Thread: Senate letter calls for filibuster of 'hate crimes' bill

Senate letter calls for filibuster of 'hate crimes' bill

'Do not silence pastors nor penalize people of faith'

Posted: May 23, 2009
12:00 am Eastern

By Drew Zahn
© 2009 WorldNetDaily


Rev. Rick Scarborough

A Texas pastor has written an open letter to the U.S. Senate, asking someone, anyone, to filibuster pending "hate crimes" legislation and stop what he calls a "maddening march to the destruction of our First Amendment right to freely practice our religion."

As WND has reported, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention
Act of 2009 would provide special protections to homosexual people but leave Christian ministers open to prosecution should their teachings be linked to any subsequent offense, by anyone, against a homosexual person.

A hearing on the act, already approved by the U.S. House
as H.R. 1913 and pending in the Senate as S. 909, is expected in the Senate Judiciary Committee soon.

Concerned individuals may contact elected officials, sign a petition against hate crimes legislation and participate in WND's FedEx campaign to send thousands of letters to senators by overnight delivery.

"The legislation pending before you will make me an 'inducer' to hate crimes if I preach Romans 1:18-32 and someone who hears me then commits a criminal act against a protected class," writes Rev. Rick Scarborough of Harvest Point Church in Nacogdoches, Texas, and founder of Vision America. "It is clear that this bill will criminalize biblical preaching and will prevent me and thousands of other clergymen from practicing our faith without threat of penalty from our own federal government."

Romans 1:18-32 is particularly inflammatory, labeling homosexual acts in various translations as against nature, indecent, unseemly and perversion.

Under a comparable law in Sweden, a minister was sentenced to 30 days in jail for preaching from Leviticus, which labels male homosexual acts as detestable. Similar state laws have resulted in similar results. In Philadelphia several years ago, a 73-year-old grandmother was reported to have been jailed for trying to share Christian tracts with people at a homosexual festival.

"I hold no animosity toward homosexuals or anyone who disagrees with me," writes Scarborough. "Let's debate the merits and the facts and allow all sides to air their opinion. But do not silence pastors nor penalize people of faith."

The entirety of Scarborough's letter can be read below:

Dear Members of the Senate of the United States,

As a pastor of a local congregation, I humbly request that at least one of you stand up on behalf of all God-fearing Americans and stop this maddening march to the destruction of our First Amendment right to freely practice our religion in America via "hate crimes" legislation including the protection of pedophiles and other aberrant and destructive behaviors. As you are fully aware, the hate crimes bill that recently passed the House and is now before your body will seriously erode that freedom.

Congressman Louie Gohmert repeatedly sounded the alarm that if the version of the bill which passed the House is finally signed into law, the radical left will be fully armed with the power of federal criminal law to silence any dissenting voice that declares homosexuality or other such behaviors sinful and wrong.

I have been preaching the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ since 1969. I have deeply held religious convictions that the Bible is God’s revealed truth about man and humanity, and I hold no animosity toward homosexuals or anyone who disagrees with me. Let’s debate the merits and the facts and allow all sides to air their opinion. But do not silence pastors nor penalize people of faith.

In the Scripture there are clear guidelines regarding marriage, human sexuality and social order. In the first chapter of Romans there is a clear prohibition against same-sex relations. The legislation pending before you will make me an “inducerâ€

I have walked the halls of the Senate Office Building, as has others, begging for someone to lead a filibuster of the bill, only to be told repeatedly that it is a lost cause.





Well gosh, if that's the attitude prevailing within the Senate since the messiah and his band of renowned seized power, we really ARE screwed!

Just what we need......reps who refuse to even TRY because they view everything as a lost cause

Originally Posted by azwreath

I have walked the halls of the Senate Office Building, as has others, begging for someone to lead a filibuster of the bill, only to be told repeatedly that it is a lost cause.





Well gosh, if that's the attitude prevailing within the Senate since the messiah and his band of renowned seized power, we really ARE screwed!

Just what we need......reps who refuse to even TRY because they view everything as a lost cause

It's almost as disheartening as the ones who want to hand EVERYTHING to the illegal invaders, isn't it?

BIG PS: STOP the chaos, ..this so-called ‘administration’ is a FARCE..!! ..just bust the fascist-marxist usurper & his mafia gang NOW..!! www.alipac.us/ftopict-137238.html AND www.TheObamaFile.com

Originally Posted by nomas

Originally Posted by azwreath

I have walked the halls of the Senate Office Building, as has others, begging for someone to lead a filibuster of the bill, only to be told repeatedly that it is a lost cause.





Well gosh, if that's the attitude prevailing within the Senate since the messiah and his band of renowned seized power, we really ARE screwed!

Just what we need......reps who refuse to even TRY because they view everything as a lost cause

It's almost as disheartening as the ones who want to hand EVERYTHING to the illegal invaders, isn't it?[/quote]



You can say that again Nomas

What are these people so afraid of? That's what I'd like to know.