Pro-Family Leaders Call for Exodus from Calif. Schools

OLUMBIA, South Carolina, Feb. 7 /Christian Newswire/ -- California Governor Schwarzenegger signed legislation mandating that public school children be indoctrinated to accept as normal the homosexual lifestyle and other forms of sexual deviancy. In the wake of the failed effort to obtain a referendum to repeal this legislation, a broad coalition of Christian grassroots organizations have endorsed the Campaign for Children and Families' call for California families and churches to rescue their children from California's public schools.

The growing coalition includes Eagle Forum, the Campaign for Children and Families, Exodus Mandate, and ten more sponsors, five of which are based in California. These organizations will be providing information to California parents and pastors concerning the new school legislation, how it mainstream's sexual deviancy among children, and what alternatives to California's public schools are available.

According to Phyllis Schlafly, President of Eagle Forum, "Many of us have worked to reform public schools. Unfortunately, SB 777 and the related legislation represent a repudiation of 2,000 years of Christian moral teaching on human sexuality, marriage, and the family. The result is that California's schools are now promoting behaviors and lifestyles that are physically and spiritually dangerous for children. Consequently, in California, parents must try to find alternatives to the public schools."

Chairman for California Exodus is Dr. Ron Gleason, theologian and pastor of Grace Presbyterian Church, Yorba Linda, California and stated clerk of the South Coast Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church in America. In accepting this assignment he said: "As a parent and grandparent, I want those near and dear to me to have quality education. This country excels in every social, economical, scientific, and political category known to man, but gets low grades on the education of its children. We should be leading the world in developing well-educated young people. This role is first and foremost the responsibility of parents."

One California-based sponsor, Denise Kanter, Founder of Considering Homeschooling Ministry said, "We hope our ministry with its free resources and web site will encourage families to provide their children with a safe Biblical home education." Dr. Robert Simonds, President of Citizens for Excellence in Education, also a California organization, added, "Now is the time for the pastors and churches to fulfill their role in rescuing their own children and helping society by providing K-12 Christian education too."

Randy Thomasson of the California-based Campaign for Children and Families has witnessed the attack on parental rights and sexual indoctrination of children coming over the last several years, "First, the law allowed public schools to voluntarily promote homosexuality, bisexuality, and transsexuality. Then, the law required public schools to accept homosexual, bisexual, and transsexual teachers as role models for impressionable children. Now, the law has been changed to effectively require the positive portrayal of homosexuality, bisexuality, and transsexuality to six million children in California government-controlled schools. To rescue their children, loving parents need to find an alternative to government schools, and every church needs to make it a priority to help parents be in charge of their children's education again."

E. Ray Moore, Jr., believes that it is urgent that the coalition make parents and pastors aware of how dangerous the new legislation is going to make public schools and that they must take up their God-given responsibilities with their children. In fact, according to Moore, "The Biblical and theological case for Christian families and churches to practice K-12 Christian schooling or home schooling is strong. Christians should begin with the belief that children belong to the Lord and are a stewardship of the family, not the state."

Bruce Shortt, author of The Harsh Truth About Public Schools, notes, "Christians have already become numb to the moral relativism that is taught in all public schools today. Now children will be told that their sexual orientation and gender are relative, too. No longer will children raised in these schools understand that God made us male and female with different, but complementary roles. Instead, children will be taught that sexual orientation and gender are merely a matter of personal choice. Thus, children will be told that because there are many sexual orientations and gender identities, they simply have to reach their own conclusions about which sexual orientation and gender 'possibilities' are 'right for them.' Along with this will come the message that you really can't tell whether you like something unless you have tried it. The likely consequences of this for children, the institution of the family, our churches, and our culture are horrendous."

Additional information can be found at, http://www.californiaexodus.org/, http://www.savecalifornia.com/, and http://www.exodusmandate.org/.

List of sponsoring organizations: Phyllis Schlafly with Eagle Forum; Denise Kanter with Considering Homeschooling Ministry; Dr. Robert Simonds with Citizens for Excellence in Education; Star Parker with Coalition on Urban Renewal & Education; Patch Blakey with Association of Classical and Christian Schools; Dave and Kim d’Escoto with Dexios; Dan Smithwick with Nehemiah Institute; Alan Schaeffer with Alliance for Separation of School and State; Linda Harvey with Mission America; Randy Thomasson with Campaign for Children and families; and Dr. Ron Gleason with California Exodus.