Update 2 | Arguing the Case

Institute Update Issue 2 - May 2002

Arguing the Case

A secular analysis is the only one that seems to count with the elites in the media, education and politics. People with a secular outlook deploy arguments, statistics and opinion polls to make their case.

The Apostle Paul saw his role to “demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God” (2 Corinthians 10:5). There is a spiritual battle, but that battle involves arguments between what is true and false. Of course Paul prayed, but he also argued.

Just as Christians have always had to argue for the truth of the gospel, now we have to defend basic truths about how human life and society should be organised. Take marriage for example. Politicians seem to be distancing themselves from marriage. But God gives marriage for our good. It goes with the grain of human nature. How ironic that after decades of denial and embarrassment about their own data, increasing numbers of researchers are having to admit what Christians knew all along: marriage is best for adults and children.

When it comes to how our public policy is decided, we should simply not allow secularists to get away with paper-thin arguments or twisted statistics. In The Christian Institute we seek to give Christians the ammunition they need to engage in the battle of ideas. We want to encourage Christians to stand up for what is right. This means analysing the secular arguments and showing how they can be demolished.

For us at the Institute, arguing the case means understanding what the secular world is saying and then responding through our publications, media interviews, meetings, website and letters to supporters. Arguments have to be marshalled, articles written and facts meticulously referenced before any of our publications are ready to print.

All of this takes staff, volunteers and space to work in. It is space which is at a premium at the moment. Our office is bursting at the seams. We need to find larger offices to enable staff to work in less cramped and less noisy conditions. We need more filing space, room for a larger library and more room for equipment. We have to move in any case as our lease expires in May 2003.

Our research staff are kept very busy. Defending marriage is but one area. As this News Update shows, we are also arguing for religious freedom, against the legalisation of cannabis, for the sanctity of human life from conception, and for wholesome sex and drugs education in schools. A number of our supporters in England and Wales are fighting sex shop applications in their area. We are seeking to help them. We want to stand by our Scottish supporters as they fight the Executive’s proposals to make it a criminal offence for parents to smack their own children aged under three.

With all these issues being covered, we have a great need for more research staff as well as a need to move offices. I hope that we can count on your financial and prayer support as we seek to fight the good fight and argue the case for Christian truth in our Nation’s public policy.

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