A Preferred Religion?

Jesus addressed issues relative to good moral character in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapter 5, and beginning in verse 10, He addresses the area of persecution:
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
13 "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.
14 You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.

When you read these verses together, you see a pattern that can be helpful to us when we encounter hostility for our faith.  Verse 12 tells us that we can rejoice - and that we are not alone; those who have gone before were also persecuted.  Also, verses 13 and 14 remind us that we are salt and light.  This means that we can be salt: providing Christ's "seasoning." And, we can be light - a godly example, shining His light into the places to which He calls us, even standing before those who reject God and us.

+++++

The Bible speaks clearly to being respectful to governing authorities, who are regarded as agents of God. Romans 13 states:
3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same.
4 For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil.
5 Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience' sake.

One could say that not only was America founded on principles that are consistent with Scripture, but that freedom of religion has been sewn into the fabric of our nation.  But, there is a thread that we have seen emerge that has served to tamp down on this free expression of faith and it has been expressed in rather hostile ways.  There are overzealous public servants who do not see their role in light of Romans 13 and seek to shut down religious practice.

The U.S. Supreme Court attempted to correct the course with major rulings in its last term, but there is much work to be done. And, when people are, unfortunately, determined to silence beliefs with which they disagree, we recognize that more than just court action, heart change has to take place. 

Now, comes the news of an attempt to brand mainstream Catholic believers as extremists - from a federal law enforcement agency!  FoxNews.com reported that:

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan is demanding answers from FBI Director Christopher Wray as part of the panel’s investigation into the bureau’s alleged misuse of domestic violent extremism resources for "political purposes," after a leaked internal memo revealed the FBI had efforts underway to identify and treat some Catholics as violent extremists.

In a letter to Wray obtained exclusively by Fox News Digital, Jordan demanded that the FBI turn over documents and records related to a Jan. 23, 2023 document from the FBI’s Richmond Field Office that linked "'racially or ethnically motivated violent extremists' with a ‘radical-traditionalist Catholic’ ideology."

Rep. Jordan notes:

"In this document, the FBI purported to distinguish what it called ‘traditional Catholics’ from the disfavored RTC [radical-traditionalist Catholic] adherents, who the FBI characterized as embracing ‘anti-Semitic, anti-immigrant, anti-LGBTQ, and white supremacist ideology," Jordan wrote. He added that the FBI "even identified certain public policy issues — such as immigration and life issues — that it believed would ‘catalyze’ RTC adherents."

So, you have "acceptable" religious practitioners and those who are deemed to be unacceptable. What is the difference? 1819 News relates this, referring to a letter sent by 20 state attorneys general to Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray:

"The memorandum identifies "radical-traditionalist Catholic[s]" as potential "racially or ethnically motivated violent extremists," the attorneys general state. "The memorandum deploys alarmingly detailed theological distinctions to distinguish between the Catholics whom the FBI deems acceptable, and those it does not. Among those beliefs which distinguish the bad Catholics from the good ones are a preference for "the Traditional Latin Mass and pre-Vatican II teachings" and adherence to traditional Catholic teachings on sex and marriage (which the memorandum glibly describes as "anti-LGBTQ")."

Alabama AG Steve Marshall is one of the 20 attorneys general signing on to the letter.

The Fox article states: 

The FBI ultimately withdrew the document and blamed the local level Richmond Field Office for its creation and dissemination, but Jordan is demanding answers on the genesis of the document, review, and approval of it, as well as the FBI’s "commitment to upholding First Amendment protected activity."

This is especially important, in light of this fact, reported on by Fox: 

Hundreds of Roman Catholic churches have been attacked since May 2020, according to Catholic nonprofit CatholicVote. More than 100 attacks have been reported since the May 2022 leak of the draft Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson's Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade's federal abortion protections.

Not a fan of the language, but the facts about the number of incidences are highly relevant.  

Tony Perkins, President of Family Research Council, who is heard on Faith Radio, believes that the withdrawal of that memo is a product of a new House committee that is studying what Jordan claims is a "weaponization" of the federal government.  Perkins, quoted at The Washington Stand, said, “The committee’s already having an effect,” adding, “Within 30 minutes of the start of the subcommittee hearing, they released a statement retracting that memo. So I think the committee is already holding government accountable.”

The Standing for Freedom Center at Liberty University, in a tweet, posed this question:

The FBI is labeling “radical-traditionalist” Catholics as extremist threats to the United States. Does this foreshadow the FBI’s attempt to kick off a more significant religious crackdown?

That may certainly be a possibility, but now is not a time for Christians to be intimidated. It is a time to stand and to continue to allow the light of Jesus to shine through us.  We will be misunderstood, ridiculed, and receive hostility directed against us.  But, Jesus taught us that persecution will come. But, we can reside in His presence and have peace throughout.

The ways things should be is not what they are.  I am thankful for those who serve in government, and we have a significant number of listeners who take their jobs in that capacity very seriously and do their work unto the Lord.  Unfortunately, you have people in control that see religion as a threat to the state, not an asset. We can continue to pray for God to move among our public servants, and pray that the more authoritarian among them to seek godly wisdom and to recognize that incredible role that religious practice has in helping them fulfill God's directive to keep order and punish evil.