State Rep. Makes Waves For Refusing To Vote To Celebrate Ramadan

[#TexasPolitics365]

A Texas Republican has sparked controversy by voting against a resolution celebrating Ramadan, the Muslim holy month, in the state legislature.

A total of six members of the House failed to vote for the motion, but only State Rep. Tony Tinderholt released a statement saying his "faith as a Christian" meant he could not support the motion.

In November 2022 Dr. Suleman Lalani and Salman Bhojani became the first Muslims to be elected to the Texas Legislature. Both men serve as Democratic members of the Texas House of Representatives.

The fort Worth Star-Telegram's editorial board wrote that Tinderholt "smeared two faiths — including his own — with pathetic vote against Ramadan honor."

 His vote has also made news internationally. 

(Full story HERE.)
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South Texas Republican Congressional Candidates Highlight Faith, Voter Turnout

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The three Republican candidates running to represent the Rio Grande Valley in Congress came together for a prayer breakfast here, highlighting their faith as they called on people to vote in the midterm elections.

(Full story HERE.)
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Crenshaw Seems To Question Reality Of Jesus During Podcast

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A March, 2020 podcast is coming back to haunt congressman Dan Crenshaw because of a question a young woman asked about it during a recent fundraiser.

During the podcast with John Gretton “Jocko” Willink, a fellow former Navy SEAL and officer, Crenshaw was asked about philosophy and fiction and began discussing hero archetypes in stories.

“The important thing is that we have societal hero archetypes that we look up to. Jesus is a hero archetype. Superman is a hero archetype. Real characters, too, I could name a thousand. Rosa Parks, Ronald Reagan…” he said. 

A young woman (seriously identified as a 10 year old or an 18 year old on Twitter) asked Crenshaw about the quote during a fundraiser, according to a widely distributed video on Twitter. She added after quoting what he said, "I can't wrap my head around this."

Crenshaw answered, "Well, I'll help you. Put a period after Jesus and don't question my faith." He went on to say that in no part of that quote did he say that Jesus wasn't real.

(Full story HERE.)
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Dem. Lt Gov. Candidate Says GOP Would Call Jesus "Woke" Today

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A former George W. Bush campaign adviser who is running as a Democrat in Texas’ lieutenant governor's race said Sunday that Jesus Christ today would be declared "woke" by conservatives.

Matthew Dowd, who is seeking his party’s nomination to take on Republican incumbent Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, said he came to the realization in church that today’s "wokeness" is just another term for human decency.

(Full story here.)
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San Antonio Church Under fire After "Let's Go Brandon" Chants

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A San Antonio church is coming under fire over video showing people inside the place of worship chanting the viral anti-Biden phrase, "Let’s Go Brandon." 

"A euphemism for, you know, less than well wishes for the president of the United States and it has become a kind of a radical conservative rallying cry," Oklahoma pastor Jeremy Coleman said of the video showing people within the nondenominational Cornerstone Church chanting the phrase. 

"It was gut-wrenching and heartbreaking," Coleman added, according to News4SA. 

An outside group held a "ReAwaken America" conference at the facility, which is run by televangelist John Hagee, from Nov. 11-13, where allies of former Pres. Trump, such as Michael Flynn and My Pillow CEO Michael Lindell, spoke, Newsweek reported. 

San Antonio Democratic congressman Joaquin Castro condemned the rally.

"This is not a church service. It’s a political rally. It’s also a prime example of why more people are turned off by and leaving organized religion," Castro said on Twitter. 

(Full story here.)
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Satanic Temple Seeks "Religious Exception" To Heartbeat Law

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Texas’ controversial fetal heartbeat bill may have many fans among some religious communities — but the Satanic Temple isn’t among them.

The religion, which does not have or believe in gods, filed a letter with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to request its members have access to abortion pills on grounds of freedom of religion, Fortune reports.

This comes as the state of Texas passed the nation’s most restrictive abortion laws this past week. Under Senate Bill 8, abortions after six weeks of pregnancy are banned. The legislation was met with national and international controversy.

(Full story here.)
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Bill Banning Gov't Closure Of Churches Heads To Gov. Abbott's Desk

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A bill banning governments from shutting down churches and houses of worship  any reason heads to the governor’s desk for signature after it passed its final vote on Friday, 113 to 30.

Filed by Rep. Scott Sanford, R-McKinney, HB 1239 prohibits governments from ordering the closure of houses of worship in Texas.

(Full story here)
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Bill To Halt Gov't Closure Of Churches Passes #Texas House

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A bill designed to protect religious freedom and ensure that no governmental entity has the power to close a house of worship has passed the House of Representatives, in a vote of 117 to 29. 

House Bill 1239, sponsored by Rep. Scott Sanford, had over 50 co-sponsors, and was among the priority issues outlined in Governor Greg Abbott’s State of State Address in February. 

The bill prohibits any governmental entity from issuing an order or passing an ordinance that would close houses of worship. In addition to adding a prohibition on closures, the bill also creates a defense against prosecution under the protection of the First Amendment of the US Constitution.

Backers argued that the unprecedented closure of churches, mosques, and synagogues in 2020 negatively impacted many who were struggling with isolation and stress during the pandemic. 

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Freedom to Worship Bill Passes Senate

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The state Senate has passed Senate Bill 26, which would prohibit local or state officials from forcing houses of worship to close.

The Legislation, sponsored by Sen. Angela Paxton, defines worship as an "essential service."

A companion bill in the House of Representatives is HB 1239. Sponsored by Rep. Scott Sanford.

The group Texas Values, which is supporting the legislation in both houses, said in a press release that "Churches provide essential spiritual and mental health support in a time of crisis. Closing churches not only eliminates these critical services, but it violates the religious freedom rights guaranteed by our laws and Constitution."

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Proposed Bill Would Consider Worship As An "Essential Service"

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A north Texas Republican has filed legislation that would designate places of worship and religious activity as “essential” under Texas law, reports CBS 21 (Dallas-Fort Worth.)

If passed, the bill, by Plano Representative Matt Shaheen, would prevent houses of worship from being forcibly shut down because of a disaster declaration or any other reason.

Shaheen said he presented the legislation, “… after numerous examples across the nation of religious gatherings being expressly prohibited while secular businesses have been permitted to continue to operate.”

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