Ohio GOP Congressman calls Christian message ‘bigoted’ and Christian woman then fired by Ohio Right to Life
Will conservatives respond or act as nothing happened?
That’s what Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio) thinks of the basic Christian message. The fundamental Christian belief that Jesus is the only way to salvation is “bigoted.” The image comes from Chris Menahan’s Information Liberation.
The Aug. 15 post is in response to Lizzie Marbach’s post affirming Jesus as the only way. Marbach was the director of communications for Ohio Right to Life (ORTL). Her page is still on ORTL’s website, but Marbach is no longer employed there as of this Thursday, Aug. 17.
Let’s go through the Twitter exchange, or I guess I’m supposed to call it “X” now. For the sake of this piece, I’ll refer to Tweets. As far as I know, they’re still called that and not “X’s,” or something stupid like that.
Marbach Tweeted at 4:10 p.m. on Aug. 15:
“There’s no hope for any of us outside of having faith in Jesus Christ alone.”
Simple, straightforward Gospel message on a private, personal social media account.
Miller, who is Jewish, responded at 4:35 p.m. with (as shown at top) this Tweet:
“This is one of the most bigoted tweets I have ever seen. Delete it, Lizzie. Religious freedom in the United States applies to every religion. You have gone too far.”
Wow, the irony of an elected official accusing a private citizen of somehow violating religious freedoms as he is literally attempting to violate a citizen’s religious freedom.
At 4:40 p.m., Miller posts another Tweet:
“God says that Jewish people are the chosen ones, but yet you say we have no hope. Thanks for your pearl of wisdom today.”
Miller’s reading comprehension must be really bad. Marbach did not say Jewish people have no hope. She said Jesus is the only hope “for any of us,” including Jewish people. By the way, Marbach’s absolutely right.
Marbach responds with this Tweet at 4:45 p.m.:
“Sorry, Congressman, but these are the words of Jesus himself. ‘Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’’ No one has hope outside of Jesus Christ and every knee will bow one day declaring that Jesus Chris is Lord.”
Again, the Gospel spoken plainly. And Marbach standing strong for Jesus Christ.
Of note, the attacks on Marbach’s religious freedom were bipartisan with this from Jewish Rep. Casey Weinstein (D-Ohio):
Interesting enough, Marbach got some support from an unlikely place. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota) Tweeted at 8:32 p.m.:
“No! Stating the core beliefs or principles of your faith isn’t bigoted as Lizzie did, its religious freedom and no one should be scolded for that. It’s also wrong to speak about religious freedom while simultaneously harassing people who freely express their beliefs.”
Sincerely, I could not state it better than Omar. And it’s not too often I can say that.
As Menahan noted, both Miller and Weinstein deleted their Tweets that exposed their authoritarianism. Miller “apologized” by stating:
“I posted something earlier that conveyed a message I did not intend. I will not try to hide my mistake or run from it. I sincerely apologize to Lizzie and to everyone who read my post.”
Honestly, it’s hard to misconstrue Miller’s initial comments. It’s pretty clear. He believes Christians are bigots.
But Marbach graciously accepted Miller’s apology. And what did she get for Miller’s attack on her religious freedom? She got fired from ORTL, where Miller’s wife, Emily, happens to be a board member.
Emily Miller Tweeted that her husband was wrong to ask Marbach to “stand down” from her beliefs, but “asking us to back down from our Jewish faith is also wrong. And we never will.”
She included another Tweet from someone supporting Marbach by restating the Gospel that Jesus is the only way. Hey, Emily Miller, Christians are not telling you to “stand down” from your faith. We’re telling you the truth, and you can either accept it or reject it. But that’s the sad state of America today where you’re not allowed to tell anyone they’re wrong, unless you’re telling Christians that we’re wrong.
The reason for Marbach’s firing may be beyond just that Tweet. But when you see what else got her in hot water, it’s even worse for ORTL.
Peter Ranger, ORTL’s chief executive officer, confirmed the firing on Thursday:
“Ohio Right to Life can confirm that Elizabeth ‘Lizzie’ Marbach is no longer employed at Ohio Right to Life. This decision was not based on any single event as some on social media claim. We appreciate Lizzie's service and wish her the best in future endeavors.”
I attempted to get a statement from ORTL. I also contact National Right to Life (NRTL). Neither responded.
It appears ORTL was hoping for Marbach to go away quietly. Marbach spoke to The Republic Sentinel, and the other offense was a few days prior when Marbach had the audacity to call a murderous liar a “murderous liar,” again on her personal social media account.
“Internal communications at Ohio Right to Life reviewed by The Sentinel showed that Marbach was offered the opportunity to resign from the entity or receive a transition period before her official dismissal, both of which she declined.
The dismissal came days after Marbach and another senior Ohio Right to Life employee disagreed about a separate post from Marbach, in which she called a pro-abortion activist a ‘murderous liar’ in reference to a proposed state constitutional amendment that would expand the legality of abortion in Ohio. The employee was concerned about the tone of the post.
The Rooster, a progressive political newsletter in Ohio, meanwhile hinted in a Tuesday article about the exchanges between Miller and Marbach that her career ‘was in jeopardy earlier today,’ an allusion to the internal disagreement over the earlier ‘murderous liar’ post. The senior Ohio Right to Life official confirmed in a text message to Marbach that ‘someone shared confidential information I shared with the board discussing our agency’ with the leftist outlet.”
Marbach said she had no regrets stating she was happy because “now millions have read the Gospel message.”
“If Miller actually worked together with his wife to get Marbach fired for refusing to renounce her faith in Jesus Christ he should not only be ousted from office but sued and prosecuted for religious discrimination. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost needs to launch an immediate investigation.”
My question is to conservatives. You’d be up in arms, rightly, if this were some corporation or institution you’d call “woke.” Will you do the same here or turn a blind eye because ORTL and the NRTL will tell you they’re on your side?
This Should Surprise Nobody
This is egregious but not surprising. I’m going to leave some videos here from Abolitionists Rising and Apologia Church.
NRTL absolutely rejects truth. It will not call abortion murder. In fact, it is actively trying to reopen abortion facilities in states where they have actually closed in order to punish the babies for the crimes of the father as it rejects banning abortion in the cases of rape and incest. Of course, rapists deserve the death penalty, not the innocent children.
Furthermore, NRTL is committed to recognizing women who get abortions as victims and want women to be able to commit abortions themselves through buying murder pills through the mail. By the way, the laws in many states will punish women who use drugs or drink while pregnant, even if they are not intending to injure the child. But with abortion pills where the intention is to kill the child, NRTL says they’re victims.
In Oklahoma, the media states they have the strictest abortion laws in the nation. Since shutting down abortion facilities, Oklahoma has become a top five states for women seeking abortion pills through the mail. And it’s legal because NRTL wants it that way. Abortion pills are now, by the way, the leading abortion method.
It is, as T. Hunter Russell of Abolitionists Rising said:
“If anything, it’s become easier to get an abortion from your dorm room or your living room…. The legislature hasn’t told them that it’s murder. They’ve just told them these are the ways they have to do them now.”
Just remember that the word “fetus” means “unborn child” from its Latin meaning. A child is a human life. Humans are created in the image of God. Abortion is the taking of human life. Abortion is murder.
