not only offers a distinctly Christian option, but also increases the sheer number of foster providers – and that matters greatly.

In the U.S., more than 400,000 children in the foster system are waiting for homes. Around 4% of children are adopted within a year of entering foster care, and 85% of children in foster care have at least two placements in their first 12 months. In fact, the foster crisis is so extreme that some states are hosting foster children in hotels and office buildings because there is nowhere else to place them.

Today’s decision is a strong affirmation that foster homes like Catholic Social Services should be able to place children in loving homes while abiding by their religious convictions. Religious freedom is a precious gift afforded to all Americans. The belief that children should be in homes with a married mother and father should not be punished — and the Court affirmed that today.

The decision also reminds us of why the federal Equality Act – which could be up for a vote anytime in the Senate – is unworkable and inadvisable. The Act would redefine “sex” to include a person’s self-declared “sexual orientation and gender identity” throughout federal civil rights law. By doing that, the Act could be used to force foster and adoption agencies into similar dilemmas to Catholic Social Services – something that that the entire Supreme Court rejected today. The Equality Act would threaten religious freedom and the wellbeing of children and must be rejected.

We applaud today’s Supreme Court decision and are thankful for the work of Becket Law representing Catholic Social Services!

Joyfully,

Meridian Baldacci
Policy and Communications Strategist

 

P.S. Want to speak out against the Equality Act? Send a message to your Senator now.

Remember when Twitter locked our friends at Focus on the Family out of one of their accounts? Twitter made this decision because a post on the account correctly referred to one Biden nominee as a biological male who identifies as a woman.

Nearly four months later, Focus on the Family’s The Daily Citizen is still locked out of their Twitter account.

#AreWeNext TweetWhen the account was first blocked, many of you joined us in jumping into action and coming to Focus on the Family’s defense. You signed our petition to Twitter, and you joined us in challenging Twitter: #AreWeNext?  Because if stating simple biological facts gets you banned on Twitter, none of us belongs there.

Our tweet reached well over a half million impressions, inspiring even Members of Congress to join in—along with many of our friends leading the state family policy councils and other national organizations doing outstanding work. Together, we all sent a strong message!

The Daily Citizen has now been locked out of their account for over three months. During that time, tens of thousands of you have signed our petition to Twitter, and other organizations signed our formal letter to Twitter, encouraging Twitter to reconsider how it blocks user content. In all, over 50,000 of you signed the Family Policy Alliance petition to Twitter, calling on them to reconsider their position, especially in blocking Focus on the Family’s account.

The time has come for us to deliver those letters and your petition to Twitter….which we did just yesterday.

Additionally, we were joined by a few leaders from other outstanding organizations who share our values, like Concerned Women for America, in requesting an official meeting with Twitter’s policy team to discuss these issues. We hope Twitter will be willing to engage with us, and we will keep you updated on whether they grant our meeting request!

In the meantime, we hope you’ll join us for a discussion hosted by the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) about how the Body of Christ should respond when Tech giants like Twitter block user content in a biased way.

The discussion features Autumn Leva of Family Policy Alliance, Ryan Anderson of The Ethics and Public Policy Center and Jason Thacker of The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. The NRB will ask questions like:

CLICK HERE to register for the NRB “Live at Lunch” panel. The panel will start at 12PM ET today!

REGISTER


John Paulton
Mobilization Manager

 

This past Monday, Governor Murphy nominated Rachel Wainer Apter to become the new Associate Justice of the New Jersey State Supreme Court. She is currently the head of the civil rights division for the Attorney General’s office. Before serving in this capacity, Ms. Apter was a polarizing attorney devoted to chiseling away Constitutionally protected religious rights.

Remember the ongoing saga of Jack Phillips? He was the Colorado baker that was financially penalized by the state and publicly scrutinized by the media for not using his artistic design to celebrate a same-sex wedding. The ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) legal team in that case, which included Ms. Apter, tried to infringe on Jack’s religious rights by forcing him to create religious and moral messages that violated his faith.

To put this in perspective, asking Jack to celebrate a same-sex wedding – or lose his business – is a little like asking a Jewish deli owner to make a pork roll and cheese sandwich for a customer. He is religiously bound to serve only kosher food, and his refusal to make the sandwich is not discrimination against non-Jews. He is more than glad to make a kosher plate for anyone, including gentiles, but he cannot serve non-kosher food because it would violate his conscience. Yet, using the same logic as Ms. Apter and the ACLU team in the Jack Phillips case, the Jewish deli owner should be forced to serve the pork sandwich – or have his business shut down.

Thankfully, in Jack Phillips’ case, the United States Supreme Court sided with Jack and against the religious hostility that was on display by Ms. Apter, the ACLU, and the plaintiffs she represented in the case.

Reflecting on the case, Ms. Apter has said her experience, “has given me wide exposure to many different issues of equality and discrimination and how different constitutional values can intersect.” In other words, constitutionally guaranteed religious rights will conflict with judicially created sexual rights. That’s not groundbreaking analysis, but where will she land on those types of cases if faced with them as an Associate Justice of the New Jersey State Supreme Court? Her prior legal stances are clear – including being an advocate of forcing religious institutions to pay for abortion inducing drugs.

We applaud her work in confronting sexual harassment and anti-Semitism, but her historical dismissal of fundamental religious rights should be troubling to people of faith across the Garden State. I encourage you to contact your state senator to express your concern with Rachel Wainer Apter’s nomination.

Working for a better New Jersey!

Shawn Hyland
Executive Director

 

Last week, we got the news. The dangerous “Equality Act” – the biggest current threat to freedom and the sanctity of life – has been put on the fast track in the U.S. Senate!

That makes it all the more urgent that we move our mobilization into full throttle ASAP.

We are mobilizing in nine states with swing senators who are most likely to decide whether this scheme passes the Senate – and then goes to President Biden for his promised signature.

With Democrats now in charge of the Senate – and some Republicans having supported the same bill in the past – the situation is urgent.

Will you help us turn up the heat on the Senate with your donation?

Let me encourage you. Despite the grim situation, there is hope! Just look at what happened in the House with your help.

Yes, the so-called “Equality Act” passed the House as expected, but the real story is what happened behind the scenes. With your help, we mobilized citizens in the districts of House Republicans who had voted for it in the past. Two of the five representatives changed their position and voted against it!

On top of that, the explosion of grassroots opposition that you made possible is simply phenomenal. For example, your support helped us put together an online rally that, in just days, gathered thousands of live viewers – and brought together a Who’s Who in a diverse coalition working to stop this.

And the Promise to America’s Children – the policy and parental statement we developed in partnership with The Heritage Foundation and Alliance Defending Freedom – has reached hundreds of thousands of Americans with a message pushing back on the “Equality Act.”

Will you help us ramp up even more to defeat this scheme in the Senate? Your gift of support is needed – not just for general pressure on the Senate – but specifically to reach and mobilize tens of thousands of citizens in the states of certain senators who could decide the outcome. It worked in the House. Now it’s urgently needed in the Senate!

So much is on the line, it’s hard to overstate the threat the Equality Act poses to:

Thank you for helping us build momentum against the Equality Act to this point! We couldn’t have done it without you. And now – as we head into the thick of the battle – we need you more than ever.

As God has enabled you, will you join in the action with your gift today?


Craig DeRoche
President & CEO

P.S. The news that the Equality Act is on a “fast track” in the Senate is grim. But there is truly hope! Your gift will help build the public momentum against it and mobilize citizens in the states with swing-vote senators. Thank you for your gift to make it possible!

Just a little while ago, the U.S. House voted 224-206 to pass H.R. 5, the deceptively named bill that is actually the biggest current threat to freedom and the sanctity of life.

What now?

In some ways, this is where the battle really begins.

It was always a longshot to stop the so-called “Equality Act” in Nancy Pelosi’s House, yet it was critical that you and I engage there. And together, we sent a reverberating “shot across the bow” of politicians in both parties who would cater to this dangerous agenda.

All of this gives great momentum as this battle now shifts to the U.S. Senate. After all, this is where the fate of the Equality Act will be decided, as President Biden has already declared that passing it is his #1 priority.

Will you help us ramp up even more to defeat this scheme in the Senate? Your gift of support is needed – not just for general pressure on the Senate – but specifically to reach and mobilize citizens in the states of certain senators who could decide the outcome. It worked in the House. Now it’s urgently needed in the Senate!

So much is on the line, it’s hard to overstate:

Thank you for helping us build momentum against the Equality Act to this point! We couldn’t have done it without you. And now – as we head into the thick of the battle – we need you more than ever.

As God has enabled you, will you join in the action with your gift today?


Craig DeRoche
President and CEO

 

P.S. Today’s outcome in the House was virtually certain, but the battle to stop the dangerous Equality Act could go either way in the Senate. Your gift will help build the public momentum against it and mobilize citizens in the states with swing-vote senators. Thank you for your gift to make it possible!

REMINDER:

At 10:00AM Eastern Time this morning, Family Policy Alliance will be hosting a LIVE virtual rally to show our strong and united opposition to the Equality Act! This is a don’t-miss event—be sure to tune in.

WHAT IS THE EQUALITY ACT?

The Equality Act is a huge federal overreach that is the most dangerous piece of legislation we’ve seen come out of Congress. And it’s easy to see why.

Here are just some of the consequences if the Equality Act passes:

It’s a huge threat, and we need your help to EXPOSE it and to STOP it!

We’re hearing that Democratic leadership will not allow any amendments on the Equality Act before they vote on this unprecedented, dangerous piece of legislation. That means there will be no opportunity for members of Congress to vote on individual threats and concerns within the bill, nor a chance to improve the bill in any way.  And, we know mainstream media will make the bill sound completely harmless. That’s why we’re holding the rally—we need your help to EXPOSE what’s really going on! Don’t forget to RSVP!

WHO WILL BE AT THE RALLY?

We’re inviting pro-family Americans all across the country to attend and be a part of the united opposition against this dangerous bill!

We will hear from an incredible and diverse group of speakers from allied organizations. We can’t wait to hear from them, and we know you will enjoy hearing from them as well!

Here are some of the confirmed participating organizations and individuals:

RSVP and then tune in on Facebook or YouTube

Perhaps at another time, Americans would have gathered outside the U.S. Capitol to peacefully express their opposition to this dangerous legislation.

But right now, the U.S. Capitol is surrounded by guards and wire fencing. At a time when Congress most needs to hear our voice, we can’t go there to share it. So instead, we’re gathering online. The rally will stream live across Facebook and YouTube, and in order to send a strong message to Congress, it’s critical that many people join.

See you at 10:00AM Eastern time/9:00AM Central time/8:00AM Mountain time/7:00AM Pacific time!


Autumn Leva
Vice President for Strategy

“So come, let’s attack him with our tongues and pay no attention to anything he says.” – Jeremiah 18:18b

Jeremiah, known as the weeping prophet, dared to tell the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem, the hard uncomfortable truths that disrupted their echo chamber. Something was wrong – very wrong – but they did not want to hear it. A mild form of totalitarianism leveraged all their collective power against him. The priests, the prophets, the king, and his officials colluded to slander and silence the prophet. Only their words would be allowed in the marketplace of ideas. His prophecies were de-platformed for being incompatible with the approved narrative the mainstream wanted to hear. In other words, he was cancelled.

Tragically, New Jersey legislative committees are sometimes prime examples of disinterested politicians refusing to hear all sides of a policy issue. Committee hearings regularly start late, and therefore, voices registered to testify in opposition to a bill are limited to two minutes though the normal committee rules allow five minutes.

Less than two months ago, New Jersey State Senator Michael Doherty had his microphone shut off because the Chair of the Committee, Senator Teresa Ruiz, was infuriated by his defense of parents. He believed parents were motivated by love in protecting children from learning about transgenderism in kindergarten. The Chairwoman instructed the Education Committee staff to, “Mute his microphone.” It was a modern paraphrase of the biblical verse found in Jeremiah, ‘pay no attention to anything he says.’

Cancel culture, in its current form, has been gaining ground for years. First, it was academia banning conservative speakers. Then it was the mainstream media refusing to give equal time to conservative elected officials. Now it is Big Tech banning any person, organization, or ministry from stating a fact not approved by the Totalitarian state. Our friends at Focus on the Family were blocked on Twitter just last week, leading our national allies to ask – “Are We Next?”

Thankfully, there are New Jersey legislators who recognize the threat unchecked social media companies have to silence speech. Assemblyman Bob Auth, along with five co-sponsors, introduced the “Stop Social Media Censorship Act” over a year ago! The Act predated Big Tech’s flurry of bans and blocks. It creates a private right of action for users of social media websites whose political or religious speech has been deleted or censored by social media websites.

What does that mean for us? I want to encourage you to share our weekly communications through text or emails. Don’t give up on using social media to spread our message but don’t depend on it either. Analytics show that for every person who shares our post, on average 8-10 of their friends might see it. You must be proactive to use all methods of communication.

Help us each week to spread the word!

Shawn Hyland
Executive Director

 

“Freedom is a fragile thing and is never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by inheritance. It must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation. . .”

Ronald Reagan, Gubernatorial Inaugural Address, 1967

Religious Freedom Wins of 2020
As today is National Religious Freedom Day, we thought it would be a good idea to look back at some recent wins for religious freedom in the United States.  National Religious Freedom Day is an annual observance that serves as a reminder of how important religious freedom is.

Last year, and even the beginning of 2021, have highlighted, without a doubt, how fragile our freedoms are. If you have been actively engaged, you know first-hand how Ronald Reagan’s words could not be truer. Every year, people across our nation must fight the progressive agenda to protect our religious freedoms.

2020 was no different – but it yielded many hard-fought victories from our Supreme Court.

Here are some of the highlights.

In Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, the Supreme Court protected the right of private faith-based schools to receive public benefits. Espinoza struck down anti-religious Blaine Amendments that forbid tax-credits from going to private religious schools. The Court wrote religious organizations cannot be treated as second class citizens by being denied rights that apply equally to other groups. If a public benefit is widely shared, religious institutions cannot be prohibited from benefiting just because of their faith. As we continue to fight for school choice, Espinoza will ensure states cannot enact rules that discriminate against religious schools.

In Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morissey-Berru, the Court protected the right of private faith-based schools to make decisions regarding teacher employment, without government interference. Our Lady held the “ministerial exception,” (a legal principle that bars employees from suing religious employers regarding most employment decisions) also applied to teaching positions in private faith-based schools. The government must stay out of employment disputes of important positions in churches and religious institutions to preserve their religious freedoms. Justice Alito wrote that the First Amendment protects the right of religious institutions “to decide for themselves, free from state interference, matters of church government as well as those of faith and doctrine.”

Little Sisters of the Poor Sts. Peter & Paul Home v. Pennsylvania upheld the right of religious employers (like the nuns of Little Sisters) to object to the contraceptive mandate under the Affordable Care Act.  This ruling ensures faith-based business owners aren’t forced to provide contraceptive coverage if it violates their religious beliefs. This victory was a direct result of the Department of Health, under the Trump Administration, explicitly passing rules to make sure religious employers maintained their religious freedom under the burdensome Affordable Care Act mandates.

Finally, Tanzin v. Tanvir made it clear religious discrimination by government officials would not be tolerated. If an individual can prove a government official discriminated (such as a federal agent placing a Muslim on the No-Fly list because they refuse to be an informant against their religious community) that individual can seek monetary damages from the government official that they might have to pay out of their personal bank account. This decision was only possible because of our legislatures passing religious freedom restoration acts (RFRA), which was the law the Supreme Court used to protect injured parties in this case.  This Supreme Court decision should be a powerful deterrent for religious discrimination and make sure government officials think twice before they target an American because of their faith.

The battle to preserve our religious freedom for the next generation is being fought on a daily basis by organizations like Family Policy Alliance® who believe our constitutional freedoms are the bedrock of free society.

Though we have experienced great wins, we know a Biden Administration will work hard to roll-back some of these hard-fought freedoms. In addition to following our emails, please take a moment to check out Under God, One Nation. our new prayer initiative, where you can sign up to seek the Lord’s intervention on behalf of our nation, along with hundreds of others.

We can keep our freedoms from going extinct and preserving them for the next generation by first starting on our knees and imploring the One who granted our freedoms from the beginning.

Sign up today! Thank you for joining the fight!

Sincerely,

Stephanie Curry
Policy Manager