Christianity Today's January 2004 issue alerts us to a disturbing new corporate trend:
Albert A. Buonanno of Denver had worked at AT&T Broadband for two years. But in a 2001 reorganization, the company directed employees to sign a "certificate of understanding." The document said employees must "fully recognize, respect, and value the differences among all of us," including "sexual orientation."
Buonanno, who attends a Baptist General Conference church, told his supervisor in a letter that he wouldn't discriminate against or harass homosexuals. But he also said he couldn't sign the statement because it contradicted the Bible. Buonanno's supervisor fired him the next day.
The Rutherford Institute, a religious liberties organization based in Charlottesville, Virginia, is representing Buonanno, 47, and a handful of others. They all lost their jobs for refusing to condone employment policies they found biblically immoral.
The culture war over homosexuality in America has moved to a new front--the workplace. Christian observers say millions of employees are being commanded not just to tolerate homosexual behavior but also to respect and even promote it.
This story is a prime example of a new and insidious use of "definition creep" in liberal politics. Historically, "tolerance" was defined as "Allowing without prohibiting or opposing. Permitting." The third edition of the American Heritage Dictionary now lists as its only relevant definition, "The capacity for or the practice of recognizing and respecting the beliefs or practices of others" [emphasis mine].
Of course in a free nation religious believers certainly should be expected to refrain from persecuting homosexuals, but compulsory oaths such as those referenced in the Christianity Today article clearly cross the line from what has been historically defined as "tolerance" of a behavior to what can only be honestly defined as "forced acceptance and celebration."
Use our Take Action page to express to your representatives your opposition to corporate codes that violate employee civil rights by going beyond tolerance to coerced acceptance and celebration of behaviors historically deemed sinful in Judeo-Christian traditions.
You can also give your financial support and encouragement to the Rutherford Institute at this link.
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