Death of Religious Freedom, Death of the Free Market

The above title is from an excellent post by Bob Ellis over at BarbWire.com — here is his opening:

The recent battle over religious freedom in Indiana over their Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) has exposed the raw wound of the Left’s war on Christianity in America. When two diametrically opposed and incompatible value systems (namely Christianity and hedonistic humanism) come together in the same place, there can be no peaceful coexistence.  One will necessarily dominate, while the other is necessarily subjugated. We saw that quickly happen in Indiana last week.

But this deplorable event not only exposed the Left’s war on Christianity in America, but also the Left’s war on the free market in America.

Sooner or later the social liberals who call themselves fiscal conservatives will have to wake up to the fact that you cannot disconnect the economic issues from the social issues.

In the article, Bob Ellis also includes these quotes from a few guys whose names you might recognize:

Government is instituted to protect property of every sort. . . . [and] conscience is the most sacred of all property. – James Madison

No provision in our Constitution ought to be dearer to man than that which protects the rights of conscience. – Thomas Jefferson

Consciences of men are not the objects of human legislation. – New Jersey Governor William Livingston, signer of the U.S. Constitution

Security under our constitution is given to the rights of conscience. – John Jay, First Chief of U.S. Supreme Court, author of the Federalist Papers

Our rulers can have no authority over such natural rights, only as we have submitted to them. The rights of conscience we never submitted, we could not submit. We are answerable for them to our God. – Thomas Jefferson

It is sufficiently obvious, that persons and property are the two great subjects on which Governments are to act; and that the rights of persons, and the rights of property, are the objects, for the protection of which Government was instituted. These rights cannot well be separated. – James Madison

Government is instituted to protect property of every sort…[and] conscience is the most sacred of all property. – James Madison

The moment the idea is admitted into society that property is not as sacred as the laws of God, and that there is not a force of law and public justice to protect it, anarchy and tyranny commence. If `Thou shalt not covet’ and `Thou shalt not steal’ were not commandments of Heaven, they must be made inviolable precepts in every society before it can be civilized or made free. – John Adams

An impressive list.

Ellis also writes:

The only problem is that after several decades of being dumbed-down by our Leftist academia and media institutions as well as being immersed in “bread and circuses” rather than developing the ability to think critically, the ability of the average American to wield logic is about as rare as the ability of the average American to wield a sword effectively.

You can read the entire article by Bob Ellis here.

Image credit: www.holycrosscatholic.org.