Center for Christian Virtue's The Rundown is the most important political and cultural news for Christians in Ohio. Thanks for reading this biweekly newsletter!

What's Happening

Ohio

• Trump Effect: On Monday, the Republican National Convention’s Platform Committee adopted former President Trump’s new GOP platform. Contrary to previous editions, the 2024 platform includes more moderate language on abortion and omits defining marriage as between one man and one woman. The platform is significant not only because it guides Republican policy for the next term, but a supermajority of Republican voters have indicated it will affect their vote. While the pro-life community is split on the suggested change, Center for Christian Virtue (CCV) is working to help preserve the current strong pro-life, pro-family platform.

• Anti-Christian Mole: LifeWise Academy–a nonprofit organization that legally provides Bible instruction during the day to public school students who opt in–is suing an Indiana man who posed as a volunteer to access their curriculum and post it online in violation of copyright law. The man and his group "Parents Against LifeWise" are opposed to LifeWise's Christian identity, with some of his peers calling the Bible studies "indoctrination" and "psychologically damaging."

• ICYMI: In a significant move as lawmakers are seeking reelection this year, a Franklin County judge has barred House Speaker Jason Stephens from spending the Ohio House Republicans’ campaign funds, granting control to the House GOP caucus. This is a political victory for the caucus members who contested his leadership after he became Speaker through support from all House Democrats instead of the majority of his party. This is a case to continue watching as the Speaker typically spends millions every election year on behalf of the GOP candidates–especially his preferred candidates, though caucus leader Rep. Phil Plummer said they will try to support all of their GOP candidates regardless of their support of Stephens.

US

• A Pro-Life Sentence: Four pro-life advocates were sentenced for protesting at a Tennessee abortion facility in 2021. Their defense lawyers said the group prayed, sang hymns, and encouraged pregnant women to not have abortions. The US Department of Justice, however, charged them with conspiring to blockade the abortion facility, and sentenced them to years of supervised release or probation, with one also getting fined $10,000 fine and another sentenced to six months in prison.

• Biden's LGBT Agenda: Complying with a 2021 directive from President Biden, the US State Department has released its third annual “progress report” on advancing what it calls LGBTQ+ “human rights” around the world. The report reveals how the Biden administration is leveraging tens of millions in foreign aid programs and its influence with international financial institutions and the United Nations (UN) to pressure countries into embracing and disseminating LGBT+ policies.

World

• Baby Bust: Two-thirds of the world's population now lives in countries where the total fertility rate (TFR)–a measure of births per woman per lifetime–has dropped below the number needed to keep the population constant. The UN predicts that the population will begin declining within the next few decades, a first global-population decline since the Black Death in the Middle Ages. Though a declining population comes with staggering consequences, 42 percent of Americans report being “not at all concerned” about declining birth rates, according to a May Newsweek poll.

Listen Up

Worldview Development

As a Christian, knowing how to engage in social-political conversations can be hard. Here are our top recommendations this week for developing your worldview to be equipped to tackle today's top issues:

• IVF and the Incarnation by Adeline A. Allen
  When we take conception out of the marriage bed and into the lab, the child’s embodiment is manipulated, objectified—dishonored, even. If the premise of IVF is that embryos are manufactured (quite literally: “hand-made”) in a lab, we are then manipulating the embryonic human as if he’s a product: our product. IVF is the fruit of a technological culture that views the body, and thus the person, as raw material, an artifice.

• Married Fatherhood by Ian Rowe
  The study states that “higher rates of father presence among low-income black households are associated with better outcomes for black boys... Black father presence at the neighborhood level predicts black boys' outcomes irrespective of whether their own father is present or not, suggesting that what matters is... community-level factors associated with the presence of fathers, such as role-model effects or changes in social norms.” As far as the impact of black fathers in the home... the poverty rate for black married couples has remained in the single digits for nearly thirty consecutive years.

Legislative Update

After passing the Ohio Capitol Budget, the legislature went on summer break, and won't resume session again until after the November election. The period between the election and the end of the year is known as the "lame duck" session, regarding outgoing elected officials who did not get reelected and may not care about scoring political points over passing their own priority bills.

This lame duck session is often fast-paced as legislators strive to get bills passed before all progress is reset with the new General Assembly. We expect several CCV priority bills to move during this period.

In the meantime, take a moment to review where CCV-backed legislation currently stands in the 135th General Assembly.

Click here to learn how a bill becomes a law in Ohio.

Resources & Opportunities

• Vital Signs Ohio Abortion Report
  Vital Signs is CCV’s report on the November 2023 election results, the exit poll, and other key abortion-related statistics in Ohio. This report’s purpose is to provide a sober-minded assessment of the state of Ohio’s culture so that all who are concerned about protecting innocent life can begin rebuilding what has been broken. Go to CCV.org/VitalSigns to access the report online or donate any amount to receive a physical copy of the report.

• CCV's Nonpartisan Voter Guide–coming this fall!
  CCV is bringing back our free, nonpartisan voter guide with a new twist to make it even more helpful to know where your candidates stand on a variety of key issues. Keep an eye out for more information later this summer!

Don't Miss

• The First Annual Essential Summit
  Hosted by CCV, The Essential Summit will take place Thursday, October 3. Join us to hear from speakers like Dr. Ben Carson, Babylon Bee CEO Seth Dillon, Hillsdale College President Larry Arnn, and more. Get $20 off your ticket through July 31 with coupon code "EarlyBird20" on EssentialSummit.org.

• Ohio March for Life
  Co-hosted by CCV and the national March for Life, this annual pro-life protest in the heart of Downtown Columbus will take place Friday, October 4. For more information, go to MarchForLife.org/Ohio.

• Cleveland Celebration Gala with Kayleigh McEnany
  Kayleigh McEnany–former President Trump's White House Press Secretary and current Co-Host of Outnumbered on Fox News–is the keynote for CCV's Cleveland Celebration Gala on Saturday, September 14. Table sponsorships are available now! Learn more at CCV.org/ClevelandGala.

Prayer

Scripture calls us to pray for those in authority and to have confidence that God hears our prayers. Join the CCV team this week in praying for the below intentions.

• Our elected officials: Rep. Riordan McClain (R-Upper Sandusky), Sen. Rob McColley (R-Napoleon), Rep. Lauren McNally (D-Youngstown), Rep. Derek Merrin (R-Monclova Twp.), Rep. Adam Miller (D-Columbus), and Rep. Joe Miller (D-Amherst).

• Ask for the Lord's continued provision for our first school plant, Westside Christian School, as they anticipate outgrowing their space in 2025 and will need more room for additional grades.

• Pray for the CCV team that we would continue to serve the Lord and not man, for wisdom and discernment in following His will, and for encouragement and persistence in the mission work before us.

As Ohio’s largest Christian public policy organization, Center for Christian Virtue seeks the good of our neighbors by advocating for public policy that reflects the truth of the Gospel. 

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