Please express your concerns about a deeply troubling proposal pending in the Illinois state capitol in Springfield.
TAKE ACTION: Send a message to your state representative to ask him to vote AGAINST HB 40.
HB 40 is a pro-abortion bill that would authorize the use of tax dollars to pay for abortions in Illinois through Medicaid and state government health care insurance plans. It is sponsored by State Representative Sara Feigenholtz (D-Chicago). This bill would reverse the current law which bans taxpayer funding of abortion under Medicaid.
In 1977, when the ban on taxpayer funding of abortion under Medicaid passed into law, there were over 12,700 abortions paid for under Public Aid's Medicaid program with taxpayer dollars. When the ban went into full affect after a June 1980 U.S. Supreme Court decision specifically upholding the Illinois Law, 22 abortions were paid for in 1981 with taxpayer dollars.
Since the Illinois ban on taxpayer funded abortions under the Public Aid Code was upheld by the United States Supreme Court in June 1980, at least 10,000 babies in Illinois were saved each year through 2014.
TAKE ACTION: Send a message to your state representative to ask him to vote AGAINST HB 40.
When it comes to local pastors being involved in the political arena, there are many opinions.
American history is certainly rich with activist pastors. Take, for instance, the renowned Black Robe Regiment from the Revolutionary War. No, these weren’t soldiers who wore black robes into battle. They were local pastors who constantly stirred up their congregations in support of American independence from the British. Historian Christopher Hamner, on staff at George Mason University has written that they were
[I]nfluential clergymen who promoted American independence and supported the military struggle against Britain. By encouraging the Patriot cause, those ministers helped muster critical support among members of their congregation – support the British begrudgingly acknowledged as vital to maintaining the colonists’ frustrating resistance to British attempts to restore Parliamentary rule.
One pastor, Peter Muhlenberg is famous for concluding his sermon by stripping off his clerical robe revealing his military uniform underneath as he appealed for the men of his church to join in the battle for American independence!
But it wasn’t just the Black Robe Regiment. The American pastor was also heavily involved in the Abolition Movement and Underground Railroad in the Civil War era as well as the Civil Rights movement during the 1950’s –‘60’s helping to defeat the Jim Crow laws.
Today, the issues may be different, but the pulpits of America must continue to give the clarion call of congregational activism in the midst of a radically changing culture. Pastors need to be brazen in their stand for life and marriage (to name only a couple of issues). Obviously, with the election season upon us, being an informed pastor is critical if the American Christian is to vote their biblical conscience in the voting booth. That is why we are offering the AFA 2016 Voter Guide. This tool is bipartisan and supports no party or candidate. It simply reveals the positions candidates are on record for taking on critical moral issues.
Pastors, become a modern day black robe activist and lead your congregations to engage in the fight for biblical values and religious freedom. Tell your congregations about the AFA Voter Guide so they can make informed decisions about candidates this election. Church members, let your pastors know that not only is it okay to talk about these things from the pulpit…it is expected. If we are going to turn things around in this country, it must begin from our pulpits.
