Tax-Exemption Status in Danger Among Religious Colleges

A conservative religious rights commentator believes if the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) decides in favor of proponents of same-sex ‘marriage,’ religious schools could be at risk of losing their tax-exempt status.

During arguments before SCOTUS regarding same-sex ‘marriage,’ Solicitor General Donald Verrilli admitted that religious colleges could lose their tax-exempt status if the high court rules in favor of same-sex ‘marriage.’

Travis Weber, with the Family Research Council, says that observing religious principles should not be considered discrimination.  Weber says, “Now of course this is silly because these schools just support traditional marriage and it’s their religious view of marriage that drives this.  There’s no discrimination at all.  But nevertheless it’s conceivable that the courts could buy the government’s argument in this case.”

Weber believes if this trend continues, those refusing to endorse same-sex marriage could face fines and potentially even imprisonment.  “There is a way around this,” he adds.  “The clearest way, the best way, is for legislation to be passed at the federal-level and the state-level around the country protecting people who support traditional marriage from the government, from the government discriminating against them, intruding into their affairs and penalizing them because of their beliefs.”

The SCOTUS justices are scheduled to hand down their decision regarding the constitutionality of same-sex ‘marriage’ sometime in June.

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Whinny Weinstein Demands Christian USAF General be Court-Martialed

Imagine.  The Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) has demanded that a 2-star Air Force general be court-martialed because he spoke about ‘prayer’ as the keynote speaker at a National Day of Prayer gathering.  Major General Craig Olson described himself in that speech as a “redeemed believer in Christ.”  What was he thinking?!

Mikey Weinstein, president of the MRFF, called the general’s televised remarks a “brutal disgrace.”  Mr. Weinstein wrote a letter to the Secretary of Defense calling for the Air Force general to be severely punished.  He alleged that airmen were “utterly disgusted and shocked by the brazenly illicit and wholly unconstitutional, fundamentalist Christian proselytizing recently perpetrated on international television.”  Weinstein demanded the general be court-martialed and “aggressively and visibly brought to justice for his unforgivable crimes and transgressions.”

If the MRFF thought General Olson was a brutal disgrace, one can only imagine what they must have thought of George Washington, who once prayed at Valley Forge.

It would be easy to dismiss Mikey Weinstein as an annoying two-bit gad-fly. But unfortunately, he cannot be easily dismissed.  Repeatedly, Weinstein has proven that when he complains about something — the Pentagon responds.

Far too many Christians have been bullied by the MRFF’s intimidation, and the time has long since come for the mighty Pentagon to put a stop to this non-sense to giving any credence to Weinstein.

Listen: If Weinstein and his minions have a problem with the general’s televised remarks, maybe they should just change the channel.

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Special Displaying of U.S. Flag on Memorial Day

The United States Flag Code stipulates that as the symbol of a living country, the flag is considered in itself a living thing and should be properly displayed and cared for.  The code outlines the proper ways to display the American flag:

·         Raise the flag briskly.  Lower it ceremoniously.

·         Never allow the flag to touch the ground or floor.

·         Do not fly the flag in bad weather, unless it is an all-weather flag.

·      The flag can only be flown at night if properly illuminated.  Otherwise, it should only be flown from sunrise to sunset.

·         The flag should always be allowed to fall free.

·         The flag should never be used to carry, store, or deliver anything.

·         Never fly the flag upside down except to signal an emergency.

On this Memorial Day, people commonly fly the flag at half-staff all day.  However, Memorial Day is the only day in which the flag should be hung at half-staff from dawn until 12-noon … when it should be raised to the top of the staff until dusk.  Why?  Because the first half of the day pays tribute to the armed forces service members who sacrificed their lives for our freedoms; while the second half of the day represents the commitment of living citizens to the preservation of life and liberty for all.

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Hollywood’s Hypocrisy on Global-Warming

Hollywood and global-warming is a natural match.  After all, who can tell you better to cut back on your wasteful ways better than a high-flying multimillionaire movie star with the carbon footprint the size of a dinosaur?

In 1990, PBS broadcasted a 10-hour series entitled – “Race to Save the Planet.”  The program’s host was Meryl Streep, who proclaimed: “By the year 2000 ... the earth’s climate will be warmer than it’s been in over 100,000 years.  If we don’t do something, there will be enormous calamities in a very short time.”  Really?  Did I miss it?

It’s bad enough that they don’t know what they’re talking about, but it’s worse that they’re hypocrites while preaching their nonsense.  A private jet burns as much fuel in an hour as a car does in a year.  The 48,000-pound Gulfstream G550, which can fly from Chicago to Rome with 15-passengers, burns through more than 400-gallons of fuel per hour.

Then there is Leonardo DiCaprio, who lectures, “If we don’t act together, we will surely perish.”  Radar Online reported in April that DiCaprio boarded a private jet six different times within 6-weeks last year.  But the charade continues.  A partnership between DiCaprio and Netflix was announced in March to create yet another series of propagandist environmental documentaries.

The Media Research Center has a new report on “Climate Hypocrites and the Media That Love Them.”  Take Julia Roberts, who recently made a video for Conservation International playing a big role, saying: “Some call me nature.  Others call me Mother Nature.  I’ve been here for over four and a half billion years.  22,500 times longer than you.  I don’t really need people, but people need me.  Yes, your future depends on me.  When I thrive, you thrive.  When I falter, you falter.  Or worse.  But I’ve been here for eons.  I have fed species greater than you, and I have starved species greater than you.”

The loathing of the human race is a constant green theme.  But it’s not hard to find photos of Roberts climbing in and out of private jets.  In fact, for a while she even co-owned a private jet.

Woody Harrelson is such a tree-hugger that he told CBC News in Canada that he’d “like to see it get to the point where we never use trees to make paper because to me it’s just a barbaric way to make it. ... It’d be nice to just stop using the forest.”  But at the Cannes Film Festival in 2008, when Harrelson realized that he had left his vegan belt and shoes behind, he had them flown to France from California.

At least John Travolta offers self-awareness, that when he said global warming is a “very valid” issue, he added “I’m probably not the best candidate to ask about global warming because I fly jets.”  Travolta owns five jets and has flown tens of thousands of miles in the air.  He thinks the answer may be “other planets” … a natural suggestion for a Scientologist.

These celebrities don’t take tough questions well.

When asked about DiCaprio’s hypocrisy, actor Mark Ruffalo shot back: “Oh, brother, that is a question you shouldn’t be asking here today because that defies the spirit of what this is about.”  He added that anyone who attacks DiCaprio is “a coward or an ideologue” because “Leonardo DiCaprio’s voice carries farther than any one of those politicians, even the president.”

If that’s true, blame star-dazzled media elite that never care one whit about hypocrisy from Hollywood.

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Is Your News Source Primarily Reporting Movement of ISIS or Misconduct of Law Enforcement?

The Media Research Center (MRC) analyzed media coverage for the entire month of April from the ‘Big Three’ – ABC, NBC, and CBS – and found that these networks devoted 6x more coverage to alleged instances of police misconduct than the terror activities of ISIS.  Allegations of police misconduct accounted for one out of every 7-minutes of broadcast evening news airtime, or 3-hours, 43-minutes.  That’s three times more airtime than the next-most-covered topic – the 2016 presidential campaign (1-hour, 18-minutes), and nearly six times more airtime than the ‘Big Three’ devoted to the ISIS terror threat in April (38-minutes, 45-seconds).

The NBC Nightly News devoted the most airtime to the topic of police misconduct (1-hour, 27-minutes), followed by the CBS Evening News (1-hour, 8-minutes) and ABC’s World News Tonight (1-hour, 5-minutes).

Protests over the death of Freddie Gray in police custody, including the subsequent riots in Baltimore, attracted the most coverage, with 1-hour, 48-minutes of broadcast airtime.  The shooting of a suspect by a Tulsa reserve deputy garnered 29-minutes of airtime, followed by the videotaped shooting of a fleeing suspect by a South Carolina police officer (24-minutes).

Despite the relative lack of network news interest, there was no shortage of news involving ISIS during the month of April.  On April 2 and 3, 3-American women were arrested for trying to join ISIS; later in the month, more U.S. and British citizens reportedly tried to join ISIS.  On April 16, NBC reported an Ohio man had returned to the U. S. after receiving terror training from ISIS.

Of course, the police are not as big a threat as ISIS.  While instances of alleged police misconduct are newsworthy (given the events in Ferguson and Staten Island) threats to national security rank just as high in terms of importance.  It should be interesting to see how the media continues to cover ISIS – and other terrorist threats – as 2016 approaches … given that trust on foreign policy has swung back to the Republicans.

It’s unknown if the ‘security moms’ are back.  If they are, it’s unknown if they’ll break for Hillary.  The 2016 election is shaping to be potentially more focused on foreign policy than usual.

If you watch one of the ‘Big Three’ for your news coverage: Which would you rather be made more aware of – alleged instances of police misconduct or the facts of terrorist activities of ISIS now in the U.S.?  Don’t foolishly think that by putting your head in the sand regarding the real threat of ISIS in America makes your head less likely to be cut off.  It just means you won’t see the blade coming.  As for me, I’ll put my trust in law enforcement.

In the aftermath of the Garland shooting in Texas … where no one was killed except for the two would-be attackers who sought to kill attendees of a Muhammad cartoon drawing contest hosted by Pamela Geller (blogger and president of the American Freedom Defense Initiative) … I’ll put my trust in law enforcement who took out these ISIS players who are clearly in the U.S.

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Pro-Life Pain-Capable Bill Passes the House

Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a bill that would ban most abortions after 20-weeks.  The Republican-led House approved the pro-life Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act by a largely party-line vote of 242-184.  This comes on the somber 2nd anniversary convicting the late-term abortionist Kermit Gosnell … convicted of murdering 3-newborn children and neglecting a patient who later died.  [read my blog of May 10, 2013 – “Gosnell is By No Means the Exception”]

The Pain-Capable bill, originally introduced in January (timed to the anniversary of the 1973 Roe V. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion on demand), was reintroduced, in part, by pro-life groups who have rallied on its behalf in recent days.  The Susan B. Anthony List (SBA List) made over 10,000 constituent calls to the House of Representatives, urging them to vote … and they listened.

SBA List president, Marjorie Dannenfelser, celebrated the bill’s return and hinted that it will have lasting implications on next year’s presidential election.  “This legislation will be the defining abortion issue of the 2016 elections and put pro-life candidates on offense.  Already, the entire Republican presidential field has rallied behind this popular legislation while Hillary Clinton remains elusive on her late-term abortion position.  The national conversation on this bill will force Clinton to choose between the American people or her uncompromising, deep-pocketed friends in the big abortion industry who accept no limits to abortion on-demand.”

Mrs. Clinton will also have to face an American constituency that strongly supports this legislation.

New scientific evidence has revealed that premature babies can survive before 24-weeks, giving Congress even more proof that they’re doing the right thing.  Not that they need it.  This bill has the potential to save thousands of lives.

With science, evidence, and the American people on unborn babies’ side, it’s about time the Pain-Capable bill be passed.  Let’s pray that the Senate looks for wisdom from the God who created them!  And then, make a call to your senator!

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Oklahoma is OK by Me

The Oklahoma House and Senate have passed a religious freedom bill to protect the rights of clergy.  The legislation says pastors and others who perform weddings cannot be forced to perform same-sex ceremonies if that violates their religious beliefs.

The measure also shields churches from being required to participate in any same-sex weddings.

The Oklahoma House voted 87-8 for the bill, while a nearly identical bill passed the state Senate on a 38-5 vote.  All opposing votes came from Democrats.

Again, the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, reads: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof …”

Thank God, the OK republicans respect the original intent of our Founding Fathers!

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Another SCOTUS Ruling AGAINST Obamacare Contraception Mandate

The U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) has defended religious freedom (once again), striking another blow against Obamacare’s contraception mandate.  Just the other week, the justices ordered the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit to reconsider a ruling that denied a group of Catholic ministries in Michigan the freedom to follow their faith.  The Michigan Catholic Conference and other Catholic ministries took their request to SCOTUS after a surprising lower court decision that would have allowed large IRS fines against the ministries.

Based on their religious beliefs, these ministries cannot provide contraceptives and abortion-inducing drugs in their employee health plans.

The federal government has relied heavily on the lower court’s decision in other courts around the country, arguing that it should be able to impose similar burdens on religious ministries like the Little Sisters of the Poor, a convent for nuns.

But now, for the sixth time, SCOTUS has taken steps to protect religious objectors from the contraception mandate.  “The government keeps making the same bad arguments and the Supreme Court keeps rejecting them — every single time.  This is because the government can obviously come up with ways to distribute contraceptives without the forced involvement of Catholic ministries,” says Mark Rienzi, senior counsel for the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.

Over 750 plaintiffs in the other non-profit cases have been granted protection from the unconstitutional mandate, which forces religious ministries to either violate their faith or pay massive IRS penalties.

“As with the Supreme Court’s decisions in Little Sisters of the Poor and Hobby Lobby, this is a strong signal that the Supreme Court will ultimately reject the government’s narrow view of religious liberty.  And it makes it less likely that lower courts will accept arguments the Supreme Court has rejected over and over and over again,” Rienzi said.

The SCOTUS has previously granted relief to the following religious objectors to the mandate: Little Sisters of the Poor (December 2013 and January 2014); Hobby Lobby (June 2014); Wheaton College (July 2014); University of Notre Dame (March 2015); Archbishop Zubik and the Diocese of Pittsburgh (April 2015).

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

US Christians Becoming Political Refugees?

The refugee crisis is mind-boggling.  According to the United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR), there are 2.4-million refugees who have incredible needs in and around Iraq.

“Could this happen to us in America?”  That was the question from Patrick Klein president of Vision Beyond Borders (VBB) following his recent trip to Northern Iraq.  Klein just returned from visiting refugee camps in-and-around Dohuk.  The stories he heard were heart-breaking; the testimonies of Christians were amazing; the needs of refugees, overwhelming.  Klein says he visited Iraqi refugees forced from their homes in Mosul … many of them, Christians.  “Most of them have lost hope, and they’re just discouraged. They say: ‘Where do we go?  What do we do now?  Maybe if we come to America or Europe, we can start a new life.’  I don’t want to see 300,000 Christians leave Iraq [with] no Christian witness left in Iraq.”

Many of the refugees are college educated, middle class Iraqis who had good jobs and bank accounts to help support their families.  That all changed when the Islamic State (ISIS) started taking over in June. “There were 52,000 security forces protecting Mosul and the surrounding area.  There were 3,000 ISIS.  They believe Maliki, the former president of Iraq, told the generals to lay down their arms and surrender, and they don’t know why.”

When that happened, ISIS started going from village-to-village forcing Christians to leave. “A lot of [the Christians] had Muslim neighbors they knew for 30-years.  These Muslim neighbors said, ‘Get out of Iraq.  You don’t belong here.  We hate you Christians,’” reports Klein.  They were forced to either convert to Islam, leave or die.  “One man told us: ‘I think God is chastising us because we forgot God.  We stopped reading our Bibles.  We stopped praying.  Maybe God is using this.’  He said, ‘I want to tell you, my family and I are having devotions together every night.  We’re praying together.  We’re reading the Bible together.’  He said, ‘We realize that all we have is Jesus.’”

According to Klein, this trip was the hardest trip he’s ever made.  It forced him to ask an important question.  “I thought: ‘Could this happen to us in America?  Could we be forced with a decision?  Are we going to follow Christ or walk away from everything we own?’  I pray that the church in America would love Him passionately, that we would not lose our first love.”

The spread of ISIS is also impacting nominal Muslims who are helping refugees.  Klein says, “A lot of people [Muslims] are saying, ‘If this is what Islam is, we don’t want to be Muslims anymore,’ and they’re opening up to the Gospel.”

Listen: We all suffer—it is a part of life since the Fall of humankind in the Garden of Eden.  Some suffer because of their testimony to their belief in Christ.  As long as Christians are silent, there are few repercussions.  A holy life may give away your secret; but if you are a silent Christian you may be able to escape rejection and hostility, if that is your goal.  If you articulate that Jesus is Lord, then the likelihood of rejection is increased.

In our Western world, we think that because we have individual freedom (which is our highest priority as a culture) any attempt to restrain evil is an infringement on freedom.  In our culture of political correctness, anyone who deviates from mainstream political or moral positions is not well tolerated.  The language of disdain becomes hostile.

For governments who insist on total and ultimate loyalty, Christians who can’t say “Caesar is Lord” are deemed rebellious and insubordinate because they know that their ultimate loyalty is to Jesus Christ as Lord.  So they lash out at Christians, seeking to silence them through whatever means are necessary.  Dead Christians, these governments think, are no longer a problem.

In a culture of convenience, like the USA, the idea of suffering for anything is not part of our normal expectations.  We go to great lengths to end suffering … especially our own.  To embrace suffering for Christ is almost a foreign idea, but a necessary step to be God’s true servant in our culture.

My friend: We will have to choose whether we believe in Jesus as the Lord and we will have to testify to that; or, we can try to remain safe by being silent and be free from rejection, suffering, and, in some places, death.  This is not to disregard that Christians must use discretion in when, where, and how they testify.  We do not go looking for suffering or martyrdom; but if the occasion arises and a choice has to be made, we will make the hard choice.  We may experience beatings, harassment, legal proceedings, or beheadings for our testimony; but we have already decided that if that is the necessary consequence of loyalty to Christ, then we accept that.

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Thank God for a Level-Headed Liberal … Calling Out the Nobel Peace Prize-Winning Obama for Doing Nothing About Persecuted Christians

Kirsten Powers, a liberal leaning political analyst, publicly slammed President Obama last week for failing to protect Christians in the Middle East being persecuted by radical Muslims.  Her editorial, which was published in USA Today, focused on the incident in the Mediterranean Sea where Muslims threw a dozen Christians overboard from a migrant ship. While authorities have charged the Muslims with “multiple aggravated murder motivated by religious hate,” Powers contended that the incident was an example of “religious persecution.”  Powers wrote, “Obama was mute on the killings … He failed to interject any sense of outrage or even tepid concern for the targeting of Christians for their faith.  If a Christian mob on a ship bound for Italy threw 12-Muslims to their death for praying to Allah, does anyone think the president would have been so disinterested?”

Powers then highlighted another incident where the president condemned similar actions.  “When 3-North Carolina Muslims were gunned down by a virulent atheist, Obama rightly spoke out against the horrifying killings,” Powers wrote.  “But he just can’t seem to find any passion for the mass persecution of Middle Eastern Christians or the eradication of Christianity from its birthplace.”

Powers argued that “religious persecution of Christians is rampant worldwide.”  She added that Christians were the targets of “religious cleansing” … especially those living in the Middle East and northern Africa.

“Pope Francis has repeatedly decried the persecution and begged the world for help, but it has had little impact,” Powers wrote.  “Western leaders—including Obama—will be remembered for their near silence as this human rights tragedy unfolded.”

The political analyst then turned to comments the president made during this year’s National Prayer Breakfast.  “It will be hard to forget his lecturing of Christians at the National Prayer Breakfast about the centuries-old Crusades while Middle Eastern Christians were at that moment being harassed, driven from their homes, tortured and murdered for their faith,” Powers wrote.  “A week and a half after Obama’s National Prayer Breakfast speech, 21-Coptic Christians were beheaded for being ‘people of the cross.’”

Powers is correct in her analyst.  But don’t forget, Barack Obama said on June 28, 2006, “Whatever we once were, we are no longer a Christian nation …”  Never mind the facts that this nation was established by Christians; her laws predicated on Judeo-Christian principles; and that the majority of citizens declare themselves to be Christian.  This Administration’s disregard for the rule of law and the harassment of Christians living in accordance with their convictions is a manifestation of Obama’s contempt for Christianity.

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

The Real Discrimination in America

A Christian leader who helped write the Federal Religious Freedom Act (FRFA) says a society that extends religious liberties to its people … but also holds true to anti-discrimination ideals for everyone … can co-exist.

Dr. Richard Land, president of Southern Evangelical Seminary, was at the Rose Garden ceremony at the White House when President Clinton signed the FRFA into law.  Dr. Land, the former president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, tells OneNewsNow that radical activists were successful in getting the original religious freedom bills proposed recently in Indiana and Arkansas reworked, but they failed to fight the argument that the laws would discriminate against homosexuals.  Land says, “This is where the analogy to the lunch counter and to segregation is completely and utterly disanalogous and disingenuous, because there is no community in America where a gay couple is not going to be able to find somebody who will be more than happy to provide that service for the fee.”  He goes on to assert, “So why pick on a conservative Christian proprietor and under penalty of law weaponize the government and say, ‘You’ve got to do this, or we’re going to fine you, or we’re going to put you in jail, or we’re going to run you out of business’?”

And that, according to Dr. Land, is the real discrimination that is taking place.  “It’s ugly; it’s thuggish; it’s brutish,” he laments.  “It’s the totalitarian left in all of its ugly face.”

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Islamic Indoctrination in Public School

The teacher said, “Pretend you are a Muslim.”  This was the instruction given in a class assignment at Union Grove High School in Union Grove, Wisconsin, requiring students to take on the persona of a Muslim in order to write a “point of view” essay in which they discussed their daily Islamic religious practices and the types of struggles they would face as Muslims in America.

Perhaps you are shocked to learn about the inclusion of this assignment in a public school curriculum.  Maybe your position is that this type of activity clearly crosses the line into unconstitutional religious indoctrination by the government.

In less than 4-days, over 95,000 people had signed a petition to “Stop Islamic Indoctrination in School.”  This overwhelming response, and in such a rapid timeframe, sends a clear message that the citizens of this nation expect their government to abide by the law and refrain from incorporating Islamic religious activities into our public educational system.

The American Center for Law & Justice (ACLJ) issued a letter to the school district informing its officials that requiring students to personally adopt a religious viewpoint operates in direct violation of the restrictions imposed on the government by the ‘establishment clause’ of the 1st Amendment. They explained that school personnel must be made aware of the law in this regard and demanded that any future instruction involving religion at the school must comply with the Constitution.

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel

Gun Rights vs Control – Highest Support in 25-Years for Rights

According to a Pew Research Center survey (conducted in December 2014), for the first time in 25-years, 52% of Americans believe defending gun rights is more important than gun control … as opposed to 46% who believe gun ownership should be restricted.

Another shifting statistic revealed in the poll was the percentage of Americans who believe guns makes homes safer.  While 15-years ago 51% said guns make a house more dangerous, today only 30% believe that … while a majority, 63%, say they provide more safety.

Americans are increasingly embracing their gun rights because they recognize firearms are an important resource for self-defense.  In March 2013, Americans cited protection as the top reason for purchasing a gun … and it seems the trend has only continued.

These statistics suggest that Americans are rejecting the Obama Administration’s gun control agenda.  Two years ago, after the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, President Obama showed real remorse for the young lives lost, yet offered a misguided response by trying to push through anti-gun legislation.  His gun control measure, which would have expanded background checks and banned ‘assault weapons,’ didn’t get very far in Congress.  Now, it’s clear his gun control agenda is just as unpopular outside Capitol Hill.

The Obama Administration hasn’t let this failed bill halt their anti-gun plans, however.  A look at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) efforts suggests he and his cohorts are more determined than ever to restrict gun access.  However, some of this Administration’s methods are being exposed by members of Congress who are concerned about an unfair rollback of the 2nd Amendment rights.

I must say, I never thought it necessary to have a gun … and never previously owned one; but this Administration’s threat to my 2nd Amendment right to bear arms (for self-defense) changed my position.  I found myself searching the Scriptures for guidance and found a very clear word for self-defense.  I now have several firearms and purchase ammunition has often as I can.

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel