Manhattan Declaration: A Call of Christian Conscience

The Manhattan Declaration: A Call of Christian Conscience is a manifesto issued by Orthodox, Catholic, and Evangelical Christian leaders^[1] to affirm support of "the sanctity of life, traditional marriage, and religious liberty".^[2] It was drafted on October 20, 2009 and released November 20, 2009, having been signed by more than 150 American religious leaders.^[3] On the issue of marriage, the declaration objects not only to same-sex marriage but also to the general erosion of the "marriage culture" with the spectre of divorce, greater acceptance of infidelity and the uncoupling of marriage from childbearing.^[4]

The Declaration's website encourages supporters to sign the declaration, and counts more than 492,000 signatories as of November 19, 2011 (2011 -11-19)^[update].^[5]

Drafting committee

The drafting committee includes evangelical leader Charles Colson, Princeton University law professor Robert P. George and Beeson Divinity School dean Timothy George.^[6]

Signatories

Notable signatories include New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan, Philadelphia Archbishop Justin Francis Rigali, Washington Archbishop Donald Wuerl, Oakland Bishop Salvatore Cordileone, and American Cardinal John Patrick Foley of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, along with Family Research Council president Tony Perkins, Focus on the Family founder James Dobson, Acton Institute president Rev. Robert A. Sirico, president of Asbury Theological Seminary Timothy C. Tennent, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Al Mohler,^[7] chancellor of Dallas Theological Seminary Chuck Swindoll, president of Houston Baptist University Robert B. Sloan Jr., president of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals Ligon Duncan,^[8] National Association of Evangelicals president Leith Anderson, primate of the Anglican Church in North America Robert Wm. Duncan, and Orthodox Church in America primate Metropolitan Jonah (Paffhausen), with Bishops Mark (Maymon) of Toledo and Basil (Essey) of Wichita of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America.^[4][9]

Excerpt

The Declaration summarizes itself as follows:

Because the sanctity of human life, the dignity of marriage as a union of husband and wife and the freedom of conscience and religion are foundational principles of justice and the common good, we are compelled by our Christian faith to speak and act in their defense. In this declaration we affirm: 1) the profound, inherent, and equal dignity of every human being as a creature fashioned in the very image of God, possessing inherent rights of equal dignity and life; 2) marriage as a conjugal union of man and woman, ordained by God from the creation, and historically understood by believers and non-believers alike, to be the most basic institution in society and; 3) religious liberty, which is grounded in the character of God, the example of Christ, and the inherent freedom and dignity of human beings created in the divine image.^[10]

Call to civil disobedience

The declaration vows civil disobedience if Christians feel that their rights to civil liberties of free exercise of religion and freedom of speech are being violated. It states :^[11]

We are Christians who have joined together across historic lines of ecclesial differences to affirm our right—and, more importantly, to embrace our obligation—to speak and act in defense of these truths. We pledge to each other, and to our fellow believers, that no power on earth, be it cultural or political, will intimidate us into silence or acquiescence.

Through the centuries, Christianity has taught that civil disobedience is not only permitted, but sometimes required.^[11] There is no more eloquent defense of the rights and duties of religious conscience than the one offered by Martin Luther King, Jr., in his Letter from a Birmingham Jail. Writing from an explicitly Christian perspective, and citing Christian writers such as Augustine and Aquinas, King taught that just laws elevate and ennoble human beings because they are rooted in the moral law whose ultimate source is God Himself.^[10]

One of the drafters, Princeton Law professor Robert George, stated, "We certainly hope it doesn't come to that. However, we see case after case of challenges to religious liberty," including laws which he claims would force health care workers to assist in abortions or pharmacists to carry abortifacient drugs or birth control.^[11] George continued, "When the limits of conscience are reached and you cannot comply, it's better to suffer a wrong than to do it."^[11]

Catholic Archbishop of Washington, Donald W. Wuerl's office was restrained about the issue of civil disobedience, indicating that the prelate was not calling on the faithful to "do anything specific".^[4][9]

Criticism

Some religious leaders and apologists have criticized and protested the Manhattan Declaration, calling its principles in general, and its opposition to gay rights in particular, contrary to the teachings of Jesus.^[12][13][14] Catholic scholar Anthony Stevens-Arroyo wrote, "While two wars are being waged, with unemployment in double digits, the financial system of the world in suspense, these religious leaders declare that abortion, stem-cell use and same sex marriage override any other Gospel value. (You won't find Jesus saying anything about abortion or stem cells in the Gospel, but the Savior said a great deal about the homeless, the sick, and the hungry.) It's cheating to speak pious platitudes about Christianity and ignore Jesus' words."^[15]

Some discussed the document as a political strategy, regarding it as the religious right's effort to re-establish its relevance in the public square,^[16][17] but others noted that younger generations of evangelicals and Catholics were less likely to oppose same-sex marriage and more likely to prioritize economic issues over social, and that the document was thus unlikely to win them over.^[18][17] Stevens-Arroyo criticized fellow Catholics who signed the declaration for aligning themselves with evangelicals in what he described as opposition to the separation of church and state.^[19]

The declaration's invocation of Martin Luther King and of the principles of civil disobedience has also been questioned.^[20][21][22] An editorial in the Los Angeles Times criticized the paranoid tone of the document, noting that the anecdotes it cited as examples of Christians' religious freedom being restricted were misleading or from outside the United States, and that strong legal and judicial protections already exist for people who do not wish to perform abortions or same-sex marriages. It also questioned if the document's advocacy of lawbreaking in the service of a religious cause might motivate anti-abortion terrorists.^[20]

Some evangelicals, such as Alistair Begg,^{[23][non-primary source needed]} and James R. White^{[24][non-primary source needed]} have taken exception to the declaration on the grounds of its ecumenism. R.C. Sproul did not sign the Declaration because he disagrees with the document's identification of Catholics and Orthodox as "Christians."^{[25][non-primary source needed]}

Cancellation of app by Apple

In November 2010, after activists submitted a 7,000 signature petition arguing that the Manhattan Declaration app promoted bigotry and homophobia, Apple Computers removed the app from iPhones and iPads and then later from iTunes.^[26][27] Apple told CNN that the app had been removed because it "violate[d] our developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people."^[27] The app was originally rated by Apple as a +4, meaning that it contained no material deemed objectionable.^[26][27]

Organizers of the Manhattan Declaration have contacted Apple and have resubmitted a modified version of the app.^[28] The new version lacks a "quiz" which, in the old version, asked questions about political issues and assigned a score based on a set of normative answers.^[29] In addition as of December 10, 2010, more than 45,000 have signed a petition to have it reinstated.^[28] Charles Colson voiced apprehension that the company's move could have negative implications for more Christian apps: "There is nothing in the Manhattan Declaration that is not rooted in Scripture. So if that becomes the offense then all the other apps would be subject to the same charge."^[30][28]

See also

• Christianity and abortion
• Christianity and homosexuality
• Christian views on euthanasia
• The Phoenix Declaration
• Westminster 2010

References

1. ^ Read the Declaration: A Call of Christian Conscience
2. ^ The Manhattan Declaration - Life, Marriage & Religious Liberty Website
3. ^ "Christian leaders issue 'call of conscience'". Associated Press. November 20, 2009. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gQg36It0M4byaLSei_xloqAHk7NgD9C37UF01. Retrieved 24 November 2009. ^{[dead link]}
4. ^ ^{a b c} Boorstein, Michelle; Hamil R. Harris (November 21, 2009). "Christian leaders take issue with laws: DEFENSE OF BELIEFS URGED". The Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/20/AR2009112004180.html. Retrieved 16 August 2010. 
5. ^ "The Manhattan Declaration". http://manhattandeclaration.org. Retrieved 2011-11-19. 
6. ^ Religious Leaders Unite Against Abortion and Same-Sex Unions - NYTimes.com, retrieved 2011-07-19
7. ^ Mohler, Al (09/23/09). "Why I Signed the Manhattan Declaration". http://www.albertmohler.com/2009/11/23/why-i-signed-the-manhattan-declaration/. 
8. ^ Duncan, Ligon (December 2009). "The Manhattan Declaration: A Statement from Ligon Duncan". http://www.reformation21.org/articles/the-manhattan-declaration-a-statement-from-ligon-duncan.php. 
9. ^ ^{a b} Goodstein, Laurie (November 20, 2009). "Christian Leaders Unite on Political Issues". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/20/us/politics/20alliance.html. Retrieved 24 November 2009. 
10. ^ ^{a b} "The Manhattan Declaration". http://www.manhattandeclaration.org/the-declaration. Retrieved 2010-02-18. ^{[dead link]}
11. ^ ^{a b c d} Duin, Julia Religious Leaders Vow Civil Disobedience On Anti-Life Issues Washington Times, Nov. 21, 2009
12. ^ Kingman, Cecilia (02/12/10). "This minister is standing on the side of love". http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2010/feb/12/this-minister-is-standing-on-the-side-of-love/. 
13. ^ Clancy, Michael (October 15, 2010). "Liberal clergy plan gay-rights protest in Phoenix". Arizona Republic. http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2010/10/15/20101015phoenix-gays-rights-march-liberal-clergy-group.html. 
14. ^ Wang, Amy B. (October 16, 2010). "Phoenix clergy protest Catholics stance on gays". Arizona Republic. http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2010/10/16/20101016phoenix-clergy-gay-protest-catholics-brk.html. 
15. ^ Stevens-Arroyo, Anthony (December 8, 2009). "Catholic America: Cheating the gospel and the Church". Washington Post. http://onfaith.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/catholicamerica/2009/12/do_cheaters_ever_win.html. 
16. ^ Edwards, Janet (February 2, 2010). "Super Bowl a party, not a pulpit". The Washington Post. http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/panelists/janet_edwards/2010/02/a_time_to_every_purpose.html. 
17. ^ ^{a b} Gehring, John (November 30, 2009). "Catholic bishops as culture warriors". Washington Post. http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/guestvoices/2009/11/catholic_bishops_as_culture_warriors.html. 
18. ^ Grant, Tobin (November 24, 2009). "What Does the Manhattan Declaration Really Mean?". Christianity Today. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2009/novemberweb-only/147-21.0.html. 
19. ^ Stevens-Arroyo, Anthony (November 30, 2010). "Inquisitorial exceptionalism". Washington Post. http://onfaith.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/panelists/anthony_m_stevens-arroyo/2010/11/inquisitorial_exceptionalism.html. 
20. ^ ^{a b} "Christian leaders' stance on civil disobedience is dangerous". Los Angeles Times. November 28, 2009. http://articles.latimes.com/2009/nov/28/opinion/la-ed-disobedience28-2009nov28. 
21. ^ Dixon, Valerie (January 18, 2010). "Christian Right's misreading of MLK". Washington Post. http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/guestvoices/2010/01/the_christian_rights_misreading_of_king.html. 
22. ^ Ferwerda, Julie (December 21, 2009). "Is the Manhattan Declaration an Affront to the Teachings of Jesus?". Christianity.com. http://www.christianity.com/11623924/print/. 
23. ^ Begg, Alistair (11/23/2009). "The Manhattan Declaration". Truth For Life. http://www.truthforlife.org/resources/article/manhattan-declaration/. 
24. ^ White, James R. (11/23/2009). "The Troubling Aspects of the Manhattan Declaration". Alpha & Omega Ministries. http://www.aomin.org/aoblog/index.php?itemid=3638. 
25. ^ The Manhattan Declaration: Why didn’t you sign it, R.C.?
26. ^ ^{a b} Signers protest removal of Manhattan Declaration app from iTunes, CNA, Dec. 3, 2010
27. ^ ^{a b c} Tenety, Elizabeth, Apple zaps conservative Christian app, Washington Post, Dec. 11, 2010
28. ^ ^{a b c} Foust, Michael, Manhattan Declaration signers resubmit tweaked app to Apple, Baptist Press, Dec. 10, 2010
29. ^ "Manhattan Declaration App to Return?". The Advocate. December 12, 2010. http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2010/12/12/Manhattan_Declaration_App_to_Return/. 
30. ^ Phan, Katherine T., Petition Asking Apple to Reinstate Christian App Gains Steam, Christian Post, Dec. 03 2010

External links

• The Manhattan Declaration - Life, Marriage & Religious Liberty Website
• Manhattan Declaration & Signers