Words of Wisdom
“Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, and whatever is commendable, if there is any virtue, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” (Philippians 4:8)
Our Identity Crisis
There is no question that we are at a Crossroads in America today. On one side are the champions of big government working to gain control of our lives. Unfortunately, however, they are taking a sharp left turn into a “liberal” swamp of socialist dependency on Uncle Sam to provide for all their wants and needs, including government–controlled health care and a guaranteed income — even for those who choose not to work. As we have seen in the recent court “trial” against former President Donald Trump, they can even politicize our system of justice to convict their opponents. They call themselves “progressives”.
At the more personal level, it’s also a world in which they can choose their own gender, murder their own preborn babies in the womb or sometimes even after they are born, “marry” anyone they love regardless of gender, allow illegal aliens to pour through our borders, and purge religious freedoms and references to God from the public square. Perhaps “regressive” is a better description of who they really are?
We are indeed living in changing and challenging times, and there are those in more “conservative” circles who might claim that America is drifting away from its Judeo Christian foundations and constitutional principles and losing its soul to these “liberal” influences. But if that’s so, what can they do to get it back — and why does it matter anyway?
- Who Is Rita, formerly Dunaway when she wrote this book, and now Peters?
All of this is at the heart of the book that Rita wrote several years ago, entitled Restoring America’s Soul. And that is why we are repeating a series of Crossroad’s programs from her book that we will air for the next several weeks. But what qualifies her to take on this monumental challenge?
It’s really quite impressive. Rita prepared herself well as a Presidential scholar at West Virginia University where she graduated summa cum laude with dual degrees in Journalism and Political Science. She went on as a Benedum Scholar at the Washington and Lee University School of Law in Lexington where she graduated cum laude in 2001.
She then spent approximately 10 years as Staff Counsel for The Rutherford Institute working with John Whitehead to help protect civil liberties nationwide. As a constitutional attorney, she is admitted to practice law before the U.S. Supreme Court, has authored numerous briefs for it and for federal appellate courts, and personally argued a religious freedom case before the Ohio Supreme Court.
She is also an allied attorney for the nationally respected Alliance Defending Freedom, Deputy Director of the Valley Family Forum, and advisor for the Virginia Christian Alliance in Richmond. In all of those roles, Rita has been involved in the public policy process and has regularly testified before legislative committees at the Virginia General Assembly.
In addition, she is a nationally syndicated columnist who has been published on The Stream, World Net Daily, The Blaze, and at one time appeared regularly in the Daily News Record. She is also the host of our Crossroads radio program that airs each weekend on seven stations in the Valley.
All of that comes together in her current position as the National Legislative Strategist for the Convention of States project along with what she considers to be her most precious role as wife and mother to her young family.
- The Driving Force
So what drove Rita to write this book?
As she tells it, she has been troubled by the way in which some conservatives – and she considers herself to be one — talk about issues. She notes that they too often focus on “opposing” public policies without offering better alternatives.
As a result, they can come across as wet blanket “obstructionists” rather than as champions of the goodness, beauty, truth, and virtue of our world view – and which, if expressed properly, can become very appealing, especially to the younger generation.
- The Whole Story
The Four Major Challenges: Rita brings all of this together in her four-part introduction:
- Truth: How do we best present Truth in a culture which the Oxford Dictionary describes as post truth, where everything is relative?
- Liberty: How do we inspire a renewed commitment to religious libertywhen the very tenets of our faith are often offensive to those we seek to inspire?
- Marriage: In addition, how do we make a compelling case for natural marriagein a culture that is obsessed with pornography and dominated by casual sex and rampant, easy divorce? And finally,
- Virtue: Finally, how do we convince a culture to exalt Lifeand Virtue when they worship at the altar of personal “choice” even when it means taking another person’s life, as in the case of abortion?
The Three Major Parts: Against this background, Rita then breaks the rest of her book into three parts:
Part I: A Conservative Identity Crisis: She reviews the various ways in which America is rooted in conservative and even Christian principles but which need to be presented in a more appealing way to a culture that dismisses the idea of objective truth or a universal moral law.
Part II: “Tough Issues, Persuasive Conservativism”: She then provides a primer designed to help conservatives articulate their views a little better on some of the most challenging and controversial issues of our day, including 1) Caring for the Poor, 2) Protecting Religious Liberty, 3) Defending Human Life, and 4) Promoting Natural Marriage.
Part III: “Two Strategies for Restoring America’s Soul”: Finally, just as every good sermon needs to finish with an application, Rita lays out some suggestions for what we can do, first to restore a Culture of Virtue, and second to restore our Government to its proper role and purpose.
- Major Endorsements
Please note however, that Rita’s book is not intended for lightweights. It requires careful thought and deliberation. I am now on my third reading of the book as Rita and I prepare for each week’s radio program, and I get more out of it each time.
I would highly recommend it for anyone who is concerned about the direction of our country and who wants to help restore it to its foundational Judeo-Christian values and Constitutional principles. And I am certainly not alone in making that recommendation. Attached below are endorsements from four nationally known leaders who have worked with Rita over the years.
- Michael Farris: Founder of the Home School Legal Defense Association, Patrick Henry College, and currently President of Alliance Defending Freedom. In the forward to the book, he wrote:
— “Rita understands that persuasiveness requires us to truly listen to the other party in the communication … and to always treat them with respect and kindness, even when we disagree. He added that …
— “being against something will only take us so far. We have to have a message that is visionary and positive. That is especially true with younger audiences.
— “However, we believe in freedom and will all be a bit closer to preserving it when we believe and practice the ideals found in this book.”
- Jim DeMint: former U.S. Senator and past president of the Heritage Foundation:
— “Restoring America’s Soul defines conservatism as a philosophy that conserves the things we want to keep, then details what values and principles we must keep, and explains how Americans can conserve them.
— “Everyone who calls themselves a ‘conservative’ must read this book. I haven’t read a simpler, clearer description of conservatism or a better indictment of the forces that are trying to destroy the ideas that make America great.”
- Tom Coburn: former U.S. Senator from Oklahoma:
“The prescriptions outlined in Restoring America’s Soul are just what the doctor ordered for the beleaguered conservative movement.”
- Mark Meckler:President, Convention of States Project:
—“Restoring America’s Soul” is a masterful ‘how-to’ book for conservatives who are engaged in influencing those around them. Rita convincingly argues that it is not enough to simply ‘be’ conservative. Conservatives must also be able to articulate their principles in a compelling, simple, and positive way if we are to preserve what’s special about America.
— “In this book Dunaway provides multiple examples of why this is important, and how to do it in regard to some of the most pressing issues of our day. This book is a great read (for our times)!”
- How to Order the Book
Since we will be reviewing this book on our Crossroads program over the next several weeks, I would encourage everyone to get your own copy, so that you can follow along with us. It is available on Amazon.
Crossroads: Where Faith and Culture Meet
For more about all of this, please join Rita and me in person this weekend on any of the following Valley radio stations: WBTX (1470 AM and 102.1 FM) today (Saturday) at 4:00 p.m. and again on Sunday at 7:30 a.m., followed by WSVA (550 AM and 92.1 FM) at 8:30, ESPN (1360 AM and 106.9 FM) at 9:00, and WNLR (1150) at 11:30. If you missed the broadcast, or want to share it with others, you can also listen online by clicking on the menu of Crossroads’ programs available on our home page at www.valleyfamilyforum.org.
We are so grateful for your prayers, your encouragement, and your financial support. Crossroads is almost entirely listener supported, and if you would like to help, please send your check to Crossroads at PO Box 881, Harrisonburg, 22803. All donations are tax-deductible. We would also welcome any comments you might have on this or any of our other programs. You can send them to us by return email or to the address shown above.
Finally, thank you again, from Dean, on behalf of the Crossroads team.
Yes, working and walking together, we can make a difference, for God and Country