An upcoming Tulsa city council meeting will begin with an invocation from an outspoken atheist.
You might want to take a moment and re-read that opening sentence.
The word “invocation” literally means calling up on a deity for aid. To whom is the founder of the Humanist Association of Tulsa directing his invocation?
“I’ll be invoking the council, not a deity,” he siad.
Religion haters from across the country, even in my adopted hometown in the heart of Texas, have tried to ban prayers at the beginning of city council meetings.
In many of these cases, as in the one closest to me personally, a public backlash causes city leaders to think better of prohibiting a time-honored tradition.
Now it seems the godless few have taken their crusade to the meetings themselves as a consolation.
“It’s better than nothing,” said Bill Dusenberry of Americans United for Separation of Church and State’s Northeast Oklahoma Chapter. “The best would be not having prayer at all,” he continued, calling invocations “just pandering to the tyranny of the majority.”
So Tulsa chose a man, a former Southern Baptist of all people, to deliver this godless prayer.
The invocation’s conclusion was published by local media, which quoted the atheist’s contention that “we need not look above for answers but instead recognize the proven potential within ourselves and in each other to overcome any challenges we face.”
I’m not asking that every public prayer be from someone whose brand of Christianity aligns perfectly with mine. I firmly believe in freedom of religion as an essential cornerstone in our beautiful nation.
I am, however, upset by those who contend our Founding Fathers wanted to keep church out of government, rather than vice-versa. Atheists have had an opportunity to make their case for an end to invocations. Sometimes they have been successful, but when the people speak out in favor of a religious prayer for their community, those same atheists do not automatically deserve an opportunity to hijack that event for their own nihilistic propaganda.
This was not the first atheist invocation and will certainly not be the last. It seems minority groups (be they religious, ethnic, or sexual) seem to feel entitled to the right never to be offended. As offensive as it may be to their sensibilities, though, there is no such protection in a free society.
Just ask a white, (heterosexually) married Protestant like me.
Nonetheless, and whether they like it or not, I’ll be praying for them!
Photo credit: reuvenim (Creative Commons)
Please share this post with your friends and comment below. If you haven’t already, take a moment to sign up for our free newsletter above and friend us on Twitter and Facebook to get real time updates.
Follow @WestJournalism
Loading ...
Those are some of the most Miserable people. I feel sorry for them
National Atheist Party Cancels Convention Due To Lack Of Funding
http://connecticut.cbslocal.com/2012/08/30/national-atheist-party-cancels-convention-due-to-lack-of-funding/
About says it all
“I am, however, upset by those who contend our Founding Fathers wanted to keep church out of government, rather than vice-versa.”
The problem with those who want to inject religion into government is that it necessarily and inescapably creates a situation in which particular religious groups compete to push themselves into position as the orthodoxy of choice.
Robert A. Heinlein put it perfectly:
To avoid that risk, it’s best to keep even mention of the deity out of the sordid conduct of government affairs.
Paraphrasing P.J. O’Rourke, ” Never let the people with all the [sanctity] and the people with all the guns be the same people.”
Misery loves company! How sad to base your worthless existence on fighting something you know absolutely nothing about! They will know though, unfortunately for them!
What is so threatening about prayer that atheist are so frightened of, they always tout the non existent ‘separation of church clause’, to ban the practice of Christian faith. They grasp at anything to destroy Christianity including the invocation of a non existent clause that no one can find in any of the founding documents that our government was chartered under. But again, what is so threatening about prayer? If as the atheist contend, God is not there, what are they afraid of? I have always been fascinated by people that deny the existence of God, but demand the bible and prayer be banned from all public places. If there is no God, then it follows that His word is of no consequence so why be concerned by it? The fact is God is precisely who the scriptures say He is and that is what really frightens them.
Thank you God for our many blessings and for your knowledge that we need to sustain us in the surroundings of the unbelieving….Give us strength and the knowledge to sustain our nations as our forefathers had built this nation to be. And please bless and sustain the our military forces in this time of peril. In Jesus name we pray, Amen….
That is all I can contribute to this ….
Thanks for posting this article, B. Christopher. I’ll be praying for them, too.
And – since you’ve written this and you’re obviously ‘engaged’ in this spiritual ‘battle’ over America’s soul, as it were – please check out Dean Gotcher’s authorityresearch.com web site. Maybe call Dean or Karen, his wife. They’re both mature Christians and they have the ‘research’ as to exactly what you’re going to be up against in your area. It’s happening in ‘orchestration’ all over our Nation right now – but, with Jesus and with a few of the Gotcher’s DVD’s – you’ll have all the tools necessary to fight this good fight of faith.
God bless you for your work.
Cynthia
Bill Dusenberry – I hope this gentleman reads this…..
Please tell me if you can, why should God reveal himself to anyone that does not seek Him, or to someone that is not serious in wanting to know him in a personal way, much less to someone that does not believe in Him?
God has chosen to hide Himself, but to those who fear Him, He will reveal His heart’s desires. In Psalms 91:1 He refers to His place of hiding as the secret place. Only those who fear God will find this secret place, as we are told: The LORD confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them. Psalm 25:14 NIV
Is it any wonder that God has revealed to those of us who are eagerly watching and seeking Him: Eze. 12:2 “Son of man, you are living among a rebellious people. They have eyes to see but do not see and ears to hear but do not hear, for they are a rebellious people.”
Sadly, man’s so called wisdom in thinking he knows everything that there is to be known is all but an illusion to him. True wisdom is gained from what man has experienced in life. There is nothing in this life that you can say for a certainty, unless you have seen, or experienced directly or indirectly that which pertains to your statements, beliefs, or faith.
In other words, for you to say, “I know God does not exist,” just because you personally have never experienced a life changing event is nothing less than pure stupidity.
I have said this out of love and not arrogance thinking I know everything; I just barely graduated from high school…. I think I was 78 or 79th out of 81 in my class…. My grammar and punctuation should be enough proof to back that statement.
One revelation from God is worth far more than the knowledge gained from all the books in the world written by men who have no understanding or comprehension of the absolute truth of God’s WORD.
Many say that God is a God of love and this is true… But God is also a God of vengeance and wrath and His anger against America has reached its climax; for God has made His judgment against America clear to those of us who are watching and waiting for the return of our LORD Jesus.
There is nothing that you have done in this life that He will not forgive other than your un-believeth in Christ Jesus.
To read God’s judgment for America’s future or lack thereof, google: “The Message For America, Hand of Help Ministries.” To read how I was led to this, google: ” Watchman On The Wall, America ~ Mystery Babylon? ” To read the message of the 2nd major terrorist attack coming for America, google; “The Eagle and the Serpents, Hand of Help.” And for again, what I am certain will be the location of the 2nd attack, google: “Watchman On The Wall, The Eagle and the Serpents (Part 2).”
Seperation of athiest and state is being performed by a religious atheist. Atheism is a religion.