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What follows is information from a variety of sources documenting the very real attempt by the radical religious right to take over the government and this nation and fashion it in their own image. This is not all the information there is and more information surfaces almost daily but it is a good beginning. The focus here is dual: first highlighting certain items, certain themes such as Dominions, Reconstructionists and Theocrats – the most extreme elements of Christianity and the ones who more and more are taking charge of the Republican Party and the U S Government. The other focus highlights the history: how this came about, how it has happened and how certain personalities and persons have become involved in the past and present. Some of the goals are outlined and good deal of attention is given to the attempts to take control of the courts by way of packing or trying to control the courts by the passage of laws that would restrict such that would fundamentally alter the nature of our government with its three independent branches and checks and balances. There is also a mention in this part that shows how long some folks have been working at this. It involved the 14th Amendment, selective incorporation, some law review articles and some books as well as a court opinion in 1983. The court opinion was Jaffree v. Board of School Com'rs of Mobile County, 554 F.Supp. 1104 (1983) and how that all fits into this Part II will go into the Jaffree case in far more detail. There are some duplications in the various articles that follow. |
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The Constitutional Restoration Act is designed to end an independent judiciary, instead bringing it under the control of the Congress which is controlled by the radical religious right. If that is accomplished it would end our current form of government as we know it.
[Original]
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Posted on Thursday, December 9, 2004. From a fifty-seven-page "county action plan" distributed by the Pennsylvania Christian Coalition, a division of the national organization headed by the Reverend Pat Robertson. The plan, which explains in detail how to set up a county chapter of the Christian Coalition, advises activists that "after getting the organization going you will have plenty of time to get involved in issues. But for now stay clear of issues and focus on organization.... If we have as few as 75-150 people in each county we could become the most powerful political influence in the state." Robertson has said that he wants "to see a working majority of the Republican Party in the hands of pro-family Christians by 1996." The plan was obtained by The Freedom Writer, a newsletter published in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Originally from Harper's Magazine, January 1993.
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The First Prince of the Theocratic States of America
[Scroll up to top of page]
By Katherine Yurica
[This excerpt is a few of the footnotes from the above article that are of some importance.]
[27] Robertson's and Ledeen's relationship continues. For a recent CBN interview of Ledeen conducted by Pat Robertson and transcribed by CBN.com go to: http://cbn.com/CBNNews/News/030623e.asp?option=print
[29] William O. Beeman's article, "Who Is Michael Ledeen?" was published on May 8, 2003 and may be read at the alternet.org:
http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=15860
[32] See: Project for the New American Century "Principles":
http://newamericancentury.org/statementofprinciples.htm and "Rebuilding America's Defenses"and http://newamericancentury.org/publicationsreports.htm
[34]The BBC article may be read at:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/panorama/3031803.stm
The longer and more important article, "Veteran neo-con advisor moves on Iran," by Jim Lobe, writing for the Asia Times can be found at:
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EF26Ak03.html
Another very interesting article is "Flirting with Fascism: Neocon theorist Michael Ledeen draws more from Italian fascism than from the American Right," by John Laughland and published in the June 30, 2003 issue of The American Conservative. You may read this article at: http://www.amconmag.com/06_30_03/print/featureprint.html
And for a recent interview with Ledeen, conducted by Pat Robertson on CBN.com, go to endnote 14 above.
[39] The only example of this possibility I have found so far is in the work of Dominionist Gary North who wrote tirelessly on the correlations between conservative economic principles and the Old Testament laws and rules. See Gary North, "The Covenantal Wealth of Nations," from Biblical Economics Today, Vol. XXI, No 2, February/March 1999. It can be read at: http://reformed-theology.org/ice/newslet/bet/bet99.02.htm . See also an article by J. Ligon Duncan, III, "Moses' Law for Modern Government: The Intellectual and Sociological Origins of the Christian Reconstructionist Movement," Premise, Vol. II, Number 5, May 27, 1995, page 4 and on the web at: http://capo.org/premise/95/may/ssha2.html. Ligon states: "...Reconstructionism is attempting to make a systematic and exegetical connection between the Bible and the conservative ideology of limited government and free market economics. For instance, Gary North has written volume after volume deriving principles of economics from his studies of the Pentateuch." [43] I'm indebted to Patricia J. Williams, Professor of law at Columbia University for this insight. See her article, "Infallible Justice," The Nation; October 7, 2002 at http://www.thenation.com/docprint.mhtml?i=20021007&s=williams
Not only is the concept of "original intent" brilliant and revolutionary, it in fact goes further than any other political format to legitimize the conversion of present day jurisprudence back to the judicial weltanschauung (world view) of eighteenth century jurists. It is the key factor in the Dominionist's intent to establish biblical law over all Americans. Two Supreme Court justices subscribe to it already. In other words, as Law Professor Patricia J. Williams has pointed out, the rule would effectively repeal most of the judicial decisions made in the last century.
[47] J. Ligon Duncan, III "Moses Law for Modern Government: The Intellectual and Sociological Origins of the Christian Reconstructionist Movement," Premise, Vol. II Number 5, May 27, 1995. http://capo.org/premise/95/may/ssha2.html
[53] Antonin Scalia, "God's Justice and Ours," in First Things 123 (May 2002): 17-21, http://www.firsthings.com/ftissues/ft0205/articles/scalia.html , http://www.yuricareport.com
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The Yurica Report * News Intelligence Analysis*
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The Rise of the Religious Right in the Republican Party
By John F. Sugg as published in The Weekly Planet, March 25-31, 2004
The Church Is the Conscience of the State: Operation Rescue is now called Operation Save America, and its leader is Flip Benham. (John Sugg)
A band of influential preachers is praying for the power to rule America. For those who disagree, they have a solution -- stoning.
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Organizations Monitoring or Challenging the Religious Right
Americans United for Separation of Church and State
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Political Research Associates
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Americans for Religious Liberty
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Estimate of political strength
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Taking Over the Republican Party
"The Grand Old Party is more religious cult than political organization."
President of the Alamo City Republican Women's club, 1993
1991-1993:Taking Working Control of Republican Party
With God As Their Co-Pilot: 1993:
Fifteen Percent Solution: 1993
Special Report from Inside the Coalition: 1992
Inside the Covert Coalition: 1992
What Happened between 1964 and 1994?
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January 16, 2004
Theocracy Watch
[Excerpt]
Jake sent me the following link to a news story on the Bush administration's "faith-based" initiative.
[End Excerpt]
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Pledge of Allegiance Resources
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Constitutional Restoration Act
New Dominionist Bill Limits the Supreme Court's Jurisdiction
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By Katherine Yurica
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New Dominionist Bill Limits the Supreme Court's Jurisdiction
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Constitution Restoration Act of 2004
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Google Search Constitution Restoration Act of 2004
Results 1 - 10 of about 818 for The "Constitution Restoration Act of 2004" i . (0.12 seconds)
HR 3799 Constitution Restoration Act of 2004
... This Act may be cited as the `Constitution Restoration Act of 2004'.
TITLE I--JURISDICTION. SEC. 101. APPELLATE JURISDICTION. (a) IN GENERAL-
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George Bush and the Treacherous Country
by Steve Erickson
February 13 - 19, 2004
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Constitution Restoration Act of 2004
HR 3799 IH
108th Congress
2d Session
H. R. 3799
To limit the jurisdiction of Federal courts in certain cases and promote federalism.
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Constitution Restoration Act of 2004
... "If we juxtapose the wording of the Constitution Restoration Act of 2004 to the underlined sentence in the Texas Republican Party Platform above, ..."
[ More results from www.yuricareport.com ]
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Constitution Restoration Act of 2004
... The Constitution Restoration Act Of 2004: The Most Important Legislation In The Last Fifty Years, an editorial by Dr. Chuck Baldwin, February 17, 2004 ...
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The Constitution Restoration Act Of 2004: The Most Important ...
... Passage of "The Constitution Restoration Act of 2004" will begin this process. I wholeheartedly and enthusiastically support this bill. I hope you will, ...
http://www.peroutka2004.com/schedule/index.php?action=eventview&event_id=115
http://www.conservativepetitions.com
http://www.conservativepetitions.com/petitions.php?id=266
Legislative Review: The Constitution Restoration Act Of 2004 ...
The Constitution Party stands firmly on the biblical principles of government laid down by our Founding Fathers in the Declaration of Independence and the ...
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Constitution Restoration Act of 2004
Congress of the United States
February 11, 2004 1:07PM EST
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More Google Search
Web Results 1 - 10 of about 35 for The "Constitution Restoration Act of 2004" is winding its way through both house and Senate of the United States Congress.. (0.22 seconds)
http://www.google.com/search?q=The+%22Constitution+Restoration+Act+of+2004%22+is+winding+its+way+through+both+house+and+Senate+of+the+United+States+Congress.&hl=en&lr=&filter=0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
by W. David Kubiak April 03, 2005
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Alan Keyes: ‘Curb the Courts, or Lose Self-Government'
Lee Duigon
May 10, 2005
Infiltrating the US Military: Gen. Boykin's Kingdom Warriors
... ideological judges down to the Senate for confirmation, while the House ... its ability to communicate through its publications through the US mail. ...
http://www.beatlestribute.com/Infiltrating_ www.weeklyplanet.com/2004-03-25/cover.html
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Re: Bush law would convert America into a theocracy'
http://groups.google.com/groups?q=g:thl2715990457d&dq=&hl=en&lr=&ie=U...41
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Federal Courts
Hoover Institution Hoover Digest 1997 No. 4
Edwin L. Meese III
How Congress Can Rein in the Courts
Judges have assumed vast powers the founders never intended. The solution? Congress should assert a few powers the founders did intend. An analysis by Meese.
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... courts can possess whatever jurisdiction Congress deems appropriate.
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Constitutional Law - Chapter 1
... Can Congress reduce federal jurisdiction in a way which denies remedies for some rights? ... 2) Congress can make exceptions to and regulate the appellate .
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The Enumerated Powers and Duties of the Federal Government
Thus Congress possesses the power to abolish all Federal Courts except the Supreme Court. Congress can also limit the appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court itself (see Article II Section II). And, of course, Congress can also impeach Federal judges, who are to serve only during times of good behavior. The limited powers of the Federal Judiciary and the checks that Congress has over it the weakest of the three branches of government.
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Judge Roy Moore Introduces Constitution Restoration Act 2004
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Herbert W. Titus is suppose to have been the author. of Moore's Constitution Restoration Act 2004.
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Herbert W. Titus
God, Man and Law, The Biblical Principles, by Herbert W. Titus.
[This particular book we bought in 1994 at the book store at Regent U at CBN here in Virginia Beach. It was a textbook used in the School of Law at Regent U. In fact, it was this book that set S. Batte and myself on the path that led us to become involved with Prof. Tom Peters in creating the "Separation of Church and State Home Page" and ultimately led to S. Batte and myself creating the current web site we currently maintain, update and run:
The Constitutional Principle: Separation of Church and State
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A few years back Titus sued Pat Robertson in Court in Chesapeake VA for firing him from Regent University when Titus claimed he had a valid contract and had tenure. Titus claimed that Robertson was dumping him and a couple other profs. at the law school for being too radical. That Pat was trying to get accreditation from the ABA and the ABA told him to dump the ultra radicals from the staff of the school.
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Christian Broadcaster Ordered To Reveal Name Of Justice
Sep. 03, 1997
Virginia Beach, Virginia (CWN) - A Virginia judge has ordered Christian broadcaster Pat Robertson to reveal the name of the US Supreme Court justice who he said referred to lawyers suing Robertson as a "bunch of screwballs."
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People, Places & Things in the News
http://www.s-t.com/daily/09-97/09-02-97/zzzwnppl.htm#XINDEX7
(From "NewStandard" 9/2/97)
A judge in Virginia Beach, Va., has ordered Pat Robertson to reveal the name of the U.S. Supreme Court justice who allegedly referred to lawyers suing the televangelist as a "bunch of screwballs."
The justice allegedly made the remark to Robertson last year. Since revealing the conversation in court in October, Robertson has refused to name the justice.
Circuit Judge Edward Hanson Jr. Friday ordered Robertson to reveal the name, the date of the conversation and what was said. The name would be kept under seal pending a hearing on how to proceed.
The controversy began in 1993 when Robertson, who founded Regent University, fired Law School Dean Herbert Titus. With faculty and students rallying behind Titus, Robertson wrote a letter in which he accused law professors of trying to cripple or shut down the law school.
He compared them to suicide cult leader Jim Jones and the Branch Davidians, saying they were "second-rate legal minds," "inept as lawyers" and "extremist fanatics."
Three professors filed the defamation lawsuit against Robertson in 1994. Titus settled a separate case last year for undisclosed terms.
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The Council for National Policy
Past/Present Officers & Prominent Member Profiles
Part III ~ N - Z
http://watch.pair.com/database2.html
[excerpt]
Herbert W. Titus, Esquire
Herbert Titus - "In 1962 he graduated cum laude from the Harvard Law School. After two years as a trial attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice, Titus served from 1964 to 1979 as a professor of law at the state universities of Oklahoma, Colorado, and Oregon. During this time he was active in various left-wing cases, opposing the war in Vietnam and supporting abortion and homosexual rights. As a cooperating attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union, Titus worked with attorneys and clients on a number of Constitutional cases. In 1975, Titus was dramatically converted to Christ... In 1976-77, he studied with Dr. Francis Schaffer at L'Abri in Switzerland. In 1979, left his tenured position as professor of law at the University of Oregon, becoming a member of the charter faculty of a Christian law school at Oral Roberts University. After three years at ORU, Titus moved to Regent University, where he served for eleven years, first as the founding Dean of the School of Law. In July 1993, Titus established . . ."
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Wacko Titus
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"The Constitution of the United States: A Christian Document"
by Herbert W. Titus
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Curbing the Courts: The Constitution Restoration Act
June 24, 2004
[EXCERPT]
"God is the source of law and liberty. If there is no law, there is no liberty." - Herbert Titus, constitutional lawyer
Herbert Titus, a constitutional lawyer representing Judge Moore, said, "It's time to stop the courts from abusing power." He said, "They don't even read the Constitution anymore. They just exercise raw power."
Curbing the Courts: The Constitution Restoration Act
June 24, 2004
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Lee Duigon
April 20, 2004
"God is the source of law and liberty. If there is no law, there is no liberty." - Herbert Titus, constitutional lawyer
Are you tired of judicial attacks on the Ten Commandments?
Tired of hearing liberal judges cite a foreign country's law or a World Court ruling as a basis for turning American society upside down?
Help is on the way.
U. S. Senator Richard Shelby (R-Alabama) has introduced a bill to rein in the courts: the Constitution Restoration Act (CRA). If enacted into law, the CRA would:
Re-establish the right of public officials to affirm that God is "the sovereign source of law, liberty, or government."
Impeach judges who base their decisions on anything but the U. S. Constitution and American law — including the laws of foreign countries, international conventions, European Court rulings, etc.
"On the whole, it's a great bill," said Glen Lavy, a constitutional lawyer with the Alliance Defense Fund, Arizona. "I hope it receives a lot of organizational support from the Christian movement."
How Does it Work?
When Senator Shelby unveiled his bill at a recent press conference, he had himself introduced by Judge Roy Moore — the former Alabama Chief Justice who was stripped of his position for not obeying a federal court order to remove a Ten Commandments monument from his courthouse.
"You simply cannot divest God from our country," Shelby said. "Our country has no foundation without a basic recognition that God invests us at birth with basic individual rights."
The bill rests legally on Article III, Section 2, of the Constitution. This section allows Congress to make "exceptions" as to what kind of cases the federal courts might hear.
The CRA would remove from the courts' jurisdiction all cases involving the public acknowledgement of God as the source of American law and government. Had it been in place last year, the federal court could not have ruled on Judge Moore's right to display the Ten Commandments, and he would still be in office.
"This bill is critically important to address the growing trend in our federal courts to deny the rights of our states and their citizens to acknowledge God openly and freely," said Virginia Davis, the senator's press secretary.
Congress has never before had to invoke Article III, Section 2, against judicial abuse of power, Lavy said. "It's never gotten to the point before where courts have so exceeded their jurisdiction."
Herbert Titus, a constitutional lawyer representing Judge Moore, said, "It's time to stop the courts from abusing power." He said, "They don't even read the Constitution anymore. They just exercise raw power."
Is it Constitutional?
Looking ahead, Glen Lavy thought a constitutional challenge might be mounted to overturn the bill if it becomes law.
"The Left might argue that this does not exclude Congress from violating the First Amendment," he said. "If, say, you wanted to sue Congress for violating the establishment clause [forbidding Congress to establish a state religion], where would you go if the court was excepted from hearing it? That's how the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) might argue it."
"The bill is solidly constitutional," Herbert Titus said. "There's no reason to declare it otherwise. Why would anyone try to sue Congress for violating the establishment clause in the first place? Congress has never tried to establish a state religion."
Titus has a unique perspective. Until 1975, he worked for the ACLU.
"I got saved in 1975," he said. "God completely changed my life."
As to the CRA, "all Congress has done," he said, "is acknowledge God. It's not an establishment of religion."
"Congress passes resolutions all the time, thanking God for this or that, and the courts have no business telling Congress how they can acknowledge God."
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Council for National Policy
Research Articles - The Council for National Policy (CNP)
Herbert W. Titus - CNP 1984, 1988, 1996, 1998; served as dean, School of Public Policy and College of Law and Government, CBN University; taught constitutional law at Oral Roberts University for 18 years before joining CBN University.
Dr. "M.G." Pat Robertson - CNP Board of Governors 1982, President Executive Committee 1985-86, member, 1984, 1988, 1998; President of the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), host of the famous "The 700 Club", and founder of CBN University; founder the Christian Coalition; chancellor and founder CBN University.
Robertson writes that his family's aristocratic lineage, linking it to the British Churchill family, gave his mother, Gladys Churchill Robertson, confidence that Pat would succeed. His father, Sen. A. Willis Robertson, was London's and Wall Street's chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.
"Hunt, whose Birch Society background is documented by Conway and Siegelman in Holy Terror, also made a contribution of $1 million to the Moral Majority in 1981, according to Perry Dean Young." 36 Donated $10 million to Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasters Network in 1970. 37
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Politics1: Presidency 2000 - Howard Phillips (Constitution Party ...
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Rousas John Rushdoony
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... for Christian Reconstruction and its allies: a theocracy ruling America. ...Two conservative denominations, the Presbyterian Church in America (both ...
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Dominionism
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Christian Reconstructionism, Dominion Theology, and Theonomy
Dominionism
6. Rev. Andrew Saldlin, "The Creed of Christian Reconstruction," at: http://www.chalcedon.edu/creed.html
7. Greg Bahnsen, "By This Standard," Pages 345-347. Available free at http://www.freebooks.com
8. Frederick Clarkson, "Theocratic Dominionism gains influence," The Public Eye Magazine, Volume 8, #1 and 2, 1994-MAR/JUN. Online at: http://www.publiceye.org/
Additional resources:
An essay on Dominionism with many links is at: http://abacus.oxy.edu/
The Chalcedon Foundation of Dr. R.J. Rushdoony is at: http://www.chalcedon.edu
The Southern California Center for Christian Studies (founded by the late Dr. G.L. Bahnsen) is at: http://scccs.org/
The Institute for Christian Economics, (ICE) founded by Dr. Gary North, has many Christian books free for downloading. See: http://www.freebooks.com/
An essay on Christian Reconstructionism with many links is at: http://abacus.oxy.edu/l
Joseph Conn, "Christians Stoning Teens," at: http://www.sullivan-county.com/nf0/fundienazis/fundiewords.htm#teens
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Re: Reconstructionist (Wuz: Separation of school and state (Wuz; An American history resource)
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and
Re: Reconstructionist (Wuz: Separation of school and state (Wuz; An American history resource)
[Excerpt]
One new strategy of the Reconstructionists is to identify all Christian pastors across America who support their views, as well as those who do not. According to Reconstructionist leader Jay Rogers, "the idea is to divide the church in America into two camps: 1) those who are committed to the battle for a Christian republic, and 2) those who are committed to 'the myth of neutrality' or who are openly opposed to rebuilding a Christian nation." All church leaders would be asked to sign a statement confirming their allegiance; the lists would then be Posted on the Internet, made the subject of press releases, and disseminated by mail. Those not aligning with the cause would be "recruited" for membership. National synods of the new "Confessing Church in America" would be held in odd-numbered years over the next decade. The ultimate goal would be to build a spiritual army "organized to re-build America upon the principles of the Bible," according to Reconstructionist precepts. The "Confessing Church" would also issue prayer Proclamations to call attention to misfits such as "Jesse Jackson, Peter Comes (the openly homosexual 'Professor of Christian Morals at Harvard'), or whoever are the 'pestilent prelates' God raises up and hardens to oppose the 'Confessing Church' in the 21st century." The "Confessing Church" would also pay for full-page ads in newspapers around the country proclaiming that "A vote for Al Core is a sin against God." Finally, as the United States was formed by a "Declaration of Independence," the new America would be governed by a formal "Declaration of Dependence Upon God," which calls for, among other things, a turn away from "humanism and lawlessness" to a "covenanted nation of biblical warrant."
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Dominionism, (A.k.a. Christian Reconstructionism, Dominion Theology, Theonomy) Recent Developments
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A Series of Eight Posts That Covers the Reconstructionists (Dominions) in
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The Justices
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In almost all church-state cases, justices are asked (1) to allow-on free-exercise grounds-what is not now allowed, or (2) to prohibit-on establishment grounds-what is now allowed. Affirmative votes in both types of cases are "separationist" votes, making it easy to "score" each justice and learn how inclined each is to keep and/or expand the separation of church and state in the United States .4 On this basis the leading separationist title belongs to Justice William O. Douglas with a score of 100 percent, and the antiseparationist title belongs to justice Clarence Thomas with a score of 0 percent. In the eight church-state cases heard by Douglas after Warren became chief justice, Douglas voted to expand religious liberty either by enlarging religious free exercise or by outlawing an unconstitutional establishment of religion .5 By contrast, Thomas has so far heard thirteen cases, and in no case did he vote to expand religious liberty. In all probability he would not even acknowledge the legal standing of a "conscience."
Combining the scores of all justices sitting under each of the last three chief justices shows that the Court under Earl Warren (1953-1969) was the most separationist (liberal) with an average score of 67 percent. Under Chief Justice Warren Burger (1969-1986), the average dropped to 50 percent, where it has stayed under Chief Justice William Rehnquist (1986-) if all fourteen justices serving under him thus far are counted. Five of these, however, have since retired. Without those five, the average of the 9 justices now on the Court is 40 percent, which is strong evidence that the shift from liberal to conservative in the larger political context is mirrored in the judicial branch, at least where church-state issues are concerned.
One more aspect of these voting records is noteworthy. Since Scalia joined the Court in September 1986, he and Rehnquist have heard twenty-two church-state cases and voted alike in all. In eighteen cases they voted "antiseparationist," twelve as part of the majority, six as part of the minority. The only "separationist" votes they cast were the four cases that were unanimous.
Since Thomas joined the Court in October 1991, he has heard thirteen cases and voted every time with Rehnquist and Scalia. It is truly meaningful to say that these three justices constitute a hard-core, regressive bloc on church-state matters.
Footnotes
4. See appendix 2 for the scores of all the Supreme Court justices from the Earl Warren Court to 2003.
5. Douglas came on the Court in 1939. From then until Earl Warren became chief justice in 1953, Douglas heard sixteen other church-state cases in which he typically voted a separationist line.
Source:
Religion on Trial, How Supreme Court Trends Threaten Freedom of Conscience in America, Phillip E. Hammond, David W. Machacek, and Eric Michael Mazur, Altamira Press, A Division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishes Inc (2004) p. 134
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Assoc USSC Justice Clarence Thomas
Doubting Thomas: Don't Trust This Justice's Church-State Views
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By Marci Hamilton
The Supreme Court Decision on the Pledge of Allegiance Case: Why It Raises Federalism Issues
By Marci Hamilton
Justice Thomas, Reconstructionist ??????
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Justice Thomas, reconstructionist???????
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Mitchell v. Helms and the Modern Cultural Assault on the Separation of Church and State
Derek H. Davis*
Abstract: This Article suggests that the Mitchell v. Helms decision, and the course on which its sets us—offering government aid to religion as a social good—is a blunder that will have serious adverse consequences for the vital role that religion plays in American society. The intention of aiding religion through the beneficent emasculation of traditional tests of government establishment observed in Helms is just the latest instance of our recurrent attempts to kill American religion with kindness. This process is spurred on by a perceived national crisis following tragedies like those in Paducah, Kentucky and Littleton, Colorado. This Article suggests that while the United States has largely resisted the temptation to alter the inherent wisdom of the system, recent political and judicial changes make the First Amendment and American religious groups that depend on it more vulnerable.
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Justice Thomas, reconstructionist??????
Heartland Morality, American Politics
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Reconstructionist (Wuz: Separation of school and state (Wuz; An American history resource))
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Separation of school and state WAS An American history resource
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The U.S. Constitution: "A Legal Barrier to Christian Theocracy"
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"Proclaiming the Authority of God's Word Over Every Area of Life and Thought." Catch the vision…
Introduction: the U.S. Political Right
Christian Reconstructionism and the Far-right **
So that time can end . . .Are the end times at hand?
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David Barton
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Top Christian Nationalist On Hot Seat
by Frederick Clarkson
Mon Apr 11th, 2005 at 10:33:28 PDT
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/4/11/133328/752
David Barton is perhaps the leading proponent of the notion that the U.S. was once, and should again be a "Christian Nation." He wants to sell you on that idea. He has books and tapes to sell too. The problem is that his slick products and presentations don't stand up to scrutiny. For example, in 1996, the mainstream Baptist Joint Committee on Public Affairs wrote a detailed critique,
http://www.bjcpa.org/resources/pubs/pub_walker_barton.htmdebunking Barton's Christian nationalist notions.A simple Google search turns up other disturbing information about Barton. Not only does he disseminate biased and misleading materials, he has a profound, and profoundly alarming political agenda. Last year, Beliefnet
[ http://www.beliefnet.com/story/154/story_15469_1.html ] reported that Barton is on the board of The Providence Foundation, [ http://www.providencefoundation.com/ ]a Christian Reconstructionist-oriented organization.
Reconstructionism is an influential political theology whose proponents argue that the U.S. should be a Christian theocracy, under "Biblical law." (I wrote about this movement and its role in the Christian right in detail in my book Eternal Hostility: The Struggle Between Theocracy and Democracy.)
[ http://www.publiceye.org/magazine/chrisre1.html ]
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Gary Amos
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Gary Amos A Virginia beach Attorney who helped Pat Robertson set up Regent University and the School of Law at that University.
Christian Reconstructionism (was Re: Question for Group Re: (U.S.) Founding Fathers and Religion
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History Reconstuctionist Revealed (Part 1 of 3)
History Reconstuctionist Revealed
Holy Smoke (re: Gary North & assorted Millenialists)
The above URL talks about the goals of taking over school bds across the country
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Books by Gary Amos:
Defending the Declaration: How the Bible & Christianity Influenced the Writing of the Declaration of Independence by Amos, Gary T.
Never Before in History: America's Inspired Birth by Gardiner, Richard, and Dembski, William A., and Amos, Gary
Attainted: The Political Branding of Oliver North
by Amos, Gary T
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Christian Reconstructionism: Theocratic Dominionism Gains Influence
by Frederick Clarkson
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Current events in Reconstructionist land
[lots of information to be found here ]
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Establishment Clause, Incorporation
Jaffree v. Board of School Com'rs of Mobile County, 554 F.Supp. 1104 (1983)
Complaint challenged certain Alabama statutes including the "Prayer Law." The District Court, Hand, Chief Judge, held that: (1) First Amendment in part was guarantee to states which insured that states would be able to continue whatever church-state relationship existed in 1701, and (2) because establishment clause of First Amendment does not prohibit the state from establishing a religion, prayers offered by the teachers m the case unconstitutional.
Action dismissed.
Stay Granted, - U.S. -, 103 S.Ct. 842, 74 L.Ed.2d 924.
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Also see the following books that were cited in the above opinion Robert Cord, Separation of Church and State. Historical Fact and Current Mcdon (1982) P. McGuigan & R. Rader, A Blueprint for Judicial Reform (eds. n.d.); J. McClellan, Joseph Story and the American Constitution, 118-159 (1873) (Christianity and the Common Law). McClellan, The Making and the Unmaking of the Establishment Clause, in Blueprint for a Judicial Reform 295 (P. McGuigan & R Rader eds. n.d.) (quoting J. Story. IA. Commentaries on the Constitution § 1871 (1833) (emphasis added)).
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Jaffree v. Wallace, 705 F.2d 1526 (1983)
Jaffree v. Board of School Com'rs of Mobile County , 459 U.S. 1314 (1983)
Wallace v. Jaffree, 472 U.S. 38 (1985)
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Subject: Thomas, Moore connection
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Justice Thomas's concurrence. While he joined the majority opinion, Justice Thomas wrote a separate concurrence. Justice Thomas argued that the Establishment Clause should be applicable to the States only to a limited extent, or perhaps not at all. See Zelman, Opinion of Thomas, J., concurring, at 3-5. No other Justice agreed with this extremist view that is contrary to over sixty years of Supreme Court decisions which have consistently held the Establishment Clause to be fully applicable to the States. See, e.g., Zelman, Opinion of the Court at 6; Cantwell v. Connecticut, 310 U.S. 296, 303 (1940).
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Despoiling of America: How George W. Bush became the head of the new American Dominionist Church/StateBy Katherine Yurica
A Review of The Despoiling of AmericaBy J. A. Bartlett at http://www.jabartlett.blogspot.com/ Posted Sunday, February 15, 2004
http://makeashorterlink.com/?R1A7323CA
OR
The Daily Aneurysm at jabartlett.com
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Chief Justice Attacks a Law as Infringing on Judges
A New York Times Article January 1, 2004
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God's Justice and Ours Antonin Scalia
http://www.firstthings.com/ftissues/ft0205/articles/scalia.html
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The Christian Reconstruction Movement and its Blueprints For Dominionby Greg Loren Durand
Chapter One: The Law Established "In Exhaustive Detail"
Chapter Two: The Apostle Paul's Doctrine of the Law
Chapter Three: The Appeal to Deuteronomy 4:6-8
Chapter Four: Common Grace and the Natural Law
Chapter Five: An Implicit Denial of Common Grace
Chapter Six: Reconstructionism's Commitment to Mosaic Penology
Chapter Seven: The Covenantal Sanctions of Deuteronomy 28
Chapter Eight: How Does God Bless the Nations?
Chapter Nine: Theonomic Postmillennialism Versus the Bible
Chapter Ten: Reconstructionism's Theocratic Kingdom
Chapter Eleven: The Nature of the Christian's Inheritance
Chapter Twelve: The Distorted Gospel of Reconstructionism
Appendix One: The Relation of the State to Christ
by James Henley Thornwell
Appendix Two: A Response to James Henley Thornwell
by Thomas E. Peck
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Christian Reconstruction God's Glorious Millennium? m
Anthology of Reconstructionist Thought
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College for the Home-Schooled is Shaping Leaders for the Right
New York Times, March 8, 2004
By David D. Kirkpatrick
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Avenging angel of the religious right
Quirky millionaire Howard Ahmanson Jr. is on a mission from God to stop gay marriage, fight evolution, defeat "liberal" churches -- and reelect George W. Bush.
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'On a Mission From God': The Religious Right and the Emerging American Theocracy
by Maureen Farrell
"The religious right is winning. They've won." -- Howard Stern
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Theocratic Dominionism Gains Influence
Part 2: A Generation of Reconstructionists
Part 3: No Longer Without Sheep
Frederick Clarkson is an author and lecturer who has written extensively on right-wing religious groups from the Christian Coalition to the Unification Church. He is co-author of Challenging the Christian Right: The Activist's Handbook, (Institute for First Amendment Studies, 1992), and is author of Eternal Hostility: The Struggle Between Democracy and Theocracy in the United States, (Common Courage Press, 1996). This article originally appeared in the March and June 1994 issues of The Public Eye.
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How George W. Bush Won the 2004 Presidential Election
Purging voter lists is just the beginning: the U.S. has embraced a form of electronic voting that is unreliable, unverifiable and funded by the radical Christian right.
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"Acknowledge God as the sovereign source of law, liberty [and] government" in the United States.
Atlantida Septna - 06:13pm Mar 15, 2004 (364. 582/654)
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Ashcroft to teach law at Robertson's Regent University
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By Chris Floyd
One of the sticking points in crafting the just-signed "interim constitution" of the Pentagon cash cow formerly known as Iraq was the question of acknowledging Islam as the fundamental source of law.
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The Rise of the Religious Right in the Republican Party
Web Results 1 - 10 of about 1,390,000 for The Rise of the Religious Right in the Republican Party. (0.76 seconds)
[Just a Couple]
Creative Resistance: United States - The Rise of the Religious ...
... The rise of the Religious Right in the Republican Party is perhaps the most important story in modern politics. The battle for "dominion" over society ...
The Rise of the Religious Right in the Republican Party
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By Bob Kendall
05/11/05
Ignorance and arrogance have never stopped religious fanatics from trying to force their bigoted viewpoints onto the world. You need travel no farther than Waynesville, North Carolina, where a small Baptist church pastor, Reverend Chan Chandler, dared defy some of the most cherished democratic principles of this nation. Chandler became so undemocratic in his actions that he now has the focus of the U.S.A. and the world on his defiance of democracy.
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More Thunder on the Right: The Propaganda Ministry of Christian Broadcasting
by P. M. Carpenter
05/11/05 08:36 AM | Permalink
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by Colbert I. King
Saturday, April 23, 2005; Page A19
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Books about the Far Right: A Selected Bibliography
... force in American society due to the rise of a new Religious Right, mobilization of corporate conservatism and a revitalization of the Republican party. ...
by John Cherney and Jim Danky
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04/09/2005 02:07:16 PM
America having second thoughts about influence of religious right
Leonard Pitts Jr.
Miami Herald
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Two Important Articles in Harper's Magazine May 2005
"Soldiers of Christ: I. Inside America's most powerful megachurch"
"Soldiers of Christ: II. Feeling the hate with the National Religious Broadcasters."
An excerpt from From "Soldiers of Christ: II."
Wright promises the audience that as the new president of NRB he will fight to block the passage of hate-crime legislation, something many Christian broadcasters fear might be used to halt their attacks on gays and lesbians.
and
What the disparate sects of this movement, known as Dominionism, share is an obsession with political power. A decades-long refusal to engage in politics at all following the Scopes trial has been replaced by a call for Christian "dominion" over the nation and, eventually, over the earth itself. Dominionists preach that Jesus has called them to build the kingdom of God in the here and now, whereas previously it was thought that we would have to wait for it. America becomes, in this militant biblicism, an agent of God, and all political and intellectual opponents of America's Christian leaders are viewed, quite simply, as agents of Satan. Under Christian dominion, America will no longer be a sinful and fallen nation but one in which the Ten Commandments form the basis of our legal system, Creationism and "Christian values" form the basis of our educational system, and the media and the government proclaim the Good News to one and all. Aside from its proselytizing mandate, the federal government will be reduced to the protection of property rights and "homeland" security. * Some Dominionists (not all of whom accept the label, at least not publicly) would further require all citizens to pay "tithes" to church organizations empowered by the government to run our social-welfare agencies, and a number of influential figures advocate the death penalty for a host of "moral crimes," including apostasy, blasphemy, sodomy, and witchcraft. The only legitimate voices in this state will be Christian. All others will be silenced.
The traditional evangelicals, those who come out of Billy Graham's mold, are not necessarily comfortable with the direction taken by the Dominionists, who now control most of America's major evangelical organizations, from the NRB to the Southern Baptist Convention, and may already claim dominion over the Christian media outlets. But Christians who challenge Dominionists, even if they are fundamentalist or conservative or born-again, tend to be ruthlessly thrust aside.
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ACLU of Washington: Religious Freedom (Religious Right Report ...
Report on the Religious Right in Washington State
by Dan Junas, 1995
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Volume 52, Number 5 · March 24, 2005
By Bill Moyers
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Church-State Separation: A Keystone to Peace (3rd edition)
Clark Moeller, January 2004 --
[Copyright 2004, Pennsylvania Alliance for Democracy -- Printing, copying and distribution is encouraged with full attribution.]
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Satan's Critique of Church-state Separation
written and presented by Clark Moeller
This has been presented in dramatic form to groups in PA, NY, MD, UT during 2004. January 28, 2005 edition
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By Nicholas D. Kristof
New York Times Op Ed, March 3, 2003
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Religious Right Group's Attack on Hindu Prayer in Congress 'Reeks of Religious Bigotry,' Says AU
Friday, September 22, 2000
Family Research Council Says Only Christianity Deserves Government Support
The religious right does not accept religions that aren't monotheistic.
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Kansas Debate Challenges Science Itself
15 May 2005
Excerpt:
Topeka, Kan. - The Kansas school board's hearings on evolution weren't limited to how the theory should be taught in public schools. The board is considering redefining science itself. Advocates of "intelligent design" are pushing the board to reject a definition limiting science to natural explanations for what's observed in the world.
Instead, they want to define it as "a systematic method of continuing investigation," without specifying what kind of answer is being sought. The definition would appear in the introduction to the state's science standards.