One Voice for Public Policy - Urgent! An Imminent Threat to Religious Liberty

Dear friends in Christ,

With the recent election now largely complete, the House and Senate have returned to work in what is often referred to as a "lame duck" session. Among other things, these sessions have historically been used by the party who is about to lose power in one of the bodies to try and pass legislation that would not otherwise be viable.

As you will see from this document from the Minnesota Family Council (MFC), this appears to be happening now, with potentially dire consequences for the Church and for individual Christians. It seems the Senate is poised to act on a very mislabeled bill, The Respect for Marriage Act, as early as tomorrow. This would codify same-sex marriage into law by entirely removing The Defense of Marriage Act that, to this point, has prevented the government or individual activists from coercing Christian pastors and laypersons into being active participants in same-sex marriages. Though all the potential harms from this change are not fully understood, it will surely carry many negative effects.

As is the Minnesota Family Council, I am urging you to respond to this threat by immediately contacting our Minnesota Senators and asking them to oppose the Respect for Marriage Act. You can do this using the "Take Action Now" link found within the MFC document.

Please also pray that a sufficient number of Senators will resist this rushed effort to radically diminish our religious freedoms. As I understand it, this bill (which was already passed by the House of Representatives) would require a 60-vote majority in order to pass, but it seems that several Republican Senators may join in supporting the bill.

Another resource from Breakpoint Daily Colson Center

In Christ,
Rev. Fredric Hinz
Public Policy Advocate
Minnesota Districts, LCMS