Onward Christian Solider!

Well, not really… only in name only!

JD Vance says he is a Catholic, but he got all flabbergasted when a Catholic nun asked him about “Love Thy Neighbor.”

JD Vance’s remarks to a Catholic nun unraveled the White House’s claims about religious freedom

Vance has centered his career on his faith. But he has set those teachings aside in his politics.

MS Now

By Michael Steele

Oct. 25, 2026

At a recent town hall in Detroit, Vice President JD Vance faced a question that went to the heart of the Catholic faith he says guides him: How can he reconcile the treatment of families by Immigration and Customs Enforcement with the Gospel?

Sister Nancy Sylvester of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, described her group’s work at the southern border and the trauma children endure when they come home to find their parents gone. Then she asked Vance how he could justify ICE officers’ conduct “in terms of the kind of values we want to live by.”

Vance praised ICE agents as patriots. He offered only a passing acknowledgment that officers who “screw up” should be investigated and prosecuted, without grappling with the Americans killed by ICE agents or the detainees who have died in ICE custody.

The town hall drew more attention for the way in which Vance stumbled over questions about Trump’s corruption and the deaths of service members in the war in Iran. But his answer to Sister Sylvester was especially revealing: When the administration’s actions collide with the Catholic teachings he frequently invokes, Vance is willing to set those teachings aside.

As immigrants are denied medical care and women are denied basic sanitary necessities, they are being locked up 24/7 and never allowed out of their “cages.” But apparently, all of this is perfectly acceptable to these “religious” politicians.

In May 15, 2026, the California Department of Justice found that all seven California immigration detention facilities it inspected had violations of ICE detention standards!

For all its bluster about protecting religious freedom, this administration has actually targeted faithful servants like Sister Sylvester. The haste of this White House to extrajudicially purge the country of undocumented immigrants has put it in direct confrontation with people of faith.

All the Trump administration does is pay “lip service” to its Christian supporters…

Last year in Chicago, Catholic groups sued the administration for the right to minister to detainees at a Broadview ICE facility. In New Jersey, elderly Catholic nuns have organized protests outside of Delaney Hall against the deaths of ICE detainees. Nuns have also been protesting in Vance’s home state of Ohio, as Haitian immigrants repeatedly dehumanized by this White House see their legal status ripped away.

These protests are so widespread because the Catholic Church is unequivocal in its teachings about hospitality for the immigrant, charity for the poor and embrace of the stranger.

They believe that “fire-and-brimstone” religions are the only true religions. A few years ago, this poll caused a stir:

More than half of Republicans support Christian nationalism, according to a new survey

WBUR

Ashley Lopez

February 14, 2023

Long seen as a fringe viewpoint, Christian nationalism now has a foothold in American politics, particularly in the Republican Party — according to a new survey from the Public Religion Research Institute and the Brookings Institution.

Researchers found that more than half of Republicans believe the country should be a strictly Christian nation, either adhering to the ideals of Christian nationalism (21%) or sympathizing with those views (33%).

Robert P. Jones, the president and founder of the nonpartisan PRRI, has been surveying the religious world for many years now. Recently, Jones said his group decided to start asking specifically about Christian nationalism.

"It became clear to us that this term 'Christian nationalism' was being used really across the political spectrum," he said. "So not just on the right but on the left and that it was being written about more by the media."

MAGA supporters are always yelling at the left, “If you don't like this country, then leave!”

Yet they are the xenophobes, the transphobes, the Islamophobes and the racists. They are the ones ignoring environmental and workplace safety laws. They are the ones trying to gut nondiscrimination laws. They are the ones using religion to discriminate!

They are the ones trying to shape our country into a theocracy.

Using Religion To Justify Hate.

[Editorial]

I am non-denominational… I believe in God but not in anyone religion.

Mainstream religion is not the problem… it is the radical that are the problem. If you look around the world all the religions of the world has for their beliefs the “Golden Rule” which basically says to treat people as you want to be treated.

But it the extremists that cause the problems. Here in the US it is the evangelicals who practice… the fire and brimstone religion and preach hate of "others".

It is the conservative religions the in the US that is the problem here. And the courts are backing their “religious freedom,” the courts gave them a blank check to discriminate. The cake shop in Colorado said the magic words… “it is against my religion!”

It is those magic words that allow people to discriminate against us, there is no way to counter it, no way to prove that it isn’t.

But they courts have put limits on “religious freedom” they don’t allow human sacrifice. They don’t allow drugs. They don’t allow bigamy. So saying it is okay to discriminate against us… is bull!

The thing is many conservatives think being LGBTQ+ is a choice. They totally ignore all the medical research calling propaganda!

But we are only the tip of the iceberg!

Take a look at JD Vance and Peter Hegseth. They are both far-right Christians Hegseth has even gone so far at to tattoo himself in Crusader’s symbols.

The far-right Christians believe a wife should not work (Hint: Hegseth’s firing of women generals and not promoting women officers).

They are against divorce.

Of course we know their position on abortion and LGBTQ+ rights.

We have seen cases where they claim religious discrimination because they had to work on their holy day even though they knew it was a requirement.

So what would I change?

Nothing!

What?

In the past, there were several tests used by the Supreme Court to determine whether a law improperly burdened or discriminated against religion.…

The Sherbert test:

In Sherbert v. Verner (1963), the Court developed a test for laws that substantially burden someone's religious practice. The basic approach was:

    • Does the law substantially burden the person's religious exercise?

    • If so, does the government have a compelling interest for imposing that burden?

    • Is the law using the least restrictive means of achieving that interest?

The Lemon test asked whether:

    • The law had a secular purpose;

    • Its primary effect neither advanced nor inhibited religion; and

    • It avoided excessive government entanglement with religion.

But Trump’s court toss those tests out! The Supreme Court abandoned the Lemon framework in 2022 and adopted their own test.

I would go back to the Lemon and Sherbert tests.

If a religious sect want a court for their disciples… fine. But secular law prevails and there can be no double jeopardy between the religious and secular courts. In other words if a person murder a LGBTQ+ person and they trial him in religious court and the court finds him innocent because of their sect’s belief. That cannot stop a secular courts trying him on murder. Lastly, a religious court can not prosecute a non-believer.

Religious freedom means the government shouldn't tell you what to believe or unnecessarily interfere with your religious practice. It doesn't mean your religious beliefs automatically determine what everyone else must do.

[/Editorial] 

One Land, One Justice.

One set of laws governing the land.

That is the basis of our Constitution... but the Supreme Court is thinking that maybe two sets of laws or more might govern the country.

Supreme Court Emergency Docket Asked to Protect Right to Use Religious Courts

A state court has ordered an Orthodox Jew to demand that a rabbinical court reverse a religious ruling. That goes too far.

National Review

By Dan McLaughlin

September 23, 2026

The use of religious tribunals to settle disputes that might otherwise be heard in civil courts has long been a fault line in systems of civil law. The very structure of Anglo-American law presumes a sometimes-abstruse division between the spheres of law and equity that has roots in medieval England, where the chancery courts (while ruling in the king’s name) were often de facto religious tribunals. In more modern times, when the government’s courts are civil, we see instead controversies arise when litigants want to use the religious courts — or feel compelled by their religious communities to do so.

[...]

he use of religious tribunals to settle disputes that might otherwise be heard in civil courts has long been a fault line in systems of civil law. The very structure of Anglo-American law presumes a sometimes-abstruse division between the spheres of law and equity that has roots in medieval England, where the chancery courts (while ruling in the king’s name) were often de facto religious tribunals. In more modern times, when the government’s courts are civil, we see instead controversies arise when litigants want to use the religious courts — or feel compelled by their religious communities to do so.

Now, this hot potato has landed on the Supreme Court’s emergency docket. Justice Sonia Sotomayor ordered Wednesday that a response be filed by Monday, September 28, in Strulovitch v. Bain, a case arising from a collision between the courts of New York State and an Orthodox Jew’s resort to a rabbinical court known as a beis (or beth) din. The dispute is a real one, although whether it belongs on the emergency docket is a closer question, especially because it is embedded in a commercial dispute whose twists and turns are characteristically intricate.

My problem is... "feel compelled by their religious communities to do so," and also what happens if someone is not a member of that religious sect? The way I see it, it is like a clause to use binding arbitration (which I am against). As long as both parties agree, I don't see a problem, but if it is forced on a person... no. And that a person can back out at any time.

The order by Jamieson goes further than necessary in trying to “rectify the potential damage” to a litigant’s “reputation in the religious community.” Whether the Supreme Court will find that this is a sufficiently urgent First Amendment violation to warrant emergency relief is another matter. And it’s always hazardous to judge the whole case just on one side’s argument. But the narrow relief of striking that portion of the order seems warranted if one wishes to avoid a collision between the secular and religious courts.

A can of worms is about to be opened when you have two or more sets of laws...

One nation under one law!

Hmm... I wonder if they would change their tune if the religious court ruled that trans women are women. I bet you would hear the Supreme Court change their tune.

I have to wonder if a religious court or body issues a ruling that affirms trans people, I think the the conservative courts or lawmakers will suddenly become very interested in asserting state supremacy and invalidating religious autonomy. However, when religious rules are used to restrict rights or enforce traditional hierarchies, I see the same institutions will be eager to carve out broad "religious freedom" exemptions.

Warrior Ethos

Author’s Note: The following article contains facts, public records, and journalistic inquiries regarding Secretary Pete Hegseth’s policies. When I attempted to research this topic, ChatGPT completely blocked the line of inquiry, stating the content couldn't be shown for safety reasons. This is the blog post the AI didn't want you to see.

This content can’t be shown for safety reasons. Learn more about our intended model behavior in our Model Spec.

---

Beginning around 2013, the Army researched and developed the Occupational Physical Assessment Test (OPAT). Those standards were based on years of research into the physical demands of combat occupations. The Army is now using new standards, including the Army Fitness Test (AFT) and Combat Field Test (CFT), but questions remain about how their development and validation compare with the extensive research behind OPAT.

Last year, the Secretary called all of his high-ranking military leaders to a meeting. This is what AP News had to say about it.

Pete Hegseth had a lot to say when he summoned military leaders. Here are some facts and context

By  JULIE WATSON, LAURIE KELLMAN and DEEPTI HAJELA

September 30, 2025

 Armed with a 10-point plan and pacing a stage in Quantico, Virginia, on Tuesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth enumerated for hundreds of assembled military leaders just how much of the force’s policy, philosophy and culture will change for more than 2 million Americans in uniform under President Donald Trump’s command.

“For too long, we’ve promoted too many uniformed leaders for the wrong reasons based on their race, based on gender quotas, based on historic so-called firsts,” Hegseth said. The approach, he said, made the Pentagon “less capable and less lethal.” Hegseth talked up his and Trump’s focus on “the warrior ethos” and “peace through strength.”

“No more identity months, DEI offices, dudes in dresses. No more climate change worship, no more division, distraction or gender delusions. No more debris,” he declared.

Secretary Hegseth is bringing more and more of his version of the perfect warrior into fruition. (Hint: It does not include women, gay people, and minorities.)

‘The highest male standard’

WHAT HE SAID: “Any place where tried and true physical standards were altered, especially since 2015, when combat arms standards were changed to ensure females could qualify, must be returned to their original standard.”

THE BACKSTORY: It’s not clear what Hegseth meant by returning physical expectations to their “original standard.” But military culture and the role of women have changed dramatically in recent decades, and Hegseth aims to change them back.

He has some image a Greek mythos of riding a white stallion carrying the banner in to battle... you know like a Walter Mitty fantasy. But it goes deeper then that.

Hegseth belongs to the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches (CREC), an extreme conservative networkthat has it roots in Christian nationalism. Hegseth has several tattoos tied to the Crusades—including the Jerusalem Cross and the phrase "Deus Vult" ("God Wills It") but it is also tied in the Christian nationalism. The church hold that men and women have strict, separate biblical roles, and that women should not occupy positions of physical authority or combat leadership.}

Many Christian nationalists believe a woman's place is in the home, bearing babies. They see LGBTQ+ people as abominations and Black people as inferior. The Christian Science Monitor reports;

In a grassy square dotted with Adirondack chairs that lies at the heart of the Pentagon, evangelist Franklin Graham delivered a special sermon in December at the request of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

“We know that God loves,” Mr. Graham said. Then, he took a turn. “Did you know that God also hates?” he asked the dressed-up children and troops attending. “Do you know that God is also a god of war?”

Mr. Graham then told a story about God taking revenge on ancient Israel’s enemies. “Kill them, both man, woman, infant, nursing child, ox, sheep, camel, and donkey,” Mr. Graham said, quoting the Bible. For those who don’t believe in a vengeful God, “Well,” he warned, “you’d better believe in him.”

Secretary Hegseth thanked Mr. Graham for his “bold” message. And in the following weeks, as the United States launched major military attacks against Venezuela and Iran, he echoed it.

He seems to believe that he is on a crusade to bring god back to a country that has lost its way. The article goes on to write:

It is not just about prayer. Mr. Hegseth has railed against America’s “internal enemies” in religious terms. And, last week, he compared U.S. journalists with the Pharisees – “the so-called and self-appointed elites of their time,” he said – who opposed Jesus.

Hegseth wrote a book, The War on Warriors and various public speeches, Hegseth openly embraces a "theology of Christian warfighting" and a "warrior ethos" inspired by medieval campaigns like the Crusades, which he views as a model for defending Western civilization against Islamism. 

Hmm... sound familiar?

High-ranking nominations for women dropped to a 25-year low under his tenure. Internal Pentagon whistleblowers reported that Hegseth stalled or actively blocked promotion tracks for senior female officers. The Daily Beast reports that;

Pete Hegseth’s block on promotions for senior female and Black officers is just the tip of the iceberg of Pentagon discrimination, sources have told the Daily Beast.

The secretary of defense has embarked on a demotion rampage targeting women and Black men while touting his “warrior ethos” makeover of the military.

The demotions result from the purge of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion from the DOD, in compliance with an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in March last year.

The British Guardian also reported...

The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, stripped nine navy officers including women and Black service members from a promotion list last month, according to a person familiar with the matter, resulting in an all-male, overwhelmingly white slate of 22 advancing as nominees to become one-star admirals.

But remember, there is a war on! Don't we want the best leaders? These people had years and years at their job... and they get axed! And replaced with "Yes men"

Former top general calls military's removal of trans troops a costly mistake

NPR

Lauren Hodges

February 21, 2026

As 71-year-old retired four star Gen. Stanley McChrystal approaches the podium, the room applauds.

"I can't believe he's here," someone whispers.

Almost as if he heard them, McChrystal says this into the microphone.

"First off, we shouldn't be here."

"Here" is a retirement ceremony for five transgender service members who have been forcibly separated from the military under the Trump administration's second ban. The ceremony, which normally would be given by the Pentagon, has been hosted by the Human Rights Campaign in Washington, D.C.

[...]

"We gather today to recognize Col. Bree Fram, United States Air Force; Cmdr. Blake Dremann, United States Navy; Lt. Col. Erin Krizek, United States Air Force; Chief Petty Officer Jaida McGuire, United States Coast Guard; and Sgt. 1st Class Cathrine Schmid, United States Army."

Between them, they had decades of experience... and now there is a war,

In a memo filed February 2025, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave the following rationale for the reversal:

"The department must ensure it is building 'one force' without subgroups defined by anything other than ability or mission adherence. Efforts to split our troops along lines of identity weaken our force and make us vulnerable. Such efforts must not be tolerated or accommodated."

"It's systematic oppression," says Corcoran. "You're creating unnecessary paperwork for commanders and service members to navigate when it should be the same standard of care in the same process as anybody you would have with a shoulder surgery or a knee surgery."

Politico:

Early in the interview, Hegseth reads aloud the dramatic tagline on the back cover of his new book, The War on Warriors: “I joined the Army to fight extremists in 2001. Twenty years later, that same Army labeled me one.” Later, Hegseth flashes his right pectoral muscle, and the tattoo that, he says, led to the label: a large, inky Jerusalem cross associated with the Christian right.

The question that needs to be asked is: What are these purges doing to the military? These people are experts in their fields but are being let go because of their sex, the color of their skin, because they're gay, or because they're trans—not because of their job performance.

In another PBS News article they write...

Pete Hegseth's Christian rhetoric reignites scrutiny after the U.S. goes to war with Iran

By Tiffany Stanley

Mar 20, 2026

 Since becoming defense secretary, Pete Hegseth has found no shortage of ways to bring his strand of conservative evangelicalism into the Pentagon.

[...]

Now the defense secretary's Christian rhetoric has taken on new meaning after the U.S. and Israel went to war with Iran, an Islamic theocracy.

"The mullahs are desperate and scrambling," he said at a recent Pentagon press briefing, referring to Iran's Shiite Muslim clerics. He later recited Psalm 144, a passage of Scripture that Jews and Christians share: "Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war and my fingers for battle."

Hegseth has a history of defending the Crusades, the brutal medieval wars that pitted Christians against Muslims. In his 2020 book "American Crusade," he wrote that those who enjoy Western civilization should "thank a crusader." Two of his tattoos draw from crusader imagery: the Jerusalem Cross and the phrase "Deus Vult," or "God wills it," which Hegseth has called "the rallying cry of Christian knights as they marched to Jerusalem."

Now we are in the sixth month of an eight-week war... "Trump's War!" From the opening salvoes, it has been a disaster! And now we have a two-front war with the Strait of Bab al-Mandab , with the possibility of the straits being blocked...

Matthew D. Taylor, a visiting scholar at Georgetown who studies religious extremism and has been a frequent Hegseth critic, said, "The U.S. voluntarily going to war against a Muslim country with the military under the leadership of Pete Hegseth is exactly the kind of scenario that people like me were warning about before the election and throughout his appointment process."

Taylor said Hegseth's rhetoric and leadership "can only inflame and reinforce the fears and deep animosity that the regime in Iran has towards the U.S."

Has Hegseth's policies prolonged the war because he fired the best and the brightest? Is it that he hired "yes men" to replace them?

I Don't Understand

It always seems like it is their rights, that we don't have any rights at all.

Christian school wins $566k in ‘religious freedom’ lawsuit after trans basketball player row

Mid Vermont Christian School, a private PK-12 school in Quechee, Vermont, has won $566,000 after its girls’ basketball team refused to play a competing team with a transgender student-athlete.

Pink News

May 06

by Siân Thompson

Mid Vermont chose to forfeit an upcoming game with Long Trail School back in 2023.

Ahead of their forfeiture, Mid Vermont had requested that the Vermont Principals’ Association (VPA) ban the trans student-athlete from playing, but the league said doing so would violate its nondiscrimination policies and state law.

Alongside forfeiting, the Christian academy said: “Playing against an opponent with a biological male jeopardises the fairness of the game and the safety of our players.”

As a result of citing their unwillingness to compete against a trans player, Mid Vermont was banned from the state’s school sports league and other extracurricular activities in the state for two seasons.

In response, Mid Vermont enlisted the help of conservative Christian legal group Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) to file a lawsuit against the VPA.

[...]

Although an earlier ruling by a Vermont federal judge upheld the ban, in September 2025, a New York-based US Court of Appeals ruled in favour of Mid Vermont, stating that the school’s “religious freedom” had been infringed upon.

I want you to substitute any other protected class. Here in Connecticut some of the protected classes are: race, color, religious creed, sex, gender identity or expression, marital status, national origin, ancestry, age, present or past history of mental disorder, mental retardation, sexual orientation, learning or physical disability, political activity, union activity or the exercise of rights protected by the United States Constitution. 

Supposed that they refused to play against a team with players who were of a different race, do you think that is accepted able? People say that this is different, it is not about race, but in the past people justified slavery and discrimination with their religion.

For example, there was the 1968 case of Newman v. Piggie Park Enterprises, Inc., where a drive-in BBQ chain refused to serve Black patrons, claiming a religious exemption. The owners argued they had a protected right to discriminate based on their religious beliefs. However, the Supreme Court ultimately ruled that religious freedom does not grant a "blank check" to bypass civil rights laws.

So why are we different? Why is okay to discriminate against us?

We also hear... well race isn't a choice, while being trans is! Which is totally bull I never chose to be trans. There are tons of research out there that proves it is not a choice. In the animal world there are trans animals.

But these judges are put their religious beliefs into their rulings ahead of the Constitution!

I Am Not Anti-Christian

Before I came out, I never knew any rabbis, ministers, or priests. Now I know about a dozen from all denominations, and they all share one common trait: they are all affirming! So, I am a little confused.

Trump task force releases controversial 'anti-Christian bias' report

By BrieAnna J. Frank

USA TODAY

April 30, 2026

President Donald Trump’s task force to investigate "anti-Christian bias" in the federal government published a report on April 30 that criticized former President Joe Biden's administration for what it characterized as actions and policies that negatively impacted Christians around the country.

Several advocacy groups challenged the report's findings, describing them as deceptive and contradictory.

Trump established the task force in a February 2025 executive order that said his administration would “ensure that any unlawful and improper conduct, policies or practices that target Christians are identified, terminated and rectified.”

The report also took time to attack us...

"Those sentiments were reiterated in the task force’s nearly 200-page report, which criticized Biden's "Transgender Day of Visibility" proclamation (a longstanding observance which fell on Easter Sunday in 2024); charges against Christian anti-abortion activists; and alleged discrimination against Christian foster care families.

“By addressing anti-Christian bias and religious discrimination directly, Americans can make religious discrimination unthinkable for all faiths,” the report said.

Okay... everyone else does not think of abortion as a Christian issue, but rather about the right to self-determination! Our rights are not religious! Our rights are human rights!

The Baptist News wrote,

The Biden administration enacted policies intended to weaponize the federal government against conservative Christians, according to a report released April 30 by the U.S. Justice Department.

The controversial 208-page report was created by President Donald Trump’s Task Force to Eradicate Anti-Christian Bias, established by executive order in February 2025. Church-state watchdog groups have criticized the task force’s composition and mission from the start, saying it is all about airing evangelicals’ imagined grievances.

The new report claims the Biden White House was adamantly opposed to a “Christian worldview” and determined to shut down “traditional religious practices” wherever it could.

Joe Biden, a devout Catholic, was perhaps the most religiously observant president in recent history. However, evangelicals believe his policies contradicted what they call a “Christian worldview.”}

Did you get that? "Joe Biden, a devout Catholic, was perhaps the most religiously observant president in recent history." But still, the hand-picked religious committee found the exact opposite! The task force claimed that:

The task force has interpreted the enforcement of federal law during the Biden presidency as ideologically motivated attacks against conservative Christians. Examples include prosecutions of anti-abortion protesters under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, fines levied against Christian universities for false reporting violations, mandating COVID vaccines for federal and some private employers, and prohibiting organized religious activities at government facilities.

You know, I do not know a single person who is against any religion; what we object to is those religions forcing their beliefs on us! We see the banning of abortions as a religious attack on those whose religious beliefs allow abortions; we see them forcing their religious beliefs on us... against other people's religious beliefs!

The Pink News reported,

Over the years Trump has cosied up to many evangelical Christian leaders, including prominent, wealthy right-wing evangelicals like American Values president Gary Bauer, and Family Research Council president Tony Perkins.

Family Research Council has been designated an anti-LGBTQ+ hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, and Tony Perkins, a former police officer, has repeatedly claimed that LGBTQ+ people are more likely to be paedophiles.

Those are the groups that are on Trump's side. When we passed the Connecticut gender non-discrimination law, we had support from religious leaders in Connecticut, including an Episcopal Bishop.

It is not religion that we are against, but rather them forcing their religious views on us

It Is All A Lie!

Remember what you were taught in school about the "Separation of Church & State"? Well according to Trump's hand picked commission it is all a lie!

Religious Liberty Commission Holds Final Hearing on the Past, Present, and Future of Religious Liberty in America

U.S, Department of Justice: Office of Public Affairs

Monday, April 13, 2026

 

 

 Today, the Religious Liberty Commission (RLC) held its final hearing to discuss the past, present, and future of religious liberty in America. 

“Today’s capstone hearing of President Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission contained more powerful testimony and discussion about how people of religion are under assault by the secular left," said Chairman Dan Patrick. "It is time to set the record straight: there is no such thing as ‘separation of church and state’ in the Constitution. For too long, the anti-God left has used this phrase to suppress people of religion in our country. During all 7 Commission hearings, witness after witness testified that the so-called ‘separation of church and state’ was used to take their God-given religious liberty rights away. Next month, the Commission will deliver our recommendations to President Trump to ensure that Americans’ religious liberty is safeguarded against evil forces seeking to suppress them in our country.” 

You know that this is really scary coming from an administration that has been characterized as pushing for a Christian Nation! Look at the wording in that press release! "people of religion are under assault by the secular left"the anti-God left" tell me that isn't biased?

Church-state separation is a ‘lie,’ says Trump's Religious Liberty Commission chair
‘Church-state separation ensures we are all free to live as ourselves and believe as we choose, as long as we don’t harm others,’ a church-state separationist countered.

Religious News Service

 Adelle M. Banks
April 14, 2026

 

 

 The leader of President Donald Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission said that church and state separation is a falsehood at the group’s final meeting, drawing criticism from an advocacy group that supports it.

At a Monday (April 13) hearing at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a Republican and the chair of the commission, asked, “Would it not be a good recommendation that every school, every university, every business, has to have that one sheet on the bulletin board about protecting people’s religious liberty, and that the separation of church and state is the biggest lie that’s been told in America since our founding?”

 

[...]

 

 “Church-state separation ensures we are all free to live as ourselves and believe as we choose, as long as we don’t harm others,” Laser said in a statement issued Monday. “It allows us all to come together as equals to build a stronger democracy. It is an American original, something we should be proud of, fight for, and cherish.”

They want to hang the Ten Commandments in the classrooms!

 In February, Americans United joined Democracy Forward in filing a lawsuit against the commission, challenging its composition that included one non-Christian and stating that its “Christian members do not represent the full diversity of the Christian faith.” The suit was filed on behalf of interfaith, Muslim, Sikh and Hindu organizations. Americans United and Democracy Forward have since sought a preliminary injunction to prevent the publication of a commission report while their case is considered by a federal district court.

Trump would never do anything like packing the commission with Christian Nationalists? While the Baptist News reported...

The lawsuit, Interfaith Alliance, et al. v. Trump, et al., was filed by Democracy Forward and Americans United for Separation of Church and State on behalf of Interfaith Alliance, Muslims for Progressive Values, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, and Hindus for Human Rights.

The coalition claims Trump’s commission violates the Federal Advisory Committee Act and offers unbalanced and biased viewpoints. The coalition wants the court to order the Commission to comply with FACA’s transparency requirements by publishing documents regarding the committee’s proceedings.

 

[..]

 

 This is the second such case brought against the Religious Liberty Commission by the same coalition.

Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush v. Donald Trump was filed in federal district court in New York in February, seeking a declaration the board was unlawfully founded and constituted and to require any documents and recommendations it produces to be made public.

 

[...]

 

 “However, these lofty ideals were swiftly disregarded and proved to be shambolic,” the suit states. “President Trump and Attorney General Bondi — who is generally tasked with performing the functions of the president for the Commission — appointed to the commission only extremist individuals who believe that America is, and should be, a ‘Judeo-Christian’ nation, advocate for government-endorsed religion, and have a history of discriminating against disfavored groups.

“And despite the Commission’s stated goal of celebrating religious diversity and religious pluralism, no member of the Commission represents a minority religion (other than one Orthodox Jewish member) and no member represents an interfaith perspective. On top of selecting a skewed and biased membership, the Commission has refused to release agendas, meeting minutes, transcripts and other Commission materials.”

Hey and this is from the Baptist News! Not some secular news outlet!

 

USA Today writes,

 Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, the commission's chairman, at one point called it the “biggest lie that’s been told in America since our founding.” 

Patrick's statement echoed comments made in previous Religious Liberty Commission hearings and by the Trump administration more broadly that suggest the government can and should promote religion as a public good without violating the First Amendment, which says “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.”

You know how the Republican's courts are always harping on "Originalists" in the Constitution well how original is this...

 President Thomas Jefferson popularized the phrase “separation between church and state” in the early 19th century, but it does not appear in the Constitution. Over the centuries, courts and scholars have debated where the line should be drawn as it relates to the government and religion.

---

Meanwhile, the Trump adminstration wants to conduct warrantless searches! Republicans, White House considering warrant-related amendment in high-stakes FISA talks

There’s growing acknowledgment that the clean reauthorization the White House desires is a no-go.

Politico

By: Meredith Lee Hill, Mia McCarthy

04/15/2026

Speaker Mike Johnson canceled a vote scheduled for Wednesday evening on a clean reauthorization of a key spy power amid a hard-liner rebellion — a blow to President Donald Trump whose senior administration officials throughout the day tried to seal the deal ahead of the program’s expiration in five days.

Leaving the Capitol Wednesday night, Johnson said he believed negotiators needed “a few more hours” to wrap up discussions on proposed changes, and that the process could get back on track Thursday. “We’re working through some final details,” he added.

[...]

The provision would require the government to obtain a warrant for “U.S. person queries” under Section 702, once there is probable cause that the individual is an agent of a foreign power or has committed a crime. While it would codify components of current surveillance law, it also would serve as a compromise by putting some restraints around many of the routine, warrantless surveillance practices now acceptable under existing statute.

[...]

But White House officials are still trying to rein in the scope of this proposal even further given Trump’s demand for no policy changes or new guardrails on the government’s use of the spy powers authority.

So the "problem" is the White House doesn't want to have to get warrants to search through your phone and email records... They want to use computer to search databases for "un-American" actives... Of course Trump & Company gets to decide what is and isn't "un-American" actives. Trans forums? Un-American!

Intelligence Chair Rick Crawford (R-Ark.) said in a brief interview Wednesday evening that there was still a lot of conversation around warrants and potential reforms. When asked about the Higgins amendment [Requires that they obtain a warrant for “U.S. person queries”] in particular, Crawford said leadership has to consider the number of people they will gain on a final vote versus lose with any changes.

The that is too much to ask for according to Trump!

Are We A Test?

I am not a very religious person, it is not that I am anti-religion but rather I believe it is more important in how you live your life and treat others that is important. So what I read this,

Nuns at Westchester nursing home say trans rules violate their religious rights

Gothamist

By Giulia Heyward

Apr 13, 2026

A Catholic nursing home in Westchester County is suing New York state, arguing that rules meant to protect transgender people in its care violate the religious freedom of the nurses who run it.

The Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne, who operate Rosary Hill Home, filed the lawsuit against Gov. Kathy Hochul and the state health department this month. They're challenging a mandate that long-term care facilities in New York give patients access to facilities — like bathrooms and hospital beds — that align with their gender identities rather than their sexes assigned at birth.

Staff at these long-term care facilities are also required to undergo cultural competency training under legislation Hochul signed into law three years ago. The lawsuit refers to that training as indoctrination, and further objects to rules that staff members use patients preferred pronouns, or "accommodate patients’ desire for extramarital relations.”

“The Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne and Rosary Hill Home operate in accordance with the ethical and religious directives and the teachings of the Catholic Church,” states the suit by the nursing facility, which provides pro bono care to patients with cancer. “They cannot comply with the mandate without violating these sincerely held religious beliefs.”

Yeah, yeah, I get the “religious freedom” stuff but when I was growing up I went to the Catholic Confraternity of Christian Doctrine classes, I don’t remember much but what I do remember is this… that one of the two greatest commandments is “Love your neighbor as yourself”

So I just can’t get my head around that these nuns seem to have forgotten that.

I wonder if those nuns thought that this might be a test?

Scr*wed Again!

I am sick and tired of hearing “religious freedom” used as a justification for harm—especially when many of the states that have banned conversion therapy, including Connecticut, have done so to protect people’s health and well-being.

Supreme Court says state bans on ‘conversion therapy’ violate counselors’ free speech rights

The Los Angles Times

By David G. Savage

March 31, 2026

• The ruling in a Colorado case is likely to invalidate similar bans in California and 23 other states.
• It is the third significant defeat at the Supreme Court for LGBTQ-rights advocates in the past year.

The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that state laws forbidding “conversion therapy” for minors violate the free-speech rights of licensed counselors.

The court said Colorado’s law violates the 1st Amendment, and the ruling is likely to invalidate similar laws in California and 23 other states.

In an 8-1 decision, the justices said Colorado’s ban on “talk therapy” may prevent Christian counselors from helping teens work through their feelings about sexual attractions or their gender identity.

[...]

“Colorado may regard its policy as essential to public health and safety. Certainly, censorious governments throughout history have believed the same. But the 1st Amendment stands as a shield against any effort to enforce orthodoxy in thought or speech in this country,” Gorsuch wrote. “... However well-intentioned, any law that suppresses speech based on viewpoint represents an ‘egregious’ assault on both of those commitments.”

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented alone in a 35-page opinion.

Do you know what PubMed is? It is the medical databased of peer-reviewed medical studies.

Understanding harms associated with gender identity conversion efforts among transgender and nonbinary individuals: The role of preexisting mental well-being

Int J Transgend Health

2024 Apr 4

Tural Mammadli, Jarrod Call, Darren L Whitfield, Brendon T Holloway, N Eugene Walls

Abstract

Background: Affirmation of gender identity is critical for the mental health and overall well-being of transgender and nonbinary (TNB) persons. Gender identity conversion efforts (GICE), an outlawed practice for licensed professionals in numerous U.S. jurisdictions, have been associated with negative mental health and substance use outcomes. Limited previous literature examining GICE exposure has been criticized for failing to distinguish mental well-being for TNB persons before or after GICE. Our study builds on current literature by examining differences in TNB persons' psychosocial risk indicators based on their GICE exposure, accounting for pre-GICE mental well-being. Methods: We conducted a secondary data analysis using the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey (N = 25,810), the largest available national survey aimed at understanding TNB persons' experiences. Using logistic regression models, we examined how GICE exposure (disaggregated by temporal precedence of initial suicide attempts) is related to health (psychological distress, extra-medical prescription use, healthcare avoidance), socio-structural (public restroom avoidance, housing instability), and interpersonal outcomes (sexual assault, emotional and physical intimate partner violence (IPV)). Results and conclusions: Initiating a suicide attempt post-GICE or in the absence of GICE were the only consistently significant predictors of poor outcomes across all domains compared to participants who never experienced GICE or attempted suicide. Findings suggest, however, that a combination of GICE with a history of suicide attempts (pre- or post-GICE) was indicative of the highest risk across outcomes, highlighting the particularly hazardous nature of combining poor mental well-being and GICE exposures. Our study adds much-needed complexity to our understanding of how GICE exposure's role in the well-being of TNB persons may differ related to their pre-GICE mental health. Our findings add further credence to previous studies identifying harms associated with GICE exposure, regardless of pre-GICE mental well-being.

These studies consistently show that conversion therapy leads to higher psychological distress, increased substance use, greater healthcare avoidance, and a higher risk of violence and instability (such as housing insecurity).

The Supreme Court has disregarded our pain and suffering. What about our rights?

In the PubMed study “Lifetime Exposure to Conversion Therapy and Psychosocial Health Among Midlife and Older Adult Men Who Have Sex With Men,” the findings are clear: the effects last a lifetime. The study looked specifically at midlife and older adults and found links to depression, PTSD symptoms, internalized stigma, and overall poorer psychosocial health.

Yet the courts are putting “religious freedom” over our health.

The Supreme Court disregarded our pain and suffering! What about our rights? In the PubMed article "Lifetime Exposure to Conversion Therapy and Psychosocial Health Among Midlife and Older Adult Men Who Have Sex With Men" that effects last a lifetime and results in; tudy looked specifically at midlife and older adults and found links to: depression, PTSD symptoms, internalized stigma, and overall poorer psychosocial health!

Yet the courts are putting “religious freedom” over our health.

This is not "Speech" it medical care! 

---

This was delayed because of the paperwork I have to do, my identity was stolen yesterday... tons and tons of paperwork. I was at the police station filing a report.

Hitler Youth?

I know that is a powerful headline but that is what I thought when I read this...

Scouting America moves to shed ‘woke’ label with major recommitment to military, traditional American values

Chief Scout Executive Roger Krone says about 70% of sponsoring organizations are churches and the program is 'very apolitical'

By Charles Creitz , Andrew Mark Miller  Fox News

Published March 28, 2026

Scouting America, the Texas-based national organization founded as the Boy Scouts of America, is working to shed claims it has gone "woke" in recent years as it renews its focus on training young people with life skills, providing fun and educational outdoor experiences and revitalizing its partnership with the U.S. military.

Since its inception by Lt. Gen. Robert Baden-Powell in February 1910, what is now Scouting America has remained dedicated to providing the key life tenets of faith, character and service to young people, as in one example it eliminated an otherwise recently conceived "DEI" merit badge and replaced it with a military-centric one.

Chief Scout Executive Roger Krone told Fox News Digital that scouts have been central to key moments in history, a testament to the program’s values, importance and longevity.

Boy does that sound like they want to make it into a para-military organization?

Business Insider wrote,

Merit badges that "mask" DEI "activism" have been "discontinued," he said, and a new military service badge will be added, in partnership with the Pentagon.

So they are even going to have a merit badge like the Hitler Youth Proficiency Badge of the 1930s and 40s!

Beginning in 2012, "the Boy Scouts lost their way," Hegseth said in the Friday post. "A once great organization became gravely wounded. Diversity, equity and inclusion, DEI, crept in. The name was changed to 'Scouting America.' Girls were accepted. The focus on God as the ruler of the universe was watered down to include openness to humanism and Earth centered pagan religions."

STOP RIGHT THERE! "...The focus on God as the ruler of the universe..." Does this sound like "grooming" to you? Do this sound like Hegseth wants to turn it into a para-military Christian Nationalist organization?

Onward Christian Solider!

This is the cross that the
Crusaders wore  

I've been keeping an eye on the generals and officers that Hegseth has been firing and hiring, I am worried that they are all Christian Nationalist... that he is creating an "Army of God!"

Commanders Accused of Framing Iran War as Biblical Mandate, Jesus' 'Return'

Military.com | By Nick Mordowanec

Published March 03, 2026

An organization that has been fighting against religious extremism in the United States military for two decades has reported more than 200 new complaints since Saturday’s initial strikes against Iran, with members across all services claiming that high-ranking officers are tying the mission overseas to fulfilling a Christian prophecy.

A combat-unit commander told non-commissioned officers at a briefing Monday that the Iran war is part of God’s plan and that President Donald Trump was “anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth,” according to independent journalist Jonathan Larsen as published on Substack.

That complaint was made by a non-commissioned officer and provided to the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), which from Saturday morning through Monday evening received and logged more than 110 complaints about commanders in every branch of the military.

I don’t know about you, but I find it disturbing that military commanders are relating the war to the end of the world.

The Baptist News reported that,

U.S. military personnel are being briefed by superiors that ongoing combat operations in Iran are willed by God and will help usher in the end times, according to independent journalist Jonathan Larsen.

In one instance, the commander of a combat unit told noncommissioned officers “that the Iran war is part of God’s plan and that Pres. Donald Trump was ‘anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth,’ according to a complaint by a noncommissioned officer,” Larsen reported on his Substack.

The report draws on similar complaints to the Military Religious Freedom Foundation from personnel in more than 40 units located in at least 30 installations. The complaints have been coming in since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran Feb. 28.

I worry that this could lead toward a coup attempt if Trump were ever impeached. Having an army that believes Trump was appointed by God is downright scary.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has made no secret of his adherence to a nationalist and militaristic form of Christianity. He has established prayer meetings within the Pentagon and recently claimed Americans go to heaven if they die in combat.

[...]

“These calls have one damn thing in freaking common: Our MRFF clients (service members who seek MRFF aid) report the unrestricted euphoria of their commanders and command chains as to how this new ‘biblically-sanctioned’ war is clearly the undeniable sign of the expeditious approach of the fundamentalist Christian ‘end times’ as vividly described in the New Testament book of Revelation,” Weinstein said.

[...]

Larsen wrote: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has enshrined evangelical Christianity at the uppermost levels of the U.S. military, airing monthly prayer meetings throughout the Pentagon. Last year, the Pentagon confirmed to me that Hegseth attends a weekly White House Bible study. It’s led by a preacher who says God commands America to support Israel.”

Are you worried yet? And this was written by a Baptist newspaper.

They want war. They want to bring about the end of the world. And these people have the nuclear codes.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth makes no secret of the fact that he sees himself as a crusader leading the battle toward Armageddon and the return of Jesus. I fear he wants to turn the United States into a Christian version of Iran.

Does that cross on Hegseth’s chest look familiar? It is the Crusader’s Cross (also known as the Jerusalem Cross), the one that knights wore into battle against the “infidels.” He also reportedly has “Deus Vult” tattooed on his arm — “God wills it,” the battle cry of the First Crusade in 1095.

He wrote a book literally called American Crusade, calling for a modern-day holy war against Muslims. He also got a new tattoo reading “كافر” (kafir) in Arabic — a deliberate provocation against 2 billion Muslims from the man commanding the most powerful military on Earth. He is the embodiment of the American Taliban.

Are you scared yet?

I Told You So!

For all of you "Gay Inc." who were only interested marriage, I told you that they would be coming for you also... well your time has come!

Texas judge asks federal court to end marriage equality nationwide

She has been arguing that, as a Christian, she should not have to follow state rules about judicial impartiality.

LGBTQ Nation

Alex Bollinger (He/Him)

December 22, 2025

A Texas judge is asking a federal court to overturn marriage equality in the U.S., arguing in a lawsuit filed on Friday that marriage for same-sex couples is unconstitutional because it was legalized in a decision that “subordinat[ed] state law to the policy preferences of unelected judges.”

The case involves Judge Dianne Hensley of Waco, Texas, who has been involved in years of legal proceedings to try to win the right to not perform marriages for same-sex couples while still performing them for opposite-sex couples. She claims that, as a Christian, she should not have to follow state judicial ethics rules about impartiality.

[...]

Now Judge Hensley, who has also refused to perform marriages for same-sex couples since Obergefell was decided, is asking federal courts to end marriage rights for same-sex couples.

[...]

The Texas Commission on Judicial Conduct opened an investigation into her discriminatory policy in 2018 and found that she violated state rules requiring judges to be impartial, issuing her a warning.

“If you’re going to perform marriages, you must perform marriages for everyone,” said Texas Justice Court Training Center executive director Thea Whalen in 2019.

Hensley claimed that the investigation discriminated against her as a Christian, and she sued with help from an anti-LGBTQ+ legal organization, the First Liberty Institute. She eventually got support from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R).

What gets me is that these "religious" people take a job that they know they are not going to do and then they sue when they get fired! What a racket!

We have been here before and the Supreme Court just refused to hear an appeal by Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who refused to sign marriage licenses for same-sex couples. These "Born Agains" seem to think that they can avoid the laws just by saying the magic words... "It is against my religion" they think that it is their "god given right to discriminate!"

Were Are We Heading.

The Supreme Court is bending over backwards on "Religious Freedom" but where are they heading? Down in Texas might be a glimpse of the future.

Largest gay church pushes back on Texas Supreme Court

Baptist News

By Mark Wingfield

October 29, 2025

The pastor of the world’s largest progressive church with a primary outreach to the LGBTQ community issued a statement blasting a Texas Supreme Court assessment that allows state judges to refuse to conduct same-sex marriages based on religious freedom claims.

“This ruling is nothing less than state-sanctioned discrimination and a betrayal of the fundamental promise of equality under the law,” said Neil Thomas, senior pastor at Cathedral of Hope in Dallas. “This decision gives prejudice a platform and power it does not deserve.

“To deny couples the right to marry because of who they love is an affront to both our Constitution and the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let us be clear: This is not about religious freedom; it is about institutionalizing bias.”

What happens when two religions butt heads... an affirming church vs. a fire and brimstone church on LGBTQ+? How will the courts rule.

Since then [2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Obergefell v. Hodges], judges and justices of the peace nationwide have been required to be all in on weddings — for heterosexual as well as homosexual couples — or not officiate weddings at all. In Texas, judicial officials are not required to officiate weddings but may choose to do so.

That case eventually made it to the Texas Supreme Court, which now has issued a comment — not a formal ruling — saying Texas judges who decline to perform weddings based on a “sincerely held religious belief” do not violate the state’s rules on judicial impartiality.

It seems like the court has bended over backwards to give preferential treatment to conservative religions. The Texas Tribune wrote,

 The rule change appears to answer a question of state law that the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals posed to the Texas Supreme Court in April, which was prompted by a lawsuit challenging the State Commission on Judicial Conduct’s now-withdrawn sanction of a Waco judge who refused to marry gay couples while continuing to marry straight couples. The plaintiff in that suit, a North Texas county judge, sued saying he was afraid he could face the same punishment.

[...]

The court’s clarification amended Canon 4 of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct, which prohibits judges from doing things outside their judicial role that would cast doubt on their ability to act impartially or interfere with the proper performance of judicial duties.

Now there is an exception... they can refuse to do their job if is their “sincerely held religious belief” even when it flies in the face of the other people legal rights!

Texas Supreme Court rules that judges can refuse to marry same-sex couples

“It is not a violation of these canons for a judge to publicly refrain from performing a wedding ceremony based upon a sincerely held religious belief,” the Texas Supreme Court ruled.

The Advocate

By Christopher Wiggins

October 29 2025

The Texas Supreme Court has ruled that state judges may decline to perform weddings, including same-sex marriages, based on religious belief. Critics say the move could erode public confidence in the impartiality of the courts and chip away at the practical reach of marriage equality in Texas.

[...]

Josh Rovenger, legal director at GLAD Law, a Boston-based LGBTQ+ legal advocacy group, told The Advocate that while the Texas court’s move is significant, it reflects a broader legal trend rather than a singular break. He noted that in Obergefell and later cases such as Masterpiece Cakeshop and 303 Creative, the U.S. Supreme Court has sought to balance “the dignity of both same-sex couples and individuals with strong religious beliefs.” Those decisions, he said, suggest that the Court has tried to create frameworks in which marriage equality and religious liberty can coexist. From GLAD Law’s perspective, Rovenger noted, the two principles are not inherently incompatible.

Republicans in Texas have gone to great lengths to undo LGBTQ+ rights in the state. Gov. Greg Abbott signed a law in September barring transgender people from using bathrooms in state facilities that are in line with their gender identity. Also in September, a professor was fired, and the president of Texas A&M University resigned amid controversy over curriculum materials on LGBTQ+ topics.

This is a lot more than marriage. This is about "religious freedom" being used to erode other people's rights! 

Whose Rights?

This dove tails in to the Supreme Court hearing this week on Conversion Therapy... when it comes to "whose rights" for adaptive children?

Many states have laws requiring adoptive parents to let the child decide if they are LGBTQ+ or not. These states realize that the child has rights and parents cannot override those rights.

Massachusetts foster parents lose license after refusing to sign gender affirming policy

CBS News

By Louisa Moller

October 9, 2025

A couple from Woburn, Massachusetts has lost their license to foster children after they refused to sign a gender affirming policy form from the Department of Children and Families (DCF).

Lydia and Heath Marvin have three kids in their teens, but they have fostered eight different children under the age of 4 since 2020. Their most recent foster child was a baby with complex medical needs who stayed with them for 15 months.

"Our Christian faith, it really drives us toward that. James says that true undefiled religion is to care for the fatherless," said Heath.

The couple said they were prepared to care for more foster children until DCF pulled their license to foster in April.

But it more than just the rights for LGBTQ+ children it is also the right for the child to reject the religion of the adoptive parents!

That's because the Marvins refused to sign the agency's LGBTQIA+ Non-Discrimination Policy because of their Christian faith. Starting in 2022, the policy said that foster families must affirm the LGBTQIA+ identity of foster children.

You know darn well that the religious-right is grooming this case to go to the Supreme Court.

The case that the was heard before this Supreme Court this week involved a therapist who wants the right to tell minors that they damned and going to hell! If the court rules in favors of the therapist so she force therapy on the children and religious parents can force their religion on the adaptive child. That would override the child's religious freedom!

I don't know about you but I'm in favors of child's rights to self-determination. 

Is This Our Death Knell?

The First Monday Of October.
The Supreme Court will hear, Chiles v. Salazar, the Court and will consider the question of whether a Colorado law banning “conversion therapy”—i.e., attempts to “convert” someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity—violate the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment. The case is only about children, adults can make their own choices but children can't. GLAD writes;

Chiles v. Salazar
Status: Pending

In Chiles v. Salazar, a licensed Colorado therapist filed a lawsuit against the state’s law protecting youth from conversion therapy, arguing it violates her right to free speech. 

Conversion therapy refers to practices that try to change someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity. Studies show that conversion therapy practices are unproven, unscientific, and increase the risk of suicide attempts, depression, and anxiety.

Laws like Colorado’s have broad bipartisan and religious support. Youth are protected from conversion therapy in 23 states, plus the District of Columbia. An additional four states have laws that partially protect youth from conversion therapy. Only five states have a law, budget, or court ruling that prohibits or deters local-level laws protecting youth from conversion therapy.

This case is not good! It is really horrible depending on how they rule. They are framing the legal challenge on the the First Amendment but that should not be the issue under question... the question will the repeal of conversion therapy cause harm to the children?

LGBTQ+ advocacy groups file brief defending Colorado conversion therapy ban for minors
U.S. Supreme Court will hear case challenging 2019 law in October
Colorado Newsline
By: Lindsey Toomer
August 28, 2025

A group of Colorado and national LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations filed an amicus brief this week defending Colorado’s 2019 law banning conversion therapy for minors in a case challenging the law before the U.S. Supreme Court.

One Colorado and Rocky Mountain Equality, two Colorado-based LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations, as well as PFLAG, the National Center for Youth Law, the National Center for LGBTQ Rights, the National Health Law Program, and Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Elders filed the brief arguing that the conduct of health care professionals is subject to regulation by the state and outlining the proven harms of conversion therapy on LGBTQ+ youth. 

“As organizations that have worked with LGBTQ survivors of conversion therapy, amici are well acquainted with the severe, long-term harm that conversion therapy causes for individuals, families, and communities,” the brief reads. “Colorado’s statute protecting minors from conversion therapy by licensed professionals is not only a reasonable means of addressing these harms, it directly and narrowly advances important, and indeed compelling, governmental interests.”

As Anita Bryant always said... it is about the children! It is not about the parents rights!

“Conversion therapy is not therapy, it is abuse,” Parker said in a statement. “Colorado’s law is a carefully crafted, evidence-based safeguard that ensures LGBTQ youth receive care and support that protects, rather than harms.”

The brief filed by the advocacy organizations argues that conversion therapy “divides youth from their families and promotes parental rejection of LGBTQ children.” It says the resulting family rejection harms LGBTQ youth in ways that can persist into adulthood, affecting their physical and mental health.

I know a trans man who to this day still suffer from PTSD in their 60s.
The final word... is from the American Psychological Association (APA)...

Since 1998, the American Psychiatric Association has opposed any psychiatric treatment, such as "reparative" or conversion therapy, which is based upon the assumption that homosexuality per se is a mental disorder or that a patient should change his/her homosexual orientation1. This position statement updates and replaces previous position statements about conversion therapy regarding sexual orientation, furthermore it also comments on conversion therapy with gender diverse patients in an attempt to prevent harm to any lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer person. In the past, diversity of sexual orientation and gender identity (e.g. homosexuality, bisexuality, and transgender identities) were seen as a mental illness. This changed in 1973 when the American Psychiatric Association stated that homosexuality per se is not a mental disorder2. While Gender Dysphoria remains a part of the DSM-5, there is growing social acceptance that human sexuality and gender identity can present in a variety of ways as part of the human condition.

I fear that the court will ignore the children and focus on the adults "Religious Freedom" and ignore the rights and the health of the children!

Something Is Missing!

The feds are on the case...

That now brings worry and fear to the populace, the latest witch hunt is Oregon!

Federal government probes Oregon in faith-based push against LGBTQ+ foster policy

“We want to roll out the red carpet and welcome faith-based families to participate in our child welfare system,” said an official with the U.S. Health and Human Services Department 

Oregon Capital Chronicle

By: Shaanth Nanguneri

September 30, 2025

The Trump administration on Tuesday opened an investigation into a contested Oregon policy of requiring prospective adoptive and foster parents to affirm their child’s gender identity, spelling uncertainty for hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding for the state. 

The U.S Health and Human Services Department’s Administration for Children and Families notified the Oregon Department of Human Services of the move in a letter signed by Acting Assistant Secretary Andrew Gradison, who pledged in August that “federal funds will not be used to poison the minds of the next generation or advance dangerous ideological agendas.” The letter seeks from Oregon “information that can shed light on your current policies.”

But there is something missing?

Gradison on Tuesday wrote to the human services department that he had been made aware of a case in which a woman was denied the ability to provide a child a home because she would not affirm a “hypothetical child’s gender identity.” He also alleged that failure to comply with the policy has counted as evidence against families when it comes to the removal of children from their custody. 

“If true, these developments are deeply troubling, clearly contrary to the purpose of child welfare programs, and in direct violation of First Amendment protections,” Gradison wrote. “As you know, I have the responsibility of monitoring how federal funds are used and ensuring that federal law is upheld.”

But they are missing someone.

LGBTQ+ advocates say such policies are necessary to protect children who are overrepresented in the foster care system, pointing to research showing the harm of conversion therapy and living in a family not accepting of one’s identity. But the requirement has long drawn the ire of conservatives who cite the nation’s history of faith-based orphanages as a solution to providing homes for the hundreds of thousands of children in American foster care. 

It is the children who are missing!

The state’s affirmation policy, however, came under fire in 2023 from a legal challenge by a Christian mother of five from Malheur County, Jessica Bates, backed by an Arizona-based conservative Christian legal advocacy group, the Alliance Defending Freedom. 

I'll tell you what they are defending... the right to bully, harass, and to deny children of their right to define themselves!

The feds are also going after...

The memo comes alongside an investigation into Massachusetts, which has a similar policy to a rule Oregon adopted in 2018 mandating prospective foster parents to respect, accept and support their child’s sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and spiritual beliefs, next to a list of other protected categories. 

In the Republican drive to force religion down everyone's throats. But children have rights! The right not to have religion forced down their throats by adoptive parents!

We Banned It Here But It Is Making A Comeback!

It is the new darling of Trump & Company... the Republicans are making it a comeback, they don't care the harm it does, it just fits right in with their ideology. And no matter what they call it, a rose is a rose by any name. And this one? It’s just as thorny.”

This is from last year but it still covers conversion therapy push by the Republicans.

First They Tried to “Cure” Gayness. Now They’re Fixated on “Healing” Trans People.

Inside the movement to resurrect conversion therapy.

The Rolling Stone

By Madison Pauly with Henry Carnell

July+August 2024

The conversion therapists met last November at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip. Behind the closed doors and drawn blinds of a Hampton Inn conference room, a middle-aged woman wearing white stockings and a Virgin Mary blue dress issued a call to arms to the 20-some people in attendance. “In our current culture, in which children are being indoctrinated with transgender belief from the moment they’re out of the womb, if we are confronted with a gender-confused child, you must help,” declared Michelle Cretella, a board member of the Alliance for Therapeutic Choice and Scientific Integrity. “We must do something.”

[...]

Not that they’d call what they do “conversion therapy.” That term lacks a precise definition, but it is used colloquially to describe attempts to shift a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. In the 1960s, some psychologists tried to make gay men straight by pairing aversive stimuli, like electric shocks or chemically induced nausea, with images of gay porn—techniques that ran the risk of causing serious psychological damage even as they failed to change participants’ sexual orientation, researchers eventually concluded. Today, “conversion therapy” generally takes the form of verbal counseling. Participants are typically conservative Christians who engage voluntarily—motivated by internalized stigma, family pressure, and the belief that their feelings are incompatible with their faith. Others are children, brought into therapy by their parents.

They didn't use the words Conversion Therapy because they know they can't win, so they obfuscate their real agenda and use words like "Cure," "Reparative therapy," "Faith-based counseling" and no matter what they call it, it is still brain washing.

AP News wrote...

Trump’s health agency urges therapy for transgender youth, not broader gender-affirming health care

By  GEOFF MULVIHILL, CARLA K. JOHNSON and AMANDA SEITZ

May 1, 2025

President Donald Trump’s administration released a lengthy review of transgender health care on Thursday that advocates for a greater reliance on behavioral therapy rather than broad gender-affirming medical care for youths with gender dysphoria.

The 409-page Health and Human Services report questions standards for the treatment of transgender youth issued by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health and is likely to be used to bolster the government’s abrupt shift in how to care for a subset of the population that has become a political lightning rod.

Major medical groups and those who treat transgender young people sharply criticized the new report as inaccurate.

This “best practices” report is in response to an executive order Trump issued days into his second term that says the federal government must not support gender transitions for anyone under age 19.

So what does it call for? Well you can probably guess since this post is about conversion therapy.

The report accuses transgender care specialists of disregarding psychotherapy that might challenge preconceptions, partly because of a “mischaracterization of such approaches as ‘conversion therapy,’” a discredited practice that seeks to change patients’ sexual orientation or gender identification. About half the states have banned conversion therapy for minors.

The American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry has said evidence shows conversion therapies inflict harm on young people, including elevated rates of suicidal thoughts.

Peterson Toscano did a play about his experiences his in conversion therapy, in it he talks about his "Cures" after many tries one day it dawned on him... doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different outcome is the definition of insanity! He threw his hands up and said "I'm gay!" He and his husband live now in Pennsylvania. He has also done a play about us, called Transfigurations: Transgressing Gender in the Bible

Here in Connecticut we have a law Public Act No. 17-5 AN ACT CONCERNING THE PROTECTION OF YOUTH FROM CONVERSION THERAPY in it, it says...

(1) "Conversion therapy" means any practice or treatment administered to a person under eighteen years of age that seeks to change the person's sexual orientation or gender identity, including, but not limited to, any effort to change gender expression or to eliminate or reduce sexual or romantic attraction or feelings toward persons of the same gender. "Conversion therapy" does not include counseling intended to (A) assist a person undergoing gender transition, (B) provide acceptance, support and understanding to the person, or (C) facilitate the person's coping, social support or identity exploration and development, including, but not limited to, any therapeutic intervention that is neutral with regard to sexual orientation and seeks to prevent or address unlawful conduct or unsafe sexual practices, provided such counseling does not seek to change the person's sexual orientation or gender identity.

[...]

Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective from passage) (a) No health care provider shall engage in conversion therapy.

That is quite straight forward, there are exceptions for priest, or other religious leaders.

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Hopefully I'm on my way home for some doctor's appointments, just routine visits for a 70+ senior.