Silent No More Hosts 'One Nation ... Back To God' Event
Silent No More Hosts 'One Nation ... Back To God' Event
Posted
John DeGroff-
Silent No More Hosts 'One Nation ... Back To God' EventWINONA LAKE - Kosciusko Silent No More sponsored a different type of event Saturday from the courthouse rallies and town hall meetings they've become known for.
The rally, called "One Nation ... Back to God", was held at Grace College's Rodeheaver Auditorium, Winona Lake.
Nationally known speaker and pastor the Rev. C.L. Bryant was the keynote speaker. Also speaking were Micah Clark, executive director of American Family Association of Indiana; Dave Koontz, Kosciusko County Right To Life; and local pastor the Rev. John Lowe, New Life Christian Church.
The primary focus of the event was to ask the questions: Does God care about politics? Does separation of church and state ultimately mean separation of God and country? And, should the church, local congregations and their pastors even be involved in politics in the first place?
Clark, who has a degree in political science from Southwest Baptist University, worked with various Republican lawmakers at the state level before beginning with AFA in 2001. His presentation was on what are churches actually allowed to do or not do politically.
"We lose more of our rights because we give them up, than are ever taken away," Clark said. "In 1934, the IRS created regulations for non-profits and churches. That was created to keep churches from lobbying. Since 1934, not one church has lost its tax exempt status. In 1954, Lydon Johnson put into the IRS code regulations that said churches and non-profits can't endorse candidates. Since 1954, no church has ever lost their tax status for doing so. So, what are we afraid of?"
Clark said that while political activities are allowed, there are specific allowances for lobbying and other work. Knowing this information can make a difference.
Clark emphasized that churches and their pastors need to understand this and become active in the political process.
Koontz told the audience, "The connection between abortion and the church is probably more prevalent than we think. Research from Planned Parenthood has found that 70 percent of women having abortions have some Christian affiliation; 18 percent call themselves evangelical or born-again, 31 percent are Catholic and 70 percent of all women having abortions believe it to be immoral."
Koontz said many of the fathers of aborted children have some of the same struggles and emotions as do post-abortion women. Churches and other organizations are beginning to develop ministries and outreaches to post-abortion women and men and, Koontz said, "We need to bring up the subject of abortion more in the church."
Lowe spoke on God's government. He began his portion of the program by quoting Patrick Henry.
"That statement, 'give me liberty or give me death,' became the battle cry of the American Revolution," Lowe said. "There is a price to be paid. It's not just a physical fight, but a spiritual battle."
Most of Lowe's message was an admonishment to stand before authority, as patriots and ancient patriarchs had, and not allow our rights to be taken from us.
"Our greatest battle is for the soul of our country," he said. "Everyone else has come out of the closet. Where's the church?"
Bryant has spoken in Warsaw before, and in regard to this trip he related that it was definitely God who brought him here.
"I was (supposed) to be in San Diego, California, yesterday and today," he said. "In a venue that might have been four to five times this size. But my radio program is called 'One Nation Back To God'. My wife, when she read the first e-mail from Monica, only read the words that '...we were silent no more.' She said they'd like you to come to Warsaw again. I said I'd rather go to San Diego.
"A couple weeks passed and it was time to make a decision ... San Diego or Warsaw."
Bryant said that when he asked what the event was, this time his wife mentioned the title, "One Nation Back to God."
"The Lord spoke, 'You're going to Warsaw'," Bryant said.
Bryant continued the admonishment that the church and Christians in general need to increase their awareness and involvement in the political process. He also said some thought has been given to taking the concept of faith-based events such as this to a more national level.
"There's no such thing as a political argument when you're a Christian," he said.
"This has been absolutely unbelievable," said Jim Heierman, one of the founders of Kosciusko Silent No More. "We've been honored to be able to have the speakers we've had here today. To be able to stand on Christian morals and the Constitution ... we were able to hear so much about that today.
"We went out on a limb, and it was a little scary to be able to move away from the strictly political situation into something that appears to be more religious, but what we've learned is that when the founding fathers were writing the Constitution, they knew it would work if a moral people were using the document," he said. "We need to make sure everyone knows these details."
"We had over 200 here," said Monica Boyer, another co-founder of Kosciusko Silent No More. "People were excited to be here. We're going to continue our mission of educating people. This meeting was a branch of Silent No More, a launching point for churches to know it's OK to be politically active. Now we're going to focus on the 2010 election and get candidates here for debate."
For information and a list of upcoming events, call 574-383-9125 or go to www.kosciuskosilentnomore.com
