Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

The Freethinker

Home
Nonreligious
Catholic outfit claims Freedom from Religion Foundation ‘stole’ gifts from poor kids

Catholic outfit claims Freedom from Religion Foundation ‘stole’ gifts from poor kids

Last updated on: January 3, 2021 at 2:39 pm by Barry Duke

Catholic outfit claims Freedom from Religion Foundation ‘stole’ gifts from poor kids 2021-01-03T14:39:44+02:00 Barry Duke

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Ebenezer Scrooge in Disney’s A Christmas Carol (2009). Screen shot via YouTube

IN AWARDING a 2020 Ebenezer [Scrooge] Award to the US-based Freedom From Religion Foundation, The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty – ‘a Roman Catholic ultraconservative outfit’ – said the non-believers’ advocacy group has ‘found a way to steal presents from children.’

Becket, labeling the FFRF “a noted anti-Christmas activist group” and “America’s most notorious grinches” declared:

Last month, FFRF intimidated a Kansas school district into canceling its annual charity drive that sends Christmas gifts and necessities to underprivileged children abroad. The reason: the drive was sponsored by Samaritan’s Purse, a Christian international disaster relief organization – and FFRF can’t abide the thought of a religious organization helping school children spread Christmas cheer.

FFRF’s crusade makes the Grinch’s ransacking of Whoville look tame, which is why the atheist organization has earned Becket’s lowest (dis)honor, the 2020 Ebenezer Award, awarded for the biggest bah humbug of the holiday season.

It pointed out that, as part of Operation Christmas Child, students at Liberty Middle School in Pratt, Kansas, were anticipating partaking in a charity drive to gather Christmas gifts and other “necessities” – in reality Christian propaganda – to send to underprivileged children abroad. But the school district abruptly canceled the programme after FFRF attorney, Chris Line, sent a letter to the district’s superintendent claiming that:

Organizing a donation drive that for all intents and purposes employs school staff and resources to convert people to Christianity violates basic constitutional principles.

Regrettably, FFRF’s stunted idea of how constitutional law (and gift drives) work and their general aura of Grinchiness succeeded in shutting the charitable endeavor down.

Image via YouTube

Said Montse Alvarado, above, Executive Director of Becket:

Worse than taking candy from a baby, FFRF is stealing Christmas presents from impoverished children. The Constitution does not require Americans to quarantine their faith when they go to class. In a year when hope and joy are scarce, intimidating school children into abandoning charity is shameful and wrong.

Far from hanging its head in shame, the FFTF announced that it’s “the proud recipient of the 2020 Ebenezer Award” and regards it as “an honor” – and posted this image on its website:

The fund conferred this honor upon FFRF after the national state/church watchdog properly persuaded a public school in Pratt, Kan., to stop enlisting young students to support a Christian ministry seeking to convert children by offering them Christmas presents.

FFRF says it faced stiff competition.

It was in good company, since the runners-up included New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak, all of whom promulgated public health orders to protect the lives and health of a combined tens of millions of Americans. They were nominated because those orders applied equally to religious worship, which has been shown to spread the coronavirus at a fearful rate.

It added:

It is true that FFRF stopped the public school’s partnership with a Christian ministry called Operation Christmas Child. Samaritan’s Purse, an evangelical Christian organization run by Billy Graham’s son, Franklin Graham, runs Operation Christmas Child, a ‘shoebox ministry’ whose purpose is to convert children in the developing world to Christianity.

The ministry describes itself as ‘a powerful tool for evangelism and discipleship – transforming the lives of children and their families around the world through the Good News of Jesus Christ!’

That isn’t charity, but predation. There are many secular charities with no ulterior motives that exist solely to help children or families in need with which public schools may partner. Yes, FFRF proudly stopped a public school from taking part in a campaign to convert children to evangelical Christianity because doing so is inappropriate and unconstitutional.

This is not all the school was doing. The vice principal was also abusing his secular authority to impose his brand of conservative Christianity on a captive audience of students, leading them in prayer and using the morning announcements to read bible verses and preach.

He said, ‘We need to remember to give all the glory to God, whether others agree with it or not, and I don’t care if I offend anyone by saying that.’ In other words, he knew that what he was doing was wrong. FFRF Attorney Chris Line wrote a letter to stop this abuse, and the superintendent stepped in to fix things.

FFRF then asked:

Why did Becket Fund leave these facts out of its press release? The Becket Fund’s full name is The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. If it truly believed in religious liberty, it would be fighting this gross violation alongside FFRF, instead of bestowing mock honors.

Said FFRF Co-President Dan Barker, who has debated Becket personnel a number of times.

The award shows that the Becket Fund is intent on codifying religious privilege in the law and is willing to ignore facts and reality to do so.

Becket’s naming of FFRF to receive the “Ebenezer Award” is actually an admission that its true aim is dismantling the constitutional principle of separation between church and state. If the Becket Fund were fighting for genuine religious liberty, instead of religious privilege, it would be thanking FFRF for keeping divisive religion out of our public schools.

So, from FFRF to Becket, thank you for showing your true colors. This is an ‘award’ we’ll cherish.

In 2018, Libby Anne, who had supported Operation Christmas Child wrote:

The Operation Christmas Child model assumes that children in Africa, or East Asia, or South America, want and need the same sorts of gifts American families will pick out – the sorts of gifts I picked out as a child. Due to cultural differences, however, this is often not the case.

A woman working at a Kenya-based nonprofit put it like this:

Toys don’t play as large of a role in East African culture as it does ours, so there really isn’t any need to send them by the container full, because the actual result is comically anticlimactic: African kids trying to figure out what to do with American toys, and then adult African men trying to teach them what to do with them … Incorrectly! And don’t even get me started on the hair bows and headbands!

• Please report any typos/errors to [email protected]

If you’d like to buy me a cup of coffee – and boy, do I get through a LOT of coffee keeping this site active – please click the link below.

I’d love a cup of coffee

News

Catholicism

Ebenezer Scrooge

Freedom From Religion Foundation

Operation Christmas Child

The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty

Previous Post

January 1, 2021

Fungelicals organise Jericho March™ to keep Trump in power

Next Post

January 3, 2021 Huge legal bill for a 'pro-lifer' out to destroy Planned Parenthood

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Archive My Atheism News Opinion Reviews Uncategorized

Select a Month December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 March 2007 April 2006 February 2006

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What does Paul say in 1 Thessalonians about the day of the Lord?

Select your answer to see how you score.

It will come with great signs It will come when peace is declared It will come after the tribulation It will come like a thief in the night

Books by This Author Books by The Freethinker

See All Titles »