"Why are churches endorsing the 'One Nation Working Together' Rally in Washington, D.C. this Saturday, along with the Communist Party USA and other far-left groups, supposedly as a counterpoint to the Tea Party and the Glenn Beck rally of last month?" -- Mark Tooley, IRD President
Contact: Eric LeMasters, Institute on Religion & Democracy, 202-682-4131
WASHINGTON, Oct. 1 /Christian Newswire/ -- This Saturday, several hundred liberal and far-left groups, including labor unions, Planned Parenthood, Code Pink, Democratic Socialists of America, the Human Rights Campaign, the National Center for Transgender Equality, and the Communist Party USA, will convene a "One Nation Working Together" (ONWT) rally on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Their platform consists of a statist political agenda, and their openly stated objective is to rally "progressive" voters for the November elections. Government unions and other will help bus in what is hoped to be 100,000 people or more. Religious endorsers include the United Church of Christ and Jim Wallis's evangelical left Sojourners group. The United Methodist Board of Church and Society initially endorsed the rally but today withdrew it support because of "unnecessary controversy."
IRD President Mark Tooley commented:
"Why are churches endorsing the 'One Nation Working Together' rally in Washington, D.C., this Saturday, along with the Communist Party USA and other far-left groups, supposedly as a counterpoint to the Tea Party and the Glenn Beck rally of last month? Don't churches have members on both sides of these issues?
"The United Methodist Board of Church and Society -- with other church bodies that never endorsed the rally in the first place -- is to be commended for stepping back from blatant partisanship and association with outlandish groups like the Communist Party USA.
"This rally seems mostly to represent the leftist fringe of American politics, which views government as the transcendent supreme power. Church groups, which are called to look to a higher Power, should know better."
The Institute on Religion & Democracy works to reaffirm the church's biblical and historical teachings, strengthen and reform its role in public life, protect religious freedom, and renew democracy at home and abroad.
www.TheIRD.org
