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Pope Francis’ Claim ‘All Religions Are a Path to God’ Rebuked by Clergy

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During a three-day visit to Singapore, Pope Francis declared that “all religions are a path to God,” sparking backlash among religious leaders in the U.S.

The statement was made at an interreligious meeting with young people at a Catholic junior college shortly before his departure back to Rome.

Departing from his prepared remarks, Francis spoke off the cuff, stating that different religions are like “different languages” to reach God.

“If you start to fight, ‘my religion is more important than yours, mine is true and yours isn’t,’ where will that lead us?” he asked,” according to Crux Now. “There’s only one God, and each of us has a language to arrive at God. Some are Sheik, Muslim, Hindu, Christian, and they are different paths [to God].”

Reacting to the pontiff’s comments, Bishop Joseph Strickland, who oversaw the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tyler, Texas, until his dismissal by the Vatican last year, said in a post on X, “Please pray for Pope Francis to clearly state that Jesus Christ is the only Way. To deny this is to deny Him. If we deny Christ, He will deny us, He cannot deny Himself.”

(Read more from “Pope Francis’ Claim ‘All Religions Are a Path to God’ Rebuked by Clergy” HERE)

You’d Be Surprised Which States Persecute Religious Schools And Charities

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Attempts to sideline religion from American public life are not new, but whereas conservatives typically think that this type of discrimination is endemic to blue states, the reality is much more complex. In fact, in a new Manhattan Institute report, Notre Dame Law Professor Nicole Stelle Garnett and I discover that states throughout the country are breaking the law by persecuting religious schools and charities. . .

Disabled students suffer because of Virginia’s violation of the First Amendment. Virginia’s school districts and local governments can contract with any “public or private nonsectarian school, agency, institution,” or “nonsectarian child-day programs” to provide special education services. If the nearest option or best fit for your student happens to have a religious affiliation, your child will have to attend a further or worse option to receive funding.

Montana similarly provides funding for day education of students in private institutions so long as they are at “private, non-sectarian schools.” Like Virginia, Montana excludes religious schools from its school bus fuel tax rebate. . .

Georgia does not allow pre-kindergarten providers to give any religious instruction. It specifies that this rule extends even to programs that have both approved secular and religious versions and notes that no funds may be spent on religious instruction. . .

Though in better shape than Georgia, Alabama still falls well short of Carson’s requirements. The state allows a moment of silence during the pre-K school day but forbids religious instruction. Any religious activities must take place “outside of … the school day.” (Read more from “You’d Be Surprised Which States Persecute Religious Schools and Charities” HERE)

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Poll: 4 in 10 Americans Say Religion Is ‘Very Important’ to Them

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Forty percent of Americans say religion is “very important” in their lives, and nearly 30 percent say they “never” attend religious services, a The Economist/YouGov Poll found.

The results of the poll — which was conducted between May 6-9 with 1,500 U.S. adult citizens at a ±2.8 percent margin of error — mirror other recent polls showing religion’s devalued role in a nation that continues to prioritize self-gratification and secular progressivism.

Eighteen percent of poll respondents say religion is “not at all important” in their lives, while 16 percent say it is “not too important,” and 26 percent say it is “somewhat important.” The percentages are similar to the Wall Street Journal-NORC poll released in March showing that only 39 percent of Americans say religion is “very important” to them.

When asked: “Aside from weddings and funerals, how often do you attend religious services?” the answer “never” had the highest percentage at 28 percent. Both “seldom” and “once a week” garnered 18 percent each, “a few times a year” received 11 percent, “once or twice a month” received eight percent, and “don’t know” was three percent.

Interestingly, 30 percent of poll respondents report praying “several times a day.” Thirteen percent say they pray once a day or a few times a week, while 12 percent say “seldom” and 16 percent say “never.” (Read more from “Poll: 4 in 10 Americans Say Religion Is ‘Very Important’ to Them” HERE)

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Nearly Half of Gen Z Identifies as Non-Religious, New Study Finds

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Almost half of Generation Z say that they identify as either non-religious, atheist or agnostic, according to data published by the Cooperative Election Study Monday.

The study revealed the religious differences between five generations — Silent, Baby Boomer, Gen X, Millennials and Gen Z — noting that the largest difference could be found in Gen Z, according to Ryan P. Burge, a professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University. Gen Z respondents that identified as non-religious increased by 3%, bringing the total to 48% of young Americans born after 1996.

Gen Z was the largest group to indicate no religious affiliation at 31%, with Millennials coming in second at 28%, according to the study. Overall, the number of those who identified as non-religious in all generations did not change from 2021 to 2022.

Additionally, Gen Z only made up 1.5% of the population surveyed in 2014 for the annual study, but as of 2022, they made up almost 15%, according to Burge.

(Read more from “Nearly Half of Gen Z Identifies as Non-Religious, New Study Finds” HERE)

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Poll: Support for Traditional American Values, Patriotism Declines

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The percentage of Americans who say patriotism, religious faith, family, and other traditional American values are “very important” is on the decline, a Wall Street Journal-NORC poll found.

Support for every traditional American value included in the poll has receded since 1998 besides “money,” which has grown in importance. The data also shows young people and Democrats tend not to highly rank traditional American values as much as older adults and Republicans. . .

Beginning with patriotism, only 38 percent of Americans say it is “very important” to them, down from 61 percent in 2019 and 70 percent in 1998. Thirty-five percent say patriotism is “somewhat important,” and 27 percent say it is “not that important (16 percent) and “not at all important” (11 percent). . .

The Journal poll joined the ranks of other polls indicating religion’s devalued role in a nation that continues to prioritize self-gratification and secular progressivism.

While 49 percent of respondents say, “I know God really exists and I have no doubts about it,” only 39 percent say religion is “very important” to them. Like patriotism, religion has seen a precipitous decline in ranking of importance: 62 percent of Americans said religion was “very important” in 1998, a sentiment which tumbled down to 48 percent in 2019 before hitting this year’s low percentage. (Read more from “Poll: Support for Traditional American Values, Patriotism Declines” HERE)

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U.S. Veteran ‘Arrested Countless Times’ for Simple Sign About God

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A First Amendment battle has erupted over an Army veteran’s campaign to hold “God Bless the Homeless Vets” signs to raise awareness of homelessness among those who served in the nation’s military. . .

Actually more than one court, as the Foundation for Individual Rights and Express announced it has filed, already, two lawsuits on behalf of Jeff Gray, a U.S. Army veteran and retired truck driver.

It’s because he “has been repeatedly stopped, detained, searched, and arrested by the police. His alleged crime? Holding signs — in front of city halls across the United States.”

The cases, based on the First Amendment’s right to speak outside government buildings, so far are against Alpharetta, Georgia, and two police officers, and against the police chief in Blackshear, Georgia, FIRE reported.

“I have been harassed, trespassed, handcuffed and arrested countless times for peacefully exercising my First Amendment rights,” Gray explained in the announcement made by FIRE. “My intention is to ensure that all Americans from the wealthiest millionaire to the poorest homeless person can exercise these rights without fear of consequence from our government.” (Read more from “U.S. Veteran ‘Arrested Countless Times’ for Simple Sign About God” HERE)

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Why Did NBC Censor an NFL Player Holding up Christian Jewelry?

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Saturday night’s NFL playoff game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Los Angeles Chargers was one for the ages. The Jaguars completed one of the biggest comebacks in NFL history, overcoming a 27-0 deficit and winning the game on a last-second field goal by kicker Riley Patterson.

Jaguars kicker Riley Patterson held up his cross necklace for the camera after kicking the game winner.

Before the kick, Patterson pulled out a cross he was wearing around his neck and kissed it. After his game-winning boot, while celebrating, Patterson held up the cross in what appeared to be his way of giving thanks to God. Yet, as soon as he did this, NBC purposely seemed to cut away from Patterson holding up the cross.

Based on the sequence of events and the many cameras that refused to show Patterson holding up his cross, this appeared to occur on purpose. It would be a logical conclusion to anyone who watched the kick live. The entire incident was trending on Twitter Saturday night, with many people noticing that NBC cut away from Patterson as soon as he held up his cross.

This was a stark contrast from when network cameras focused intensely on NFL players kneeling for the anthem a few years back. NBC had every opportunity to show Patterson, but each time they tried to cut to him after the kick, he was holding up his cross, and cameras almost immediately cut away before it appeared on television.

(Read more from “Why Did NBC Censor an NFL Player Holding up Christian Jewelry?” HERE)

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State Poised to Ban Christians, Muslims, and Jews From Teaching in Public Schools

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from teaching in public schools by requiring that every state-certified teacher “fosters an environment that ensures student identities such as … gender identity … are … affirmed.” Once the new requirements clear a final procedural hurdle, they will be immediately challenged in state and possibly federal court, a civil liberties lawyer told The Federalist on Tuesday.

“We have lots of parents who are upset by this sort of thing in schools already,” said Doug Seaton, president of Minnesota’s Upper Midwest Law Center, in an interview. “They’re going to be even more upset with how their teachers are going to be licensed. Their teachers are going to have to be faced with hiding their beliefs or getting denied [for a state teaching license].”

Seaton said it was accurate to describe the nearly finalized regulations as communicating: “Christians, Muslims, and Jews need not apply for Minnesota teaching jobs.” That is unconstitutional, he said, so UMLC plans to sue once the changes go into effect.

The state agency that composed the changes disputed they would effectively ban religious Americans from teaching in Minnesota schools through a spokeswoman on Wednesday. The spokeswoman did not respond to a follow-up asking how Christians, Jews, and Muslims could adhere to their faith while complying with the licensing requirements that all new teachers publicly reject their faiths’ declaration that God has created only two sexes, male and female. (Read more from “State Poised to Ban Christians, Muslims, and Jews From Teaching in Public Schools” HERE)

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WIN: Oklahoma Man Allowed to Sue Local School Board Members for Cutting His Mic Because He Spoke About God

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A state judge in Oklahoma has refused to dismiss a lawsuit which alleges that a local school board turned off a public microphone because a man used “a Biblical worldview” to frame his comments.

Back in April, Brice Chaffin spoke at a public school board meeting in Stillwater, Oklahoma, about 65 miles north of Oklahoma City and the home of Oklahoma State University. Though the board had not planned to discuss rules related to bathroom use at schools, many in the audience, including Chaffin, elected to speak about the topic nonetheless.

Many residents wanted to weigh in on the issue since the board had recently updated its anti-discrimination policy to include “gender identity,” which meant that students could use the bathroom which corresponds to their “gender [identities],” rather than their biological sexes.

Chaffin began his comments by arguing for the reality of God and the necessity of accepting Jesus. When board members then asked Chaffin to speak about the bathroom topic at hand, Chaffin hinted at his opposition to “gender identity” as a concept and the related bathroom issue by referencing the Bible.

“So, I talked about physical laws,” Chaffin said. “We have spiritual laws. We also have natural laws. Natural law, for instance, one natural law is that on the day God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. He created them male and female. So, we have males and females.” (Read more from “Oklahoma Man Allowed to Sue Local School Board Members for Cutting His Mic Because He Spoke About God” HERE)

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Anti-Christian Hysteria Has Grown Into Church-Burning Terror, And People Might Be Next

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. . .In Calgary, 10 churches of various denominations were vandalized in a single night. A few days later, a Vietnamese church was set on fire — just hours after it held its first full service in more than a year. . .

Overall more than two dozen churches in Canada have been targeted over the past few weeks — and people are cheering it on. Not just anonymous people, either: On June 30, Harsha Walia, the executive director of the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association, responded to a story of another church arson, saying “Burn it all down.”

Others rallied to her defense. Naomi Sayers, a lawyer and blue Twitter checkmark, said “I would help her burn it all down … and also, I would help anyone charged with arson if they actually did burn things.” . . .

Over the past few years, across the West anti-Christian rhetoric has been tolerated, spread, and spoken in the highest stations of power. Emboldened, anti-Christian hate crimes rose across Europe and the United States, from Boston to San Francisco, and from Youngstown to El Paso. Now, even when a widespread campaign burns churches to the ground in Canada over conspiracies, exaggerations, and slanders, too many of our leaders stand idly by murmuring awkward nothings.

Can there be any doubt people will come next? If you don’t believe in the devil, you should. (Read more from “Anti-Christian Hysteria Has Grown Into Church-Burning Terror, And People Might Be Next” HERE)

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