LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY navytron89) Warning  the following may piss off and offend alot of good people here. 

Convention ends with Satan and immigrants

CALEB WARNOCK - Daily Herald   

Utah County Republicans ended their convention on Saturday by debating Satan's influence on illegal immigrants.

 
EDIT: My response: What a bunch of grade "A" assholes these guys are.  

This sounds like a bunch things that a of group of redneck racists would  say and that I hear from  places in the South . It truly amazes me that the LDS community doesn't rise up and smite these bastards. (Channeling the Comedian Lewis Black here).

Its things like this that make the rest of the country look at the LDS community and think that they've lost their minds. While I can see that these guys are a noisy minority who are making the LDS community look like they're racists as well, which is why they should run people like this out of town, and work on finding nicer elected officals instead of ignorant racists that pander to the lowest fears in everyone.

I had Mormon neighbors growing up and they were the nicest people ever and while it is a common joke that Utah is the whitest state in the Union. These jerks that hold office are making people in Utah  and specifically the LDS community sound like a  bunch of racists.  The LSD community needs to work on fixing this image that those morons are showing people and undo the damage that this could cause with their relationships to other faiths and groups.  

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

As usual, Jews on First has one of the most comprehensive looks at the upcoming "National Day of Prayer". It is an exclusive True Believers™ Only gathering that is sponsored by Focus on the Family:

Major figures on the Christian Right are pulling out all the stops to simulate an official, government-endorsed national prayer day scheduled for Thursday, May 3rd.

Focus on the Family, regarded as the nation's most powerful religious right group, effectively controls the day's events, according to news reports and interfaith non-profits.

On Monday, Focus on the Family Chairman James Dobson thanked his followers for successfully badgering New York Governor Eliot Spitzer into becoming the 50th governor to sign a proclamation for the National Day of Prayer.

Dobson's wife chairs the self-appointed National Day of Prayer Task Force. The group is organizing prayer events in and near official buildings and schools to give the impression of government-endorsed religion. Interlinked websites promoting this year's event (listed on the task force home page pictured here) also include web pages on evangelizing military personnel. We've provided examples and links at the end of this report.

One of the interlinked websites operated by the pseudo-official Presidential Prayer Team promotes a "National Observance" from Washington DC, bidding the public to: "[j]oin with us as we celebrate America's 56th annual National Day of Prayer from our nation's capitol." James Dobson will be one of the presenters.

( Purposeful exclusion of other faith traditions )

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY sunfell)

This Evangelism and Discipleship page is a good look at how our military is being inculcated into religious conformity.

There's a quicktime video that loads and plays upon accessing the site.

Military Ministry’s first strategic objective is to Evangelize and Disciple All Enlisted Members of the US Military [emphasis theirs]. We seek to provide every uniformed son and daughter of America with an anchor for the soul through Jesus Christ. This process begins at the recruit training bases…boot camps…where new troops are transformed physically, mentally, and ideally… spiritually.

We seek to not only impact the Armed Forces in this way, but to also transform our entire nation as we build values, character and Christian faith into these dear ones who serve us at home and abroad.[emphasis mine]

Reread that last bit. "Onward Christian Soldiers" has a sinister new sound to it now. But now, it's nonbelievers they are hoping to march off to war against.

This is interesting... and also chilling:

Fast Facts

* This year, more than 400,000 young Americans will begin their military service in basic trainings centers.

* Ninety percent of enlisted recruits are aged 17 to 24 – challenging Military Ministry to remain relevant and effective.

* Each Sunday of the year, Military Ministry Gateway staff and volunteers conduct evangelistic and discipleship classes attended by more than 2500 enlisted trainees.

* These workers invest about 130,000 hours of their time in the US military’s newest generation each year.

* Every week, an average of 300 enlistees indicate decisions for Christ at these basic training locations:

o Ft Jackson, South Carolina (largest Army Basic Training)
o Great Lakes Naval Training Center, Chicago, Illinois (Navy Basic Training)
o Lackland AFB, San Antonio, Texas (Air Force Basic Training)
o Parris Island, South Carolina (Marine Consolidate Recruiting Depot)

* In addition, we run programs at the following advanced training centers:
o Ft Eustis, Virginia (Army Transportation Command)
o Defense Language Institute, Monterey, California (Military Language Schools)
o Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA

* We’ve recently launched a medical ministry in San Antonio to serve the returning wounded from Iraq and Afghanistan.

These are your kids folks. This is our military being pestered and harried by ministeries like this. They don't like to take 'no' for an answer.

LJ-SEC: (ORIGINALLY POSTED BY drgndancer)

A relative is becoming involved in this organization, and I'm doing some digging. I've looked at their website and done some internet searches, but haven't come up with a lot of specific information. They are clearly at least somewhat coercive and Dominionist (I'm always wary of groups that exist explicitly to propagate their own message), but I can find little specific information on things they have done that I and my family should be concerned about. Telling everyone "They are teh EBIL! Just look at their website! Ebil codewords everywhere!" is not quite as effective as being able to point out specific things they support or have done.

I'm going to continue to investigate on my own, but any pointers or tips would be appreciated.