A Woman Who Fears the Lord

By Angela Wittman School choice , accountability, education reform, parental choice, vouchers, charter schools; it seems we've been hearing these words with increasing frequency the past several weeks. But have we really examined the meaning of these phrases and the impact that they will have upon our educational freedom? Perhaps we need to examine the long term effect that a Federal and State voucher program will have upon our private schools, religious institutions and families. As a former Government School Board Member (1995 - 2000), I have seen firsthand the danger of accepting government funds and the involuntary chains that accompany it. Some of these chains are not so apparent in the beginning - but chains they are. Any time you accept any type of government funding, you are accepting the stipulations and regulations that accompany it. It is this knowledge that caused me to reconsider my position as the Southern Illinois Founding President and Coordinator for Citizens for E

By Angela Wittman "Just before 9 a.m. on October 28, 2001, three terrorists dressed in black "shalwars" ( a long, loose fitting shirt that is common among Pakistani males) and armed with Kalishnikov automatic weapons forced their way into St. Dominic's Church. Catholics share the church building with the Church of Pakistan. The Protestant praise and prayer time had been so joyful; the service was running a bit late. The start of the Catholic mass would be delayed. "Pastor Emmanuel Allah Atta had just concluded his sermon on the importance of prayer during the tumultuous times facing Pakistani Christians. One of the gunmen stormed up to the pulpit and ordered the pastor to throw his Bible to the ground. "I will not!" insisted Pastor Emmanuel. He turned away from the terrorist and embraced his Bible, pressing it close to his heart. The gunman shouted, "Allah Ahkbar!" (God is great) and opened fire on Pastor Emmanuel, shooting him in the back, t

By Angela Wittman I recently received an e-mail of an article written by Cal Thomas. The title of the article is "The Second Death of Religious Politics: Pat Robertson's resignation pulls the plug on a comatose religious-political body already dead." (Crosswalk.com News Channel). Being labeled a political activist of the Conservative Christian Right, I was most intrigued by the title and curious to see where Cal Thomas was headed with his opinion. I had read a few years back where it was reported that he had said that we (meaning Christians involved in politics) had lost the culture war. I would like to give my response to several of the statements made in this article, since the conservative movement seems to be alive and well here in Illinois. ( Actually, I wasn't aware that there had been a first death of Religious Politics.) Mr. Thomas states that "Religious politics failed the church because believers were told they could improve the morals of a nation throu

By Angela Wittman As we wage the war on terrorism and hear the reports of bombings, anthrax scares and the latest terrorist threats, let's not forget those who are being persecuted for their faith and personal beliefs. I have heard reports of Christians who are being martyred and arrested for their faith in other countries such as Sudan, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Viet Nam, Tibet, China, Indonesia, Pakistan, Ethiopia, and Nigeria. There are reports of followers of Christ being imprisoned, ostracized by family and friends, tortured, beaten, murdered and their homes and churches burned by their governments. As a Christian I am saddened and outraged. As a nation founded upon Christian principles, I pray we will petition our government to take action against these crimes and not support the nations committing them. My next point is going to hit close to home, please think about this and search your hearts to see if you have been a party to this more subtle form of religious persecution

9/7/01 To the Editor: As a former public school board member, I am shocked and dismayed at the recent resolutions passed by the liberal National Education Association (NEA) at their annual convention in Los Angeles, Ca. It is true that after much outcry and pressure from their own membership, the NEA withdrew Resolution “New B” regarding “Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Education”. But don’t let that fool you. Following is a brief summary of resolutions that were passed and are reported to affrim the criteria of “New B’. Ø B1 – Calls for programs in public schools for children from birth through age 8. (The NEA is calling for Universal Pre-School.) Ø B7 – Calls for acceptance of “diversity” which includes sexual orientation. Ø B9 – Includes Sexual Orientation as discrimination if you do not accept your child being taught about gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered people. (They are proposing plans, activities and programs for students to increase their

August 2, 2001 To the editor: I’d like to begin my letter with a quote from a column our Republican U.S. Senator Peter Fitzgerald released September 11, 2000, titled “A Farm Strategy for the New Millennium”. In paragraph three, Sen. Fitzgerald states, ‘We must recognize that family farmers, like many other small business owners competing in the fast-paced information age, cannot survive if they are burdened with high taxes, restrictive trade barriers, and excessive government regulation’. This is a fine noble statement for our young senator from Schaumburg, Illinois to make. However, his recent action to vote to table senate amendment 899 to HR 2217 shows quite a contradiction! Senate amendment 899 was offered by U.S. Senator Gordon Smith of Oregon to release irrigation water to approximately 1400 farmers and their families suffering from drought conditions who depend on this water to grow a large variety of crops in the Klamath Basin located in Oregon. You may be wondering why thes

By Angela Wittman I recently read an article concerning the National Education Association and the policy changes that have been and are taking place at the National Leadership. It seems that the largest and most powerful teacher’s union is concerned with more than retirement funds, salary scales, and contracts. The article, ‘Homosexual agenda promoted by NEA?’ written by Julie Foster only confirmed what I had suspected from my knowledge of the National Education Association and our public schools while serving on a public school board in the mid to late 1990’s. Public education has shifted from learning the three R’s to conditioning young minds and promoting “values” that have many parents up in arms. This is referred to as affective education. One has only to watch the local news to see the effect it is having on our youth and the culture. What is affective education? It deals with feelings, attitudes and beliefs. The emphasis is no longer on academics or educational skills. Affectiv