Why Is Freedom of Religion Important?

            The liberty principle for this Freedom Friday concerns the fact that all people desire the right to live according to their beliefs and consciences. Freedom of religion as guaranteed by the First Amendment means that government cannot force Americans to believe or not believe in a particular manner.


            As the portion of religious Americans shrinks, many Americans forget or lose understanding about the importance of religious freedom. We need look no further than the case of Wang Yi, a Christian pastor in China who is imprisoned. He was sentenced to “nine years in prison, stripped of his political rights for three years, and fined 50,000 yuan. His sentence is harsh and symptomatic of a broader crackdown in China on Christians and people of all faiths.”


            Wang was arrested and taken into custody before Christmas a year ago as part of a “new crackdown on religion” by the Communist Party of China. The government shut down “three large, unregistered churches” that included Wang’s congregation. His wife and more than 100 members of his congregation were also arrested. All were later released but Wang, who is not the only person of religious faith being targeted for his beliefs.

For Christians, churches in China have been shuttered and pastors and congregants imprisoned – some even killed, like Li Baiguang. For Catholics, the Vatican has capitulated to Beijing’s demands to share control over the appointments of bishops in China. For Muslims, more than 1 million Uighurs have been arbitrarily detained in political reeducation facilities, and other Muslims are facing increasing persecution.

For Buddhists, Tibetans continue to face restrictions on religious practice and the use of the Tibetan language. For Falun Gong, members of the group face various forms of persecution, and some have even allegedly had their organs harvested.

People of all faiths are enduring persecution at the hands of the Chinese Communist Party, which seeks to eliminate the political threat it sees from religious practice.

            Freedom of religion is important because our beliefs and consciences is the core of who we are as human beings. Heavenly Father gave agency to all His children in our pre-mortal life because He wanted us to live our lives as we choose. He will never force us to believe in Him and be obedient to His commandments. However, He desires us to use our agency to choose to believe in Him and His Son Jesus Christ and to be obedient to their commandments and teachings. He wants us to choose to return to His presence to live with the Father and the Son for eternity. We must have agency to do so as well as freedom of religion. Therefore, we must protect and preserve freedom of religion is our nation.

What Do You Do When Your World Spirals Out of Control?

            I have been absent from my blog for nearly two weeks, but I have a good reason. I was diagnosed on a Thursday with a heart problem and given medication to get me through the weekend. I took one of the medications for the first time at dinner on Friday and passed out at the table about 10-15 minutes later. I was taken to the hospital in an ambulance and kept in the hospital for the weekend. An angiogram was performed on Monday morning, followed by the placement of a stent in my main left artery. That same day I learned that my beloved sister-in-law passed away from a suspected heart attack. I came home from the hospital for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with my family. I have slowly gained strength over the past week and expect my progress to continue.

            I take this opportunity to wish all of you a Happy and Successful New Year, and I hope that your Christmas was happy and all that you dreamed. 

I read an editorial this morning that caused me to think differently about the new year. It introduced the quality of sacrifice on a general basis. What do you think a collective amount of sacrifice would do for America?

The U.S. already has a legacy of collective sacrifice on which to build. If you’re familiar with someone who lived through World War II, you have likely heard their stories of food rations, war bonds and rubber drives. You would have heard the innovative ways Americans made do with less….

And you would also be familiar with the patriotism and sense of duty that rewarded each person who gave what they could for something greater than themselves.

In the 80 years since, the rate at which life has improved would be unfathomable to the elders of that day, which makes this next question a riddle for the ages: Why does this era of plenty ask so little of its people?

Americans are richer, healthier and more educated than at any time in the nation’s history. They have greater access to information than the thousands of years of human history combined. The fabled Library of Alexandria once held as many as 700,000 books. The Brigham Young University library – only one among hundreds of such libraries in just this country – offers 4.7 million books. One would think Americans ought to be able to give in proportion to what they have gained.

Yet, one senses a missing layer of humility and gratitude that only sacrifice can elicit.

This year, what would happen if Americans collectively gave up just 1% of their day – no more than 15 minutes – in pursuit of improving humanity? Could they cut out one episode of a Netflix show to care for a neighbor? Could they eliminate a nighttime scroll through Instagram to text a grandparent?

What about material goods? Americans reportedly waste a pound of food per person per day. What would happen if they donated the money that would otherwise drop in the trash can? Could they part with excess income to support a homeless shelter, a family on hard times or a community fundraiser?

            I watched a TED talk about setting goals for the new year. The speaker suggested breaking a desired new habit down to bite-sized pieces. He used flossing teeth for an example. A tiny step would be to floss one tooth. After a few days of flossing one tooth, the habit would be established, and more teeth would be flossed. He also suggested that the new action be tied to something else.  “After I do _______, I will ______.” He used pushups for example. “After I empty my bladder, I will do two pushups.” After a short period of time, he was doing fifty or more pushups per day.


            What can I do to improve humanity in 15 minutes per day? How can I tie it to another action and make it a habit? I could call one of my aging siblings or their spouse. If I called one per day, I could call most of them in the period of a week. We were once twelve siblings with twelve spouses, and now we are fewer. Two of my brothers and their wives have graduated from this life, meaning there are only ten households left and nine when I subtract myself. Another brother and three brothers-in-law have also graduated, meaning that there are four widows who need TLC. 
  

            I could pick up the garbage from my neighbor’s dumpster after the ravens pull it out of the overflowing bags. This would leave the neighborhood cleaner and cause less work for the garbageman. I could bake cookies and share them with the neighborhood children. I stopped baking cookies for health reasons, but I could bake for other people.  


            There are most likely many small sacrifices that I could make that would improve humanity. I just need to keep the idea in my mind and look for opportunities.

Why Does the Left Hate Christmas?

            The liberty principle for this Freedom Friday is a question about what freedom is. I like the freedom of having no school assignment until mid-January. I would enjoy freedom from the toxic atmosphere in Washington. D.C. I would like the freedom to enjoy the rights guaranteed by the Bill of Rights without being called names. I want the freedom to elect a President and not worry about him being impeached by people who did not vote for him. I would like the freedom to enjoy the Christmas season without being mocked by non-Christians.


            Speaking of Christmas, Dennis Prager wrote an article about the war on Christmas, which has been going on for “more than a generation.” He said that leftists deny that they are waging a war on Christmas and even mock anyone who says there is one. We only need to count the many ways our celebration of Christmas has been curtailed because non-Christians were offended by Christmas hymns, nativity scenes, “Christmas vacation,” “Christmas tree,” “Christmas party,” and even a “Merry Christmas” greeting.


            After discussing the numerous ways that leftists show contempt for Christmas, Prager explained why they hate this Christian holiday so much. He said that the leftists’ use of the “inclusive” argument is “absurd.” He is “a religious Jew and cannot even fathom being offended or feeling ‘not included’ by an invitation to a Christmas party.” He said that being offended is not the leftists’ real reason for their war on Christmas and gave the following reasons.

One is that the left sees in Christianity its primary ideological and political enemy. And it is right to do so. The only large-scale, organized opposition to the left comes from the traditional Christian community – evangelical Protestants, traditional Catholics, and faithful Mormons – and from Orthodox Jews.

Leftism is a secular religion, and it deems all other religions immoral and false….

The left understands that the more people believe in Christianity (and Judaism), the less chance the left has to gain power. The left doesn’t concern itself with Islam, because it perceives Islam as an ally in its war against Western civilization, and because leftists do not have the courage to confront Islam. They know that confronting religious Muslims can be fatal, whereas confronting religious Christians entails no risks.

Second, the left regards Christianity in America as an intrinsic part of American national identity – an identity it wishes to erode in favor of a “world citizen” identity. The left has not only warred against Christmas; it has sought to undermine other national-identity holidays.

            Prager continued by explaining how leftists are destroying all the important days in America. George Washington’s birthday and Abraham Lincoln’s birthday were combined to become “the utterly meaningless ‘Presidents Day.’” “The only American celebrated in a national holiday is Martin Luther King Jr., which is acceptable to the left since he is not white.” 


            Other holidays that are warred against are “specifically American national holidays”: Independence Day and Thanksgiving. Leftists prefer to celebrate “the real founding of America” in 1619, the year that “African slaves first arrived on the American continent.” The left does not like Thanksgiving because they consider it to be “a historical fraud and an immoral celebration of ‘genocide’ of the American Indians.” Veterans Day and Memorial Day are not specifically American days because other countries commemorate them. The left really has a problem with Christmas because “it celebrates religion” and does so in an American way. 


            Prager gave a third reason for the left’s war on Christmas: “The left is joyless. Whatever and whomever the left influences has less joy in life…. And the further left you go, the more angry and unhappy the people you will encounter. Happy women and happy blacks, for example, are far more likely to be conservative than on the left. Christmas is just too happy for the left….”


            So, now you know three reasons why the leftists continue to wage war on Christmas. They cannot stand to see other people praising God with joyous songs and being happy because they are so downright miserable. They are quite like a certain spirit who wants all people to be miserable like unto himself.

Will the Impeachment of Trump Bring the End of the Democrat Party?

            The Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives voted today to impeach President Donald Trump. He is the third President in the history of the United States to be impeached and the first one to be impeached on trumped-up charges of “abuse of power” and “obstruction of Congress.” Neither of these charges met the requirements for impeachment listed in the Constitution.

The “abuse of power” comes from Trump’s call with President Zalinski of Ukraine even though there was no quid pro quo in the call. The “obstruction of Congress” charge comes because Trump going to the courts to see if Congress has the right to demand Trump and his people to answer subpoenas from Congress. The fact that the U.S Supreme Court accept Trump’s case tells us that the Court thinks that the case merit.

Not one Republican voted to impeach, but several Democrats voted against impeachment. The final vote on the first article of impeachment was 230 in favor and 197 against impeachment. Minnesota Rep. Collin Peterson and New Jersey Rep. Jeff Van Drew voted against the first article of impeachment. Van Drew voted as a Democrat, but he is planning to switch parties soon. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii voted “present.” 

The second article of impeachment passed with a vote of 229 to 198. Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) joined Van Drew and Peterson to vote against this article. Gabbard again voted “present.” Both articles of impeachment passed with only Democrat support, and they were opposed by bi-partisan opposition. A few Democrats can see through the Nancy Pelosi hoax.

Trump was impeached because he wanted corruption of Former Vice President Joe Biden to be investigated. Biden bragged on video that he pressured Ukraine to fire the prosecutor that was investigating Burisma Holdings, an energy company that hired Hunter Biden. Joe Biden threatened to withhold military aid to Ukraine if the prosecutor was not fired within six hours. Biden used the power of the office of Vice President, but Trump was impeached for asking Ukraine to investigate. Biden committed the crime, but Trump got blamed. 

Today is a sad day for America because Democrats in the House of Representatives just impeached the best President in my lifetime. I hope that American citizens are remember what the Democrats have done and that they make Election Day 2020 an even sadder day for Democrats. It is time that Nancy Pelosi retired, and the swamp gets drained!

What Happens if Trump Is Forced Out of Office?

            It is the eve of the impeachment vote by the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives. This is a sad time in the history of our nation because it is the first time that a President has faced impeachment proceedings for such a ridiculous reason. The Democrats have been working on impeaching President Donald Trump since he was inaugurated. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi admitted that they have been working on it for nearly three years, and we know that they were talking about it previously.


            The Democrats in the House seem determined to impeach Trump, and the Democrats in the Senate are willing to help them. There were several House Democrats who allegedly tried to move back from the impeachment vote, but Pelosi must have caught up with them. Most of them have crept back to the party line, showing no integrity at all. The Republicans in the House seem to be united against impeachment.


            The Republicans in the Senate are a different story completely. Who knows how Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Mitt Romney (R-Utah) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) will vote? I learned long ago to expect nothing good from any of them. I hope that they are willing to listen to the impeachment charges with open minds and common sense. If they will, I think that they will see the charges for the hoax that they are.


            I believe that the Democrats are charging full speed ahead to impeach one of the best Presidents of the United States in my lifetime. He has done more for Americans than any of the others that I can remember. I voted for Trump wondering what I would get for my vote, and I have been pleasantly surprised. The best thing that Trump did was to keep Hillary Clinton out of the White House, so everything else he accomplishes is just icing on the cake.


            We have endured some awful President. There were some Presidents – like Barack Obama and Jimmy Carter – who were so bad that they should not even be considered. John F. Kennedy – yes, a Democrat – was good. I believe that he was killed because he was ready to expose the Deep State that Trump has been fighting. Ronald Reagan was good in that he overcame the problems caused by Jimmy Stewart and tried to reduce the size of the government. People hated him too, and someone even tried to kill him. Bill Clinton was impeached for perjury, and Richard Nixon resigned from office for covering up crimes of other people. The two Bushes were placeholders, and Lyndon B. Johnson was so bad that he did not run for re-election. 

We have not had any Presidents that I remember that I would hold up as a good example to children and youth. I think that all of them had integrity or moral problems. This includes Donald Trump. However, I am willing to give him credit for the good that he has accomplished.

The Trump policies brought the lowest unemployment rates across the board in fifty years. The stock market continues to soar. The U.S. took the fight to ISIS and bombed them nearly out of existence. Foreign governments understand that we are no longer the piggy bank for the world. He appointed two Supreme Court justices that use the Constitution as their guide. There are have been so many constitutional federal judges nominated and appointed that the Trump affect will be felt for many years to come. 

The Democrats are most likely pushing impeachment of Trump because they know that they cannot beat him at the ballot box, and they are afraid that he will appoint a third justice to the Supreme Court. The Democrat attempt to remove Trump from office and to destroy his power will continue for as long as he is in office. It does not matter to them that the people want Trump. Democrats just want him gone! While Democrats control the House, they will continue to fight against Trump because he is standing between their terrible policies and the American people. It will truly be a terrible day in America if Trump is forced out of office.

Who Is Austin Brown?

            Austin Brown is a little boy with a big can-do spirit. When Austin was only three years old, two huskies in the neighbor’s yard put their heads under the fence and grabbed Austin’s arm. His father was close by, but the dogs chewed off half of Austin’s right arm before he could free his son. The dogs were sent to a sanctuary.


            After a week in the hospital, Austin was released to go home. However, home would never again be the same. His father suffered PTSD from the attack. He drained the family bank account, took the car, and left. He has never returned. He left his wife and son to deal with the results, and they seem to be overcoming the incident. The couple are now divorced.


            Austin’s mother, Hope Brown, spoke publicly recently about the attack that took place March 2019 in Layton, Utah. She expressed her shock and her fear when her husband called her at work. Now she is dealing with verbal attacks from people that do not even know the family. They blame Austin for provoking the attack. They blame Hope for being a terrible mother.


            There is a knight-in-shining armor in the background. He is Josh Barnett, a husband and father from Logan, Utah. He became friends with Hope, Austin, and a little sister. He also started an Amazon wish list as well as a GoFundMe account to help the family with Christmas and medical expenses.

            Hope says that Austin keeps her grounded because he acts as though the attack did not happen. “Austin’s strength is my strength. He is amazing. He can do so much, and he is so strong,” she said.  

Should American Conseratives Avoid Adopting the Label of Nationalism?

            The topic of discussion for this Constitution Monday is nationalism. I am confused about what I am reading and hearing about nationalism. Some articles are saying that conservatives should not support nationalism, but dictionaries define it as something positive. How are we to act when there is so much confusion. Here is one definition of nationalism posted online.

Nationalism is an ideology and movement that promotes the interests of a particular nation especially with the aim of gaining and maintaining the nation’s sovereignty over its homeland. Nationalism holds that each nation should govern itself, free from outside interference, that a nation is a natural and ideal basis for a polity, and that the nation is the only rightful source of political power. It further aims to build and maintain a single national identity – based on shared social characteristics such as culture, language, religion, politics, and belief in a shared singular history – and to promote national unity or solidarity. Nationalism, therefore, seeks to preserve and foster a nation’s traditional culture, and cultural revivals have been associated with nationalist movements. It also encourages pride in national achievements and is closely linked to patriotism. Nationalism is often combined with other ideologies, such as conservatism or socialism for example.

What is wrong with an ideology and movement with the goal of maintaining the national “sovereignty over its homeland”? I believe that every nation should be sovereign and maintain its control over its homeland. What is wrong with having a national culture? Every country should be free to maintain its national culture. The American culture is a bit different from other cultures because we are a melting pot of any cultures. However, the American culture consists of freedom and opportunity, freedom to work and succeed, willingness to help one’s neighbor, etc. Since the above description says that nationalism “is closely linked to patriotism,” I decided to find the definition of patriotism.

Patriotism or national pride is the feeling of love, devotion and sense of attachment to a homeland and alliance with other citizens who share the same sentiment. This attachment can be a combination of many different feelings relating to one’s own homeland, including ethnic, cultural, political or historical aspects. It encompasses a set of concepts closely related to nationalism.

            Patriotism is love of country and devotion to its success. Patriotism seems to be a good thing. If nationalism is closely linked to patriotism, why is nationalism bad? 


            A panel of scholars at The Heritage Foundation met recently to discuss the question, should conservatives embrace nationalism? The scholars answer the question, no. The main reason for their stand seems to be the negative connotation about nationalism. Kim Holmes, executive vice president of The Heritage Foundation and a historian, gave a lengthy address about why he believes that conservatives in our nation should work towards American exceptionalism rather than nationalism. The following quote comes from his address.

I firmly believe that not all nation-states are the same. There have been times in history when nations have been associated with racism, ethnic supremacy, militarism, communism, and fascism.

Rather than embrace this flawed tradition, we should rely on the longstanding conservative tradition of American exceptionalism. This tradition explains that what makes Americans different – what made America a great nation to begin with – was not language, ethnicity, or race, but the exceptional nature of a country that fused the creed of its founding principles with the lived experience of its culture and history. This is not “nationalism,” and should not be equated or associated with the history of an idea and an ideology that is rooted in ideas and traditions that are foreign to the creedal nature of the American experience.

            After listening to Holmes’s entire address, I think that I understand why the scholars at The Heritage Foundation are against conservatives adopting the term nationalism. I encourage my readers to listen to his address as well as the following speakers. They convinced me that Americans should not adopt nationalism as a goal. The definition of nationalism sounds good on paper, but the practice of it has not always been good. After all, Hitler used the concept of nationalism to convince his countrymen to adopt Nazism. I can now understand why American conservatives should speak of American exceptionalism rather than nationalism.