The Threat to Religious Liberty
Dr. John M. Adams
Moral Action Executive Director
 
            There is now a large threat to religious liberty that exists in America’s armed services.  Military life has always had strong ties to God’s churches and chapels down through the years of American life.  From George Washington until modern day God has had a great presence.  But now in recent years there has been a satanic effort to remove any religious/Christian expression in military life.
 
            From the book, “A Clear and Present Danger”, we present in behalf of Moral Action and the Family Research Council a list of events against religious liberty.  We must pray for our military and leaders.
 
2011 – Walter Reed Medical Center bans Bibles and religious material –
            Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, the leading medical
institution for the U.S. armed forces, issued an official patient and visitor policy banning Bibles.  It stated, “No religious items (i.e. Bibles, reading material, and/or artifacts) are allowed to be given away or used during a visit.”  In December 2011, the policy was rescinded after a political firestorm erupted in the House of Representatives.
 
Feb. 7, 2012 – Air Force removes “God” from unit’s logo-
The Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers complained to the   Air Force about a logo from the Rapid Capabilities Office.  It read in Latin “Doing God’s Work with Other People’s Money” and was changed to “Doing Miracles with Other People’s Money.”  Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Virginia) and 35 other lawmakers sent a letter to Air Force Secretary Michael Donley and Air Force Chief of Staff Norton Schwartz demanding an explanation for the removal of a non-religious reference to God.  The Air Force said they would investigate.
 
June 15, 2013 – A soldier is punished for serving Chick-fil-A –
Army Master Sergeant, Nathan Sommers, was punished for serving Chick-fil-A sandwiches at his own promotion party in honor of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).  Sommers was investigated, reprimanded, threatened with judicial action, and given a bad efficiency report.  The invitation said, “In honor of my promotion and in honor of the Defense of Marriage Act, I’m serving Chick-fil-A sandwiches at my promotion party.”  Sommers was told that “he was no longer a team player and was not performing up to standards.”  Chick-fil-A and DOMA were frowned upon.
 
June 19, 2014 – Navy decides to remove Gideon Bibles from hotel rooms on its bases –
Prompted by a March 2014 letter from the Freedom from Religion Foundation, the Navy Exchange Service Command (NEXCOM) issued an order to remove Gideon Bibles from Navy Lodge rooms and take them to donation centers.  After public backlash, the Navy announced on August 14, 2014 that the Bibles in the rooms would remain while the policy was reviewed.
 
2015-16 –
Sgt. 1st Class Charles Martland never guessed he’d lose his job for defending a young boy who was sexually abused.  And yet, the heroic Green Beret was discharged from the Army for confronting an Afghan policeman who tied the boy to a post and raped him repeatedly.  The nauseating story raised all kinds of questions about President Obama’s military.
 
1,000’s of petitions called for Sgt. Martland’s record to be cleared and an investigation into U.S. military policy in cases of child abuse and exploitation.  In April 2016, Army officials decided to reinstate the decorated Green Beret.
 
As B.M.A. Baptist, we are one of many influential groups that can contact our new President, his staff, our congressmen and senators with a voice for Godly, biblical decisions to be made.  We must hold our leaders in Washington and in the military accountable to God.
 

 
            During the August 2014 meeting of the Baptist Missionary Association of America’s (BMA) Coordination Council, Dr. John Adams presented a report on behalf of the Moral Action Agency.  The report included a sobering description of current trends that contradict biblical teaching on marriage.  The council discussed the issue and requested that the faculty of the BMA Seminary compose wording for a proposed amendment to the BMA Doctrinal Statement that articulated both scriptural teaching and the persistent belief of BMA churches regarding the institution of marriage.  Following consultation with Moral Action’s executive director, the seminary faculty adjusted a prior statement, Article IIIC, and prepared a new statement, Article IIID, for the council’s consideration.  Chairman Ed Stephenson presented the statements to Springhill Baptist Church, Greenbrier, Arkansas, for approval.  Subsequently, Springhill Baptist Church chose to recommend that the BMA adopt the statements during its annual 2015 meeting as an amendment to the association’s Doctrinal Statement.
 
             “Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female.  And said, for this cause shall a man leave father and mother and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?”  (Matthew 19:4-5).  In this passage, Jesus referred to Genesis 2:23 and quoted from Genesis 2:24.  Because God created both humans and marriage, humans must recognize themselves as accountable to His intent for marriage. 
            Genesis 2:24-25 identifies the special and exclusive relationship of the adult human male and female, joined together as husband and wife (Gen. 2:24, 25), as the most fundamental and basic human relationship.  This relationship is said to have been designed directly by God and serves as the sole basis for a distinct family unit in perpetuity (Gen. 2:24, 25; Gen. 4:1, 17) and is even intended to be interminable except under specific, extreme circumstances (Matt. 19:8).  These passages declare that God’s reason for creating male and female finds its ultimate purpose in the ability of male and female to become one flesh.  The concept of one flesh includes physical (i.e., sexual), spiritual, mental, and emotional components.  While some may argue for the possibility of such oneness outside the bounds of the monogamous heterosexual union, such arguments simply lack legitimate support from the Bible.
            A marriage is to be comprised of a biological (i.e., “natural”) man and woman.  Because of the brokenness of creation as a whole, and the human race in particular, humans made in God’s image sometimes face difficult disorders of sexuality which call for great compassion and sensitivity among God’s people.  First, there are some who perceive themselves to be the opposite gender in spite of their physical sexual characteristics (i.e., a biological male identifies psychologically as a woman, or vice versa).  As noted in article IIIC., God has designed the human race to be male and female, and he has prohibited same-sex sexual behavior.  Accordingly, Scripture does not make possible the separation of sex and gender as the transgender movement has done.  One who is biologically male must strive, by God’s redeeming and sanctifying grace, to live as a man, and likewise one who is biologically female must strive to live as a woman – hence the language “a natural man and a natural woman” in the doctrinal statement proposal.
            It is important to note that cases of sexual or marital union outside the bounds of a monogamous and heterosexual marriage, even if found in the Bible, simply deviate from God’s intention for marriage and should not be considered as examples for living or doctrinal truths.  A great deal of thought, study, and debate has gone into the particular wording of these revisions in hopes of presenting well-articulated statements that both reflect biblical teaching and address important issues related to personhood, marriage, and sexuality.
            The need for such clarification of biblical teaching, as described in the proposed amendments, comes amidst increasing political and social pressures to accept and promote ideas and actions that violate biblical truths.  BMA Seminary faculty has made the entire paper available at http://bmats.edu/marriage.

 
Dear BMA Churches,
 
            As the amendment to our doctrinal statement is presented again via our BMA papers, we urge every church to adopt these changes by a motion, second, and recorded vote in the church’s minutes.  This is to be done and recorded by the church to validate the churches’ and pastors’ stand on Holy marriage.
            Legal advice shares that our marriage stand should be simply stated and Biblically backed.  This same advice declares a need for a positive position and not to camp on the negative.  We Christians know our positions on divorce, homosexuality, and the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender).
            We all know of the boy Scouts of America resolution to remove the gay restriction in denying membership and the litigation against its Christian Boy Scout leaders who refuse to accept the homosexuals.
            We also read of the 70-year-old Barronelle Stutzman who was sued for refusing to provide flowers for a same-sex wedding.  There have been numerous lawsuits, according to One News Now, being filed for declining to compromise their conscience by not filling orders for gay/lesbian wedding cakes.
            Can churches be forced to perform gay marriages?  Eric Johnston, President of the Southeast Law Institute, said that churches may be in for legal challenges over gay marriages.  Johnston advises churches that haven’t done so to clarify their stance and to make it Biblical.
            So, as the Moral Action’s Director, I urge all BMA churches to adopt in writing these proposed Amendments of Creation and Marriage presented by our BMA Seminary faculty.  God will see us through!
 
            Please read the following carefully:
 
 
 
 
 
EXAMPLE OF MARRIAGE/CHURCH MOTION
 
                        Motion and second that _________________________ Church,
its pastors, preachers, staff, and members adopt the
Doctrinal Statement Article III D “Marriage-God created
marriage” (Gen. 1:27-28; 2:23-24).  Jesus Christ declared
the Creator’s intention for marriage to be the inseparable
and exclusive union between a man and a woman (natural
man and natural woman) (Matt. 19:4-6; Mark 10:6-9).
Marriage testifies of the union between Christ and the
church (Eph. 5:31-32; Rom. 1:25-27).
 
We declare that our pastors, ministers (licensed and ordained)
not marry gay or lesbian couples while being a member of
__________________ Church of ___________________, and
that our building and grounds not be used in gay marriages.
 
Footnote – this is an example that our B.M.A. Churches can use
to adopt in their church.
 
                                                                                    Dr. John Adams
                                                                                    Executive Director
                                                                                    Moral Action – B.M.A.