I must have walked through the wrong door and into Bearded-Spock Universe.
This isn’t a joke. Here is the link to the site of the White House.
Read the language carefully.
It’s supposed to be “Religious Freedom Day”, but the text starts out with “freedom to worship“.
From LifeNews.
Obama Declares “Religious Freedom Day” As His Admin Denies It
President Barack Obama declared today Religious Freedom Day as his administration is working overtime to deny religious freedom to pro-life Americans who do not want their companies, schools or businesses to pay for drugs that may cause abortions.
While the Obama Administration is furiously working to push the HHS mandate on religious employers, Obama issued a proclamation today calling religious freedom “sacred.” [Just when I thought I couldn’t be surprised by this man anymore.]
“Foremost among the rights Americans hold sacred is the freedom to worship as we choose,” the ironic proclamation reads. [THAT is the key, right there. The Obama Administration is twisting our 1st Amendment right. By emphasizing “freedom to worship“, they are forcing the exercise of religion and religious values out of the public square to be only behind the closed doors of your place of worship or your home. “Freedom of religion” is NOT the same as “freedom to worship”! Yes, the text comes back to the idea of “practicing openly” and so forth, but liberals work for their nefarious goals by creeping incrementalism.] “Today, we celebrate one of our Nation’s first laws to protect that right — the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. Written by Thomas Jefferson and guided through the Virginia legislature by James Madison, the Statute affirmed that “Almighty God hath created the mind free” and “all men shall be free to profess . . . their opinions in matters of religion.” [That is what the First Gay President is trying to erode.] Years later, our Founders looked to the Statute as a model when they enshrined the principle of religious liberty in the Bill of Rights.”
The remainder of the proclamation reads as follows:
Because of the protections guaranteed by our Constitution, each of us has the right to practice our faith openly and as we choose. As a free country, our story has been shaped by every language and enriched by every culture. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus, Sikhs and non-believers. Our patchwork heritage is a strength we owe to our religious freedom.
Americans of every faith have molded the character of our Nation. They were pilgrims who sought refuge from persecution; [My blood pressure is rising.] pioneers who pursued brighter horizons; protesters who fought for abolition, women’s suffrage, and civil rights. Each generation has seen people of different faiths join together to advance peace, justice, and dignity for all. [Except, Mr. President, for the unborn. And, oh yes, the just-born.]
Today, we also remember that religious liberty is not just an American right; it is a universal human right to be protected here at home and across the globe. This freedom is an essential part of human dignity, and without it our world cannot know lasting peace. [You would think you were reading one of Pope Benedict’s Messages for the World Day for Peace.]
As we observe Religious Freedom Day, let us remember the legacy of faith and independence we have inherited, and let us honor it by forever upholding our right to exercise our beliefs free from prejudice or persecution. [Except for when the Administration wants to tax you and your businesses to pay for intrinsically evil things.]
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 16, 2013, as Religious Freedom Day. I call on all Americans to commemorate this day with events and activities that teach us about this critical foundation of our Nation’s liberty, and show us how we can protect it for future generations at home and around the world. [One good way to commemorate the day would have been to go to the range and practice shooting. The 2nd Amendment protects the 1st.]
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this sixteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-seventh.
[…]
Do you see how the left is hijacking language? This is what the National catholic Reporter crowd is doing too, by hijacking pro-life language, when they could care less about the unborn. Control language and you control thought.
I’d like to take a moment to thank all of you who refused to vote because the other candidate wasn’t perfect enough for you. Just… thanks.
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Propaganda is the misuse and maniputation of language, a la Hitler “”Propaganda must always address itself to the broad masses of the people. (…) All propaganda must be presented in a popular form and must fix its intellectual level so as not to be above the heads of the least intellectual of those to whom it is directed. (…) The art of propaganda consists precisely in being able to awaken the imagination of the public through an appeal to their feelings, in finding the appropriate psychological form that will arrest the attention and appeal to the hearts of the national masses. “;
Stalin, “The press must grow day in and day out — it is our Party’s sharpest and most powerful weapon”
Good teachers, these, for this potus.
I believe that the intent of our founders was that the FedGov should be silent on religious practice. That means not only no passing of laws regarding religious practice, but no FedCourt judgments interfering with state or local laws respecting religion. What may not have been made sufficiently clear in the first amendment was clearly reinforced in the tenth. But of course, the entire Bill of Rights is a pesky thing which interferes with the goals of our overlords, so must be redefined into insignificance.
The relentless redefinition of language and incremental constraints on our freedoms leads directly to tyranny, for which reason they will be pushing ever harder to remove firearms from the citizens.
Twisting words and using smoke and mirrors. Animal Farm anyone ?
AnnAsher mentions Animal Farm. The novel that frequently comes to my mind when I read what the president says, and it is directly opposite of the truth, is George Orwell’s prophetic novel “1984.”
“Foremost among the rights Americans hold sacred is the freedom to worship as we choose,”
Be careful Mr. President. God is sovereign over all things, over all powers and principalities, over all peoples, and over times of the week, not just an hour (or 9 hours if you’re Baptist) on Sundays. So freedom of worship must mean that we are free to use every waking hour, and every action, and every thought in the service of God and to the Glory of his Name.
Mr. President, you claim that freedom to worship is sacred, repeal the HHS mandate.
Catholics will not throw a pinch of intense to the “gods” Hermaphroditus, Moloch, or Mammon since God will not accept a spotted sacrifice as part of our daily worship.
Go look up the VA Statute for Religious Freedom, and take a look at what was excised from the quote Obama selectively provided.
When he realized he wasn’t everyone’s “glorious leader” during his first term (all those seats changing to Republicans) he began making the mistake of thinking he could still get bi-partisanship to pass anything he proposed. He doesn’t want 90% of the population to love him, he wants 100%. I’m starting to feel sorry for him. I think I will pray a novena for him this year around Divine Mercy Sunday. The more we pray for him, the clearer his errors will become to the American people.
Then my family will head out to the local gun range.
Aren’t such proclamations usually made weeks or months in advance? You know, so people can have plenty of time to prepare to “commemorate this day with events and activities that teach us about this critical foundation of our Nation’s liberty, and show us how we can protect it for future generations at home and around the world.”
Instead Caesar Obama has declared it on the very day that it is observed. Hmm, interesting. It’s like he wants to be associated with it in writing, but doesn’t want it to actually happen!
Here, here, Father Z! I could not write anything better than your comments, with which I agree completely, even with the rising blood pressure. Prez Bizzaro Obummer continues to amaze me with the extent of his hypocrisy.
The concept is the the Constitution grants those rights as an act of Government. This is wrong. It recognizes those rights as non-negotiable and to be respected by any Government formed under the Constitution. His world view is the former, not the latter.
Seriously? Is he being a hypocrite on purpose, or is he just clueless?
mschu528,
Yeah, this timing is as strange as the proclamation itself.
verba non facta
Supertradmum,
Not to derail this thread too much, but something completely different came to mind as I read your definition of propaganda.
Not that I disagree with anything above, but when I heard this the other day I looked it up (always a good thing to do). There has been an annual Religious Freedom Day since 1996. He didn’t make it up.
Clueless
Freedom of Religion Day?? We already have Christmas, Easter, the Assumption, all Saints Day etc…We do not need pagan holidays or feasts.
And do not use or let others use religious vocabulary (e.g. journalists -bearing one’s cross or being crucified) there are other words in the dictionary,… and marriage is a sacrament, a “marriage” performed at City Hall is a civil union. Vocabulary matters.
Good post, as usual. Until this:
“I’d like to take a moment to thank all of you who refused to vote because the other candidate wasn’t perfect enough for you. Just… thanks.”
The “lesser of two evils” is still an evil, Father. Romney is not and never was “pro-life.”
monmir,
Yes, it’s “re-upped” by tradition every year:
http://www.religiousfreedomday.com/
VetusMores,
I’ve heard similar statements, denying the “pro-life” stance of several prominent politicians not just Romney but when I’ve looked at the record, it does not seem to be justified. So, what is the criteria to be used when determining if someone (politician or otherwise) is pro life?
That’s some fancy footwork with the wording. What he doesn’t say speaks volumes compared to what’s written. One would almost think it was deliberate…like he was a l constitutional law professor or something!
MichaelJ,
If someone says that abortion can be justified under “certain” circumstances, they’re only pro-life sometimes.
http://prolifeprofiles.com/mitt-romney-abortion
His first lie in office was at the inauguration in 2009 when he said, “…do solemnly swear, that I will faithfully execute the office”. This was preceded by his last truthful words, “I, Barack Obama…”. As nothing he says can be believed, and nothing he does can be trusted, one must always ask, what are his intentions? This proclamation followed fast on Wednesday’s executive order proclamations. Whiskey Tango…? And at the coming festivus, since he doesn’t agree with the scripture in the book, why put his hand on it and make promises? I may begin calling him President Iago.
I did vote– I voted for the only good candidate on the ballot in New York State, Virgil Goode. I make no apologies for not voting for Mitt Romney, whose record on abortion and the gay and lesbian agenda rendered him not qualified to hold any public office. It makes no difference if another candidate not qualified to hold public office was running against him. I voted for real, substantive change in the right direction. God forces us to look at the serpent so that we can repent. Mitt Romney would have given everyone an excuse to exhale and, at best, the status quo would have remained– that is unacceptable considering how far into decadence we have fallen. Better that we be forced to look at the fruit of our lack of evangelization. Romney was not just imperfect– he was disqualified. I’m tired of having junky candidates forced on me and I will continue not to vote for unqualified, unacceptable candidates, regardless of who is opposing them. That is the only way to force change in 2016 and beyond. As I have said so often, the “lesser evil” approach is a proven failure. We’ve been at this for 40 years and it hasn’t worked yet; why should it have worked this time– why will it work next time? You vote for unqualified candidates in this election and in the next election you just get more of the same.
The hijacking of language is and always has been a tactic of the enemy.
So how was Religious Freedom Day celebrated where you are?
I guess a good number of Catholic organizations and Christian businesses spent Religious Freedom Day agonizing over how they would pay cruel and unusual fines and mounting legal fees to defend themselves against something blatantly unconstitutional in the first place. Let’s hope the SCOTUS awards attorneys fees and treble damages when all is said and done.
Say it again, Father, and please keep saying it.
And to those of you to whom the above applies, go look in the mirror and consider that you allowed this to happen. Stay there until it sinks in. What is it going to take for you to get real, get serious, and get a clue about the real consequences of not voting? Don’t even think about answering that question with “A perfect candidate” because you know perfectly well that is never going to happen, or even “A Catholic candidate” because at this point that’s a long-shot too.
If you have any care for your fellow citizens, do not do this to us ever, ever again.
Commies talk pretty.
The old Soviet Union guaranteed the freedom of religious belief in its constitution. We know how much they honored that in practice. Actions speak louder than words.
I voted for the “lesser of 2 evils” last year because although I doubted Romney was sincere in his sudden change to being pro-life, it seemed that there was a real danger in allowing Obama a second term. I don’t have a lot of confidence in the Republicans, especially after the farce of the “compromise” on averting the fiscal cliff. I’m beginning to think that our only hope is a third party starting at the grass roots to replace the GOP which will go the way of the 19th century Whigs.
“The hijacking of language is and always has been a tactic of the enemy.”
Charity is the only language in which one can speak no lie.
The Chicken
Masked Chicken,
It’s perfectly possible to tell a lie with perfect clarity and deceive. The press does it all the time as do false ecumenist. For instance, “A man with a gun tried to enter a house via the second floor window at 2am. Police officers were immediately alerted. The man refused to go into custody and was shot. The children were safe but the mother was found unconscious on the floor and taken to hospital in critical condition”
Note the missing details, the man was the owner of the house and father of the children that got locked out of the house and the mother had a heart attack.
Father Z’s and RomeontheRange’s comments bear repeating a million times over!!!!
RomeontheRange says:
18 January 2013 at 1:37 am
I’d like to take a moment to thank all of you who refused to vote because the other candidate wasn’t perfect enough for you. Just… thanks.
Say it again, Father, and please keep saying it.
And to those of you to whom the above applies, go look in the mirror and consider that you allowed this to happen. Stay there until it sinks in. What is it going to take for you to get real, get serious, and get a clue about the real consequences of not voting? Don’t even think about answering that question with “A perfect candidate” because you know perfectly well that is never going to happen, or even “A Catholic candidate” because at this point that’s a long-shot too.
If you have any care for your fellow citizens, do not do this to us ever, ever again.
I don’t think they will actually have an opportunity to do it again. Giving the pass to the dems and their leader by not voting has cooked the country and the Christians. What is so noble about that pray tell? Answer: Not a thing.
If you have read Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals, you know everything you need to know about this president. The most telling part of the book is it’s dedication to ” the first radical known to man who rebelled against the establishment and did it so effectively that he at least won his own kingdom — Lucifer.”
VetusMores thank you. it is as I suspected. Being pro-life means:
1. Never having an incorrect opinion about the issue
2. Never making an incorerct prudential decision to allow less evil to prevent a greater evil.
3. Never being allowed to change your mind or repent.
In other words , just as Father Z alluded. A pro-life candidate is one who is always and everywhere perfect and impeccable.
No, MichaelJ, being pro-life means being pro-life. No one is perfect, but a lot of people are pro-life. If someone supports abortion under any circumstances, he is not pro-life. Any notion that there are “shades” or “degrees” of right and wrong here is sophistry.
And the notion that we “must” choose between a candidate who’s only less rotten than another is a false dichotomy. To take no action is in fact to make a statement; it’s taking a moral stance. If Romney had been elected and the nation’s laws regarding abortion remained utterly unchanged (which they would), would it be your fault?
MichaelJ said: 2. Never making an incorerct[sic] prudential decision to allow less evil to prevent a greater evil.
MichaelJ, I am curious to read an example of what greater evil might, in your view, justify an abortion….