Signs and Wonders 07.20

Calling roll. Roll Call, a newspaper not widely known across the country but a "must read" on Capitol Hill, recently profiled five freshman Republicans who are making a difference in Congress: Reps. James Lankford, Cory Gardner, Kristi Noem, Patrick Meehan and Tom Reed. Roll Call said the five "are confounding the stereotype of the House Republican freshman class" as a "bunch of bomb-throwing conservatives intent on stymieing leadership, shunning bipartisanship, and shutting down government. The paper added that the five "have become favorites of leadership or leaders in their own right" and calls them "the new institutionalists … who might one day be the chamber's top leaders, committee chairmen, and messengers." Lankford has been in WORLD several times since coming to Congress. Of note: We covered his efforts to get his colleagues to pray for President Obama. He told us then, "We should pray for the president, no matter who he is."

Girl Scouts Why Not? A group of pro-life former Girl Scouts have produced a website and video series documenting the links of the Girl Scouts to Planned Parenthood and other pro-abortion groups. The site and the videos are the work of a Catholic group called Parents for Life, which claims that the Girl Scouts' official curriculum and website connects girls to pro-abortion role models and groups, as well as explicit sexual content. Rochelle Focaracci, a former Girl Scout leader and a spokesperson for Girl Scouts Why Not? said her group created the site because the Girl Scouts have repeatedly denied "the many allegations brought forward by faith based and pro-life groups regarding their ties to pro-abortion groups and agendas." Christy Volanski, the mother of two former Girl Scouts who created the related website, Speak Now Girl Scouts, told LifeNews, "We created this video series because so many families asked us for a comprehensive tool to share the truth about what's going on with the Girl Scouts organization. The Girl Scouts undermine the pro-life and pro-abstinence values of many Girl Scout families, but refuse to come clean about their activities. Parents want facts, not empty denials, and that's what these videos provide."

Morally straight. The Boy Scouts, on the other hand, continue to stand strong against the forces of moral relativism. After a confidential two-year review, the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) on Tuesday emphatically reaffirmed its policy of excluding gays, ruling out any changes despite relentless protest campaigns by some critics. Pro-homosexual groups immediately criticized the decision. But pro-family groups such as the Family Research Council (FRC) came to the defense of the Scouts. Tony Perkins, president of the FRC, said, "Today, while so many continue to pile on the Scouts, FRC salutes them. Whether it's learning how to sharpen a knife, cook a meal, or help a neighbor, the BSA has invested billions of hours into creating generations of responsible citizens. But more importantly, the Scouts are teaching boys something our culture doesn't: how to become men worthy of respect."

Eat Mor Chikin. Dan Cathy, the president and chief operating officer of popular fast food chain Chick-fil-A, said in a radio interview this week that legalizing same-sex marriage is "inviting God's judgment on our nation." As expected, the statement caused the left to focus its artillery on Cathy, but he's stood firm. In a subsequent interview with the Baptist Press, he was asked about his comments and his support of the traditional family. His answer: "Guilty as charged." Cathy added, "We are very much supportive of the family-the biblical definition of the family unit. We are a family-owned business, a family-led business, and we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that … we know that it might not be popular with everyone, but thank the Lord, we live in a country where we can share our values and operate on biblical principles."