Government Seeks Control of Christian Residential Ministries
Nov 17
Christian groups homes for troubled children and teens are under threat from this latest government initiative. Under the guise of preventing child abuse, the government wants to insert itself into private Christian residential facilities. Here’s the bill vote and here’s what one pastor has to say about it. Please help spread the word.
Government Endangers Freedom of Residential Teen Ministries & Orphanages
Dear Friends,
A proposed law would KILL effective, Biblical residential-ministries to teens and children. It is unconstitutional, but that does not stop Congress. The bill is HR 6358. It would dictate”ungodly” standards and impose “secular” demands upon Christian ministries.This bill has already passed the US House of Representatives in June.It has been assigned to a Senate committee.
It is URGENT that we try to stop the Senate Committee on Health,Education,Labor, and Pensions.
Please write a courteous letter to your Senator (especially if he is on the committee).
Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
The following are members of the committee which will be considering the bill:
Chairman: Ted Kennedy;Ranking GOP Member: Michael Enzi of Wyoming;
Sen. Sherrod Brown (Ohio); Sen. Richard Burr (North Carolina); Sen. Orrin Hatch (Utah); Senator John Isakson (Georgia); Senator Thomas Harkin (Iowa).
HR 6358 was passed by the House of Representatives in June 2008. To see the vote on this bill, click on the following link:
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/vote.xpd?vote=h2008-459The real problem is that the government wants to control ALL private and church ministries. The government would define “minimum standards” that would forbid
Biblical discipline and ministry to troubled teens and children.
Almost any “discipline” would be considered “child abuse.”Check the following summary of a section of the bill:
Stop Child Abuse in Residential Programs for Teens Act of 2008 - HR 6358
Section 3 - Directs the Assistant Secretary for Children and Families of the Department of Health and Human Services to require each location of a covered program to meet specified minimum standards if individually or together with other locations it has an effect on interstate commerce.
Defines “covered program” as one operated by a public or private entity that with respect to one or more children unrelated to the program owner or operator: (1) provides a residential environment; and (2) operates with a focus on serving children with emotional, behavioral, or mental health problems or disorders, or problems with alcohol or substance abuse.
Directs the Assistant Secretary to:
(1) implement an on-going review process for investigating and evaluating reports of child abuse and neglect;
(2) establish public websites with information about each covered program,as well as a national toll-free telephone hotline to receive complaints;
(3) establish civil penalties for violations of standards; and
(4) establish a process to ensure that complaints received by the hotline are promptly reviewed by persons with appropriate expertise.
Section 4 -
Requires the Assistant Secretary to refer any violation of such standards to the Attorney General for appropriate action if the Assistant Secretary determines that a violation has not been remedied through the enforcement process. Authorizes the Attorney General to file such a complaint on his or her own initiative regardless of whether such a referral has been made.
Our Rights as Individuals and as Christians Are Eroding Quickly . :rofl:
Dr. Ronald Williams
