Catholic Priest Investigated for 'Hate Crime' in Canada

You know, I've never understood "love crimes" as they relate to "hate crimes," but maybe I'm just slow.

I've also never understood why the law should consider the same crime more heinous because it was theoretically motivated by hate of the victim's physical characteristics...or in the case of neo-"hate crime" law, because of the victim's sexual behavior. To me, murder is heinous, period; assault is heinous, period, and so on. Doesn't matter who the victim is or what the perpetrator's motive was; the crime is the crime. Maybe I'm just not hip to that, either.

But while things are getting ominous here in the United States with "hate crime" legislation (dare I say "thought crime"?), it's getting downright scary up in Canada.

Pete Vere in the Catholic Exchange writes today about a Catholic priest, Fr. Alphonse de Valk, who is being investigated by the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC).

Apparently, when this group of politically correct witch-hunters gets you in their sites, your goose is cooked.

The CHRC is using section 13 of Canada’s Human Rights Act to investigate the priest. This is a section under which no defendant has ever won once the allegation has gone to tribunal — the next stage of the process.

Most defendants end up paying thousands of dollars in fines and compensation. This is in addition to various court costs. Moreover, defendants are responsible for their own legal defense. In contrast, the commission provides free legal assistance to the complainant.

Canada has a recent history of persecuting any Christian who doesn't pay the proper obeisance to the government-mandated approval of homosexuality.

In 2005, the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal fined a Knights of Columbus council over $1,000 dollars for declining to rent their hall to a couple for a lesbian marriage ceremony.

Five years previous, the Ontario Human Rights Commission fined Protestant printer Scott Brockie $5,000 for declining to print homosexual-themed stationary. The Saskatchewan Human Rights Tribunal fined Hugh Owens thousands of dollars for quoting a couple of Bible verses in a letter to the local newspaper. And Mayor Diane Haskett in London, Ontario, was fined $10,000 plus interest for declining to proclaim a gay pride day.

So what kind of vicious, bloodthirsty "hate crime" did de Valk perpetrate that so offended the moral conscience of the CHRC?

Father defended the Church’s teaching on marriage during Canada’s same-sex ‘marriage’ debate, quoting extensively from the Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and Pope John Paul II’s encyclicals. Each of these documents contains official Catholic teaching. And like millions of other people throughout the world and the ages - many of who are non-Catholics and non-Christians — Father believes that marriage is an exclusive union between a man and a woman.

Imagine that: this priest had the audacity to repeat his church's teaching on marriage and human sexuality. This priest was so brutal that he apparently repeated God's design for human sexuality and His divine definition of "marriage."

So it seems that even teaching from the Bible may be considered a "hate crime" in "enlightened" Canada.

With liberals in this country clamoring that the United States needs to be more like Canada and the socialist countries of Europe, can this be very far behind here?

The article in Catholic Exchange points out that Christians are already getting hammered here in the States. New Mexico hammered a Christian photographer (a private businessman) who didn't want to photograph two lesbians make a commitment to each other.

And there are other examples:

- Catholic Charities in Boston was forced out of the adoption ministry because they refused to put children in homes of homosexual couples.

- Boston school teachers have been threatened with termination if they fail to cast homosexuality in a positive light to students.

- The University of Toledo fired a black administrator for writing a "letter to the editor" of a local newspaper about the inconsistency of comparing homosexuality to ethnicity.

- Christians in Philadelphia were arrested for reading Bible verses and praying out loud during a homosexual festival.

- Philadelphia has also decided to stick it to the Boy Scouts (who don't allow homosexuals in leadership positions of their loyal-to-God organization), charging them $200,000 a year rent to use facilities that other charities use for free.

We're headed for a bad place, folks. We've had it good in America for more than 200 years. We've enjoyed religious freedom in a culture founded on Christian values. But we fell asleep and let the inmates take over the asylum.

Not only is the First Amendment about to fly out the window, but freedom in general is right on it's heels.

Calif. Supreme Court Refuses to Delay Marriage Decision

The San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that the California Supreme Court has refused to delay implementation of their decision to create a right to homosexual "marriage" in California.

The court manufactured this right despite the fact that the people of California passed Proposition 22 in 2000 by a 61% margin, defining marriage as between a man and a woman.

Apparently it was too much to ask of this activist court that they act responsibly. It was too much to ask for them to help prevent the unfounded lawsuits other states may face, avoid the chaos that may result if their own state rejects homosexual "marriage" in November, and subordinate their royal will to democracy.

Apparently the appeals of ten other states, including South Dakota, also fell on deaf-but-imperial ears in California.

Who says we don't have royalty in the United States?

Celebrating Moral Bankruptcy on CBS

If you look in the dictionary under "morally bankrupt," I think you'll find a picture of Mike Kelley, the creator of a depraved new show coming to CBS this fall.

From CBN News:

It's called "Swingtown," and explores a world of drugs, sex and open marriage in suburban America during the 1970s.

It was bad enough for those of us who had to live through the 1970s; we don't deserve to have that sad decade shoved back in our faces again.

The article quotes Kelley as not understanding why some people might have a problem with the show:

"I don't understand why this show is so threatening. But I don't understand why gay marriage is so threatening either," Kelley told Los Angeles Times.

"I understand there's going to be a portion of the available audience that will just say, 'I can't do this, I can't go there,'" he added. "Too bad, because there is so much to embrace in this show. I think people who reject it have a problem with fear in general in their lives."

No, I think people who reject it have a problem with a lack of decency in the culture--the culture they have to live in.

I wouldn't want to be in Kelley's shoes, come judgment day.

Turning Point in the Pacific

American Minute from William J. Federer

The turning point in the Pacific War began JUNE 4, 1942.

American intelligence intercepted Japan's plans to capture Midway Island and from there, Hawaii. The outnumbered U.S. Pacific Fleet ambushed the Japanese armada, but was losing badly. It was not until American dive bombers, navigating by guess and by God, sighted the Japanese aircraft carriers far below through a break in the clouds at the precise moment the Japanese planes had left to attack the U.S.S. Yorktown.

In just five minutes, the screeching American dive bombers sank three Japanese carriers, and a fourth shortly after. After this providential event, Japan was forced to go on the defensive.

On the Pacific War, President Roosevelt said, August 12, 1943: "Three weeks after the armies of the Japanese launched their attack on Philippine soil, I sent a proclamation...to the people of the Philippines... that their freedom will be redeemed...The great day of your liberation will come, as surely as there is a God in Heaven."

Roosevelt stated October 20, 1944: "On this occasion of the return of General MacArthur to Philippine soil...we renew our pledge. We and our Philippine brothers in arms - with the help of Almighty God - will drive out the invader."

William J. Federer is a nationally recognized author, speaker, and president of Amerisearch, Inc, which is dedicated to researching our American heritage. The American Minute radio feature looks back at events in American history on the dates they occurred, is broadcast daily across the country and read by thousand on the internet.

Republicans need to consider something this election year

GUEST COLUMN

By Mike Lauritsen
South Dakota Republican Party


As the Democrats have demonstrated this year a party can easily be divided. Many in the Democratic Party have stated they staunchly support one candidate and not the other, fracturing the party down the middle.

I keep hearing Hillary supporters saying “If Obama wins I’ll stay at home on election day” or vice versa. I say "Great!!!"

This division has serious consequences for the Democrats. Obama has gained access (bought) from the US Post Office the list of people that recently filled out Change of Address Forms in South Dakota; in doing so he has registered somewhere around 4000 new Democrats in South Dakota. We can only hope that Hillary continues to fight, further causing damage to the Democratic Party.

The Republican voters should be taking notes on what’s going on here. We have a majority here on the western side of the great state of South Dakota. But instead of learning from what is unfolding in front of us we continue to make the same mistakes as our opponents.

We continue to attack each other, maybe only for the reason that we have no one else to vent towards. We can learn from what’s happening here, instead of quarrelling over minimal differences we should be uniting and working toward an ultimate goal: a Republican Majority in both houses.

We as Republicans stand for something. If a candidate has an "R" behind his or her name we know they stand for something. They have values, beliefs, and stances that are similar to ours as Republicans. It’s important to remember that we may differ a little on any issue here and there, but this would be a poor reason to dismiss our fellow Republican, or even worse denounce a candidate.

As Benjamin Franklin said, “We must all hang together, or assuredly, we shall all hang separately.” We need to rise above arguing over the little differences and unite.

We can make a grand sweep this year, we have the voters but we need to connect and work together to overcome our opposition.

This Primary election has sparked a new interest in politics for many Americans, causing them to register as Democrats so that they can take part in the action.

The main message we need to send to our legislatures is, “United we stand parted 'party' we fall.”


Mike Lauritsen is the Regional Political Coordinator for the South Dakota Republican Party. He works on all of the legislative races on the western side of South Dakota and lives in Rapid City.