No Freedom to Speak

I don't always agree with Bill O'Reilly of Fox News, but tonight I found myself in hearty agreement with his position on the NCAA's decision to pull the Focus on the Family ad supporting, surprise, family values. O'Reilly interviewed a guest spokeswoman for a national women's organization who applauded the NCAA move saying the ad could potentially "lure" (her word) unsuspecting viewers to the "hateful" (her word) Focus web site. O'Reilly countered by opining that the NCAA acted in a "cowardly manner" by removing the ad based on a minority objection by activist groups.

O'Reilly tried unsuccessfully to point out the utter hypocrisy in the woman's argument. She believes that the Focus position on abortion and gays is so dangerous that the right to free speech does not apply to them. She said, and I am paraphrasing, that Americans don't want to hear the "divisive" (her word) opinion of exclusive organizations like Focus on the Family. She apparently lives in such a small world that she can't see the hateful and divisive nature of her own words. She apparently has no concept of the wide range of opinion held by Americans on these controversial topics.

What scares me, and seemingly Bill O'Reilly as well, is that there is a growing number of people and organizations who will listen to the whining voices of a minority opinion and react defensively. In this case, the ad itself was a model of non-controversial good sense. Gary Schneeberger, a Focus on the Family spokesperson, said he was "befuddled" by the NCAA's move to pull the ad. "Have we really become a society where it's considered distasteful and controversial for a dad to hope the best for his son?" he said. "If so, we have a lot of soul-searching to do as a nation."

Schneeberger couldn't have said it better. It is not the American way, nor should it be the Christian way to censor our speech to avoid offending those with whom we disagree. Taken to its logical conclusion, this line of reasoning will effectively end all evangelism. The gospel has always been a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. The modern definition of tolerance prohibits any statement that can be interpreted as critical or exclusive. The heart of the gospel message is a bad news/good news situation. The bad news: people are separated from God by their sin; the good news: God has provided a path to reconciliation. This is both critical and exclusive.

So if I must be intolerant to be a faithful Christian, call me intolerant. I will not tolerate sin. I will not tolerate principles, policies or practices that encourage sin. I will try to say these things in the most loving and understanding way possible, but I will continue to say these things. I will work to encourage policy makers who want to foster an atmosphere in which sinful things are discouraged with whatever legal, ethical means are at our disposal. It is my right as an American to seek to promote policies and programs that will bolster my belief system.

Still, I must painfully admit that it is also within the rights of people like the woman O'Reilly confronted to do the same. Where she and those like her go awry is to insist that I don't have the right to express my opinions. In the end I must say that while I wholeheartedly disagree with some of my fellow citizens' opinions, I will steadfastly defend their right to express them. I only wish they would grant me the same opportunity.