The California Assembly approved a bill on April 19, 2018, 50-18, that tells churches and other with traditional beliefs about gender and sexual orientation that advocating for their views could get them sued. AB 2943, declares “advertising, offering to engage in, or engaging in sexual orientation change efforts with an individual” is illegal under state’s consumer fraud law.
"To take just one example, large numbers of children who exhibit gender dysphoria eventually “desist.” Their dysphoria resolves itself as they grow older. Indeed, there is serious research indicating that this is the “most likely outcome” for a child with gender dysphoria. Under AB 2943, the very act of communicating this truthful and indeed hopeful message could very well lead to legal jeopardy. This is extraordinary.
Despite the obvious constitutional problems and despite its obvious intolerance for the Christian ethics of millions of its citizens, the bill is presently sailing through — passing two committee votes by 8–2 and 8–1 margins. It may come up for an Assembly vote as soon as this Thursday.
And of course California is no marginal state. It’s hailed as the center of opposition to Trump and called the “future of American politics.” It’s the progressive model, not the progressive fringe."
One Step
Closer to Law: Could a California Bill Ultimately Lead to the Banning of
Bibles?
04-20-2018 Talia Wise, Donna
Russell
A pro-LGBTQ bill is
quickly making its way through the California state assembly after it was
approved on the floor Thursday. The bill now goes to the state Senate for a
vote.
If passed, Assembly Bill 2943 could
ultimately threaten free speech and freedom of religion for Christians.
It uses the state's
consumer fraud statute to restrict religious freedom and free speech when it
comes to issues of homosexuality and gender identity.
This means the bill
would make it illegal to distribute resources, sell books, offer counseling
services, or direct someone to a biblically based model for getting help with
gender confusion and homosexuality.
Randy Thomasson
with SaveCalifornia.com says the bill is very
broad and could affect just about anything helping people overcome same-sex
desires.
"So, this is a
pastor speaking, you pay a ticket to hear him speak. He speaks about overcoming
same-sex desires. Hey, that could be outlawed. A church sells a book about
overcoming same-sex desires. There's a sale, there's a transaction, that could
be banned," Thomasson said.
"This is very
expansive, very tyrannical and absolutely squashing free speech, religious
freedom and basic choice of people. This is an anti-freedom, anti-American
bill," Thomasson told CBN News.
Essentially, churches
and Christian schools that share biblical teaching on the subject would be open
to a lawsuit.
CBN News asked Thomasson if this bill could eventually
lead to a ban on Bibles or even books from other faiths like the Koran.
"Well, you could
see this law going into effect. A church bookstore selling the Bible, of
course, selling a book about marriage or sexual purity or overcoming
homosexuality or overcoming trans-sexuality. You could see a member of the
public or even a member of the state government coming and saying, 'Hey, that's
illegal,'" Thomasson answered.
"Even the Muslim
community should be against this, too, because of what is said about sexual
perversity in the Koran," Thomasson also said.
If AB 2943 clears
California's Senate and is signed into law, it would negatively impact
Christian counselors, bookstores, church conferences, as well as medical and
health professionals.
The bill also seeks to
ban biblically based counseling for those wanting to get help.
It comes six years after
California deemed it illegal for minors to receive counseling for same-sex
attraction, even if they and their parents wanted help. Now, this bill would
also address adults.
"AB 2943 would
start by saying, ok, nobody can get counseling to overcome same-sex desires...
ok, so no help for adult children, adults who were molested as kids and now
they are adults and they say I want help to overcome these feelings. No help
for you," Thomasson explained.
The bill states that
"contemporary science recognizes that being lesbian, gay, bisexual, or
transgender is part of the natural spectrum of human identity and is not a
disease, disorder, or illness."
Mat Staver, founder
and chairman of Liberty Counsel, told CBN News that what makes
this bill especially dangerous is that California often leads the charge in pushing
the LGBTQ legislative agenda.
California was one of
the first states to ban "conversion therapy" for minors. Shortly
afterward, Oregon, New Jersey, and Vermont passed similar laws.
"People have the
right to seek the counsel of their choice, but this bill substitutes the
government for personal choice. The implications are staggering, and the result
is harmful," Staver said in a statement to CBN News.
Liberty Counsel further explains,
"This bill would also make it unlawful for any person to sell books,
including the Bible, counseling services, or anything else that directs people
to trust in Jesus Christ to help them overcome unwanted same-sex attraction or gender
confusion."
"Imagine a church
not allowed to sell Christian books, or even Bibles, that help people overcome
same-sex attractions. This bill will do the unimaginable if passed. If it does
pass, we will immediately file suit," the religious liberties organization
states.
Source: http://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/politics/2018/april/one-step-closer-to-law-could-a-california-bill-ultimately-lead-to-the-banning-of-bibles
As Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) explains:
At its core, AB 2943 outlaws speech, whether offered by a licensed counselor, a best-selling author, or even a minister or religious leader. It targets a specific message—that an adult who is experiencing unwanted same-sex attraction or gender identity confusion can find help to address those issues—for censorship. The breadth of this censorship is staggering. Under AB 2943:
• A licensed counselor could not help a married mother of three who is experiencing unwanted attraction to a close female friend or confusion over her gender identity overcome those feelings;
• A religious ministry could not hold a conference on maintaining sexual purity if the conference encourages attendees to avoid homosexual behavior;
• A bookstore (including online bookstores like Amazon) could not sell many recently published books challenging gender identity ideology and advocating that these beliefs should be rejected by society; and
• A pastor paid to speak at an event addressing current social topics could not encourage attendees that they can prevail over same-sex desires or feelings that they were born the wrong sex.
In these scenarios, there is a transaction (the counselor’s payment; the conference attendance fees; the cost of the book; and the pastor’s speaking fee) that triggers AB 2943. And under the bill, a person or organization who is paid by a consumer for goods or services cannot engage in any practice—including pure speech—that tells someone that they can overcome unwanted same-sex attraction or gender identity confusion.
AB 2943 comes six years after California's Democrat legislators passed a law forbidding parents from getting counseling for their molested children to help them overcome sexual confusion.
