#1732 (10/7) "U.S. Vets Dying for Obama's Attention"

"U.S. VETS DYING FOR OBAMA'S ATTENTION" - Tony Perkins, Washington Updatel, Oct. 5, 2016; https://www.frcaction.org/get.cfm?i=WA16J10&f=WU16J03 [AS I SEE IT: May this serve as a reminder to be praying for our vets - and all our enlisted personnel  - be given the care they need and certainly deserve. May our country finally have leadership that does better than what we have seen. - Stan]

Nothing says "thanks for your service to our country" like serial abandonment. But that's the most some veterans can hope for under this administration, which has been at the heart of one of the worst cases of medical neglect America has ever seen. "We need a new sense of urgency," Barack Obama insisted in 2007 on the hundreds of thousands of veterans waiting for health care. Turns out, it's actually the man who campaigned on the issue who needed the urgency more.

Two years after the crises in America's Veterans Administration (VA) was exposed, not much has changed for the nation's heroes. In a damning report released Tuesday by the VA Inspector General's office, the health care tragedy continues for at least 200 veterans who died awaiting treatment at the government's Phoenix facility (the same one that came under fire in 2014 for delaying doctors' appointments by up to a year). Despite 24 months of "reform," the fatal incompetence continues, as families grieve the loss of men and women who served this nation that may have been spared had the administration been willing to serve them. 

In one instance, the investigation found one veteran never received an appointment for a cardiology exam "that could have prompted further definitive testing and interventions that could have forestalled his death." (I'm sure if the veteran had requested sex-reassignment surgery, he'd have shot to the top of the list!) What's worse, "nearly a quarter of all the specialist consultations in 2015 were canceled, in part due to employee confusion stemming from outdated scheduling procedures that were not updated until this past August."

Of course, these scheduling issues were exactly what President Obama said the government would fix. In his town hall with active military last week, Obama told the widow of a veteran who died waiting for a colonoscopy at a VA clinic, "We're having to rebuild information systems, intake systems... Across the board, we're working on these issues... And I want zero errors in all that process." But as 200 families can attest, he's a long way from that goal. Their loved ones died, not in the line of duty, but waiting for the kind of care their sacrifice should have afforded them.

After more than a decade of war, America's veterans have all kinds of needs. And how does their country express its appreciation? By ignoring them. None of this should come as a surprise, especially not from an administration that's spent the last seven and a half years using the military as a mule for its social agenda. It's a tragic legacy for a commander-in-chief whose only use for America's troops is fighting one war: the culture's.

[bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine]
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"The Pentagon's Latest Trans Action" - Tony Perkins, Washington Update, https://www.frcaction.org/get.cfm?i=WA16J11&f=WU16J03

# 1731 (10/6) "Nyet to Religious Freedom - PUTIN’S RUSSIA CRACKS DOWN"

"Nyet to Religious Freedom - PUTIN’S RUSSIA CRACKS DOWN" - By: Eric Metaxas|Breakpoint.org: Sept. 30, 2016; http://www.breakpoint.org/bpcommentaries/entry/13/29921

“Papers, please!” It’s a chilling expression you hear a lot in World War II movies. But it’s also something you might hear if you hold a Bible study in Moscow.

We all know about the dire circumstances faced by Christians in the Islamic world. Even the White House has finally called what’s happening to Christians in Iraq and Syria “genocide.” But there’s another place where religious freedom is under assault: Russia.

This is a surprise to some. After all, post-Soviet Russia takes pride in its Christian heritage. Its president, Vladimir Putin, has positioned himself as a champion of Russian Orthodoxy. His stance on traditional marriage and opposition to homosexual activists has won him praise and admiration from many conservative Christians.

But just ask Donald Ossewaarde if he thinks that Putin and Putin’s Russia are champions of religious freedom. Ossewaarde, a Baptist missionary from the United States, was one of the first people to run afoul of the recently passed “Yarovaya Law.” The Yarovaya Law, which purports to be a counter-terrorism and public safety measure, prohibits “religious gatherings in unregistered places,” restricts promoting religion on the internet, and makes it easier for Russian officials to deny entry into and departure from the country. And since the Yarovaya Law places severe restrictions on evangelization (or “proselytizing” as the Russian government sees it), it’s not hard to see how a Baptist missionary might get into trouble.

The law defines “missionary work” as “the activity of a religious association, aimed at disseminating information about its beliefs among people who are not participants (members, followers) in that religious association, with the purpose of involving these people as participants (members, followers).” Activity that falls under this definition may “only be performed ‘without hindrance’ at [designated] churches and other religious sites . . . [and it is] expressly forbidden to perform missionary activities in private residences.”

Ossewaarde was arrested for holding a Bible study in his home and for posting public notices announcing his Bible study. He was fined 40,000 rubles, roughly $625. And his Russian court-appointed lawyer warned him to accept the fine and leave Moscow. Ossewaarde, however, is appealing his conviction.

Other groups such as Seventh-day Adventists, Mormons, and especially Pentecostals are rightly nervous about what happens next. A leader of Russia’s Pentecostal Union told Forum 18, a Christian Human Rights group based in Oslo, that “the local police officer came to a home where a group of Pentecostals meet each Sunday . . . [and] with a contented expression he told them: ‘Now they're adopting the law, I'll drive you all out of here.’” Thus the law threatens to be yet another chapter in the century-old story of the persecution of Russian Pentecostals.

It should be clear that the law has little, if anything, to do with defending Christianity and everything to do with Russian nationalism. As author David Aikman told Christianity Today, “The Russian Orthodox church is part of a bulwark of Russian nationalism stirred up by Vladimir Putin . . . Everything that undermines that action is a real threat, whether that’s evangelical Protestant missionaries or anything else.”

Thing is, Islamists and Hindu nationalists also view uncooperative Christians as a threat to their idea of a “good society.” And while, thankfully, Russia isn’t using violence—at least not yet—the violation of religious freedom is just as real.

So, we should make our concern and displeasure clear to the State Department, the White House, and to our elected officials. And if we can’t bring ourselves to do so, we should at least have the decency to dispense with the man-crushes on Vladimir Putin.

[bold and italics emphasis mine]

RESOURCES
"US Christian among first victims of Russia's anti-evangelism law" - Mark Woods | Christian Today | August 26, 2016;
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/us.christian.among.first.victims.of.russias.anti.evangelism.law/94026.htm
"Back to the Soviet Era: Putin’s New Law Could Lead to Religious Crackdown" - Fred Lucas | The Daily Signal | July 20, 2016; http://dailysignal.com/2016/07/20/back-to-the-soviet-era-putins-new-law-could-lead-to-religious-crackdown/

CONTACT INFORMATION

Contact the U. S. Congress - http://physics.mnstate.edu/cabanela/contacting_the_congress_shutdown.php

Contact the U. S. Senate - http://www.senate.gov/senators/contact/

Contact the White House - https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact

Contact the U. S. Department of State - http://www.state.gov/

#1730 (10/5) "The Most Important Election of Our Lifetime"

"THE MOST IMPORTANT ELECTION OF OUR LIFETIME" - By Franklin Graham   •   September 30, 2016;  https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/september-2016/from-franklin-graham-the-most-important-election-of-our-lifetime/ [AS I SEE IT: Too many Christians have allowed cynicism and despair to throw up their hands and give up on our leaders, and in doing so have given up on our nation. I believe that Christians have been given a solemn responsibility to be good stewards of this great land God has called us to be a part of. If the 30 million evangelicals (see below) who didn't vote in the last election - and the many who are inclined to "sit this one out" - were to carefully study the issues and make the best decision before God and then leave the results to God, America can still have a chance of being all that God has called her to be. I hope YOU are registered to vote and that YOU will be one of those Christians. For without you doing your Godly duty, America's days are truly numbered.  P.S. - I know that we're used to hearing how critical each national election is these days. But rather than becoming cynical, let it remind us that we live in such perilous times that EVERY election these days IS critical and EACH one does deserve our participation. - Stan]

In just [5] weeks, our nation will select a man or woman who will become the 45th president of the United States of America. Whomever we elect will take the helm of a nation that has grown increasingly hostile and intolerant of the very foundation and principles upon which it was so nobly founded—the Christian faith and Biblical values.

That’s why I believe this election is the most significant since Abraham Lincoln was chosen to guide a divided country through a bloody and protracted civil war. For if the forces of evil that are allied against the free exercise of our faith succeed—and they have done severe damage already—then I have no doubt that the nation we love will devolve into moral anarchy more quickly than we can imagine.

Earlier this summer, I had the privilege of meeting with the Stormans family, devout Christians who own a local pharmacy in Olympia, Wash. The Stormanses refused to dispense a drug called Plan B that induces abortion. After a series of state and federal court battles, they filed a petition before the U.S. Supreme Court. The day before we met, the Supreme Court refused to hear their case. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas said they would have heard the appeal, but unfortunately they were in the minority. In his dissent, Justice Alito said, “If this is a sign of how religious liberty claims will be treated in the years ahead, those who value religious freedom have cause for great concern.” He is absolutely and frighteningly right. The generations of Americans who have treasured and enjoyed the blessings of religious liberty, of being one nation under God, now have “cause for great concern.”

Same-sex marriage zealots have launched an all-out war on traditional marriage, which is defined in Scripture—and virtually every civilization in history—as a union between one man and one woman. Human sexuality itself is being completely redefined by elite sexual revolutionaries who seek to impose their warped views on society, resulting in fierce battles over such things as transgender bathrooms—supported by none other than the president himself.

The same anti-Christian forces are seeking to strip funding from Christian colleges to keep them from educating students with a Biblical worldview. Business owners across the nation have been forced to close their doors because they refused to participate in same-sex ceremonies due to their religious faith.

The skirmishes over moral standards have turned into pitched battles over the last decade and now have become an all-out war on religious liberty. Think of the moral degeneration that has transpired under our current president, who has helped lead the fight to promote ungodly sexual behavior while failing to protect basic religious liberties.

What if that depraved trajectory continues over the next few decades? Can you imagine what our great nation, whose foundation was laid by a moral and religious people, will look like? The next president will appoint several Supreme Court justices (three of the current eight are 77 or older), so this election will profoundly affect generations to come.

That’s why this fall we must take pains to examine where the candidates for our nation’s highest elected office stand on the critical issues that face our troubled nation.

Will they do everything they can to protect the life of the unborn child? Will they fight for the religious freedom that is guaranteed under the Constitution? Will they fully support the rights of men and women of faith to act in accordance with their sincerely held religious beliefs? Will they defend our nation against Islamic terrorists who have slaughtered and killed innocents across our country in the name of their god? Will they call the enemy—radical Islam—by its name? Will they work to strengthen our military so the United States of America can continue to be the dependable guardian of the free world?

Will they defend the Biblical sanctity of marriage as between one man and one woman, and do all they can to protect the family unit? Will they continue to lead us down the road of irresponsible socialism, where the Biblical injunction for hard, honest work is ignored? Or will we embrace a resurgence of vigorous entrepreneurship and industry that has been a hallmark of our nation since its founding?

Will they appoint judges to the Supreme Court and federal courts who respect and uphold the safeguards of the U.S. Constitution? Judges who refuse to interpret the law based on decadent ideology and liberal political agendas that are directly opposed to the fundamental tenets of religious freedom?

It’s also crucial for us to examine the positions of candidates who are running for office on the state and local level. Check their stance on pivotal moral issues, and vote for those who best reflect Biblical values. We must be willing to do our homework on those men and women who represent us, and go out on Nov. 8 to do all we can to exercise our voting privilege.

Remember: Nearly 30 million evangelicals failed to make their way to the voting booth in the last election cycle. We must not repeat that mistake again this November.

Samuel Adams, one of the original signers of the Declaration of Independence, reminded us of the staggering responsibility of casting a ballot. “Let each citizen remember, at the moment he is offering his vote, that he is not making a present or a compliment to please an individual—or at least that he ought not so to do; but that he is executing one of the most solemn trusts in human society, for which he is accountable to God and his country.”

As I have visited state capitols for our Decision America Tour, beginning in Des Moines, Iowa, on Jan. 5 and ending in Raleigh, N.C., on Oct. 13, it has been clear that multitudes of Americans know our nation is in deep trouble. They have come by the thousands because they love their country and are willing to call on God in prayer. Standing shoulder to shoulder at every stop, they have come repenting of their sins and asking the Lord to heal our land. I believe God hears the cries of His people, and that there is still time for our nation to turn once again back to Almighty God for a renewal of righteousness.

I’ve made it clear from the beginning that I am not endorsing any candidate. I don’t have any hope in either the Republican or Democratic party. My hope is in Almighty God alone, who can turn hearts back to Him so that we can sincerely say that “righteousness exalts a nation” (Proverbs 14:34). Yet, a careful vote could extend the time we have to freely preach the Gospel.

In our nation’s history, we have witnessed such spiritual and national renewal in seasons like the Great Awakening. I believe it can happen again, because I believe that God is full of mercy and forgiveness to people who come in genuine repentance.

The Bible says, “Sin is a reproach to any people” (Proverbs 14:34). The disgrace of America due to persistent, willful, rebellious sin is shameful. We will not survive as a “city set on a hill” (Matthew 5:14) without God’s help.

I want God’s blessings on America, but that will only come to a people who forsake sin and pursue righteousness. That’s the vision of America that I have, and one that I hope will once again hold sway for our children, grandchildren and generations to come. ©2016 BGEA

[bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine]

"Franklin Graham: 'God Cannot Bless a Nation That Embraces the Murder of Innocent Children'” - Micaiah Bilger, OCT 4, 2016; http://www.lifenews.com/2016/10/04/franklin-graham-god-cannot-bless-a-nation-that-embraces-the-murder-of-innocent-children/

#1729 (10/4) "Editing the Facts of Terrorism to Fit Obama’s Narrative"

"EDITING THE FACTS OF TERRORISM TO FIT OBAMA'S NARRATIVE" - Alfred J. Lechner Jr. / October 04, 2016 / http://dailysignal.com/2016/10/04/editing-the-facts-of-terrorism-to-fit-obamas-narrative/

Six days later, mourners pay tribute to the victims of the June 12 terrorist attack at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida. (Photo: Julian Leek/newzulu/Newscom)

In the early morning hours of June 12, an armed terrorist named Omar Mateen opened fire in a nightclub in Orlando, Florida. The next morning, Americans awoke to the news that 49 people had been murdered—the largest such massacre in American history.This heinous act left Americans, as well as the Orlando community, grieving and searching for answers. But for several days after the shooting, the Justice Department knowingly curtailed the release of information about the shooter’s motives.

Even when it relates to terrorism, the government must be careful not to hide the truth from the American public. This is especially so when the government’s intent is not to protect citizens’ national security interests, but rather to further the political preferences of those in power.

That is why my organization, Cause of Action Institute, has begun an investigation into the Obama administration’s decision to censor the facts of the Orlando shooting. It was not until more than a week later, on June 20, that the FBI released a partial transcript of a 911 call made by gunman Omar Mateen during his rampage. The problem: The transcript was heavily redacted and omitted crucial phrases linking Mateen to ISIS.

For example, when the 911 dispatcher asked Mateen for his name, the FBI originally reported that Mateen stated: “My name is I pledge of allegiance to [omitted]” and “I pledge allegiance to [omitted] may God protect him [in Arabic], on behalf of [omitted].” In reality, Mateen explicitly declared his allegiance to ISIS. He stated: 
     "My name is I pledge of allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi of the Islamic State” and “I pledge allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi may God protect him [in Arabic], on behalf of the Islamic State."

Attorney General Loretta Lynch attempted to justify this censorship, saying it was done “to avoid revictimizing those people that went through this horror.” But that explanation seems highly unlikely in light of other, similar actions by the Obama administration.
     For example, since 2011, the administration has led a controversial effort to remove any and all mentions of Islamic ideology from training manuals for law enforcement.  Just days before the Orlando attack, on June 6, the Department of Homeland Security released a report advising law enforcement to use “the right lexicon” when dealing with “issues of violent extremism.” The report recommended eliminating “religiously charged terminology” and cautioned against the use of words such as “jihad” and “sharia.”

Taken together, the evidence indicates that the Obama administration is not giving the American public an accurate picture of terrorist-related activities because those events may contradict the administration’s political preferences and worldview.

But the government’s stated goal of word-policing does not outweigh the public’s right to know what is happening in their communities. 
     In the case of Orlando, the government doesn’t have the right to hide the attacker’s self-proclaimed affiliation. The statements made by Mateen on June 12 are facts. He spoke those words the morning of his attack on the Pulse nightclub.

The American public is entitled to know the facts as they occurred–not as retold, manipulated, or erased by Washington bureaucrats.

That is why Cause of Action Institute has filed requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act to obtain details from Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, the Central Intelligence Agency, and the Justice Department regarding the decision to redact the transcript as well as the administration’s policies on censoring law enforcement. The FBI responded to our request, asserting broad law enforcement privileges, ostensibly to protect an ongoing criminal investigation. Our requests, however, relate only to the FBI’s censorship policies, not the investigation.

Even after the Justice Department endured intense criticism from many corners, including House Speaker Paul Ryan and First Amendment advocates, the FBI to date has released only the transcript of one of several calls Mateen placed the morning of the attack. There remain more than 28 minutes of recorded calls that have not been heard by the public.

As Thomas Jefferson commented: “A properly functioning democracy depends on an informed electorate.” Unelected officials in Washington should not be in the business of censoring the facts of a terrorist attack. The American public can handle the truth, even when it doesn’t fit the Obama administration’s interpretation of what is politically correct.

[bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine]

Alfred J. Lechner Jr. , a former U.S. District Court judge for the District of New Jersey, is president and CEO of Cause of Action Institute, a nonprofit law firm based in Washington, D.C.

#1728 (10/3) "We Need to Amend the Johnson Amendment So the IRS Will Allow Free Speech"

"WE NEED TO AMEND THE JOHNSON AMENDMENTT SO THE IRS WILL ALLOW FREE SPEECH" - Tony Perkins / September 29, 2016 / http://dailysignal.com/2016/09/29/we-need-to-amend-the-johnson-amendment-so-the-irs-will-allow-free-speech/? [AS I SEE IT: As much as this little known IRS regulation has been used to stifle the free speech of (in particular) evangelical pastors/leaders, I have to wonder why so few have had the courage to step out and challenge this regulation. Scripture teaches us not to fear man, but somehow it's alright to fear losing donors? Explain that to me. - Stan]

Martin Luther King Jr. was a clergyman, and the political involvement of African-American churches was integral to progress in the civil rights movement he helped lead. Where would we be now if such pastors had not made their voices heard on issues of their time? (Photo from undated event in the 1960s: Glasshouse Images/Newscom)

Millions of Americans will go to the polls Nov. 8 and vote. These Americans are a cross section of society; they are diverse, with many different opinions, political views, areas of interest, and sources of knowledge that inspire their choices. Such a robust civil society is part of what makes our country great. This civil society and the organizations that compose it should be allowed to inform their followers with expertise that could help them choose elected officials.

Who doesn’t want informed voters?
     Yet for decades a provision of the tax code referred to as the Johnson Amendment has prevented these organizations from providing such information.

Section 501(c)3 bars “[c]orporations … organized and operated exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, testing for public safety, literary, or educational purposes” from “participat[ing] in, or intervene[ing] in (including the publishing or distributing of statements), any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office.”

The amendment was introduced in 1954 by Sen. Lyndon B. Johnson, D-Texas, as a way to stop his political opponents. The future president never intended to bar advocacy organizations from mentioning elected officials, or pastors and churches from commenting on candidates. Unfortunately, the Johnson Amendment certainly has been used in this way. Indeed, under current IRS guidance, it prevents a whole host of nonprofit organizations, religious and otherwise, from informing their followers in ways relevant to their own duty to vote.

This ban is at odds with our own history. Since the birth of our nation, pastors and churches have been at the forefront of shaping public debate and our choice of public servants. For example, Martin Luther King Jr. was a clergyman, and the political involvement of African-American churches was integral to progress in the civil rights movement he helped lead in the 1950s and 1960s.

Where would we be now if such pastors had not made their voices heard on the political and social issues of their time? Not all pastors will choose to address political issues and candidates in the same way. But just because some may not does not mean all should not have the right to do so.

Today, many pastors and churches have been intimidated into silence by guidance from the Internal Revenue Service that relies on the Johnson Amendment to repress speech from the pulpit. This is not right, and it must change.

One problem with the current IRS guidance is that it is incredibly vague. No one knows precisely what kind of spoken or written comment on a candidate will draw the attention of the IRS. Even the IRS itself does not clearly describe what would violate the law. Such vagueness chills free speech.

Another problem with the current law is that it is selectively enforced. The IRS targets certain nonprofit organizations while ignoring others that do the same thing. For example, the IRS initiated an investigation of the NAACP after its chairman gave one speech including negative commentary on George W. Bush. While the IRS subsequently closed the investigation and refunded taxes it had imposed on the organization, the NAACP was dragged through a two-year process.

This is not fair and teaches a lack of respect for the law and the IRS throughout American society.
All 501(c)3 nonprofits, religious and otherwise, should be able to speak in these ways free from the threat of impending government prosecution. So, how do we fix this?

We must amend Section 501(c)3 to permit statements regarding political campaigns (which may urge listeners to elect or defeat a candidate, or contribute to a candidate or a certain political organization) in the course of the nonprofit’s regular activities and to further its exempt purpose, as long as the nonprofit incurs no more than minimal costs in making the statement.

A bill introduced Wednesday by House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., and Rep. Jody Hice, R-Ga., sets out to do that. It’s called the Free Speech Fairness Act (HR 6195). Amending the Johnson Amendment in this way, and not simply repealing it entirely, relaxes the speech restrictions on all Section 501(c)3 nonprofit entities and allows them the breathing room to communicate how candidates have addressed their issues. At the same time, the amended law still will prevent tax-exempt organizations from abusing their organizational purpose by financing a candidate or buying political advertisements to get them elected.

Under these amendments, a church could speak positively about a candidate focusing on the issues it cares about, a health organization could commend a politician who has been supportive of its work, and a prison reform group could warn against a candidate who has worked against its causes. And so on.

These amendments would extend the same speech protections to all tax-exempt entities (both religious and nonreligious), regardless of their organizational mission, on both sides of the political aisle. Such reforms to the Johnson Amendment would be a win for all voters as we continue to educate ourselves and decide how best to run our country.

Pastors increasingly understand how the Johnson Amendment has been used to chill speech and suppress religious freedom. This is why on Oct. 2 pastors across the country will participate in “Pulpit Freedom Sunday,” a day for them to declare to their congregations that they should be accountable to God alone, not the IRS, for what they say behind the pulpit.

More free speech for organizations, which will increase voter awareness, has no downside. This is a policy change that should be eagerly embraced by those who truly want a robust civil society where the citizenry, not just wealthy special interests, is engaged.

[bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine]

Tony Perkins is president of the Family Research Council.

#1727 (10/2) SUNDAY SPECIAL: "Saving the Children - THE STORY OF IRENA SENDLER "

"Saving the Children - THE STORY OF IRENA SENDLER "- By: John Stonestreet| Breakpoint.org: September 27, 2016; http://www.breakpoint.org/bpcommentaries/entry/13/29903 [AS I SEE IT: We desperately need stories today of people who were (are) "ordinary" but who did extraordinary things, esp. in confronting evil. Stories such as this one need to be shared and passed on to future generations to inspire people to pursue transcendent values. - Stan]

What happens when an ordinary Polish woman encounters extraordinary evil? Well, she saves 2,500 Jewish children.

This past week, PBS premiered the latest film by Ken Burns. His subject was Waitstill Sharp, a Unitarian minister and his wife Martha, who, during World War II, helped smuggled at least 150 Jews out of Nazi-controlled areas, operating first in Prague and then in Lisbon. It’s a remarkable story that is worth telling and hearing. And there’s another story involving the rescue of as many as 2,500 Jews that Glenn Sunshine recently brought to our attention. And I promise, it’s a story that’s also worthy of your attention.

The protagonist of this story was a 29-year-old Polish social worker named Irena Sendler. Her responsibilities included taking care of countless people who had been dispossessed by the German occupation of her country. The most vulnerable and most dispossessed were Warsaw’s Jews. Four hundred thousand of them were crowded into a three-and-one-half square mile area. At great personal risk, Sendler found a way to enter the Ghetto, which was off-limits to non-Jewish Poles, to see how she could help relieve the appalling conditions.

As her biographer wrote “Irena knew she had to help the sick and starving Jews who were imprisoned in the Warsaw Ghetto. She began by smuggling food, clothing, and medicine into the ghetto."

But in the fall of 1942, half of the Ghetto’s inhabitants were deported to the Treblinka death camp, where they were immediately gassed upon arrival. This barbarity led Sendler and her co-conspirators to declare war on Hitler and to redouble their efforts. Working in concert with Catholic orphanages, especially the Family of Mary orphanage in Warsaw, Sendler, code-named “Jolanta,” and her co-conspirators helped smuggle out an estimated 2,500 Jewish children by whatever means possible: hiding them in coffins, potato sacks, even in a tool box.

Not surprisingly, this kind of resistance to evil eventually caught the attention of the evil-doers. In October, 1943, Sendler was arrested by the Gestapo. Though brutally tortured, she refused to betray her network or give up the names and locations of the children she smuggled out of the Ghetto. After being sentenced to death, she managed to escape with the help of well-placed bribes.

You would think that such a Polish patriot would have been honored after the fall of the Third Reich, but you’d be wrong. The Communist government imprisoned and tortured Sendler after the war because her brand of resistance—Catholic and non-communist—was the “wrong” kind of resistance.

Even after Israel bestowed the title “Righteous Among the Nations” on Sendler, the communist government refused to recognize her heroism. It even refused to allow Sendler to travel to Tel Aviv to receive her award and see the tree planted in her name along the Avenue of the Righteous.

Not much was known about Sendler’s story here in the U. S. until the late 1990s, when Kansas high schoolers researched her life and wrote a play about her called “Life in a Jar,” which was later adapted into a Hallmark Hall of Fame TV special.

Now based on what we know about Sendler, the lack of notoriety probably didn’t bother her. As she told the Polish Senate shortly before her death, “Every child saved with my help and the help of all the wonderful secret messengers, who today are no longer living, is the justification of my existence on this earth, and not a title to glory.”

Likewise, until her death in 2008, she rejected the title “hero” and said she was haunted by her failure to do more. But of course she was a hero, a Christian whose courage should serve as an inspiration to us all and a reminder that the most ordinary of people can make an extraordinary difference.

For more on Irena Sendler and the “Life in a Jar Project,” which tours the play about her life, please visit BreakPoint.org and click on this commentary.

[bold, italics, and colored emphasis mine]

RESOURCES
The Irena Sendler Project - http://www.irenasendler.org/

Irena Sendler: In the Name of Their Mother - PBS video project - http://www.pbs.org/program/irena-sendler/

Irena Sendler, in memoriam - United States Holocaust Memorial Museum - https://www.ushmm.org/information/press/in-memoriam/irena-sendler-1910-2008

Christians Who Changed Their World- Glenn Sunshine | ColsonCenter.org; http://www.breakpoint.org/the-center/columns/changed

The Hiding Place- Corrie Ten Boom | Chosen Books

The Cost of Discipleship- Dietrich Bonhoeffer | Touchstone Books

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy- Eric Metaxas | Thomas Nelson Publisher | January 2010

#1726 (10/1) PRO-LIFE SAT: "Voiceless" Speaks For the Compassion Driving the Pro-Life Movement"

"‘VOICELESS’ SPEAKS FOR THE COMPASSION DRIVING THE PRO-LIFE MOVEMENT" - Josh Shepherd / September 29, 2016 / http://dailysignal.com/2016/09/29/voiceless-speaks-for-the-compassion-driving-the-pro-life-movement/?

In "Voiceless," Jocelyn Cruz and Rusty Joiner portray a couple inspired to act on their pro-life beliefs. (Photo: Icon Media Group)

The creator of the independent film “Voiceless” hopes to shift the national conversation about unplanned pregnancies by showing the impact one church can make through local outreach and pro-life advocacy.

“My struggle has always been with the church, as it has been having confrontation with the world,” says Pat Necerato, a street preacher turned filmmaker who wrote and directed “Voiceless.” “I wanted to create a film to challenge the church to get involved in the public square,” Necerato says.

With a budget of nearly $1 million and slated for release Oct. 7 in hundreds of theaters, “Voiceless” aims higher than most faith-based films in terms of production quality. But it’s the story and true-to-life script, born from Necerato’s own experiences, that make it uniquely suited to help move the pro-life cause out of cultural stalemate.

“Voiceless” will premiere Oct. 2 in Washington, D.C., at a most unlikely venue:  a large screen outside the U.S. Supreme Court.

Five Years in the Making
     “You always write from personal experience,” Necerato, 46, says. “I was pretty much all of the characters in this movie at one point or another.”
     “Voiceless” centers on Jesse Dean, an Army veteran who moves to Philadelphia with his wife to work at a local church. While his hands-on outreach gives him inroads into the community—teaching free boxing classes, for starters—it begins a series of increasingly tense conversations within the church.

“Voiceless” director Pat Necerato, right, and executive producer Stuart Migdon on the streets of Philadelphia. (Photo: Icon Media Group)

“I cannot tell you how many times I’ve heard Christians, even pastors, say: ‘We need to be saving souls, not so much worried about confronting evil,'” recalls Necerato, echoing a key scene in the movie: Those words never really jibed well with my theology that Christ is king, he can redeem any aspect of our world, and he has called Christians to be saved and be a part of it. That’s the big picture.

One of my favorite lines in the movie is when Jesse says, ‘We are saved for the world, not from the world.’ It encapsulates the theme of ‘Voiceless’ and it speaks to my personal background—urging the church to confront the evils of society. “I was a street preacher, and I still am,” Necerato, who lives in Trenton, New Jersey, says. “Rather than some stereotype of a crazy guy screaming on the corner, being a public witness can be done in a God-honoring way. Where evil is being lifted up unchallenged, I believe we can go out and proclaim the Gospel there just as strong.”

Answering Hard Questions
     While popular culture tends to present abortion as merely political, “Voiceless” reframes the issue in moral, cultural, and personal terms. “What is right? What should we be doing—a mercy ministry? Should we be prioritizing individuals? Should we be confrontational?” Necerato asks. “I wanted to create a movie that could address some of those questions with a real-life guy in real-life situations.”

Jocelyn Cruz, the co-lead in “Voiceless,” has a personal connection to the film’s focus on lives in the womb. Cruz, whose previous roles in the hit movies “Marriage Retreat” and “This Is Our Time” helped her land the part, points to how the abortion center in the film has a sign out front that states “empowering and protecting.”

Filmed in Philadelphia, "Voiceless" shows how one local church pursues community outreach. (Photo: Icon Media Group)

“Empowering and protecting women, children, and families at large is one of my passions,” Cruz says. “I am a trained postpartum doula, so I work with families right after birth. I get to see and experience firsthand how important it is to have a community of people around you while raising a child.”

In a way that complements the director’s perspective, Cruz says other questions are also at the heart of “Voiceless.” “How can we best empower [pregnant] women by helping them? How can we be there for them when they have the babies? How can we work with and support the family?” asks Cruz, whose character in the film plays a pivotal role rescuing women who are vulnerable to abortion. “A mother can only give as much as she has, so I feel it’s of extreme importance to help them fill up their storehouse so they can best take care of their new child,” Cruz says.

Production Packs a Punch
     With the script complete and budget secured, Necerato and his team sought out a location to shoot “Voiceless” while simultaneously beginning the casting process. “I wanted it to have a gritty and gray working-class look to it. Choosing Philadelphia fit with that: the architecture, the L-train—the whole ‘Rocky’ feel of the city,” Necerato says, adding: "Metaphors are used throughout the story, with Jesse being a war veteran who was fighting for our country; then coming home, and now fighting to protect life and stop violence. He is a boxer who ends up teaching boxing. Shooting ‘Voiceless’  in Philly was really about the aesthetics of the film reflecting underlying themes."

Rusty Joiner portrays an Army veteran whose community outreach includes boxing classes. (Photo: Icon Media Group)

For Cruz, filming on location in the City of Brotherly Love was an adventure. “This was the first time I’ve shot a movie outside of California, so it was really fun getting to travel to Philadelphia and experience a different part of the country,” Cruz says. The movie also stars Hollywood actors Rusty Joiner (“CSI: Miami,” “ER,” “Bones”), James Russo (“Beverly Hills Cop”), and Paul Rodriguez (“Ali”). But it also highlights locally based actors in key roles.

“I believe we were able to capture some of the best talent coming out of Philadelphia: Brian Wilson, who starred in ‘Creed,’ Christopher Mann from ‘House of Cards,’ Susan Moses, and many others,” Necerato says. “Our casting director Melanie Forchetti and I rolled up our sleeves and saw over 200 auditions to arrive at this exciting ensemble cast.” At the Northeast Film Festival, “Voiceless” stars Joiner and Victoria Gates took home best actor and best supporting actor awards for their performances.  The pro-life indie movie also won best feature film. With a national release on the horizon, the true accolades for cast and crew will be audiences connecting with the story.

Speaking Life Into Personal Pain
     Necerato says he hopes his film will spark conversations. “There are all kinds of reasons—political, spiritual, and emotional—that people avoid talking about abortion,” he says.

“Voiceless” addresses issues surrounding unexpected pregnancies in a holistic manner. Scenes of counseling and prayer outside an abortion center are paired with a heart-wrenching subplot: An African-American family is strapped for resources and unsure how to make room for another baby. “I know some women personally who have had abortions,” Cruz says. “I can see there is still a lot of pain. Women feel trapped in a way and are scared to raise a child on their own. This is something most people don’t talk about, but it is very real.”

"Voiceless" reveals the issues surrounding unplanned pregnancies are complex. (Photo: Icon Media Group)

Stuart Migdon, executive producer for “Voiceless,” recalls how he and his girlfriend were pressured as teens by family members to have an abortion when they faced an unexpected pregnancy. “Though we had no idea of how we were going to make it, we never thought about an abortion,” Migdon says in a recent interview. “We didn’t hesitate—we got married. We struggled for a while but pressed on. God knew what he was doing.”

Necerato brings up another personal aspect of the issue. “We see abortion as a women’s issue, knowing how much women suffer physically and emotionally from it,” the director says. “But men also suffer from having these incidents in their past. We often try to sweep it under the carpet, doing anything we can to ease our conscience.”

Referring to how taxpayer dollars flow every year to abortion providers such as Planned Parenthood, Cruz has her own idea of how funding should be prioritized. “Family counseling and postpartum support are services that can absolutely be afforded with the amount of money some groups like Planned Parenthood alone receive in government subsidies,” she says.

From Belief to Strategies That Save Lives
     Asked about the diverse spheres of the pro-life movement, Necerato says, “In the battle to save lives, there is no one absolute approach. But the common denominator is always compassion and a heart of love.”

He sees prayer at abortion centers as a vital front for pro-life advocacy: "We are fighting an extremely weighty spiritual battle. When I’m at an abortion clinic, there is a different spiritual heaviness. Unless you’re prayed up, people out there on the front lines are not going to be spiritually equipped to endure this. We are called very clearly from scripture to pray unceasingly. We could win decisively in the legal arena or other battles, but without prayer it’s not going to have the force and power."

Perhaps it’s no coincidence that “Voiceless” premieres just as 40 Days for Life ramps up its largest-ever national prayer campaign, while the pro-life organization Bound4LIFE marks 12 years praying at the Supreme Court. Cruz and Necerato both emphasize how true convictions must be lived out with actions. “We have to pray and go, pray and move, pray and act,” the director says.

“Voiceless” opens nationwide Oct. 7. Visit the official website for updated theater listings.

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Josh Shepherd, @joshMshep - After 10 years in communications and marketing roles at The Heritage Foundation and Focus on the Family, Josh Shepherd serves as communications manager at Bound4LIFE, a faith-based pro-life organization.