June 2004 Archives

Earlier this month my brother Samuel Phillips graduated from his home schooling. Somewhere in America there are still those uninformed (and sadly sometimes prejudiced) individuals who still believe that students should not be home educated through high school, but the ignorance of such a perspective is daily refuted through the tens of thousands of blessed success stories that bear witness to the fact that the ancient, biblical method of educational discipleship still works, and it works through high school. Yes, it was a great day for the Phillips family. Samuel is the sixth and last of the Phillips children and was born to my mother in her 48th year. (Mom went to her 25 year college reunion 8 months pregnant.)Like many home educators Samuel has enjoyed both the discipline and the flexibility that comes with vision, focus and a personalized education program in the ancient “Hebrew” style. As a home educator he assisted a director on a major feature film about the Civil War, traveled the country with his father, visited China, Rome and Europe — all this in addition to formal academic studies. So I was not surprised to learn that within 48 hours of his graduation he would be traveling to the killing fields of the Sudan to serve the impoverished families under persecution.

Samuel’s journey began taking a plane bound for Kenya with our missionary brother Brad for two weeks of glorious, but heartbreaking work within the persecuted church in the Sudan. I thank God for my brother Brad Phillips whose amazing work is called The Persecution Project and through whom tens of thousands of metric tons of supplies and Bibles are delivered to those people ravaged by Islam and the murderous Sudanese government. Below are some images and commentary from their trip.

Samuel with the children of one Sudanese village.

Through Persecution Project, Brad delivers tens of thousands of metric tons of Bibles and supplies to persecuted Christians

This teething toddler is so needy that she uses a bullet as a pacifier. Sights like these can be found in every village and are simply heartbreaking.

The six foot seven gentleman to the right is a former Harlem Globetrotter and member of Brad’s missionary team. He stands next to a 17 year old blind girl who was attacked by Muslims as a thirteen year old, conceived a child and now must care for her young child without support or even eye-sight. Brad brought her relief and cut a deal with the community leaders to make sure they would ensure provision reached her.

The children of another Sudanese village pose for an image with Samuel.

Samuel is given his crack at piloting the plane through Sudanese territory

Samuel passes the ball to the Sudanese children and then teaches them how to play soccer

At a regional rally with the anti-government forces.

Samuel teaches baseball. It’s the wind-up...

A Sudanese boy laughs for joy after missing the ball.

My brothers Samuel and Brad rest on the journey from Kenya into the Sudan

Here Samuel joins the team, including Gods and Generals actor Bo Brinkman (Lee’s adjutant) and his son (with Melissa Gilbert of Little House fame) Dakota at the Java Hut in Kenya. Java Hut is Kenya’s answer to Starbucks. Interestingly, Starbucks buys much of their coffee from Kenya.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 30, 2004 | Permalink

The Lord was kind to give me a blessed day which included some very precious meetings and visits with a number of men and women whom I admire greatly. I spent a happy thirty minutes with Nancy DeMoss (who inherited Elizabeth Eliot’s “Gateway to Joy” radio broadcast). We discussed the issues of the day (from Christian modesty to women in the military) and reminisced about our respective fathers who shared affection for each other during the seventies and eighties. Nancy told me that her father daily prayed for God’s blessing on my own father, a fact which warmed my heart to hear.

Later I spent about thirty minutes with Dr. Jay Adams, a remarkably humble man and hero of the Faith who shared with me his perspective on Bible translations and the “New Perspective on Paul.” I met for about thirty minutes with Republican congressional candidate Bill Federer and discussed (a) the substantial threat to freedom of going to electronic voting, (b) the history of the IRS and (c)the tradition that many presidents would not only acknowledge God, but Jesus Christ specifically, in their inauguration speeches.

I briefly visited with the team from Ligonier Ministries and communicated with them that I really missed not having R.C., Jr. manage Table Talk. I also enjoyed a good half hour with Pastor Jerry Marcelino (author of Recovering the Lost Tools of Family Worship, and publisher of Marriage to a Difficult Man: The Uncommon Union of Jonathan and Sarah Edwards) and Pastor Dennis Gunderson (of Grace and Truth Books). We discussed the doctrine of justification and Vision Forum’s tape series The Great Debate on Baptism and the Covenant.

In the evening God blessed us with a glorious dinner with Phil Lancaster of Patriarch Magazine (who had been with my staff all day signing his Vision Forum published book — Family Man, Family Leader), and Tim Dudley, president of Masters Books, who shared his experience as a boy visiting Maria Von Trapp with his dad, her personal biographer.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 29, 2004 | Permalink

Today, Tuesday at 3:00, I will be appearing on Marlin Maddoux’s Point of View national radio broadcast to discuss women in the military. Marlin has gone on to be with the Lord, but his show continues to broadcast cutting edge issues of controversy for the Christian community.

Also, last Friday I was recorded at Valley Forge for CSPAN delivering a discussion the essence of which covered the doctrine of biblical principles for the ballot box. The speech may be broadcast this week along with other messages from the Constitution Party national convention. Check the CSPAN website for updates on times of broadcast.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 29, 2004 | Permalink

The Lord gave me the great honor of nominating for the office of President of the United States on the Constitution Party, godly home school father Michael Peroutka

Three generations of Phillipses pause for a radio interview

The convention rises to applause the only 100% pro-life; 100% pro-family candidate running for the office of President. Read more at http://www.peroutka2004.com/

Seminary professor and author of the Myth of Adolescence, Dr. David Black and his wife, clap for Michael Peroutka.

Joshua and Justice at the Constitution Party National Convention

Home school leaders, the Salvail family (New Hampshire) and Phillip Hendrix (Colorado), traveled to participate as delegates in the historic convention

Diane Peroutka, who offered a moving tribute to her husband, poses for a shot with daughter Beth

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 29, 2004 | Permalink

It was a delight to run into Chief Justice Roy Moore in the airport on Friday while en route to the Constitution Party national convention.

Over the year we have developed a special relationship with Dr. Leonard Holifield, a dear believer and personal security officer for the Chief Justice. Yes, he is related to Evander.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 29, 2004 | Permalink

The boys and I pay homage to the great memory of Peter Muehlenberg, the patriot pastor who served beside Washington at Valley Forge, and whose location of command is marked by this cannon

America’s magnificent arch of gratitude to the enduring spirit of the men of Valley Forge

Inside one of the tiny cabins in which our heroic soldiers wintered

Joshua and Justice rest before once again engaging the Lobsterbacks in mock battle

Mom and I enjoyed a glorious day walking the Valley Forge battlefield

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 29, 2004 | Permalink

Sons Joshua and Justice join Vision Forum staff Tim and Wesley for a meal with special guest Phil Lancaster, editor of Patriarch Magazine, in Atlanta Georgia for the Christian Booksellers Association. Phil will be signing books and speaking on his latest release Family Man, Family Leader.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 28, 2004 | Permalink

“I just purchased the cd collection about the baptism debate. Never have I listened to an argument presented defending a position with such respect and understanding expressed to the opposing side. Mr. Einwechter and Mr. Phillips both show the love and charity of the Lord. Thank you. Molly S.”

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 28, 2004 | Permalink

Alabama Supreme Court Justice Champ Lions who was part of the group that opposed and persecuted Chief Justice Roy Moore has written a paper in which he argues that the oath of office directs the judge to swear allegiance to men. Matt Chancey offers a brilliant refutation at the visionforum.org web site. The article is called “Constitutions, Oaths, and the Heritage of English Law: A response to Justice Champ Lyons, Jr.”

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 28, 2004 | Permalink

Click here to read the article.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 27, 2004 | Permalink

What a blessing and joy to be traveling with my two sons and assistant Bob Renaud on a glorious and inspiring whirlwind ministry tour. Our great adventures began earlier this week when I was speaking for two days in the beautiful Shenandoah Mountains at the annual family camp of the Reformed Presbyterian Church in the United States. I preached two messages: One on the necessity of understanding, refuting and opposing compromises with the book of Genesis, and another on the meaning of the rule of law and the doctrine of interposition. We rose early in the morning on Friday and drove with Judy Rogers (a gifted composer and singer, and wife of pastor Wayne Rogers) to Roanoke where we all jumped on various planes bound for Valley Forge. Bob, my sons and I disembarked in Ohio for a plane change and were delighted to providentially bump into Chief Justice Roy Moore, with whom we spent a happy half hour before proceeding to our destination. That night we journeyed to Valley Forge where I delivered a speech which was covered on CSPAN for Michael Peroutka, candidate for President of the United States on the Constitution Party. Afterwards we stayed up till the wee hours at a local diner with my mother and father listening to stories from my 17 year old brother Samuel, who just returned from a missionary outreach with my other brother Brad (President of Persecution Project) in the killing fields of Sudan. We will be in Atlanta on Monday and then return to San Antonio for a season of quiet home life on Wednesday.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 26, 2004 | Permalink

Mr. Phillips, we have profited from your ministry at Vision Forum but in light of your recent attacks on your brothers in Christ you might find some wisdom in a quote from “The Fellowship of the Ring”. Haldir, an Elf of Lothlorien is leading the fellowship through the beautiful woods of Lothlorien blindfolded because the elves have issues with dwarves. He says, “Indeed in nothing is the power of the Dark Lord more clearly shown than in the estrangement that divides all those who still oppose him.” Much of your article in response to Wilson’s, is misunderstanding the covenant and it’s attendant blessings and curses. I admonish you to talk with Doug Wilson before taking such an adversarial stance. F.A.

Dear F.A. Thank you for expressing your concern. First, I spoke to Brother Wilson about another controversial issue and contacted him regarding this one all within the same week. The communications were very charitable and cordial. Second, I believe that Brother Wilson is a strong enough writer and communicator that his words are capable of speaking for themselves, which is why I offered very little commentary on his position when quoting his article, and then linked to his website and urged people to read the entire article for themselves. Third, I respectfully suggest and recommend that you would be far better served seeking wisdom from God’s Holy Book which condemns sodomy and urges believers to do the same publicly, than from a fantasy novel about good warlocks vs. bad warlocks. Fourth, we have an observation at Vision Forum that whenever Reformed Christians disagree with one another, or with a non-reformed brother, but have no good argument to make in response, they start tossing out statements like: “Well, you just do not understand the covenant.” Let me extend to you an invitation to demonstrate to me from Scripture (not Tolkein) that the covenant requires believers to concede that homosexuality is genetically induced, or that the covenant requires believers to grant the civil magistrate the right to establish sodomite marriages, as Brother Wilson has directed the Church through his article. Finally, if it is division to oppose preachers telling us to roll over and play dead in the wake of the sodomite explosion in our culture, then I say that such division is biblical, that it has its roots in the numerous biblical accounts of the believers fighting for the purity of the Gospel message against falsehood.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 26, 2004 | Permalink

This year’s national Uniting Church and Family Conference in August will be addressing controversies and problems that have arisen within the church and which directly impact home educators, church shepherds, and all with concerns about the great reformation of the family in which the hearts of parents are turned to their children and children to their parents. Those in attendance will hear from shepherds who have directed their congregations to family-friendly worship and body life, as well as some of the dozens-and -dozens of new church works that have sprung up in the wake of the 2002 First Annual Conference for Uniting Church and Home. More than 500 people are expected and we anticipate this to be a necessary time of encouragement, refreshment, and networking for those who believe in biblical manhood and womanhood, who truly desire to see their children encouraged in multi-generational thinking, and who hope this vision will be encouraged, not destroyed, by the local church.

Dear friends of Vision Forum: We believe that this is a defining and crucial issue for the church. Many visionary families, especially home educators, have been under ferocious attack this year from within the Body of Christ itself. Much encouragement and clear vision is needed at this time, which is precisely what we believe the conference will offer. If you have not already signed up, Beall and I would like to make a personal invitation to do so.

For more information and to signup, click here:

http://www.visionforumministries.org/sections/events/ncfic/

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 24, 2004 | Permalink

We have posted two helpful new articles on the biblical doctrine of children in the meeting of the church, by Scott Brown — Vision Forum Ministries’ director of the National Center for Family Integrated Churches. Click here to read them:

http://www.visionforumministries.org/sections/ncfic/articles/

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 24, 2004 | Permalink

Over the last two years Christian school advocate Doug Wilson has been embroiled in a number of significant controversies, most notably his advocacy of the “New Perspective on Paul” and what appears to many to be a form of baptismal regeneration. Though I have differences with Doug, both in theology and philosophy of communication, I appreciate many helpful contributions he has made to the Body of Christ, and once carried a book by him in the Vision Forum catalog. I must respectfully part ways with him, however, on the crucial issue of homosexuality. In one of the most unusual sets of articles on the subject I have ever read, Doug Wilson argues: (1) The spiritual answer for most practicing sodomites who were baptized by a Roman or Protestant church as an infant, is not to see them saved though regeneration in Christ, but to have them reaffirm their infant baptism; (2) Christians should accept sodomite marriage and not publicly oppose the legalization of same sex marriage; and (3) Christians should “own” homosexuality; etc. Below are some of his quotes:

Wilson Argues Against Opposing same Sex Marriage
“In the brewing culture wars, we ought not to stand with those seeking to ban same-sex marriage (or with those seeking to impose it). We ought to declare publicly (frustrating both sides) that we embrace this curse. If the civil authority demands our political tunic, we let him have our political cloak also. We own the sin in the first place.”

Wilson and Baptismal Regeneration: The issue is not preaching salvation in Christ and hoping that the Holy Spirit will regenerate the souls of committed sodomites by grace through faith, but of the need that these sodomites reaffirm their infant baptism: (From his blog)
“The third question regards what our goals are regarding the “presence of the gay community.” Having been put on the spot, please take this answer at face value. My first and primary goal for the local gay population is for them to see the depth of forgiveness for all their sin in Jesus Christ, the cultural richness of the Christian faith, and the gracious invitation that God extends to all of us to live lives to His glory, enjoying Him forever, as the catechism puts it. In short, I want to baptize as many gays as I can. If they are already baptized, I want to exhort them to abandon fruitlessness in order to become faithful to their baptisms.”

Wilson on the Importance of Accepting Sodomite Marriages:
“In true repentance, we should invert as many contemporary categories as we can — own the curse of homosexuality upon our parenting, grant the science, and explicitly embrace God’s transformation of our civil order. True repentance in the Church, not trust in civil coercion, will either restore that order or establish a different order. So we openly accept homosexual marriage in the civil realm as God’s means of undermining that civil realm, and we accept that He has done this in judgment for wicked fathering within the Church.”

Wilson on “Owning” homosexual sin.
“Our nation’s chastisement is the Church’s responsibility; we Christians are the cause, not the secularists. And as our problem, we must seek to remove the curse by ecclesiastical means, namely, confession and right worship. Our focus in this situation is not preaching the law to secularists. It should be searching out the cause of the curse in our own hearts, and in our own traditions.”

Wilson Argues For Accepting the Homosexual Genetic Claim: “For the sake of argument, we should readily grant homosexual genetic claims. God controls everything, and so we can grant any and all scientific claims about the genetic bases of sin. Accept it all in the providence of God. Every sin is genetically grounded, and yet, in a Christian cosmos, we are still responsible. We should also add the warning that those who trust in science are doomed to be refuted; genetic scientists two hundred years from now will laugh at our current, cutting-edge discoveries.”

Wilson Compares the “Sin” of Gay-Bashing, with the Sin of Sodomy
“The Christian Church is not a “conservative” or “right wing” frat house that denounces “fags.” The antithesis is not between left and right but between faithfulness and unfaithfulness — between faithfulness and sodomy, but also between faithfulness and gay-baiting.”

Wilson Redefines the Creation of Adam as “Queer.”
“Naming is crucial in all of this. In the secular left/right naming battles, both sides have granted homosexuals the central ground. Homosexuals say they are “queer” as a point of pride, while outsiders use it as a taunt or insult. But they both agree that homosexuality is in fact queer. But our charge against those who promote this sin is that they promote a dull and monotonous love of sameness, and the last thing we may call this is queer. The homo in homosexual is the Greek word for same, and the English in “same-sex marriage” is the same. A resentment of true difference and dogmatic insistence upon sameness is the sine qua non of homosexuality. However desperate the attempts, this tenacious loyalty to sameness cannot be obscured or hidden by odd mannerisms, paper hats, grease paint, outlandish outfits, and Mardi Gras style parties. Under all the odd and outlandish clothing, when the couple have disrobed, everything is the same and not queer at all. What God did at the beginning is truly queer — male and female created He them. So just as we avoid calling them gay when they are miserable, so we avoid calling them queer when queer is precisely what they are refusing to be.”

To me this article is a hodge-podge of confused psuedo-intellectualism which leads to some highly misplaced and irresponsible conclusions. To read the article in its entirety and to judge for yourselves what you believe Brother Wilson is saying, go to http://www.credenda.org/issues/16-2memorandum.php. For Vision Forum’s perspective on the issue, read below:

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 24, 2004 | Permalink

Based on the above comments, as well as statements from other well-intentioned organizations, there appears to be a fair amount of confusion within the Body of Christ on the Christian’s response to the rise and legal toleration of sodomy. Below are a few summary concepts which outline key aspects of Vision Forum’s position on the issue.

I. The Bible teaches that all nations, political leaders and judges are to acknowledge Jesus Christ and obey His eternal, non-optional moral law. There are no exceptions. The Scripture patterns believers confronting and calling political leaders to repentance for toleration of moral sins, regardless of whether such leaders were of the “chosen people” or pagan secularists. Christians are to avoid the sin of Jonah which is to presumptuously pass judgment on the final outcome of a nation, and refuse to deliver God’s call for national repentance. Enforcing God’s righteous legal standards is not a form of unbiblical coercion, but a God-appointed restraint against the spread of wickedness.

II. American Christians have a heightened duty to hold political leaders accountable to God’s moral law for two reasons: First, America is a nation covenantally founded on a charter which explicitly acknowledged the God of the Bible as the author of laws and the ultimate source of authority, and which incorporated the Christian common law by direct reference into our national charter. Thus, we have a covenantal duty to hold our leaders accountable to our national covenant, which though not perfect, is largely influenced by Christianity. Second, God has allowed American Christians to be part of the political franchise and He entrusted us with the sacred duty of representing Him through our votes and influence in the political process. To refuse to faithfully represent the Lord where we have been given authority and responsibility to do so is both wicked and ungrateful.

III. Vision Forum opposes the pagan notion of pluralism, even as we oppose the idea that the rise of pluralism in our country has rendered our national covenant null and void, and relieved believers of the duty to stand for Jesus Christ without compromise in the gates of the land. By virtue of the law of God and our national covenant, America should serve only Jesus Christ and acknowledge Him alone as the true lawgiver.

IV. Vision Forum believes homosexuality is a moral perversion to be publicly denounced. Homosexuality is a sin of choice, not a genetically produced birth defect and no concessions should be granted to the trendy and politically driven scientific theories of the present generation. Furthermore, we oppose the use of politically correct and misleading language like “gay” to describe sodomite behavior.

V. Individuals engaged in habitual and unrepentant homosexuality should not ever assume themselves to be in Christ. Nor do moral perverts have any hope whatsoever for eternal life which can be found in a baptism they may have received as a baby. The biblical assumption is that practicing homosexuals are lost and bound for Hell, absent genuine spiritual regeneration. They must be saved, which means that the Holy Spirit has regenerated them, opening their heart to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, which will result in repentance and turning from sin. It is the mission of the Christian, and is no contradiction, that we lovingly preach repentance to sodomites, even as we seek to drive from the land every manifestation of homosexuality. Furthermore, Sodomy was a punishable crime at common law and should remain such. Any politician who supports same sex marriage or civil marriage for sodomites is complicit in a moral crime against God and should be actively opposed.

VI. Homosexuality is not a victimless crime. It is a cruel moral perversion that wreaks moral, physical and spiritual havoc on men, women, children, families and institutions. The Bible makes no distinction between homosexuals, pedophiles, bestials and rapists. All are criminals, the toleration of which brings judgment on the land and devastation to children.

VII. Because homosexuality is both a judgment and source of judgment, the answer to the moral and legal crime of homosexuality is multi-faceted and must be linked to responsible action within each sphere over which Christ claims His lordship, namely the family, the church and the state: First, the absence of biblical patriarchy leads to male effeminacy which leads to homosexuality. Biblical patriarchy must be re-established within the home. To the extent that families have embraced evolutionary or feminist principles of family life (be that the birth control ethic, the effeminate “career wife” model of household provision, or the Greco-Roman vision for educating children) they must repent and return to the “old paths.” Second, the Church needs to repent of similar issues, begin to promote biblical manhood and categorically reject its current love-affair with pagan values and methodologies. Third, our national leaders and our voting citizenry need to repent of the toleration of policies and practices which are morally perverse and contrary to true law. The rulings of judges, who attempt to enforce rules or “laws” calling for the vivisection of babies or special rights for sodomites, must be disregarded, and such judges should be removed from office. Political leaders who promote or tolerate moral perversion must be confronted and actively opposed.

VIII. The wisest, most fundamental and constitutionally sound legal approach to preventing the spread of moral perversion is not to amend the constitution for every possible crime that surfaces, but to enforce the law and the present Constitution. This is accomplished (1) through acts of lawful interposition by judges and lawmakers who refuse to enforce unlawful pro-sodomite orders and rulings; (2) through Article III limitations on the courts, stripping them of the ability to speak to certain issues; and (3) by impeaching or removing from office by other means those lawless lawmakers and judges. Vision Forum specifically supports the Constitution Restoration Act (CRA) as the most practical and sound method for accomplishing this goal.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 24, 2004 | Permalink

I would like to offer my deepest respect and appreciation for the remarkable example of Christ-honoring sacrifice and blessed prolific motherhood modeled by the two remarkable and lovely Christian women you see in this picture. Between the two of them they are the mothers of 40 children. Lynn Van Wingerdon (pictured right) is the mother of 23 children, about a dozen of whom were adopted. Marylin Boyer (seated left) is the mother of at least seventeen children, fourteen of which survived birth and have gone on to honor their parents and serve the Lord.

Lynn is a dear woman who came to the conference to the Christian Home Educators of Colorado state home school conference this last weekend to offer her help to veteran home school book vendors Bob and Tina Farewell of Lifetime Books and Gifts. Marilyn and her husband Rick (my good buddy)were featured speakers at the same conference. In addition to be some of the original home school veterans of the modern movement, Rick and Marilyn are one of the happiest and most inspiring couples I know. To learn more about their ministry go to www.thelearningparent.com.

If only more parents had such a trust in the Lord, and a vision to bring forth a godly seed, the Church would have a stronger and more blessed influence on our culture. Truly these ladies are blessed.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 23, 2004 | Permalink

Over the years Vision Forum has used the occassion of our Faith and Freedom Tours to travel to the greatest libraries and estates of America’s Founding Fathers. This year we return to Monticello home of our second president.

Thomas Jefferson was simply brilliant. An inveterate inventor, he left a legacy of brilliant innovations. From the “Moldboard Plow of Least Resistance,” to the wheel cipher, to the speherical sundial, to the great clock of Monticello, to the brilliant system of dumbwaiters he placed throughout his home, to the “Orrery” (a model of the solar system),to the weathervane compass, to the polygraph (copying machine), Jefferson’s creativity was applied not only to building instruments of discovery and scientific analysis, but to the creation of numerous time-saving solutions to the practical problems of life.

For years my favorite Jefferson invention was his revolving bookstand. It is a bibliophile’s dream. Jefferson not only designed this invention but had it produced at his own joinery on Mulberry Row at Monticello. On each of my visits to Monticello I would longingly eye the bookstand and remind myself about the sin of coveting my (deceased) neighbors posessions.

Then along comes bosom buddy Scott Brown. Pastor, businessman, Vision Forum board member, and father extraordinairre, Scott is one of these men who is rightly described as “having the milk of human kindness flowing through his veins.” For my birthday, he commissioned a friend to build two of these, one for me and one for himself. What a blessing. I am truly grateful.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 22, 2004 | Permalink

One of the most joyful evenings I can remember took place Friday night in Denver Colorado at the 20th Anniversary Christian Home Educators of Colorado state home school conference. (see http://www.chec.org) Thousands were in attendance to see the progeny of Captain Georg Von Trapp perform hymns, Americana, folk ditties from Austria, and songs from the Sound of Music. Thanks be to God for the visionary leadership of the CHEC board in bringing this family out.

The Phillips family has enjoyed a special friendship with the von Trapps, and so I was given the great honor by CHEC of introducing Annie and Stephan von Trapp (he is the grandson of “The Captain”)to the audience. Annie and Stephan shared with the audience not only how they started home edcuating their children, but how the Lord brought their family to repentance in Christ and the evangelical faith through their own children sharing Scriptures with them. It was a thrilling testimony.

Since performing for Vision Forum Ministires at the 2003 Father and Daughter Retreat, the Von Trapp children (Sophie, Melody, Amanda, Justin) have improved in leaps and bounds. Their vocal abilities, choreography and performance were simply outstanding. I think many people were deeply touched by the purity of spirit and genuine innocence of the girls who spoke and sang with a simple but refreshing femininity. They were accompanied by a talented pianist who doubled as a fine accordion player.

For my part, the significance of the evening was not merely that thousands were able to enjoy a lovely, entertaining family-oriented concert. The real significance was the generational impact of the event. For parents and children alike, here was an opportunity to connect with a family who touched all of our lives through the remarkable story of the Captain and Maria. More importantly, these families were able to witness the generational impact of God working in the life of a family of great historical significance, bringing them to the Evangelical faith and turning their hearts one to another as the Holy Spirit blessed their home education.

A thousand thanks to both CHEC and the Von Trapps for this remarkable evening.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 21, 2004 | Permalink

I grew up spending my summers on Cape Cod where both of my grandparents had invested in homes for their families. One home was on a lake, the other near the bay. Those were joyful, long, lazy summer days filled with many many books, magnificent sand castles, lots of fishing, sunburns, great meals, and untold wonderful childhood memories. Now as adults, Beall and I look forward to occasional opportunities to visit the Texas coast, find a secluded spot away from the masses where we can build memories with our children crafting sand castles or even catching a few waves.

We had one such time this last weekend, but dedicated Friday to watching the CNN broadcast of the funeral of President Reagan with all of our children from morning to night, with just a couple of hours to visit the beach in the afternoon. My children got an ongoing commentary on the history of the men and women participating in the funeral, as well as the enormous significance of the event. It was a blessed discipleship opportunity that (uncharacteristically) involved what we affectionately term “The Babylon Box.”

Above is Joshua’s Jericho which was successfully defeated, and its walls “come a tumblin’ down,” but this time by the waves of the Lord.

Daddy and Howard Honor Phillips

Liberty prepares to take a wave.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 16, 2004 | Permalink

Vision Forum is trying to take the lead on exposing what the Bible describes as the “abomination” of women in the military. We are specifically urging pastors to bring messages to their congregations explaining that the Bible opposes such behavior, and urging Christians to both pray for and hold accountable through their voice, the President for his personal decision as Commander in Chief (and chief policy director for the military) to continue to allow women to enter theaters of war and be placed in harms way. If you have not done so yet, please read our article “Are They Coming to Draft Your Daughters.” Our thesis is this: Failure to take a principled stand at this critical juncture not only invokes judgment on our land, but it paves the way for step two, which is the conscription of your daughters in times of draft. Of course, the practical consequences of a coed military at war is staggering.

One issue reported by Vision Forum two weeks ago and confirmed this morning by the Washington Post is the rampant immorality among American troops in a coed combat and bunking environment leading to pregnancy. The Washington Post reports that despite the obvious problem, the military has been unwilling to officially track and release such information. Writing for the Post, columnist Rowan Scarborough writes:

As in the case of Pfc. England, pregnancies can be embarrassing to the military. In May 2003, the Marine Corps was forced to bring a Marine back home after she gave birth on a Navy warship in the Persian Gulf. She told superiors she did not know she was pregnant. During the 1991 Persian Gulf war, the press branded the destroyer tender USS Acadia the “Love Boat” after 36 sailors — 10 percent of the women aboard — became pregnant while deployed in support of Operation Desert Storm. Of British forces in southern Iraq, 82 women were sent home in 2003 after discovering they were pregnant, reported the London Daily Telegraph, which quoted government numbers.

Pregnancies can hamper readiness by creating hard-to-fill vacancies. A presidential commission in 1992 found that pregnancy was a main reason why the non-deployability rate for female troops was three times higher than for men during the 1990-91 Persian Gulf conflict.

The Post also quotes Retired Army Col. David Hackworth:

Hackworth who says he had been rebuffed in attempts to get information on troop pregnancies: “I’ve been getting serious stonewalling from the [public affairs] folks at the Pentagon,” the decorated Vietnam veteran and syndicated columnist wrote on his Web site. “They treat pregnancy stats with a higher security classification than the number of nukes in their arsenals.” Mr. Hackworth appealed directly to troops in service: “If you can get your hands on some hard stats for your unit, please send ‘em along.”

According to the Post, Elaine Donnaly, President of the Center for Military Readiness said she repeatedly asked the Pentagon to compile the statistics for the current war, but was rebuffed. She finally filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act in April... Mrs. Donnelly said, “It would not be in the interest of the Army to release those numbers because it might raise questions about having so many women in so many unprecedented positions.”

Stay tuned for more on this subject. Vision Forum plans to post the responses (and our responses to the responses) to our “Are They Coming To Draft Your Daughters” article.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 16, 2004 | Permalink

Vision Forum: I just noticed that you are promoting “The Great Debate over Baptism and the Covenant”. As an elder in a former Reformed Baptist church, now moving towards Presbyterianism, I am grieved to see Vision Forum take this divisive stance. There are many changes going on in our ministry in the area of integrating church and home that are a direct result of our seeing the Presbyterian understanding of the Covenants. Your promotion of this Baptist work is, in our case, a direct attack on everything else your ministry teaches regarding church and home. Again, your ministry is now attacking the very theological foundation upon which church and family integration is built. Why is it that Vision Forum has decided to make this stand against the Reformed position? Robert T.

Dear Robert:

I am truly thankful for this important email and that you would write to explain this concern. If I thought that Vision Forum or any other ministry which I supported was deviating from a covenantal and reformed perspective on Scripture, I too would be greatly concerned. Thankfully this is not the case here.

The purpose of the tape series “The Great Debate over Baptism and the Covenant,” is, frankly, to address the very issue that you raise—-the necessity of a distinctively covenantal and reformed perspective on baptism. The position taken by Mr. Einwhecter is not only that dispensational credo-baptism fails to meet this standard, but that many “Reformed Baptists” also lack a covenantal perspective on baptism. The CDs also refute and expose as mere theological posturing the tactic often employed by Presbyterians to define “Reformed” and “Covenantal” as being the exclusive domain of Presbyterians. This tactic is often based on fundamental misunderstandings and miss-defining of what we would understand to be the biblical doctrine of the baptism of disciples alone. Having grown up under the tutelage of Reformed Presbyterians and Reformed Baptists, I believe such posturing is not only harmful to the body of Christ, but does absolutely nothing to help believers wrestle through the issues with exegetical precision. I am uncomfortable with Reformed Baptists labeling all Reformed Presbyterians as “Romanists” (though some may be influenced by such), even as I am uncomfortable with Reformed Presbyterians mocking Credo-Baptists for being non-Reformed and non-covenantal (though many may fit this description). The issues are more complex and we must define our terms accurately.

We recognize that reasonable men can disagree on the issue of baptism. We also recognize that where one stands on baptism may well influence other issues, but we categorically reject, and challenge others to defend to the contrary, that the credo-Baptist position is inherently non-covenantal or non-reformed. Such a stance can not honestly be maintained unless one warps the meaning of the terms.

In our view, and that of the other Presbyterians and Baptists with which we have worked since the very beginning on building unity between church and home, the issue of credo vs. paedo is not inextricably linked to the message of a family-integrated perspective on the local church. The critical issue is whether we are building our position on an exegetically sound perspective. We believe that such a perspective is inherently Reformed and covenantal, but not inherently credo-Baptist or paedo Baptist. In our meetings and discussions we have also agreed that as to “secondary” issues like paedo-communion, and baptism itself, that such issues are beyond the purview of the narrowly tailored work of the NCFIC.

Of course, Vision Forum itself deals with broader issues than the NCFIC itself does, and we made a decision to publish these CDs with the goal of promoting unity in the Body of Christ. Because of the confusion over the doctrine of baptism and the unfortunate misplaced heavy rhetoric (i.e. “You are a credo-Baptist, therefore you are not reformed and can not truly have a covenantal family integrated church.”) of some, we believed it necessary to present a formal defense of the covenantal position on credo-baptism, and to help build bridges within the Reformed community by demolishing straw men which only serve to confuse and move us away from the real issues.

Here is my recommendation: Get the CDs and listen to them. I think you will be challenged and refreshed. Also, I think you will benefit from the dialogue which occurs at the conference between strongly-committed paedo-baptists and the speaker. After the conference I spoke to several very committed paedo-baptists who were fundamentally challenged by the presentation, and who indicated that they had grown immensely in their respect for credo-baptism as a position which can squarely stand within a covenantal view of Scripture.

If after listening to the whole conference you still believe that “Your ministry [VFM]is now attacking the very theological foundation upon which church and family integration is built,” than I urge you to write me again and make a case for your beliefs. But I do not believe that you will reach such an opinion. Even after you have listened to the CDs, we may not agree on the issue of baptism, but I do hope that we will find solid common ground in our fundamental assumptions about Scripture which lead to the defense of a family-integrated church.

Thank you for your passionate zeal to defend the faith and acknowledge the great principle of covenantal faithfulness in the Scriptures.

Blessings,
Doug Phillips

For information on our CD series Baptism and the Covenant, click here.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 15, 2004 | Permalink

Other than communing with our own local Independent Baptist church, I’ve never been so refreshed and exhilarated by the messages you send in your newsletters. Thanks for expressing the views that are so often in our own hearts and minds. May God continue to bless you and yours. — Mrs. David Graham

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 15, 2004 | Permalink

In our June 14th newsletter, we mistakenly put the wrong date on Michael Reagan’s eulogy for his father. The correct date is June 11.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 15, 2004 | Permalink

On the 50th anniversary of the addition of the words “under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance, the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed today a constitutional challenge to the words “under God” in the pledge. The Supreme Court decided to dismiss the case without deciding the key church-state issue, which is, “Can the State Acknowledge God?” In his arguments on behalf of the United States government before the Court, Solicitor General Theodore Olson stated: “The reference [under God] is an ‘official acknowledgment of our nation’s religious heritage,’ similar to the “In God We Trust” stamped on coins and bills.” The justices ruled that California atheist Michael Newdow lacked the legal right to bring the challenge in the first place. “We conclude that Newdow lacks standing,” Justice John Paul Stevens declared in the opinion. The Supreme Court refused to deal with the real issue in this case and subsequently this issue can be brought back before the court when another plaintiff decides to bring a challenge to the words, “under God.”

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 14, 2004 | Permalink

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — June 14, 2004 — Statement by former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy S. Moore regarding the dismissal of the Pledge case by the U.S Supreme Court:

“In the pledge case the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, the largest Federal Appellate Circuit Court, plainly entered an unlawful order, an order they had no authority to enter. If the U.S. Supreme Court had not taken that case, all of the children within the 9th Circuit would have been prevented from saying the Pledge of Allegiance. The danger still remains, as the Supreme Court dismissed the case on a legality. If the Constitution Restoration Act 2004, were to be passed in Congress, the federal courts could never again be used to strike down the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance. Congress should take action now to save the Pledge and other public acknowledgements of God.”

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 14, 2004 | Permalink

In our June 14th newsletter, we mistakenly put the wrong date on Michael Reagan’s eulogy for his father. The correct date is June 11.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 13, 2004 | Permalink

Michael Reagan’s Eulogy: A Date Correction — In our June 14th newsletter, we mistakenly put the wrong date on Michael Reagan’s eulogy for his father. The correct date is June 11.

Michael Reagan understands the Fifth Commandment. On the occassion of the funeral service for his father, President Ronald Wilson Reagan, Michael offered the following words of gratitude and glory to Jesus Christ. He shared these deeply personal thoughts with tens of millions of viewers. It may be one of the most powerful televised Gospel witnesses of the decade.

Good evening. I’m Mike Reagan. You knew my father as governor, as president. But I knew him as dad. I want to tell you a little bit about my dad. A little bit about Cameron and Ashley’s grandfather because not a whole lot is ever spoken about that side of Ronald Reagan.

Knowing where he is this very moment, this very day, that he is in Heaven, and I can only promise my father this. Dad, when I go, I will go to Heaven, too. And you and I and my sister, Maureen, that went before us, we will dance with the heavenly host of angels before the presence of God. We will do it melanoma and Alzheimer’s free. Thank you for letting me share my father, Ronald Wilson Reagan.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 13, 2004 | Permalink

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 10, 2004 | Permalink

I spent last Saturday morning with my father in Virginia. The occasion was the graduation of my remarkable seventeen year old brother Samuel from home education. Through an unusual twist of providence, I woke that morning thinking about Ronald Reagan. I had heard nothing about the announcement of the potential demise of the president. That morning I turned to my mother and father and asked: “Dad, Mom, President Reagan will not be around much longer, how should we remember him?”

Thus began a glorious conversation filled with rich insights from a man who interacted with President Reagan on several key occasions, who had helped to coordinate the famous 1980 rally in Dallas which inaugurated Reagan’s romance and broad acceptance with the Religious Right (that night Reagan not only denounced evolution, but he declared: “You can’t endorse me, but I endorse you!” and electrified the audience), and who would in the second term of Reagan’s presidential administration raise noteworthy concerns about the direction of the policies of the White House.

That morning Dad gave me the best book on Reagan as a gift. Hours later I got on a plane with my two sons and spent the next five hours devouring the book. When I landed in San Antonio I was stunned to learn of the President’s death. Since then I have been on the phone repeatedly with Dad taking copious notes of Dads recollections of interactions with the President. I hope to share some of these with the readers of Doug’s Blog. Before releasing my tribute to the President (Ronald Reagan and the Meaning of D Day)my father reminded: “Don’t be too hard on him. Honor the President at his death.”

These words are typical of my father and were gratefully received, though easy to execute in the case of this imperfect, but remarkable President.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 10, 2004 | Permalink

Former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy S. Moore accepted an invitation to testify before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Property Rights, yesterday in the Senate Office Building, in Washington, D.C.

According to a letter received by Moore from the Senate Subcommittee chairman Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), “the hearing, entitled ‘Beyond the Pledge of Allegiance: Hostility to Religious Expression in the Public Square,’ was to focus on examples of hostility toward private expressions of faith in the public square, as well as discrimination against religious, as opposed to non-religious, expression in government speech.”

Tuesday’s hearing drew an overflow crowd and many where there to hear from Roy Moore. Moore accused federal courts of misunderstanding the First Amendment, which prohibits the “establishment of religion” while protecting “the free exercise thereof.”

Excerpt of his testimony before the subcommittee:

If, by “defying the rule of law” my critics mean that I have defied federal judges, then they are equating “the law” with the pronouncements of those judges. That is not our system. It appears that, in addition to forgetting that acknowledgments of God hold a vital and plainly constitutional place in our public discourse, we have also forgotten the basic concept that the legislature makes the law and the judiciary interprets the law. The two are separate, distinct functions...

By ordering me to remove the monument, the federal district court in effect commanded me to violate the oath I swore as Chief Justice of Alabama. The federal district court had no authority to do this because the responsibility to administer the justice system of the State of Alabama is a power clearly not delegated to the federal government under the U.S. Constitution, and, therefore, under the 10th Amendment, is “reserved to the States . . . .”

Click here to read the entire testimony of Chief Justice Moore
http://judiciary.senate.gov/testimony.cfm?id=1218&wit_id=3518

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 9, 2004 | Permalink

What this country needs is a few good men—husbands and fathers who are willing to love and lead their households with manly resolve and godly vision. Frankly, the Church needs these men every bit as much as the rest of the country. For more than ten years, Philip Lancaster has been instilling hope, and calling fathers to their rightful duties as family prophets, priests, protectors, and providers. Through his magazine Patriarch, Phil has reached thousands with both the vision and the tools necessary for family revival. Now, in his first book, Phil lays—in simple, easy-to-understand concepts—the biblical foundation necessary for men to turn their hearts to home and change the world. Soundly reasoned and biblically supported, Family Man, Family Leader is appropriate for any man, old or young. Phil Lancaster is one of the most articulate and passionate defenders of biblical manhood in the Christian evangelical community today. An author, publisher, and frequent lecturer, Phil is best known for his work as founder of Patriarch magazine.

“This special book is a clarion call for Christian men to ‘act like men’. Why so? So God might bless their families, churches, and nation. Every Christian father and young men cannot afford to be without the scriptural gem!” —- Jerry Marcellino, Pastor of Audobon Drive Bible Church in Laurel, Mississippi and author of rediscovering the Lost Tools of Family Worship

Click here to view Family Man, Family Leader.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 9, 2004 | Permalink

The most insightful and thorough article on the life of Reagan I have read to date was published by Gary North. Check it out at RealityC@subscribermails.com.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 9, 2004 | Permalink

My good friend Michael Peroutka, who is running for President on the Constitution Party, released an insightful article on the draft today. Below are some exerpts:

On February 11, 2004, the Selective Service Agency’s Director, Lewis Brodsky, issued this statement to the Pentagon:

In line with today’s needs, the Selective Service System’s structure, programs and activities should be re-engineered toward maintaining a national inventory of American men and, for the first time, women, ages 18 through 34, with an added focus on identifying individuals with critical skills. Seattle Post Intelligencer, May 1, 2004.

Will the draft be reinstated, we do not yet know, but I do know that men, and women (who by nature are not eligible for military service, even if called), are not “inventory” to be held at the disposal of the federal government.

There are many people, from many points of view, who oppose the draft, so I will take this occasion to demonstrate to you why I oppose conscription of men for foreign wars...

In Article I, s.8, cc.12, 15, the States gave to the general government’s Congress the power “To raise and support Armies” and “To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Unions, suppress Insurrections and repel invasions.” There is a difference between these two powers. A militia was, at the time of the founding, involuntary. They were state citizens “drafted” to protect the State. Such militiamen were mostly kept near home, but were most certainly kept with other militiamen from their area. An army was volunteer, and consisted of citizens of the several states.

Now, whether a draft to the service of the State is sound policy is not my call, Constitutionally, but I can recognize that drafted soldiers would only come under my direction as Chief Executive for three limited purposes: 1. to execute the Laws of the Union; 2. to suppress Insurrections; and 3. to repel Invasions. No where in the Constitution is the Congress given authorization to draft men into foreign service, and thus I may use no such man for that purpose — my oath is to the Constitution, not the Congress...

As Samuel warned sinful Israel when they begged for a “King ... like all the nations,” “This will be the manner of the king that shall reign over you: He will take your sons, and appoint them for himself, for his chariots, and to be his horsemen.” A Godly ruler is not to amass military might to himself, lest he see his forces and itch to use them. See Deut. 17:16. It is not sound Constitutional policy, and it is not Christian, to view people as mere inventory to be expended at the whimsical fancy of the Chief Executive Officer of these United States.

To read more, visit Michael’s website:

peroutka2004.com

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 8, 2004 | Permalink

“Freedom is a fragile thing, and it is never more than one generation away from extinction.” President Ronald Reagan

Today Vision Forum joins America in mourning the loss of our 40th President, Ronald Reagan, arguably the most inspiring leader of the American people since George Washington himself. President Reagan died on Saturday at 4:00, on the eve of the 60th anniversary of D-Day. He was 93.

In his book, The American Presidency, the esteemed historian and political commentator Clinton Rossiter (once my father’s college professor at Harvard) observed that the American President is required to play seven distinct roles including Chief Executive, Chief Diplomat, Commander in Chief, Chief Legislator, Chief of Party, Chief Guardian of the Economy, and Chief of State.

How did Ronald Reagan fare in the first six of these categories? In my view there were some significant weaknesses in some of them, often personified by unwise personnel choices and the policies they implemented, policies which did not live up to the vision of Christian faith, anti-communism, love of life, limited government which Ronald Reagan built his political career communicating to the American people.

But on the occasion of his death, let us set aside that debate. Let us focus on the enormous strength of President Ronald Reagan in the role which he defined—-that of Chief of State.

As Chief of State a President is required to be the moral and inspirational leader of the nation. The president is a living symbol of the nation. It is in this role that Ronald Reagan will be most fondly remembered. It was a role he played so magnificently that Ronald Reagan fundamentally redefined the way America looked at itself. It was a role for which rightly earned him the moniker “The Great Communicator.”

From the moment Ronald Reagan was sworn into office, America breathed an enormous sigh of release. (Iranian radicals timed the release of American hostages with the inauguration of President Reagan.) Reagan symbolized the freedom from the hopelessness of the Carter regime, the disappointments of the Nixon era, and the governmental excess of the New Deal disaster given to us by President Johnson.

President Ronald Reagan single-handedly restored hope to the American people. He was everybody’s favorite grandfather, uncle, big brother, and father all wrapped into one. A president of extraordinary gravitas, he nonetheless was known for his utterly disarming sense of humor and self-deprecation. Free from bitterness, Ronald Reagan was the eternal optimist, and his infectious optimism gave hope to a nation which had been ravaged by the family-destroying excess of both the 1960’s and 70’s.

Reagan made it acceptable once again to be a conservative. He truly loved America. And he understood it. His patriotism was not the stuff of text books, nor was it a starchy patriotism born out of political necessity. It was a deep abiding truth in the heart of Reagan and a fundamental principle which motivated his entire life.

More to be posted later! Come back.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 6, 2004 | Permalink

Pointe de Hoc, Normandy, June 6, 1984 (The 40th anniversary of D-Day)

We’re here to mark that day in history when the Allied peoples joined in battle to reclaim this continent to liberty. For four long years, much of Europe had been under a terrible shadow. Free nations had fallen, Jews cried out in the camps, millions cried out for liberation. Europe was enslaved, and the world prayed for its rescue. Here in Normandy the rescue began. Here the Allies stood and fought against tyranny in a giant undertaking unparalleled in human history.

We stand on a lonely, windswept point on the northern shore of France. The air is soft, but forty years ago at this moment, the air was dense with smoke and the cries of men, and the air was filled with the crack of rifle fire and the roar of cannon. At dawn, on the morning of the 6th of June 1944, 225 Rangers jumped off the British landing craft and ran to the bottom of these cliffs. Their mission was one of the most difficult and daring of the invasion: to climb these sheer and desolate cliffs and take out the enemy guns. The Allies had been told that some of the mightiest of these guns were here and they would be trained on the beaches to stop the Allied advance.

The Rangers looked up and saw the enemy soldiers — at the edge of the cliffs shooting down at them with machine-guns and throwing grenades. And the American Rangers began to climb. They shot rope ladders over the face of these cliffs and began to pull themselves up. When one Ranger fell, another would take his place. When one rope was cut, a Ranger would grab another and begin his climb again. They climbed, shot back, and held their footing. Soon, one by one, the Rangers pulled themselves over the top, and in seizing the firm land at the top of these cliffs, they began to seize back the continent of Europe. Two hundred and twenty-five came here. After two days of fighting only ninety could still bear arms.

Behind me is a memorial that symbolizes the Ranger daggers that were thrust into the top of these cliffs. And before me are the men who put them there.

These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc. These are the men who took the cliffs. These are the champions who helped free a continent. These are the heroes who helped end a war.

Gentlemen, I look at you and I think of the words of Stephen Spender’s poem. You are men who in your ‘lives fought for life...and left the vivid air signed with your honor’...

Forty summers have passed since the battle that you fought here. You were young the day you took these cliffs; some of you were hardly more than boys, with the deepest joys of life before you. Yet you risked everything here. Why? Why did you do it? What impelled you to put aside the instinct for self-preservation and risk your lives to take these cliffs? What inspired all the men of the armies that met here? We look at you, and somehow we know the answer. It was faith, and belief; it was loyalty and love.

The men of Normandy had faith that what they were doing was right, faith that they fought for all humanity, faith that a just God would grant them mercy on this beachhead or on the next. It was the deep knowledge — and pray God we have not lost it — that there is a profound moral difference between the use of force for liberation and the use of force for conquest. You were here to liberate, not to conquer, and so you and those others did not doubt your cause. And you were right not to doubt.

You all knew that some things are worth dying for. One’s country is worth dying for, and democracy is worth dying for, because it’s the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man. All of you loved liberty. All of you were willing to fight tyranny, and you knew the people of your countries were behind you.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 6, 2004 | Permalink

We give thanks to the Lord today for Tom Parker who yesterday won the Republican nomination for justice of the Alabama Supreme Court. Tom and his dear wife are committed Christians who unflinchingly worked along side Chief Justice Roy Moore as a member of his staff during the entire battle for the Ten Commandments monument and the right of a public official to acknowledge God. I was proud to be the first contributor to his campaign, and plan to continue to support in every way possible, him and all individuals regardless of party, who will not compromise on this foundational issue.

Tom was fired from his job at the Supreme Court by Justice Gorman Houston, who took over for Moore after his ouster. Houston expressed concern over Parkers loyalty to Justice Moore and the cause of the Ten Commandments monument. It appears as if God may be vanquishing the “conquerors” by returning Tom to the very building from which he was relieved of duty, but this time—to sit as an equal on the court with the men and women who have stood against the Lord in the most foundational legal battle of Alabama history—-the right and duty to acknowledge God. What a wonderful and providential turn of events.

Despite the fact that she outspent him 6 to 1, Tom defeated sitting Supreme Court justice Jean Brown, one of the individuals who voted against Chief Justice Moore, and in favor of removing the Ten Commandments monument from the Supreme Court. The defeat of Mrs. Brown is a smashing victory, regardless of what happens in the general election. It is another sign that Alabamans will not tolerate judicial tyranny, and that there still is a Christian witness in the state——Americans who understand that no government official may ever contradict the higher law of God, let alone the Constitution.

Tom’s victory came in the midst of injudicious and inappropriate attacks against him and former Chief Justice Roy Moore which were leveled by other sitting Supreme Court justices intent on doing what they could to block from public office another man who believes in the unqualified right of a public official to acknowledge the God of the Bible in his capacity as a public magistrate.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 2, 2004 | Permalink

Friends, the following is a mature, but revealing and helpful conversation on the reality of women in the military. God calls it an “abomination” and so should we. I am grateful for this courageous woman to share these insights from her own experience in Operation Desert Storm.

Dear Doug, I just finished reading your heavily researched and outstanding article regarding a potential draft of women for the military. As always, your points were Biblically accurate and your vision is for the future. Thank you.

Also, do you know WHY the percentage of pregnancies was so high in the last Gulf War? It wasn’t necessarily the temptations of being so close to the other sex all the time (when we would go on 30-day field exercises, I often was the only female in a tent of 20 males, living all together), but even as rough as these military females appear on the outside, they are still female on the inside. God gave men a natural desire for war, but women a natural desire for peace, in general. Females are often very afraid of war and will do almost anything to get out of it, including getting pregnant on purpose, while not even caring who the father might be. I would witness this happening even to get out of 30-day exercises. I knew one girl who would get pregnant so she wouldn’t have to go, then get an abortion while we were gone, only to do it all over again the next exercise. I also knew homosexual women who would get pregnant for the same purposes. God Bless You, J.E. (Veteran of Operation Desert Storm)

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 1, 2004 | Permalink

The Washington Time Reports: “Pro-family groups said yesterday that President Bush “drove a wedge” into their efforts to protect marriage by seeming to accept homosexual civil unions, even as he said he could support an amendment defining marriage as solely between a man and woman.

“We need clear leadership in a time of judicial tyranny, not politicians who don’t have the spine to stand up for something as basic as marriage,” said Robert Knight, director of Concerned Women for America’s Culture and Family Institute. “Let’s be clear: Creating counterfeits is no way to protect marriage, no matter what you call them,” he said.

...”What the president said is confusing, and some will find it hard to distinguish from Howard Dean, who supported domestic partnerships in Vermont at the state level,” said Gary Bauer, president of American Values, a conservative interest group.

To read the article in full, go to: http://washingtontimes.com/national/20031217-115104-4009r.htm

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 1, 2004 | Permalink

About eight years ago I placed my two sons Joshua and Justice on the lap of an elderly woman sitting in my living room in Virginia and asked her to tell my sons what it was like for her husband to serve under General Robert E. Lee in the battle of Petersburg. The woman was Mrs. Alberta Martin. She was the last living Confederate widow. She died yesterday, Memorial Day, at the age of 98. Her death is the close of a remarkable link to America’s past.

The occasion for Mrs. Martin’s visit to my home was that she was on her way to Gettysburg battlefield to have a special ceremonial meeting (heralded on the covers of newspapers across America) as the meeting between the last living Confederate widow, and the last living Union widow (who died in 2003 at the age of 97). On the occasion of her visit to our home, we enjoyed receiving a special Confederate re-enactors color guard detachment. It was quite an event.

At the age of 21, Mrs. Martin, then a young widow, developed a friendship with an 81-year-old neighbor. They were married on Dec. 10, 1927, and 10 months later had a son, William.

When we asked her about the war, she said her husband never talked much about it, except for some real difficulties he experienced during the harsh Petersburg campaign.

One paper reported a similar conversation to the one we had with her where she told us: “He’d say it was rough, how the trenches were full of water. They were so hungry in Virginia that during the time they were fighting, they had to grab food as they went along. They came across a potato patch and made up some mashed potatoes.”

Until her death, Mrs. Martin continued to receive a pension from the State of Alabama as a Confederate war widow.

Posted by Doug Phillips on June 1, 2004 | Permalink