 | | Welcome to the Family Beacon, your source for news and commentary on life, family, and religious freedom in Minnesota and beyond! This week: If this message was forwarded to you, sign up here to get pro-life, pro-family news every week. | | | | Podcast: Florida Law Protects Kids, Angers Progressives | S2 E1 | |  | We're back for Season 2! Have you been hearing about the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill in Florida? The White House has called this bill “harsh” and “heartbreaking.” Tune in to hear Grace and Moses explain why this bill actually protects kids and guarantees parents' rights—something everyone should support. Plus, learn how the confirmation of Judge Kentanji Brown Jackson shows that our society will not be able to define what it means to be a woman if we cannot first define what a human is. Finally, your hosts unpack #JusticeFortheFive, a heartbreaking story from Washington, D.C. about five innocent babies that may have been illegally murdered. Tune in to learn how YOU can fight for these children. Get the facts, stand for truth! Get the podcast: Resources: | | | | | | | | Blog: Hungarian Election Holds Hopeful Lessons for American Conservatives | |  | By Luke Mueller It has been a long time since American conservatives have been on the offensive. Perhaps Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is an exception, but in large part, conservative leaders are so busy attempting to reel in progressive radicalism that they struggle to enact positive change. With conservatism on defense, it is interesting to consider what kind of nation we would create if given the opportunity. The nation of Hungary provides an excellent example, along with inspiring hope for the conservative movement. The Hungarian Fidesz party, which champions conservative values, won the 2022 election in a landslide over its liberal opponents. Not only did their Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, win another term in office, but Fidesz was able to expand their parliamentary super-majority. Their victory has set in motion the expansion of conservative values across the nation. In large part, their victory is due to the party’s willingness to go on the offensive. Instead of simply trying to forestall the progressive march through institutions, they have taken proactive steps to make their country a better place. The Minister of State under Viktor Orban announced that Hungary would be spending 6.2 percent of the nation’s GDP on family policy. These policies will focus on promoting strong marriages, followed by an increase in childbirth. According to National Review, Hungary was plagued with below average marriage rates leading up to Orban’s election. After Orban took office and instituted benefits for married couples, marriage rates not only increased, but divorce rates fell by 40 percent. During the pandemic, Orban promoted childbirth by giving substantial grants to parents. This led to a “Covid baby boom,” which has kept childbirth above pre-Covid levels, which was, according to National Review writer Lyman Stone, “an extremely rare accomplishment.” | | | | | | | | Blog: Biden Administration Pushes Sex Change for Minors | |  | By Luke Mueller On March 31st, the Biden Administration sent a letter to all state Attorneys General demanding that they make it easier for children who identify as transgender to receive puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and sex-change surgeries. The goal of this, according to the Administration, is to “keep [kids] healthy and safe.” Indeed, President Biden has referred to “transgender equality” as “the civil rights issue of our time,” comparing it to Martin Luther King Jr.’s March on Washington. The letter outlines how the Biden Administration intends to stop individual states from banning so-called “gender-affirming care.” If a child, under the influence of teachers, peers, or parents, wants to change their gender, they will receive legal protection to do so. But most, if not all, children will outgrow their gender dysphoria by the time they reach adulthood, so why does the Biden administration think that providing so-called “gender-affirming care” is so vital? The Administration’s rationale is that transition-affirming procedures will lower suicide rates of transgender-identified children. Transition affirmation, however, does not reduce the rates of child suicides. In Sweden, a study has shown that people who go through sex-reassignment have a 20% higher suicide rate than the base population. Much of the reasoning behind these radical ideas is based on the lie that children are able to be born in the wrong body. This idea proposes that kids are born with the wrong gender and must change it to become who they always were, on the inside. However, according to Michelle Cretella, the Director of the American College of Pediatricians, the idea a child is born in the wrong body is “is a myth that has no basis in science.” The idea of sex-reassignment often forms in a child’s early teen years, and is caused by teachers, peers, and parents who encourage them to turn discomfort with their changing body into a desire to permanently change it. | | | | | | | | Sign Your Teen Up for Our Leadership Camp (July 24-29) - Early Registration Deadline Has Been EXTENDED | |  | | We believe that young people have incredible potential to become bold leaders who stand for truth in their communities, and we want to help them realize that potential. The next generation of leaders is ready to rise up, and Minnesota Family Council’s LEAD program is here to equip them!
What: A hands-on leadership and worldview camp which equips the next generation of Christian leaders to engage the culture. Who: Highschool students ages 13–19 When: July 24-29, 2022 Why: LEAD provides students with an opportunity to strengthen their worldview, develop leadership skills, and learn the legislative process! This year renowned pro-life speaker Ryan Bomberger will be joining us at LEAD as our keynote speaker! Learn more about LEAD and register at www.leadminnesota.org! | | | | | | | | Promoted: Good Friday Prayer Vigil (April 15) | |  | Via Pro-Life Action Ministries: Join us on Good Friday as we remember the unborn victims of abortion while meditating on the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ. We will gather beside one of the largest abortion facilities in the Midwest, Planned Parenthood. Pastors of various denominations lead us in Scripture and prayer every half hour. There is no protesting or signs, just solemn prayer, a wooden cross and our sorrowful hearts. There is no parking near the Planned Parenthood on Good Friday. We have reserved free parking at the University of St. Thomas Anderson Parking Deck at the intersection of Cretin Ave. and Grand Ave., St. Paul, MN and will be running shuttle buses all day to and from the vigil. We are encouraging large groups to arrange a bus of their own.Questions, contact [email protected] or 651-797-6363. | | | | | | | | Promoted: Sidewalk Counseling Training Seminar (April 26) | |  | If you can hand someone a brochure, you can help save a life! Learn how to save babies by peacefully reaching out to those entering local abortion facilities. Prayer supporters are also needed and are welcome to attend. Open to Christians of all denominations. No charge. Hosted by the Sanctity of Life Ministry, Bethlehem Baptist Church, and presented by Pro-Life Action Ministries. Ample free parking in the church lot. For more information or to register, contact: [email protected] or call (651) 797-6364. Is God calling you to do more for the unborn? Learn more about sidewalk counseling here. | | | | | | | | Promoted: Christian Faithfulness in an Age of Anxiety (May 6-7) | |  | From the Davenant Institute: Christians in America today are living through a time of what can feel like unprecedented crisis, conflict, and disruption. The Covid-19 pandemic, and the reactions to it—and the reactions to the reactions to it. The George Floyd protests, and subsequent waves of anti-racist and anti-anti-racist agitation that have roiled American churches, colleges, and courtrooms. The most fiercely contested presidential election since 1876. Exhausted by these and other crises, together with the steady marginalization of Christian faith in American public life, many pastors—and their parishioners—are ready to throw in the towel. As wrenching as these experiences are, it’s important to remind ourselves, in this ADD age, that crisis is probably the default state of most human societies, the regular backdrop against which the church is called to carry out its world-saving work. Consider: we are apt to look back nostalgically on the glories of the Elizabethan era. Yet the typical Englishman of the late 1580s probably felt trapped in whirlwind of perpetual crisis: an existential threat of foreign invasion, assassination plots real and imagined, a harsh government crackdown on religious dissidents, together with regular bouts of plague. From this unpromising soil, however, sprouted some of the greatest riches of Christian theology and literature in all history. By stepping back from the chaos of our own moment to see how the church has handled political and social crises in the past, we can gain fresh perspective and renewed hope to persevere through the trials of our own day. We can also be challenged to rethink our own assumptions about the greatest dangers and temptations of our present moment. Join us at this mini-conference, sponsored by The Davenant Institute and Bethlehem College and Seminary, to learn more about how the trials and triumphs of our Protestant forebears can teach us how to walk faithfully today in an age of anxiety. May 6-7, 2022 St. Paul, MN Join us in St. Paul, Minnesota for a two-day mini-conference. Our plenary speakers will be Dr. Joe Rigney, President of Bethlehem College and Seminary, and Dr. Brad Littlejohn, President of The Davenant Institute. Conference proceedings will run from 6:30 PM on Friday, May 6 till 5:00 PM on Saturday, May 7. | | | | | | | |  | Did you know that when you shop with Amazon Smile, Amazon makes a donation to Minnesota Family Institute at no cost to you? You can support LIFE, FAMILY, and RELIGIOUS FREEDOM 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. Bookmark Amazon Smile in your browser so that Amazon will donate every time you make a purchase! | | | | | | | | | | Get the Parent Resource Guide 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! Click to order your copy today: | | | | | | | | Thank you for sharing Minnesota Family Council’s vision for strong families, communities and culture through Christ. As we rise to meet challenges at the state and federal level, we need your support now more than ever. Click here to give now. We are grateful for your partnership with us through prayer and financial support. For life, family, and religious freedom, | | | | John Helmberger, CEO Minnesota Family Council and Institute | | | | | | Minnesota Family Council
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