State of the Family: America Is in Dangerous Times
WASHINGTON -- Just as the president every year delivers a State of the Union speech, the head of the Family Research Council addresses the state of the family.
This year, FRC President Tony Perkins sees some serious threats to the family, but one of the biggest is the loss of religious liberty.
"The whole family is really at the core of who we are as a people and that is really guided by our faith," Perkins told CBN News. "And as Christians, if we can't live according to our faith - whether it's in the home, whether it's in the workplace, in the school, then we really can't be the Americans that we have the right to be."
FRC brought several individuals together on this occasion to personify how religious liberty threats are coming at families and believers from many different directions these days.
One American who not only lost her religious liberty but her very freedom is Kentucky's Kim Davis, the Rowan County clerk who was jailed last year for five days after refusing to issue marriage licenses for gay couples.
"If it comes to me, it's going to come to other people and families are at risk," she said.
Davis sees the battle for gay marriage as a direct threat to the family.
"The very intricate workings of family in itself are at risk," she told CBN News. "And that's why this is so important. Marriage is fundamental for families, and if that breaks down, family is lost."
Then there are the schools. The American Civil Liberties Union has attacked Airline High School Principal Jason Rowland of Bossier, Louisiana, for what it considers unconstitutional religious proselytizing.
What did he do?
"I was accused of wishing 'may God bless you' on our community and on our school community as a closure of my monthly message on our website," Rowland explained.
The principal said he's worried about what will happen to the culture if something that small leads to lawsuits.
"It's a tragedy for America if that's something that you're offended at," he said. "What's going to happen in five to 10 years as we continue to spiral downward?"
In his State of the Family speech, Perkins warned America is in a dangerous time, especially for conservatives and conservative religious believers.
"The far Left now seeks to label all of its critics as extremists or haters and aggressively seeks to silence all who oppose its agenda," he warned.
Perkins emphasized how all America's freedoms hang on religious freedom.
"Our opponents seek to limit our freedom of speech because they fear its power," he said. "The freedom of expression is the very essence of liberty. But there can be no liberty in America without religious liberty. In our hearts, we know this to be true."
