Regulating Speech

We have the potential to be powerfully persuasive as we devote ourselves to speaking God's Word - Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica, and recounted their reception of the truth:
10 You are witnesses, and God also, how devoutly and justly and blamelessly we behaved ourselves among you who believe;
11 as you know how we exhorted, and comforted, and charged every one of you, as a father does his own children,
12 that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.
13 For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.

Here we see a narrative in which God is working by His Word, activated by His Spirit, resulting in changed lives.  That's the power of persuasion that comes from a devotion to God's Word. We have the opportunity as citizens of this nation to speak God's truth; even though we see challenges on the horizon - yet, at this cultural moment, we can continue to be bold to live and speak the truth of God and allow Him to work in the lives of those to who we speak. 

+++++

The apostle Paul is a great example for us of a man who operated very well in public discussion and debate, as we see in Acts 17, where we can read:
15 So those who conducted Paul brought him to Athens; and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him with all speed, they departed.
16 Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols.
17 Therefore he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers, and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there.

Erika "Kika" Nieto is described as a "Columbian social media star."  And, recently, in an "Ask Me Anything" video on YouTube, she said this: “God created man and woman so that they could be with each other. I don’t consider men being with men or women being with women to be good, but I tolerate that."  That's a quote from her, translated from Spanish, according to Alliance Defending Freedom International, which reports that the video was seen by her "millions of followers."

That's her opinion, and ADF International contends she has a right to say it. Tomás Henríquez, Director of Advocacy, Latin America and the Caribbean for ADF International, stated: "Nieto’s right to freely express her views and share them publicly is protected by the Colombian Constitution. Freedom of speech, and religious freedom, are fundamental human rights guaranteed by every major human rights treaty. If someone feels offended, the best response is debate, not censorship."  The organization is supporting Kika's case, which is the second that has arisen from the same video.  In the first case, according to the piece on the ADF International website: "In a separate case that arose from the same video, the Colombian Constitutional Court has already ruled that Nieto’s speech on marriage is constitutionally protected. However, another activist took Nieto to court, complaining that this same comment about marriage was offensive and discriminatory. This time, a lower court considered the video to contain 'hate speech' and thus ordered its removal from YouTube."  

And, that's all because she stated she believed that men and women are created for one another, not for same-sex relationships, which she described as not being good, yet she, using her word, "tolerated" that. I think a better expression would be to say that you love the LGBTQ individual, but do not agree with it. I contend that we should never tolerate sin. 

The stateside Alliance Defending Freedom has filed a friend-of-the-court brief in a case involving a Pennsylvania teen who, after not making the cheerleading squad, went on a profane rant on Snapchat, which resulted in her suspension.  According to the SCOTUS Blog (Caution: post contains inappropriate language), ADF states that “religious students both on and off campus often find themselves persecuted because of their speech," and encourages the Court to “make clear that schools cannot regulate speech based on the effects that speech has on its listeners.”

As the blog points out, this is a case that revisits areas of law that were staked out in the Tinker case.  The Casetext website says in its summary of the case that:

"Holding that students who wore black armbands to protest Vietnam War engaged in expressive conduct "'closely akin to pure speech'"

The Court's ruling stated, "First Amendment rights, applied in light of the special characteristics of the school environment, are available to teachers and students. It can hardly be argued that either students or teachers shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate."

The SCOTUS Blog points out that the question before the justices in this case is "whether Tinker also applies to speech by students that occurs off campus. In the internet era, in which cellphones and social media are omnipresent and many schools and parents worry about cyberbullying, the court’s ruling in Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. could become a landmark decision on student speech."

There are people in power who seem to continually want to regulate what you say or think. We see this in current conditions surrounding Big Tech outlets who determine the type of speech they would like to have or not have on their platforms, and Christians are concerned that they may be regulated out of discussions in the public square.  That should not intimidate us from speaking, and we have to recommit ourselves to speaking the truth.  

We also have to be careful not to want to shut down the speech of others, to keep people from being able to say things from which we disagree. Because that could come back on us.  Disagreement can lead to polarization, certainly, but it can also lead to productive discussion, during which persuasion can occur.  If we believe in the superiority of Scripture arguments, then we don't have to be threatened by opposing views.  God will give us the words to say in order to make His truth known in a compelling, accurate way.