Bill Muehlenberg
Author, Blogger and Speaker
Bill Muehlenberg, who was born in America, lives in Melbourne. He is married to an Australian, Averil, and has three sons. He has a BA with honours in philosophy (Wheaton College, Chicago), a MA with highest honours in theology (Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, Boston), and is working on a PhD in theology. He is Secretary of the Family Council of Victoria. He was formerly the National Vice President of the Australian Family Association. He was formerly the National Research Coordinator at Focus on the Family.
He currently continues an independent ministry in pro-faith and pro-family activism. He is head of an apologetics/ethics ministry called CultureWatch, started in January 2006. This interactive blogsite features over 3,300 articles and 52,000 comments.
Marriage and History
The current marriage wars are so very odd for so many reasons. Until just recently the ideological left was vigorously insisting that marriage is just a piece of paper; that marriage is an oppressive and outdated institution; and that marriage is artificial – a relatively recent social construct. Today however the left in general and the homosexual activists in particular are demanding the right to marriage, claiming it is the most important thing there is. So which is it? Is it just a waste of time or is it a necessity? Of course we know the answer to this already. Marriage has never really been wanted by most homosexuals, and it is only the symbolic effect – plus the power and control that goes with it – that they seek through the redefinition – and thus destruction – of marriage. But all that I have documented in great detail elsewhere. But let me look more closely at just one of the charges thrown around by the marriage attackers – at least up until recently. The claim that marriage and family are relatively recent inventions – often claimed to have originated in the US in the 1950s! – deserves a response.
Same Sex Marriage and Safe Schools are a Package Deal
The pro-homosexual marriage activists keep claiming our side is putting up a lot of red herrings and false diversions about legalising faux marriage. When we say that a vote for homosexual marriage means a vote for radical sex education, including the deplorable safe schools program and the whole transgender agenda, and much more, the other side claims there is no connection whatsoever. But the simple truth is, the pro-homosexual sex ed programs and the like have always been part and parcel of the radical homosexual agenda, including the push for homosexual marriage. That has been crystal clear right from the beginning. One simply has to look at statements made by these radical left groups to see that this is indeed the case. Yet so many in the media, in politics, and sadly even in so many of our churches are all insisting that homosexual marriage will be fine and nothing negative will follow on from this. They are quite clueless here. And sadly too many of these Christians seem to enjoy being armchair critics in all this.
The Homosexual Marriage Debate: Censorship, Bullying and Hysteria
Let me open with a few home truths: -Those demanding the complete redefinition – and thus destruction – of marriage do NOT want a debate on the matter. -They want it rammed through without the agreement of the public. -They do not have facts and evidence on their side, which is why they despise debate. -They therefore do not seek to win the debate – they seek to shut down the debate. -If they must engage in debate, the best they can come up with is ad hominem attacks, mud-slinging, name-calling, hate and hysteria. All this is easily enough documented. As to the other side preventing genuine debate from taking place, and shutting down the ‘No’ voice on homosexual marriage, consider a few recent articles.
The Challenge of Euthanasia
The push to legalise euthanasia continues in the West. The Benelux countries led the way with legalisation (the Netherlands, 2002; Belgium 2002; Luxembourg, 2008), and some other states and countries have followed suit since then. While euthanasia is presented as something compassionate, it is anything but. Plenty of helpful resources on this are available, but here I want to mention two new resources which are worth being aware of. The first is a helpful piece in today’s Weekend Australia by Paul Kelly, and the second is a soon to be released book by myself. [This book is now available - Ed.]
Norma McCorvey (Jane Roe), RIP
A leading figure in the abortion wars – on both sides – has just passed away. Norma McCorvey was the “Jane Roe” of the 1973 American abortion decision, Roe v Wade. Later she became a Christian and worked tirelessly on behalf of the unborn. She died yesterday at age 69. Her famous story has been told countless times. Most would know her for the US abortion case that struck down the laws of all 50 states on abortion. But perhaps not as many know that she later (in 1995) became a Christian and a strong prolifer, and then converted to Catholicism in 1998. She wrote two books on her life and her amazing turnaround: I am Roe (with Andy Meisler – HarperCollins, 1995) Won by Love (with Gary Thomas – Thomas Nelson, 1997) The Roe v Wade case may be very well known, but many do not know how McCorvey was just a victim in all this. She did not want an abortion, and was simply used by the pro-abort crowd for their own mischievous ends.
More Anti-Christian Bigotry in Victoria
Things are growing darker by the day in the People’s Republik of Victoria. I have documented a number of very ominous developments here under the radical leftist reign of Labor Premier Dan Andrews. He seems obsessed with wiping out Christianity and religious freedom while he implements every hard-core minority group agenda around. His latest attack of faith and freedom comes in the form of the Equal Opportunity Amendment (Religious Exceptions) Bill 2016. It is a frightening proposal which everyone concerned about freedom and religious freedom should know about.
The West's War Against Faith and Freedom
The West developed largely as a result of the Judeo-Christian worldview, and it was known for centuries as the defender of free speech, as the defender of religious liberty, and as the defender of freedom of conscience, and so on. All that is unravelling right before our very eyes, and the West is quickly descending back into a new dark ages of repression and intolerance. It seems every time we open a newspaper or check out the evening news we have more cases of anti-Christian bigotry and the tolerance police in action.