Response to the Manhattan Declaration

The following is a mass e-mail sent out on behalf of the Manhattan Declaration. After doing some research, I found a copy of said "declaration." In essence, it is a biblical platform of all things that the right-wing political party believes. The Declaration's three issues are 1) sanctity of life--which is then used in an anti-abortion argument in their Declaration; 2) "traditional marriage"--which is of course used to biblically attempt to argue against the right of marriage of homosexuals; 3) and this is the kicker: religious liberty--which, given the context of the position taken by the Declaration, is absolute hypocrisy.


Let me explain, here. Firstly, the Declaration makes claims that abortion is wrong due to biblical reasons. Secondly, the Declaration makes claims that homosexuality is wrong due to biblical reasons. How is it, then, that they can say that abortion and homosexuality should be illegal due to biblical reasons IF their third premise is religious liberty? They can't. It's a logical fallacy--a direct contradiction. And yet the entire point of the Declaration is to urge Christians to stand by their biblical principles in all circumstances, legal and individual.


Read the Manhattan Declaration.


I'm not going to go in depth into whether or not I think that Christianity can justify making abortion illegal or making homosexuality illegal, but I will say shortly that I believe that Christianity can't do anything on a political level, or else it is not the individual lifestyle that Christianity is meant to provide.


But regardless of that, the email I ran across was staggering. Apparently, the Manhattan Declaration had an application available for iPod. Apple, as it is known to do with tons of apps, reviewed the app and then banned it. Below is the e-mail sent out on behalf of the Manhattan Declaration. I have numbered the paragraphs to make discussion on the email clearer and easier.
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Pressing on, Apple now calls Christian belief "objectionable and potentially harmful"


1)Shockingly Apple has turned us down again, and we need you to act at once.  Please call (408-996-1010) or email Steve Jobs (sjobs@apple.com) at Apple today and tell him of your displeasure.

2)As you know, on December 8 we re-filed the Manhattan Declaration iPhone app with nothing except the Declaration and the opportunity to sign showing support.

3)Apple rejected the app, saying in a letter on December 22 that the app contains "references or commentary about a religious, cultural or ethnic group that are defamatory, offensive, mean-spirited or likely to expose the targeted group to harm or violence will be rejected.  We have evaluated the content of this application and consider its contents to be objectionable and potentially harmful to others."

4)What this means is that the teachings of the Bible itself are offensive, even dangerous.

5)That's why we need you to sign the petition for app reinstatement at ManhattanDeclaration.org and email or call Apple.  We have to persevere until Apple relents.  If we don't, it will mean that merely citing Scripture on some key moral issues is grounds for removal of apps and the limitation of speech entailed by that.  This app is no more objectionable than any other app that includes the Bible or the Quran, or other religious texts that speak to moral issues.  The result of this decision will be chilling to all faith groups.  
 
6)Apple may be banking on the fact that people have short memories; that this issue will just go away after a few days.  Your job and ours is to make sure this doesn't happen.

7)Please continue to show your support by contacting Apple, signing the petition to have the app re-instated (which now has over 47,000 signatures), and encouraging those who have not signed the Manhattan Declaration to do so.

Thank you for your support at this important time,

Chuck Colson
Robert George
Timothy George
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Let's dissect this e-mail.


Paragraphs 3 and 4:


Firstly, Apple has the right to allow or disallow any application it prefers onto its device. The end.


Secondly, Apple's statement is that the application holds potentially harmful material to other groups and or peoples. It is important to note that Apple doesn't make any direct comment on the fact that it's a Christian application. Quite honestly, Apple could care less who wrote the app or where it came from. It wouldn't matter if the app was written from an Islamic perspective, Hinduistic perspective, or even if it contained harmful remarks towards Christians. The app is offensive in that the Declaration itself makes statements promoting the immorality of another's lifestyle. This is incredibly different than simply providing a religious text. Which brings me to my next point...


Thirdly, if you read the Declaration, you will see that each item is only given 2 verses from the scriptures to back it up. The rest of each item on the list, all those other paragraphs, are not biblical digressions, but they are lengthy commentary which don't even refer back to the initial verses. In summary, the Declaration states things that not even the scripture that pair with it state. This is not a religious text. This is a religious digression. The two are very different. One's permitted, and one isn't.


Fourthly, Apple did not make a statement about the Bible's stance on these matters (which could be debated), as the 4th paragraph would have you believe. Apple made a statement about the particular application. That was it. I do not understand how one can go from reading Apple's statement which is void of biblical critique to a perversion of the statement by which Apple is portrayed as a godless, anti-Christian establishment. The logic doesn't follow.


Paragraph 5:
"If we don't, it will mean that merely citing Scripture on some key moral issues is grounds for removal of apps and the limitation of speech entailed by that.  This app is no more objectionable than any other app that includes the Bible or the Quran, or other religious texts that speak to moral issues."


But the declaration doesn't only cite Scripture. It also goes on lengthy tangents to the issue. And there is much, much more objection to this app than apps that only include the Bible or the Quran. The Bible is quite vague on these issues, and the Declaration takes a definitive stance based on vague references. By the way, if the concepts weren't "objectionable" then you wouldn't have people who use scripture to support the right to choose or the right to homosexual marriage, such as the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice and all the other Arguments for choice.


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Lastly, and most importantly, for a Declaration that has such an alleged interest in religious freedom, aren't they too frustrated about Apple utilizing their rights in order to promote religious freedom?


But, oh well, I'm sure the half a million people who are members of the Manhattan Declaration will all sign. And I'm sure that Apple will still deny.


Be sure to leave comments and thoughts!


-Jake