Dear Friends,
When we accept Jesus as Lord, our lives must change. As Bishop Robert Barron points out, this is truly good news for some, but for others, it is a threat to their way of life. Why? “If Jesus is Lord, my ego can’t be Lord. My religion can’t be Lord. My country, my convictions, and my culture cannot be Lord.”
Bishop Barron elaborates: “The resurrection is the clearest indication of the Lordship of Jesus. This is why the message of the resurrection is attacked, belittled, or explained away ... This reveals a great mystery: we are called to announce the good news to everyone, but not everyone will listen. Once we’ve done our work, we should move on and not obsess about those who won’t listen. Why do some respond and some don’t? We don’t know, but that’s ultimately up to God.”
It is clear that when we fight for the values of Jesus, especially in the public square, we will most likely meet strong resistance, if not outright derision. It can be discouraging, but the important thing is that we do the work and not worry about the results, as Bishop Barron says. So let’s make a resolution in this new year to do all we can to make Jesus the Lord of all that we say and do, and in so doing, to open the door to Christ for others.
Thank you for your prayers and for your continued support of FRC and the family.
Sincerely,
Dan Hart
Managing Editor for Publications
Family Research Council
FRC Articles
What President-elect Trump can do about religious freedom – Tony Perkins
Religious Freedom Under President-Elect Trump – Travis Weber
Trump Will Have His Hands Full Fixing Social Extremism in the State Department – Tony Perkins
Christian Persecution, Religious Freedom Explored in 'Silence' (Movie Review) – Peter Sprigg
A media noose for Jeff Sessions – Ken Blackwell
Why True Feminism Means Skipping the Women's March on Washington – Brynne Krispin
Why We Can’t Wait: A Call for MLK-like Leadership – Patrina Mosley
Navy Begins Transgender Indoctrination – Peter Sprigg
Loudoun Schools Say No to Sex Experiment – Cathy Ruse
Religious Liberty
Religious Liberty in the Public Square
Chip Gaines: "Fight for a world that knows how to lovingly disagree" – Jake Roberson, Focus on the Family
International Religious Freedom
Top 50 Most Dangerous Countries for Christians Ranked in New Report – Stoyan Zaimov, The Christian Post
UN’s New Top Bureaucrat Raises Hopes – Lisa Correnti and Stefano Gennarini, C-Fam
Killing Africa: Stop Taxpayer Funding of Illegal Abortions in Africa – Stephen Herreid, The Stream
Prominent pastor sentenced to two-and-a-half years after a year in detention – China Aid
Life
Abortion
Abortion ban after 20 weeks of pregnancy put on fast track in Kentucky Senate – Jack Brammer, Lexington Herald Leader
6 Alarming Findings in House Panel’s Planned Parenthood Probe – Kelsey Harkness, The Daily Signal
Finley’s Parents are Grateful Abortion Pill Reversal Saved Their Little Girl – Nancy Flanders, LifeNews
Adoption
Nicole Kidman on Lion and adoption: 'It's about the simplicity of love' – Decca Aitkenhead, The Guardian
Letter from a 21-year-old orphan may make you consider being a foster parent – Ashley Jonkman, Aleteia
Parents Keep Twins With Down Syndrome After Adoptive Parents Back Out – Nancy Flanders, LifeNews
Bioethics
Finland Set to Debate Legislation That Would Legalize Euthanasia – Paul Russell, LifeNews
81-year-old grandmother gets “Don’t euthanize me” tattoo – Patty Knap, Aleteia
Bioethics in 2017 – Wesley J. Smith, First Things
Obamacare
Senate takes first step toward repealing ObamaCare – Jordain Carney, The Hill
New Numbers Show Strong Support for Repealing Obamacare – Elizabeth Fender, The Daily Signal
For Me, Obamacare Means Paying All Your Own Bills And Never Getting The Doctor You Need – M.G. Oprea, The Federalist
Family
Economics/Education
‘Privilege’ Is Just Another Word For Family, And We Need More Of It – Josh Sabey, The Federalist
Men’s Breadwinning Still Matters for Marriage – Christos Makridis, Family Studies
Report: Schools Are Teaching Kids To Hate America Under The Guise Of ‘Civics’ – Joy Pullmann, The Federalist
Marriage
The Heart of Paradise – Diane Woerner, Touchstone
The Treachery of Divorce – Luma Simms, Family Studies
Three Reasons Not to Make This January Your Divorce Month – Bradford Wilcox and Samuel Sturgeon, National Review
Millennials and cohabitation: Understanding motivations and ministering well – Brian Owen, Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission
Faith/Character/Culture
Why Does The World Exist? – Matthew Becklo, Word On Fire
The Problem of Evil Is a Problem for Everyone – Gavin Ortlund, The Gospel Coalition
Faith on the Hill – Aleksandra Sandstrom, Pew Research Center
An MLK Day Pledge: No More Hyphenated Americans – E.W. Jackson, The Stream
MLK reminds us of the power of — and the need for — great oratory – Elizabeth Scalia, Aleteia
Human Sexuality
National Geographic's "Gender Revolution": Bad Argument and Biased Ideology – Andrew T. Walker and Denny Burk, Public Discourse
Court strikes down harmful transgender mandate – Becket Fund
How The Trump Administration Can Truly Help Gender-Struggling Americans – Walt Heyer, The Federalist
Human Trafficking
Backpage.Com Officially Shuts Down Adult Ad Section Filled With Prostitution/Child Trafficking – Fight the New Drug
Pornography
Porn ruins lives, so families should be able to sue for damages: Utah legislator – Fr. Mark Hodges, LifeSiteNews
Netflix Is 40x More Popular Than Porn In Hotel Room Entertainment – Fight the New Drug
