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Minnesota Family Council


This Week's Wrap 

* A Life Worth Saying Yes To: Down Syndrome Awareness Month - The
Family Beacon
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* Minnesota Family Council Supports Quick Confirmation for Judge
Amy Coney Barrett

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* Whatever Happened to Public Libraries? An Insider's
Account - The Family Beacon

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* Judge Blocks Madison School District from Lying to Parents - The
Family Beacon

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* And more! It's a big week - scroll down to see everything

A Life Worth Saying Yes To

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 In a TEDx talk called "I have one more chromosome than
you. So what?" disability rights advocate Karen Gaffney
commented to her audience, "Imagine that, ladies and gentlemen.
Here we are... removing barriers to education, making inroads
into a full and inclusive life for people like me, and we have those
who say we shouldn't even be born at all?"
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Born in 1977, Gaffney grew up in a time when the neglect and
mistreatment of people with Down syndrome had recently been brought to
light by disability rights advocates calling for reform. The late
1960s and early 1970s saw the beginning of the end of mass
institutionalization, but as recently as the 1980s, babies with Down
syndrome could be denied life-saving treatments and even food and
water until an act of Congress prohibited this kind of discrimination.
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Recent decades have seen remarkable strides in the advancement of the
rights of people with disabilities. Unfortunately, ableist assumptions
about the "quality of life" of people with disabilities
are still far too common and have lethal effects. Currently, the
majority of preborn babies diagnosed with Down syndrome in the U.S.
and in many European nations are aborted. Gaffney is one of many
individuals with Down syndrome speaking out against this injustice.

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"I believe Down syndrome is a life worth saying yes to,"
Gaffney told her Portland audience. "It is a life worth
saving."

[Read the whole piece by Patience Griswold at The Family Beacon]
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Minnesota Family Council and Others Urge Quick Confirmation of Judge
Amy Coney Barrett

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Minnesota Family Council joined with more than 200 other groups in
signing a letter

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 to members of the U.S. Senate and the Senate Judiciary Committee
urging quick action on the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett to the
Supreme Court. 

"It is not often that such a broad community of stakeholders,
representing free-market, family, faith, education, business, and
judicial interests comes together to speak with a clear and singular
voice. Now is such a time," the letter said.

"We firmly believe she possesses the judicial temperament and
philosophy necessary to act as a xxxxxx for our Constitution and
institutions of government," the letter stated.
"Judges who inject their own policy views into their decisions
are not upholding the rule of law - they are creating new laws.
We elect you, our senators, to do that. Judges have no legitimate hand
in such business."

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Click here to read the letter in full.

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This is a crucial election year, and after our amazing fundraising
dinner, we raised enough funds (hopefully!) to send copies of our
Voter Guide to every church in Minnesota that requests them - that's
thousands and thousands of guides! 

Do you need our voter guide for your church or a community group? You
can use this form to request our 2020 guide in bulk
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. We're asking for a suggested donation to cover our processing and
shipping fees. You can also donate here to support our work informing
Minnesotans about what's at stake this fall! We have no time to lose -
early voting is in progress!

Do you need a voter guide personalized just for you? Use
mnfamilyvoter.com
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to see exactly which candidates will be on your ballot, and where
they stand on the issues.

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Whatever Happened to the Public Library? An Insider's Account

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By Bill Bader

I received my first library card some time in 1958, when I was 9 or
so. I've been a library user ever since. Traditionally, libraries have
presented themselves as family-friendly organizations. In my early
teens I could visit either the local branch library or the central
library on my own. My parents had no reason to be concerned. The one
and only time a librarian questioned my choice was to be certain I
wasn't overextending myself as far as reading level was concerned.
When she saw that I was doing fine, she had no further issue.

I relied on the library for many years for entertainment and
information, but only as a user. This changed when I started my
library career. I began working with the St. Paul Public Library in
November 1979, and retired in December 2019. For two years I was a
library clerk. For 38 years I was a library associate (27 years as a
paraprofessional reference librarian, and 11 years as a cataloger).

During the 1990s I started to notice that teen fiction was becoming
more sexually explicit. Not overtly at the time, but enough that I
started cautioning parents to read the synopses when I saw them
browsing the shelves to find books for their children. I also spotted
the occasional nonfiction books aimed at teen readers who wanted to
explore their sexuality and didn't want to talk about this with their
parents. This trend has only accelerated since then.

Around this time I learned that the library has an unwritten
philosophy: Leave your values at the door. Another unwritten
philosophy: Don't interfere in any way, in any context, if a minor
wants to read or borrow something potentially harmful [...]

Bill Bader retired from the Saint Paul Public Library System in 2019
after forty years of service. Read the whole piece here at

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The Family Beacon. 

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PULPITS & POLITICS Ep. 6: How can politics be a calling for
Christians?

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I'm pleased to share with you the sixth video in our PULPITS &
POLITICS video series about Christian political engagement.

We brought pastors together earlier this year to speak with one of our
elected officials (Rep. Jim Nash of Waconia) about what biblical
citizenship looks like. The resulting conversations became a series of
seven videos, which we're releasing one at a time for our supporters.

The sixth video features Pastor Jason Wredberg of Redeemer Bible
Church in Minnetonka. Pastor Wredberg asks Rep. Nash whether politics
is simply a job, or a spiritual calling for Christians. 
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This question may be of interest to you, someone in your family, or
someone in your church. Click here to watch the video
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. If the video is helpful to you,
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FORWARD it to a friend or family member! 

We will share the final video in the Pulpits & Politics series
next week.

* What is the cost of being a Christian politician?

Additionally, there are five videos we've already featured. Click the
video title to watch each one.
* Why should Christians get involved in the political process?
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* Are we too far gone? Is there hope in the political sphere?
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* What should Christians do besides just voting?
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* Should Christians seek to serve in elected office?
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* What are common misconceptions about politics and politicians?
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You can view all the videos now on our website at
mfc.org/pulpits-politics
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Judge Blocks Madison School District from Lying to Parents

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 Parents should know what happens in their children's
schools and they should be informed immediately if their child is
experiencing mental health struggles while they are at school. This is
basic common sense. Unfortunately, Madison Metropolitan School
District adopted an update to their policies and guidelines handbook
in 2018 allowing and encouraging teachers to deceive parents of
children struggling with gender dysphoria. Under these guidelines,
students are able to socially "transition" behind their
parents back, adopting a new name and using opposite-sex pronouns
while at school without their parents ever knowing. 

The district encouraged teachers to exploit a legal loophole in order
to conceal information from parents by filing "Gender Support
Plans" in their personal notes instead of in the student's
official records. Earlier this year, a group of concerned parents
filed a lawsuit

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challenging this harmful policy, and last week the court issued an
injunction prohibiting the school district from deceiving parents. The
injunction will be in place until the court rules on the case.
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A policy that encourages children to live a double life and enables
teachers to hide important information about a child's mental
health from their parents is unhealthy and troubling. In an expert
affidavit, Dr. Stephen Levine wrote,
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For a child to live radically different identities at home and at
school, and to conceal what he or she perceives to be his or her true
identity from parents, is psychologically unhealthy in itself, and
could readily lead to additional psychological problems.

Dr. Levine also pointed out that "affirmation" of a
child's "gender identity" does not improve mental
health outcomes, but that encouraging "transition" at an
early age can have lifelong consequences.

[Click here to read the whole piece in The Family Beacon]

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Christianity and Wokeness Event: Watch now!

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We've had a great response to the Christianity & Wokeness event
last week, and so we're pleased to share the video recordings with you
now.

With these recordings, we're seeking to equip Christians to understand
and rightly engage subjects like race, ethnicity, Critical Race Theory
(CRT), justice, and the gospel of Jesus Christ. Dr. Owen
Strachan compares "wokeness" to scriptural theology, helping us
to understand that CRT-like related ideology-is a distinct
system from biblical Christianity. Ultimately, we hope these
recordings will help Christ's church to be salt and light by training
attendees to speak the truth in love on divisive matters.
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Talk 1: What Are the Major Claims of Wokeness?
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Talk 2: How Does the Bible Present Ethnicity?
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Talk 3: Why Is Wokeness an Ungodly System?
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Talk 4: How Should We Understand History?
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Talk 5: Question & Answer
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Talk 6: How Can Christ's Church Find Unity in a Divided Time?
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Want to see all the videos?

[Click here to view all the videos as a playlist on YouTube]

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 CONTEND: A FREE conference for parents, family and friends of
those dealing with same-sex attractions.

Topics included:

A Kingdom Perspective of Parents

The Satanic War on Parents

Finding Freedom from the Blame and Shame of the Enemy

Understanding Trauma and the Brain

God's Higher Vision for Your Child 

The Building Blocks of Attachment 

Kingdom Tools to Fight for Your Child

Also:

Powerful Testimonies and
Extravagant Worship

Email:  [email protected] for more info and
to register.  

**Conference is being held in the Twin Cities. Get location
information when you register.

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 Educating and Equipping Parents on the Transgender Trend

 Get Your Copy of the Minnesota Parent Resource Guide! 
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The Parent Resource Guide sheds light on the consequences
transgender ideas have on kids' lives, while equipping parents to play
a positive role in creating a truly welcoming school community. 

 

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Responding to the transgender trend with truth and compassion starts
with the Parent Resource Guide. Get your copy HERE today and
invite a friend to do the same! 
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Click to order your copy today:

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 Support MFC When You Shop Online - Prime Day is October 13-14!

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Did you know that when you shop with Amazon Smile, Amazon
makes a donation to Minnesota Family Institute at no cost to you?

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This is one of the easiest ways to support our mission of advancing
life, family, and religious freedom in Minnesota!

Amazon's "Prime Day" is October 13-14. You can support our
mission while you shop by clicking here
(smile.amazon.com/ch/41-1439560) or with AmazonSmile ON in the Amazon
Shopping app and AmazonSmile donates to Minnesota Family Institute.

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Thank you for sharing Minnesota Family Council's vision for
strong families and communities through Christ. As we approach a
momentous election, we need your support now more than ever. Click
here to give now.

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We are grateful for your partnership with us through prayer and
financial support.

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Minnesota Family Council 
2855 Anthony Lane South
Minneapolis, MN, 55418-3265

Phone 612.789.8811 / FAX
612.789.8858

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