The Censorship of Christians

The Censorship of Christians

By Retired Pastor Lee Hemen

December 13, 2022

In our cancel culture today, there are those who desire to censor anyone who disagrees with their perceived proclivity or progressive ideals. Socialism loves censorship, and it is the fuel that fans the flames of oppression. Christians should be on the forefront of opposing any censorship of speech. It is at the core of what we believe.

When Jesus stood before the religious and political leaders of his day, they hated him because of the message he brought. It would upset their political and spiritual power over the population they were supposed to be leading. They wanted to keep their positions. Many Jews when they “had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him.” (John 11:45 NIV84) Some of those who were concerned about what Jesus was teaching, went to the Pharisees, and told them what was happening. They were the “Karens” of their day. John relates that “Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin. ‘What are we accomplishing?’ they asked. ‘Here is this man performing many miraculous signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.’ Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, ‘You know nothing at all! You do not realize that it is better for you that one man dies for the people than that the whole nation perish.’” (John 11:47-50 NIV84) They wanted to shut Jesus up because if the gospel truth kept being told, people would believe the truth! You have to understand what was occurring here, Caiaphas, the highest authority for the Jews both spiritually and politically, had already offered money, a bribe, to anyone who would turn on Jesus. His response is the same shameful and horrendous thing politicians, liberal media, and socialist today believe that it is “better” to sacrifice any individual who stands in their way, than to give up their power and prestige.

We see the very same thing occurring with online platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube today. We find it in the political halls of our own nation and in the walls of progressive colleges, schools, and churches. Just as time after time the rulers, religious leaders, and other wanted to silence Jesus, we find Teacher Unions, political systems, online entities, and progressive politicians who desire to silence parents, oppress voters, and edit what you read or hear. We’ve learned that Twitter deliberately suppressed viewpoints on COVID, vaccines, and politics that those who ran Twitter did not agree with, even when they were factual! If you disagree with the latest views on climate, mutilating children, murdering the unborn, or a politician those in power agree with you are censored.

The Cambridge Dictionary is being criticized for altering the definitions of the words “man” and “woman” to include people who identify as a gender other than their biological sex. The definition of woman, which previously was based on actual biology, now states that a woman is “an adult who lives and identifies as female though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth.” Similarly, a man is now defined as “an adult who lives and identifies as male though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth.” This is a form of censorship because any viewpoint other than that put forward by those in power is branded as “hateful”. When President Joe Biden signs the Respect for Marriage Act this week, he’ll be flanked by Vice President Kamala Harris, first lady Jill Biden, and gay drag queen story hour performer Marti Cummings, according to an invite posted by Cummings. Within the law passed by Congress and signed by the President are portions that tacitly force Christians to support lifestyles they deem as perverted and against the word of God. (https://www.cnsnews.com/commentary/bill-donohue/why-invite-drag-queen-white-house)

According to a recent Gallop poll over one third of women nationwide are prolife, but you had better not express that verbally or you may lose your job. (https://www.dailysignal.com/2022/12/12/its-2022-the-left-still-thinks-women-cant-think-for-themselves/) Most parents, over 80%, do not agree with the progressive “woke” agenda being taught in schools, and yet Teacher Unions and public libraries are constantly pushing it down your children’s throats. A middle school teacher is just one of many examples, who mock parents that want a say in lessons about gender, sexuality, and sex ed. Says parents should trust teachers because they’re experts and parents aren’t (pic.twitter.com/uasDYA9UXS).

Ben Shapiro understands the rising problem when he writes that “The legal obliteration of the distinction between governmental and private activity was only one prong of the new societal remolding. The second was the philosophical obliteration of the distinction between immutable characteristics and behavior. The case can easily be made morally that people ought not be victims of discrimination based on their immutable characteristics, like race; rejecting moral disapproval of particular behavior, however, means destroying the basis for any moral system. Yet that is what the law does when it likens race to sexual orientation philosophically.

These twin attacks on traditional American society -- vitiation of the distinction between private and public, and elimination of the distinction between innate characteristics and behavior -- are predicates to tyranny. The new secular system sets up government as a new god, determining right and wrong and cramming it down on every subject. You will be forced to celebrate the behaviors of others; you will be treated as a bigot if you do not.”

What Twitter did, what the “woke” culture is doing, what the liberal media desire you to adhere to, what you are being forced to do as a believer, and what some politicians are doing to your free speech should concern you as a Christian.

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This article is copyrighted © 2022 by Lee Hemen and is the sole property of Lee Hemen and may not be used unless you quote the entire article and have my permission.