Focus on the Family Official Challenges Christians To Influence Politics, Culture

Focus on the Family
Wednesday, 15 May 2002

Vice President of Public Policy Announces New Book on Christian Activism

Tom Minnery, vice president of public policy for Focus on the Family, joined Dr. James C. Dobson on his national daily radio broadcast today to answer an age-old question: "Should Christians be involved in politics?"

Minnery, former senior editor at Christianity Today and one-time Capitol Hill correspondent for Gannett Newspapers, has just authored a book, Why You Can't Stay Silent: A Biblical Mandate to Shape Our Culture. The book, published by Focus on the Family and Tyndale House Publishers, makes a biblical case for social action and challenges readers to take a stand for moral principles in the public square.

Minnery said, "Government is an institution that has been established by God, and we ought to care as much about that institution as we do about the institution of the church." He noted that compassion for our culture ought to be a motivation for social action as well. "Jesus said, 'When you act for the least of these, my brethren, you do this for Me.' The helpless, the homeless, the orphan, the people who can't fight their own battles, the children who are being manipulated by homosexual propaganda in public schools—these are the individuals that churches need to defend."

Dobson, heard by 7.5 million listeners each week, agreed. "My concern is that some religious leaders and pastors are reluctant to take a chance, to put their necks out, to defend the moral issues. . . . There is a time for us to be counted. We have to do what's right even when we are criticized for it." Dobson hopes the message of Why You Can't Stay Silent will encourage others to move out of their comfort zone and take a stand for moral truth.

Why You Can't Stay Silent, now available in Christian bookstores, offers biblical reasoning for Christian involvement, inspiring examples of individuals who have made a difference in the culture, and provides practical ideas to get started.

For more information, or to contact Focus on the Family, see their website at: www.family.org