Dear John,
Small businesses nationwide are facing a crisis due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Some have had to furlough employees. Some have had to drastically scale back business because of the financial strain. And some have been forced to close altogether.
Masterpiece Cakeshop in Colorado is no different.
Cake artist and owner Jack Phillips has already had to send some of his employees home in the midst of this pandemic.
But a temporary scale-back is not enough for one local attorney and LGBT activist, who may like to see the doors of Masterpiece Cakeshop permanently shuttered.
In 2019, this attorney sued Jack for more than $100,000 because he declined to create a custom blue and pink cake celebrating a gender transition. This came after the Colorado government decided to stop pursuing the attorney’s complaint against Jack.
This lawsuit is nothing more than an attempt to punish Jack for his beliefs, banish him from the marketplace, and financially ruin him and his shop.
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How far some will go to punish people of faith
Jack serves everyone. What Jack can’t do—as a man of devout faith—is create a cake promoting a message that conflicts with his beliefs. It doesn’t matter if the message is one celebrating Halloween, or one that celebrates the idea that a biological man can become a woman.
These are messages Jack can’t create for anyone—no matter who they are or how they identify.
But activists like the one harassing Jack don’t care about that. This attorney seeks to punish Jack for his faith.
John, you know, as Jack does, that faith isn’t just something reserved for Sundays. It affects every facet of your life—it’s a part of who you are. And the Constitution protects your God-given right to live out your faith according to your conscience.
Activist groups and government officials should never have the power to force you to express a message that goes against your core beliefs.
But Jack has been forced to spend the last eight years of his life in court to protect his First Amendment freedoms.
It all started in 2012 when the Colorado Civil Rights Commission pursued legal action against Jack after he respectfully declined a request to create a custom-designed cake celebrating a same-sex wedding.
In 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Jack’s favor. The high court found that the state had acted with “clear and impermissible hostility” toward Jack’s religious beliefs, violating the First Amendment.
It should have ended there. But Jack has endured two more legal actions since then. He is still fighting for his freedom.
And he’s not the only one.
Across America, some government officials seek to reshape society. They want to restrict your religious freedom, crush your conscience, and silence your speech.
That’s why Jack will never stop fighting for his religious freedom—and yours too.
Today, you can help ensure that people like Jack get the strong legal defense they need, John.
A generous Christian family has offered a $1 million challenge grant to inspire you to give and help defend people like Jack.
Will you give today to further the impact for freedom during this critical time? |
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God can use your generosity to help defend religious freedom!
Opponents of religious freedom want to strip away your right to live and work consistently with your deeply held beliefs. And they’re going to extreme lengths to punish those—like Jack—who are willing to stand for their faith.
- Teachers and counselors risk losing their jobs if they don’t promote ideas that conflict with biblical principles and scientific fact.
- Churches and pro-life organizations are being forced to pay for abortion in their health insurance plans.
- Conservative and Christian students (even a third grader!) are censored and silenced when they try to share their beliefs.
- Vital services offered by nonprofit homeless shelters and adoption agencies are threatened if these organizations continue to operate consistently with their faith-based missions.
- And people like Jack and Washington floral artist Barronelle Stutzman are still defending their freedom to run their small businesses consistently with their deeply held beliefs.
John, if America is going to remain a free society, we must act now to protect our most cherished liberties—before things get even worse.
God has rewarded Jack’s courage and your generosity with two important victories—including a landmark victory at the U.S. Supreme Court. And it is our prayer that God will use your tax-deductible gift today of $20, $50, $100, or more to protect religious freedom once again—for Jack and others like him.
Christ is the source of our hope. And with His help (John 15:5), when you stand to defend religious freedom today, we can be victorious.
Thank you for giving generously. |
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