A few days ago Lifesite News posted an article about what's happening in England that has some interesting similiarities that are parallel to what's happening in the US and also adds some points of interest to some of your comments.

Here is a copy and paste of the article:

Anglican Bishop: Vacuum Created by Christian Culture Collapse Will be Filled by Radical Islam
Says in the 1960s Church leaders "all but capitulated" to rise of neo-Marxism

By Hilary White

ROCHESTER, UK, June 2, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - "The beliefs, values and virtues of Great Britain have been formed by the Christian faith" and the loss of that faith in public life has resulted not only in social breakdown, but the creation of a moral and cultural vacuum that is being filled by violent radical Islamism says a senior Anglican prelate.

In an article in the new political magazine Standpoint, the Rt. Rev. Dr. Michael Nazir-Ali, the Anglican Bishop of Rochester, pinpointed the "social and sexual revolution" of the 1960s orchestrated by Marxist academics, as the source of the sudden collapse of Christian values. The "endless self-indulgence" of the "new Britain" has resulted in skyrocketing rates of drunkenness, drug abuse, street violence, family breakdown. He added that the solutions offered - talk of "respect, tolerance and good behaviour" popular with Britain's politicians - are "hardly adequate for the task before us".

"It is this situation that has created the moral and spiritual vacuum in which we now find ourselves. While the Christian consensus was dissolved, nothing else, except perhaps endless self-indulgence, was put in its place," he wrote.

Britain's social values such as the dignity of human life, equality before the law and freedom are developments of Christian values, the Pakistan-born Nazir-Ali said, and without their Christian foundation, will break down in favour of new belief systems based on different values.

"Radical Islamism, for example, will emphasise the solidarity of the umma [worldwide community of the Muslim faithful] against the freedom of the individual. Instead of the Christian virtues of humility, service and sacrifice, there may be honour, piety and the importance of 'saving face'."

The bishop wrote that Britain's historical reality is that it was Christianity that unified a "rabble of mutually hostile tribes, fiefdoms and kingdoms" into a nation conscious of its identity and strong enough to form a global empire. Dr. Nazir-Ali credited the rise of neo-Marxism among academics in the 1960s who orchestrated the "social and sexual revolution" to which Church leaders "all but capitulated".

In this revolution, genuine Christian values of openness have been replaced by the "newfangled and insecurely founded" doctrine of multiculturalism. This has resulted in a Britain made up of "segregated communities and parallel lives" with little social foundation to unify and give it identity.

Bishop Nazir-Ali's article closely followed comments he made last week that Britain's Christians were failing in their duty to Muslims in refusing to attempt to convert them to Christianity, a suggestion that was greeted with howls of outrage from his fellow Anglican officials who insisted that they "show no sensitivity to the need for good inter-faith relations".

Stephen Lowe, the former Bishop of Hulme and the newly appointed Bishop of Urban Life and Faith, said that "Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs are learning to respect one another's paths to God and to live in harmony. This demand for the evangelisation of people of other faiths contributes nothing to our communities."

Peter Hitchens, a columnist and author, wrote in the Daily Mail this weekend asking why Britain "had to wait" for Bishop Nazir-Ali "to urge us to do something about restoring that faith before we either sink into a yelling chaos of knives, fists and boots, or swoon into the strong, implacable arms of Islam?"

"Most of our homegrown prelates are more interested in homosexuality or in spreading doubt about the gospel or urging the adoption of Sharia law."

Hitchens noted that it is well known that British foreign and intelligence agencies after the Second World War were "maggoty with Communist penetration".

"I am sometimes tempted to wonder if the same organisation targeted both political parties (especially the Unconservatives), the Church of England, the BBC, the Civil Service, the legal profession and the universities."

Ominously, Hitchens adds, "We have a country demoralised in every sense, its people robbed of their own pride, its children deprived of stability and authority, terrifyingly ignorant of their own culture, its tottering economy largely owned from abroad, its armed forces weak, its justice system a sick joke, its masses distracted by pornography, drink and drugs, its constitution menaced, its elite in the grip of a destructive, intolerant atheism.
"Ripe, in fact, for a foreign takeover."

Yes, I agree that there is such a danger.




Ok. I admit that the fact that Jeffersion understood the constitution to mean that there is a wall between religion and state proves beynd doubt that the constitution does not say such a thing, despite the fact that the Supreme Court also agrees with Jefferson this.

Was that was you saw here?



Yes, we are.

According to the stats San Chonino provided and judging from what we can observe in the world, we are living in a better place BECAUSE of the secular state.

You are still pretending that everybody agrees, despite seeing evidence to the contrary, that having G-d (that is your god, who is different from mine, apparently) in schools is a good thing. People disagree with that.

You not only have to show that the US constitution does not mean what it says and that Jeffersion misread it, but that there is a reason for anybody to care.

So far all you two have demonstrated is that you don't carer about actual results and just want YOUR religion taught in schools.

I'll offer a comprimise. Teach Hinduism in American schools and I am all for it!

We're not pretending everybody agrees in today's world. We know we are now swimming upstream, but what we are saying is that it was a good thing the bible and God were in the school systems and that our country once upon a time was in agreement.

Andrew Jackson said: "That book sir, is the rock on which our republic sits."

so how does that mesh with what Jefferson said in his letter to the Danbury Baptists? It has to mean that Jefferson meant (as we believe and makes sense) that no religion would be instituted by the government and that the US would be a place where freedom of religion would be honored.

George Washington said: "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the bible."

They were pretty much in agreement back then with a small minority in opposition. They wanted the children to know the bible and God and the school systems were very open to this type of learning. And our nation flourished as a result.

Look at us now. We are going downhill fast and will continue to as long as we disregard God and his word. We are in trouble.

Newt Gingrich recently said: "Israel is in the greatest danger it has been in since 1967. Prior to 67 many wondered if Israel would survive. After 67, Israel seemed militarily dominent. I would say we are now back to a question of survivial.

Three nuclear weapons are a second Holocaust. People are greatly underestimating how dangerous the world is becoming. Our enemies are quite explicit in their desire to destroy us. They say it publicly. We are sleepwalking through this process as though it's only a problem of communication."

Our enemies are fully as determined as Nazi Germany, and more determined than the Soviets. Our enemies will kill us the first chance they get. There is no rational ability to deny that fact. It's very clear that the problems are larger and more immediate than the political systems in Israel o the US are currently capable of dealing with."

When we fought for this country back in the 1700's we did it with much prayer and belief in God. The next fight for our country will be not yield the same results. Read Deut 28 if you want to see what the futue holds for the US.

If anytime we need God back in schools, workplaces and even churches...it's today.

It was to protect religion from the federal government, yes. And that includes all religions, including atheism.

But what you are calling for is a government that decides which religion to choose and then teach that as truth in state schools. That's establishment of a religion.




Which Christianity?

If American state schools taught the Catholic doctrine of teaching evolution in science class, we wouldn't have this conversation.

"Freedom of religion" never meant "freedom for Christianity but not other religions" (or even "freedom for my type of Christianity and no other".

If the founders had meant Christianity only, they would have said "Christianity". Specifically, they would have said which Christianity.

That problem was already solved in England. They have a state church.

But the US does not.

well it wasn't in the 18th and 19th centuries.

My grandmother as well as my mom were reciting the Lord's Prayer and having bible readings in public school. There were no Christian or Homeschooling back then. When I was growing up that was taken out but we still sang hymns right up until I reached middle school. My grandmother and mom are still alive to tell about it. Their generation fared alot better than ours did. It didn't hurt them one bit.

So why the change all of a sudden?

KFC POSTS #32


This is certainly true of a child born from a rape or incest.



Hmmmm, I've been thinking about this one...not sure I agree here.

Under God's law only those people who are married are to have sexual relations, right?

So His law therefore excludes every one else from having sexual relations...which means those who engage in sexual relations are committing a sin against God's law.

Fornication is one of the sins St.Paul explicitly condemns 1Cor.6. "Do not be deceived" he says which means to make out that such actions are good is worse than to commit them. We cannot render God's commandments null or reduce people's responsibility to obey them by saying they made a mistake or had a weak moment.

The person has to be sorry for their sin and repent of it and avoid doing it again. Shun immorality is what St.Paul says.

Someone sent me this email which I've decided to add as an addendum to my original blog.


Since the Pledge of Allegiance and The Lord's Prayer are not allowed in most public schools anymore because the word 'God' is mentioned....

A kid in Arizona wrote the attached:


NEW School prayer:
Now I sit me down in school
Where praying is against the rule
For this great nation under God
Finds mention of Him very odd.

If Scripture now the class recites,
It violates the Bill of Rights.
And anytime my head I bow
Becomes a Federal matter now.

Our hair can be purple, orange or green,
That's no offense; it's a freedom scene.
The law is specific, the law is precise.
Prayers spoken aloud are a serious vice.

For praying in a public hall
Might offend someone with no faith at all.
In silence alone we must meditate,
God's name is prohibited by the state.

We're allowed to cuss and dress like freaks,
And pierce our noses, tongues and cheeks.
They've outlawed guns, but FIRST the Bible.
To quote the Good Book makes me liable.
We can elect a pregnant Senior Queen,
And the 'unwed daddy,' our Senior King.
It's 'inappropriate' to teach right from wrong,
We're taught that such 'judgments' do not belong.

We can get our condoms and birth controls,
Study witchcraft, vampires and totem poles.
But the Ten Commandments are not allowed,
No word of God must reach this crowd.

It's scary here I must confess,
When chaos reigns the school's a mess.
So, Lord, this silent plea I make:
Should I be shot; My soul please take!
Amen

Really? You also believe that "Allah" is a moon god, despite the grammatical impossibility and the fact that there was no prominent Semitic moon god, and that KFC used as evidence a Byzantinian _Christian_ symbol that was later used by Muslims as well?



That is what I said. KFC said that Muslims pray to a "moon god".



I am sure you know that Arabic-speaking Christians have a concept of a god named "Allah" who is a father, a son, and a holy spirit.

Either way, the Jewish god also doesn't feature the father/son/spirit thingy, which makes the god of Islam the same as the god of Judaism. But is the Christian god that same one too?

Regarding the video that shows middle school students verbally bullying a 68-year-old school bus monitor, calling her names and using profanities, people are wondering what's happened to today's youth.

 

 

The ten-minute YouTube video of the incident involving Karen Klein, which has now been viewed more than 1.5 million times, is leaving the public appalled (earlier story contains video). Karen Gushta of Truth in Action Ministries believes this cultural demise began when prayer was taken out of public schools. (See related commentary)
 
"Since that time, the character of our children has gone into a downward spiral," she laments, "and that's why I view this as just one of many, many examples that could be multiplied all across the country."
  
And Gushta has little hope of that turning around without the return of moral training in classrooms.
 
"Unless we return to the moral standards of God's Word, of his laws, of the Ten Commandments -- unless we return those to our public schools, we're just going to continue to see more and more of this kind of behavior," she asserts. "And the prospect of that should truly frighten us all."
 
Since the YouTube video went viral, there has been an outpouring of sympathy for Klein, and almost half a million dollars has been donated to a "vacation" fund for her. The bus monitor currently has no plans of pressing charges against the boys seen taunting her. She feels the school board and the parents are doing a good job of handling the situation.

Truth in Action's mission is to reform cultures through introducing people to Christ and nurturing and encouraging Christians.

 

In a related OneNewsNow poll, almost 70 percent of the 5,300 respondents feel the type of disrespectful behavior exhibited by the students in this incident can be attributed directly to "deterioration of the traditional family."