From the Desk of Pastor Rick Scarborough

President Bush Stands Up for a Culture of Life, Against Activist Judges and For Freedom

In his State of the Union message last evening, President Bush made it clear that he had no intentions of being a lame duck President. I was thrilled by his renewed commitment to conservative social values including the defense of traditional marriage, a culture of life and the appointment of strict Constitutionalist judges. He deserves the support of the Christian community as he now faces an onslaught of criticism from the left.
 

ORLANDO - A COALITION IS BORN

Last Saturday, January 29th , more than 30 Christian and conservative leaders met in Orlando, Florida to discuss launching a new coalition - tentatively referred to as The Judeo-Christian Crisis Leadership Council. Present were some outstanding individuals whose contributions to national renewal are legendary.

In light of the President's bold statements regarding activist judges, the timing was clearly orchestrated by the Lord. The President stated; "Because courts must always deliver impartial justice, judges have a duty to faithfully interpret the law, not legislate from the bench."

We agreed that the tyranny of judges is the most direct threat to our families, our faith and our freedom - and that we must be united to meet this menace.

President Bush said;" As President, I have a constitutional responsibility to nominate men and women who understand the role of courts in our democracy and are well qualified to serve on the bench and I have done so."

As a coalition, we will cooperate to support the nomination of constitutionalist candidates for the courts and work for remedies to judicial usurpation, including limiting jurisdiction of the courts and (where appropriate) supporting the impeachment or de-funding of rogue judges.

The Coalition will host summit in Washington, D.C. - April 7-8 at the Washington Marriot.

Our objective isn't just to talk about judicial tyranny, or analyze judicial tyranny or decry judicial tyranny, but to do something about it by launching a movement to reclaim democracy and return our nation to the grand vision of the Founding Fathers.

We hope you'll join us on that historic occasion. For more information, contact the Vision America office at 866-522-5582. Pray for our success.

SUPREME COURT PASSES DEATH SENTENCE ON TERRI SCHIAVO

When the United States Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of a ruling requiring the removal of Terri Schiavo's feeding tubes, it sentenced her to death.

A legal tug-of-war has been going on for a decade. On one side are Terri's devoted parents, who are fighting what at times seems a hopeless battle to keep the disabled woman from being starved to death.

Opposing them is Terri's less-than-devoted husband - who's had several children by the woman he's currently living with. Mr. Schiavo is convinced that his wife would want to die, if she were competent to express a wish. Her parents, who are leading a courageous effort to spare her life, think otherwise.

Terri is described as being in a persistent vegetative state. That's misleading. She's not comatose, but alert much of the time. Though clearly brain-damaged, Terri smiles and responds to stimuli. Experts have testified that her quality of life would improve with rehabilitation.

At the request of Gov. Jeb Bush, the Florida legislature passed "Terri's Law," which authorized the governor to protect her from judicial homicide. A state court declared the law unconstitutional. (The Florida Supreme Court concurred.) Once again, judges have nullified the will of the people - this time with deadly consequences.

By refusing to hear an appeal, the Supreme Court let stand this horrendous decision. Barring a miracle, in a very short time, Terri Schiavo will be allowed to die of starvation and dehydration. -- a process which could take between 10 and 15 days.

President Bush said in his speech; "Because society is measured by how it treats the weak and vulnerable, we must strive to build a culture of life." We must do all in our power to see that this view dominates the political discussion in our nation.

Terri could still be saved. There is a higher authority to which we can always appeal -- The Supreme Judge of the Universe! Let us unite our hearts in prayer for her deliverance. The let us unite our minds and spirits to stop the judicial assault on democracy.

Terri's parents are represented by the American Center for Law and Justice (http://www.aclj.org).

CONSCIENCE NO DEFENSE?

A group of doctors in San Diego, California are being sued for refusing to artificially inseminate a lesbian. At issue is the right of physicians to raise religious liberty (freedom of conscience) as a defense in such cases.

The case is Guadalupe T. Benitez v. North Coast Woman's Care Medical Group, Inc. Benitez, a lesbian, wanted to be artificially inseminated. The Medical Group, which has a policy of not performing the procedure on unmarried women, refused - but referred Benitez to other clinics that do not have such scruples.

Benitez is now suing the two doctors, who constitute the Group for discrimination. The physicians are represented by the Alliance Defense Fund (http://www.telladf.org). The trial court ruled the defendants could not raise religious liberty as a defense. That ruling is currently under appeal.

It is not disputed that Benitez could have had the procedure done at any of a dozen other clinics in her area. Her objective is to punish the doctors for exercising their constitutional right to religious freedom.

That, in essence, is the ultimate goal of the gay rights movement - to crush dissent and persecute those who cling to a Biblical worldview.

PRESIDENT REAFFIRMS HIS SUPPORT FOR MARRIAGE AMENDMENT

Late last month, the Arlington Group sent a letter to Karl Rove, expressing our desire for the President to use his bully pulpit to support the Federal Marriage Amendment. The letter has been widely discussed in the national media.

I was among the signers of the document.

While the media has made much of what it calls the demands of the "Religious Right," our sole desire is that the president keep his promise, made repeatedly during the last campaign, to support the marriage amendment, without which judges will continue to deconstruct the institution of marriage.

The president had indicated in an interview with The Washington Post, that he didn't think the votes were there to pass the amendment in Congress, hence that it would not be a priority for his administration.

In the letter, members of the Arlington Group reminded Mr. Bush that his defense of marriage in the last election won him millions of votes from evangelicals, Catholics, Orthodox Jews, blacks, Hispanics and others not in the habit of pulling the Republican lever.

Thereafter, in a meeting with African-American leaders who raised the issue, the president said, "Look, I'm clear. I've stated my position and my position is not going to change." Latter, White House spokesman Scott McClellan declared that for this administration "a constitutional amendment is needed to protect the sanctity of marriage." Furthermore, said McClellan, the amendment most certainly is among the president's priorities. In his State of the Union Address last night, Mr. Bush made an avowal which thrilled pro-family activists: "Because marriage is a sacred institution and the foundation of society, it should not be redefined by activist judges. For the good of families, children and society, I support a constitutional amendment to protect the institution of marriage."

Our leaders require more than our support. They also need our guidance and - at times - our instruction. Join me in praying that the president will make the preservation of marriage and the family the central issue in his second term.

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