The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission | All Articles

ERLC Offers ‘Fifteen Principles for Successful Health Care Reform’

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:37:44 CST

While the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission remains opposed to the health care bills moving through Congress, we strongly support bringing reform to the nation’s health care system. Offering a framework for acceptable reform, the ERLC has outlined “Fifteen Principles for Successful Health Care Reform.” To view those principles, please click here (62 KB PDF).

Richard Land joins Christian leaders, scholars in Manhattan Declaration on Christian conscience

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:01:01 CST

WASHINGTON—Today a group of prominent Christian clergy, ministry leaders and scholars released the Manhattan Declaration, which addresses the sanctity of life, traditional marriage and religious liberty.

Dr. Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, was among the original signers of the 4,700-word statement. The declaration issues a clarion call to Christians to adhere to their convictions and informs civil authorities that the signers will not—under any circumstance—abandon their Christian consciences.

“It was an honor and a privilege to be a part of the process that produced the document,” said Dr. Land. “It is a sterling and forthright declaration of first principles. To paraphrase Martin Luther: Here we stand; we can do no other.”

Drafted by Dr. Robert George, Dr. Timothy George and Chuck Colson and signed by more than 125 Orthodox, Catholic and Evangelical Christian leaders, the Manhattan Declaration was made public today following a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington.

Excerpts from the declaration include:

“We are Christians who have joined together across historic lines of ecclesial differences to affirm our right—and, more importantly, to embrace our obligation—to speak and act in defense of these truths. We pledge to each other, and to our fellow believers, that no power on earth, be it cultural or political, will intimidate us into silence or acquiescence.”

“We recognize the duty to comply with laws whether we happen to like them or not, unless the laws are gravely unjust or require those subject to them to do something unjust or otherwise immoral.”

“We will not comply with any edict that purports to compel our institutions to participate in abortions, embryo-destructive research, assisted suicide and euthanasia or any other anti-life act; nor will we bend to any rule purporting to force us to bless immoral sexual partnerships, treat them as marriage or the equivalent or refrain from proclaiming the truth, as we know it, about morality and immorality and marriage and the family.”

More information and the full text of the Manhattan Declaration are available at DeMossNews.com/ManhattanDeclaration.

The Southern Baptist Convention is America’s largest non-Catholic denomination with more than 16.2 million members in over 44,000 churches nationwide. The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission is the SBC’s ethics, religious liberty and public policy agency with offices in Nashville, Tenn., and Washington, D.C.

Federal Funding of Abortion in the Reid Health Care Reform Bill

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:24:03 CST

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid unveiled his 2,000+ page health care reform bill this week. While we are not yet certain of all that is in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, we are certain of one thing it does include: federal funding of abortion. In the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission’s recent analysis, we explain how the Senate health care bill will fund abortion directly and indirectly. To view our analysis, please click here (50 KB PDF).

Critical Vote on Senate Health Care Bill This Weekend

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:57:46 CST

Dear Friends:

Tomorrow, the Senate is scheduled to cast a critical vote that would begin debate on a 2,074-page health care reform bill that includes federal funding of abortion as part of a government takeover of health care. This vote must be defeated!

After weeks of closed-door writing, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has unveiled his $848 billion Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that would revolutionize health care in America—for the worse. Unlike the House-passed bill (H.R. 3962), the Reid bill does not include language restricting federal funding of abortion in health care. Instead, it explicitly authorizes it! That means the government will become a major agent of the abortion industry.

The Reid bill also includes a government-run option, a nearly half-trillion-dollar cut to Medicare, taxes on individuals and businesses, and higher premiums. Conscience protections for health care providers who refuse to perform abortions are inadequate. And we are just beginning to find out what’s in this monstrosity.

The vote this weekend is critical. Sen. Reid needs 60 votes to begin debate on the bill.

For all its problems, the bill must be stopped. At a minimum, the Reid bill must include the Stupak-Pitts Amendment of the House-passed bill that would prevent federal funding of abortion, except in rare instances.

If you agree, I encourage you to contact your senators today and ask them to vote “No” on any procedural vote on the Reid health care reform bill that does not include, at a minimum, the House-passed Stupak-Pitts Amendment to restrict federal funding of abortion.

You can call your senator by dialing the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121, or send an e-mail here.

Several senators are still on the fence. If your senator is one of the following three, he or she especially needs to hear from you:

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) (202) 224-5824
Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) (202) 224-4843
Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) (202) 224-6551

Please don’t underestimate the power of your voice.

In His Service,

Dr. Richard Land
President
The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
Southern Baptist Convention

Pro-Life Gains In Health Care Reform Not Secure

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 14:48:41 CST

The recent House passage of an amendment prohibiting federal funding of most abortions under the health care reform bill dealt abortion advocates a serious blow. Abortion coverage, after all, is an essential trimming to the $1.2 trillion government takeover, according to a sizeable bloc in Congress. But the pro-life achievement, a critical improvement to what remains a deeply flawed bill, is far from secure.

Protests from abortion advocates immediately rang out. Two days after the House narrowly passed — by a mere three votes — the 2,000-page Affordable Health Care for America Act (H.R. 3962), which includes the Stupak-Pitts abortion-restriction amendment approved by a 240-194 bipartisan vote, 41 representatives vowed in a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) to reject a final bill, to be negotiated with the Senate, if the pro-life amendment is retained.

A principle has been in effect for 33 years—the Hyde Amendment—barring the government from funding abortions, except in rare instances. But this provision bears no impact on health care reform. It applies only to Medicaid. In reality, the House-passed pro-life amendment is crucial in the pro-life effort to prevent federal funding of abortion in health care.

As the focus shifts to the Senate, pro-lifers must insist on an explicit ban on abortion coverage. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) will soon unveil his health care reform bill, written behind closed doors, setting up a procedural vote as early as this week. The first Senate vote on health care reform will be a vote to start debate. This requires 60 votes.

The importance of this vote cannot be overstated. Sen. Mike Johanns (R-NE) said the vote “might well become the deciding factor in this debate over federal funding of abortion.” He cautioned, “Don’t be fooled by claims that the motion to proceed to the bill is the first step to improving the bill. It will be the final say for the pro-life community.”

Of concern recently, Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) has commented that he would support pro-life language that is weaker than the Stupak-Pitts Amendment that was added to the House-passed bill. Sen. Nelson’s vote is indispensable in preventing federal funding of abortion through the health care system.

While pro-lifers should fight abortion coverage to the bitter end of this debate, more than the potential of federal funding of abortion sours health care reform. Higher taxes, rationed care, and poorer service are rolled up in the package affecting one-sixth of the economy. This is the wrong direction for America.

If you agree, please tell your senators, and especially Sen. Ben Nelson, to oppose any procedural votes on a health care bill that does not include, at a minimum, the Stupak-Pitts Amendment prohibiting funding of abortion under health care.

LIFE DIGEST: Charge urged in Hasan’s killing of unborn child

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 12:57:54 CST

The U.S. military should prosecute Army Maj. Nidal Hasan for 14 murders, not just 13, in the shooting rampage he conducted Nov. 5 at Fort Hood, Texas, the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) said.

Hasan has been charged in 13 deaths, but an additional charge should be added in the killing of the unborn child of Francheska Velez, who was three months pregnant when she was shot to death, ADF contended in a letter to the Staff Judge Advocate at Fort Hood. Under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, it is a crime to cause the death of a child in his mother’s womb.

Also in this edition: Abortion clinics shuttered or for sale and N.H. committee rejects assisted-suicide bill.

“All murder victims – born and preborn – deserve equal justice,” ADF Senior Legal Counsel Steven Aden said in a written release. “Women who volunteer to protect our country deserve to know that the government will enforce the laws that protect their children.”

Velez, 21, returned early from a tour of duty in Iraq after learning she was pregnant. She was preparing to take maternity leave, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Abortion clinics shuttered or for sale

Abortion clinics in various parts of the country continue to close or go on the market.

The Community Healthcare Center in Pensacola, Fla., shut down Oct. 30, according to a report by WEAR-TV, the local ABC affiliate. State inspectors discovered the clinic’s lab license had expired 413 days earlier. The state gave the clinic the option of paying a $413,000 fine or closing. Though Florida’s Agency for Healthcare Administration offered the center a reduced fine, it never received a reply.

The closing came two days before the end of a 40 Days for Life prayer vigil outside the clinic.

“People have prayed there that abortions would cease, and it was during the fall 40 Days for Life campaign . . . that it was finally announced that this facility, where untold numbers of unborn children perished, was closing,” said David Bereit, 40 Days for Life national director, in a written statement. “That is not just a coincidence. God works in mysterious ways, and this is indeed an answer to prayer!”

Planned Parenthood of Montana has announced its clinic in Kalispell, Mont., is closing because of the “economic downturn,” effective Nov. 20. The center was the site of a 40 Days for Life vigil in the spring.

The 40 Days for Life effort involves peaceful prayer vigils outside abortion clinics and Planned Parenthood offices, as well as fasting for the end of abortion.

Meanwhile, abortion doctor Albert Hodari has put on sale three of his clinics in Michigan. He has placed “for sale” signs in front of centers in Flint, Livonia and Southgate, according to a Nov. 13 LifeNews.com report.

In June, Hodari was fined $10,000 by the state after Regina Johnson died at one of his clinics following a botched abortion, LifeNews reported.

N.H. committee rejects assisted-suicide bill

A New Hampshire legislative committee has defeated a bill to legalize assisted suicide.

The House of Representatives Judiciary Committee voted 14-3 against the bill Nov. 10, according to the Associated Press. The panel’s recommendation will be considered by the House in January. If the House agrees with the committee, it is highly unlikely the issue will return to the chamber before 2011, AP reported.

The committee’s decision “is encouraging to all of us who know that legalizing the direct killing of the sick and those with disabilities will mean death, rather than treatment, for the most vulnerable among us,” said Jennifer Popik, legislative counsel with the National Right to Life Committee, in a written release. “The committee rightly saw that any supposed ‘safeguards’ that promoters of assisted suicide attempt to sell are nothing more than an illusion.”

The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission works to protect the sanctity of human life. If you would like to learn more about this issue, additional resources are available here. If your church is interested in purchasing bulletin inserts or other materials on the sanctity of human life, please visit our online bookstore and erlc.com.

ERLC, 100-plus groups oppose United Nations ‘defamation of religions’ resolution

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:17:16 CST

The Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission has joined more than 100 other organizations in a statement opposing “defamation of religions” resolutions being promoted in the United Nations.

The “defamation of religions” movement, which is led in the United Nations by the 56-member Organization of the Islamic Conference, urges the condemnation of messages that defame religions and can lead to violence. Such a measure approved by a U.N. body earlier this year cited only Islam as a specific target and urged countries to protect “against acts of hatred, discrimination, intimidation and coercion resulting from defamation of religions and incitement to religious hatred in general.”

The new statement endorsed by the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) and others says the “defamation of religions” concept is “incompatible with the fundamental freedoms of individuals to freely exercise and peacefully exercise their thoughts, ideas and beliefs.” Such resolutions, the statement says, “punish the peaceful criticism of ideas” and do not protect the rights of individuals as affirmed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, one of the U.N.‘s founding documents.

“Defamation of religions” resolutions undergird laws in some countries that prohibit blasphemy and are used to oppress religious or political beliefs that are out of favor with the government, according to the statement. The document makes no direct reference to Islam, though some Muslim-dominated states enforce anti-blasphemy laws.

“It is vitally important for governments to combat violence motivated by bias and hatred and to encourage respectful speech and civil dialogue, while at the same time affirming that freedom of expression and freedom of thought, conscience and religion are integral to the health of free societies and the dignity of the human person,” says the statement, which was officially released Nov. 10.

In addition to the ERLC, the 103 signers include the American Center for Law and Justice, Baptist World Alliance, Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, Anti-Defamation League, American Jewish Congress, American Islamic Congress, American Islamic Forum for Democracy, Open Doors, ChinaAid, Concerned Women for America, Advocates International, The Rutherford Institute, Center for Religious Freedom at the Hudson Institute and the American Humanist Association.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed her disapproval of the “defamation of religions” movement Oct. 26, saying, “[S]ome claim that the best way to protect the freedom of religion is to implement so-called anti-defamation policies that would restrict freedom of expression and the freedom of religion. I strongly disagree.”

The American experience shows “the best antidote to intolerance is not the defamation of religion’s approach of banning and punishing offensive speech but, rather, a combination of robust legal protections against discrimination and hate crimes, proactive government outreach to minority religious groups and the vigorous defense of both freedom of religion and expression,” Clinton said.

The U.N. General Assembly is expected to consider a “defamation of religions” resolution in December, CNSNews.com reported.

The U.N. Human Rights Council adopted in March a “defamation of religions” resolution with a plurality, not a majority, of its 47 members in support. The non-binding resolution named Islam alone as an object of defamation.

The new document, “A Common Statement From Civil Society on the Concept of the ‘Defamation of Religions,’” may be accessed online.

Congress Approves Massive Government Takeover of Health Care

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:42:49 CST

Shortly after 11:00 p.m. on Saturday night, Nov. 7, the House of Representatives passed the “Affordable Healthcare for America Act” (H.R. 3962), a 2,000-page overhaul of the nation’s health care system, affecting one-sixth of the U.S. economy and every single American citizen. The affirmative vote was razor thin, 220-215. This means the bill passed by a mere three votes!

The bright spot in the disastrous vote was the successful effort to prevent federal funding of abortion in health care plans. Thanks to the determined efforts of Joseph Pitts (R-PA) and Bart Stupak (D-MI), the House voted 240-194 to restrict federal funding of abortion in health care plans. We all can be grateful for this tremendous victory! Sixty-four Democrats joined 176 Republicans in this defeat of the pro-abortion agenda. You can see how your Congressman voted on the Pitts-Stupak amendment here and on final passage of the bill here.

The abortion restriction amendment was a tremendous and crucially important success. It addressed one of the major problems with this bill. Other problems remain, however. Two hundred and twenty congressmen approved the creation of a government-run health insurance plan that will compete against private health care plans. They voted for the formation of numerous boards, committees, and czars to oversee the nation’s health care system, including a board that will determine which medical procedures and medicines can be provided through all of the nation’s health care plans. They also voted to mandate coverage for every person, enforced by fines and threats of jail for those who refuse to comply. The full number of problems with this health care bill are too numerous to list.

Essentially, liberals got 95% of what they sought in their health care reform bonanza. If their bill or anything like it is signed into law, the American people can be certain that higher taxes, rationed care, and poorer service lie in their future medical care.

The battle now moves to the Senate, where it will be very difficult to get the needed 60 votes to pass a radical restructuring of our nation’s health care. While most Republicans and some Democrats will insist on abortion restriction language, passage of a bill in the Senate will require more than this. Some pivotal senators appear more concerned about costs and impacts on the quality of health care for all Americans, especially seniors. These are problems associated with the very nature of the Senate Democratic leadership’s health care reform proposals, not easily, if at all, fixed with an amendment.

Nevertheless, the lesson from Saturday’s vote is that anything can happen in Washington, DC. The only way to be certain that our nation is not sent down a disastrous health care path is to stay in touch with our senators and to insist that they not allow a government takeover of health care. If you would like to see what the ERLC considers to be appropriate principles that should guide health care reform, you can find our document “Fifteen Principles for Successful Health Care Reform” at www.erlc.com. After you read it, you may want to share your concerns about health care reform with your senators.

Barrett Duke is vice president for public policy and research of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.

LIFE DIGEST: California reverses, OKs non-embryonic research

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 09:56:34 CST

California’s stem-cell program recently awarded $230 million primarily to non-embryonic research, in the process implicitly admitting embryonic experiments are much further from producing therapies in human beings.

The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) made grants to only four efforts that involve embryonic stem cells, while making 10 others to non-embryonic projects, according to The New York Times. CIRM, the $3 billion, 10-year effort approved by voters in 2004, began in response to President Bush’s policy that barred federal funds for stem-cell research that results in the destruction of human embryos. Extracting stem cells from an embryo destroys the days-old human being.

Also in this edition: Down diagnoses in unborn babies up, births down, Ex-Baptist minister admits killing babies in abortion and Chinese bust child-trafficking ring.

One project approved for funding Oct. 28 involves extracting stem cells from a person’s heart and inserting them back into his heart to repair heart-attack damage, The Times reported. The study leader, Eduardo Marban of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, said embryonic stem cells may not help such patients. “The last thing we want to do is grow rogue heart cells,” he said, according to The Times. Embryonic stem-cell research has been plagued by the development of tumors in lab animals.

Bioethics specialist Wesley Smith said of Marban’s comment, “Funny when [embryonic stem cell research] opponents used to make that very claim, they were hooted down by ‘the scientists’ and their camp followers in the media.”

Stem cells provide hope for producing cures for a variety of diseases, because of their ability to transform into other cells and tissues. The biotech industry has long promoted research with embryonic stem cells because of their pluripotency, which means they can transform into any cell or tissue. ESCR has not proven nearly as effective as experiments with other types of stem cells, however.

Trials using adult stem cells have produced therapies for at least 73 ailments in human beings, despite the fact such cells are not considered pluripotent, according to Do No Harm, a coalition promoting ethics in research. Among the afflictions treated by adult stem cells are cancer, juvenile diabetes, multiple sclerosis, heart damage, Parkinson’s, sickle cell anemia and spinal cord injuries, according to Do No Harm.

Scientists have discovered induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells in the last two years, producing great promise for cures without the ethical problems of ESCR. In iPS research, scientists convert adult cells into cells that have nearly the identical properties of embryonic ones.

Neither procuring stem cells from non-embryonic sources nor transforming adult stem cells into embryonic-like ones harms the donor.

Down diagnoses in unborn babies up, births down

The number of unborn babies diagnosed with Down Syndrome in Great Britain has increased greatly in the last two decades, but the number of babies born with the condition has declined.

A study published in the British Medical Journal showed a 71 percent increase in the number of unborn children detected with Down Syndrome between 1989-90 and 2007-08 in England and Wales. That reflected a rise from 1,075 cases to 1,843.

The same survey found, however, the number of live births of babies with Down Syndrome decreased by one percent, according to the Daily Mail. The wide disparity resulted from improved testing for the condition and the vast number of parents who chose to abort in such situations. The percentage of couples who choose abortion when their unborn child is diagnosed with Down Syndrome has consistently been 92 percent, the British newspaper reported.

Rosa Monckton, 56, has a 14-year-old daughter with Down Syndrome. Domenica has caused her to understand what is important in life, said Monckton, who has worked to raise awareness of the condition.

Aborting babies with Down Syndrome is “a totally wicked thing to do,” Monckton said, according to the Daily Mail. “I look at my daughter and see the wonderful things she has given our family and I cannot imagine life without her.

“The medical community puts pressure on women to abort their babies at one of the most vulnerable times in their lives and they can spend the rest of their life regretting that decision.

“Doctors should not play God . . . ,” she said.

Ex-Baptist minister admits killing babies in abortion

A Baptist minister turned abortionist is straight forward when it comes to his practice.

“Am I killing?” Curtis Boyd said in an interview with a Dallas television station. “Yes, I am. I know that.”

Boyd, who opened the first abortion clinic in Texas in 1973, unveiled his latest clinic – this one a center that performs abortions up to 24 weeks into pregnancy – the last week of October, according to WFAA-TV, the ABC affiliate in Dallas.

He was ordained as a Baptist minister but is now a Unitarian, Boyd said. WFAA did not report if Boyd said what Baptist church ordained him.

Boyd said, however, he often prays regarding the abortions he performs.

“I’ll ask that the spirit of this pregnancy be returned to God with love and understanding,” he told WFAA.

Chinese bust child-trafficking ring

Chinese police have broken an alleged child-trafficking ring that appears to benefit from the Communist regime’s coercive population-control policy.

Authorities arrested 42 members of the ring that had reportedly earned more than $58,000 by selling 33 girls and 19 boys over two years’ time, according to a LifeNews.com, which based its report on an article from the Xinhua News Agency.

Beijing instituted a one-child policy in the late 1970s in an effort to slow the birth rate of the world’s most populous country. The policy limits couples to one child, although exceptions are made in rural areas and in some circumstances.

Penalties for violations of the policy have included fines, arrests and the destruction of homes, as well as forced abortion and sterilization. Infanticide, especially of females, also has been reported.

Wellness Should be at the Core of Health Care Reform

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 09:30:48 CST

While the House of Representatives has passed a bill promoting its own version of health care reform (at least the version that a razor thin majority embrace), what reform really looks like is still being debated. Despite the tone of the debate, few people are denying that responsible reform is needed to address rising health care costs and the pool of uninsured Americans. The ERLC's Richard Land believes there is a need for a "universal threshold of health care for Americans," but it doesn't look like what the House just voted on. Among other things, he says wellness, including rewarding individuals for avoiding risky and unhealthy behavior, should be at the core of any reform measure.

Richard Land on Wellness in the Health Care Debate