[Music] [Music] [Music] I love toar the ofation the wind and the of the rain [Music] echave redemp [Music] sing Hallelujah Sing Sing hallelu Sing hallelujah amen I will hear of [Music] [Music] Ang a redemp will [Music] everyong oh I'm running away [Music] oh [Music] hallelu [Music] hallelu our hearts will our shall Jesus Christ ouri King [Music] forever K We Sing Hallelujah oh we sing amuu Brooke we're all upset but we need to move on honey you're a junior now it's your make or break year so the
re's no room for self-pity can you give Marlene an and I ride to school today I'm sorry honey I don't have time I have an 8:30 with Mark Shelly at White and wolf what Richard you didn't say anything how did you get the meeting well it's just a meeting so don't get too excited but it could be huge I know who's going to the meeting with you hey I got the meeting I know I just think maybe you should take Melinda or Janice Jan Janice you want me to take Janice yeah I'm not taking Janice rough mornin
g you know my parents maybe they just need a little more time I don't know about that I'd save they pretty over it my mom's they can talk us tonight I'll let her know you're coming it's not like they'll miss me Brook I'm serious honey you need to get focused or you could say goodbye Stanford hello somewhere State got it yikes good morning morning Grace I keep telling you don't have to keep doing this oh are you kidding this is the best part of my day grips well pills first you're a good girl hon
ey you know I'm not going to be around here forever and you might want to start thinking about some other guy you want to have breakfast with I'll work on that okay and you know I I love the way you do the oatmeal but what do you say I take you out from bacon and eggs this morning my treat not after your last cholesterol test besides I have some papers I have to grade before the staff meeting I'm 81 years old and bacon is not going to be what kills me nice try you're 82 yeah good morning have a
nice day morning ladies morning good [Music] morning hey what do you call a teacher with no students unemployed I got it how about exatic you're both right retired only 36 days to go you know you're going to miss the kids when you're gone Rizzo no Grace that's sweet but no I won't the older I get the more difficult these kids are to deal with oh I totally agree yesterday I just about snatched up Tim lebster that boy had me on my last nerve well I happen to think the difficult students can be a b
lessing Grace honey when is this optimism ever going to wear off bill bill bill junk mail oh man David why are you always so sad hey you're back why are you back my pastor gave me permission to finish my my doctorate at Hardley so if that's okay with you I'm going to be here for a while oh David you are a mess what happened to you I woke up okay for 500 points for all the cheese for the game this quote is from what document we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal t
hat they are endowed by their creator with certain inable rights Liberty all right team one what's your answer our answer is the Declaration of Independence that's correct okay you guys Monday we will examine the assertion of individual rights through the last century have a good weekend Brook are you okay I'm fine you sure yeah thanks Miss Ryan I lied are you sure you're being fair trust me they're over it and they expect me to be over it too it's like to them he never even existed the only thi
ng that I know for sure is that that I'm never going to see my brother again everybody's asked if there's anything that they can do but the truth is no one can do anything because the only thing that I really want is five more minutes to tell my brother how I really felt about it did your brother believe there was something more I I don't know do you Rook every person reaches a point in their life when they ask themselves this question there's nothing wrong with you asking it you never let anyth
ing get to you how do you do that Jesus hello how'd it go Amy Michael it's gone my Cancer's it's gone oh my goodness that's incredible I know I just I can't believe it isn't that what you prayed for yes of course I just prayer is a powerful thing and it turns out God has much bigger plans for you you okay grace yeah I just can't stop thinking about Brook know she's searching she's hurting yeah that's the thing about atheism doesn't take away the pain just takes away the hope what' you tell her t
he truth now she's free to make her own choice unfortunately in this day and age people seem to forget that the most basic human right of all is the right to know Jesus let's put her on the prayer list prayer always seems to be the last thing we do when it should be the first now how about some more popcorn with the glycemic index of 100 not a chance I swear Grace if you don't start feeding me better I'm going to leave you for a nursing home well that's it for me I'm going to bed love you I love
you better love you first that's unfair gotcha Brook the people from that charity place are here to pick up your brother's things can you make sure they get everything and don't forget to put the milk away [Music] for [Music] [Music] for well that's the last of it thank you and while I was loading one of the boxes onto the truck I noticed this and I thought you might want to keep it so sorry for your loss [Music] and so peaceful nonviolence comes first in India under Gandhi and then later here
in the United States under Dr King and others as a means of achieving civil rights but what makes nonviolence so radical is its unwavering commitment to a non-violent approach not just initially but in the face of escalating persecution by the opposing Force yes isn't that sort of like what Jesus meant when he said that we should love our enemies yes um the writer of the Gospel of Matthew records Jesus as saying you have heard it said love your neighbor and hate your enemy but I tell you love yo
ur enemies and pray for those who persecute you that you will be children of your father in Heaven which indicates a commitment to nonviolence Dr King confirmed the link describing his inspiration from scripture saying Christ furnished the spirit and motivation while gandi furnish the method except that that didn't work Jesus got himself killed and everybody knows that well so did Dr King so I guess it just depends on how you measure success both men created movements that survived to this day e
ven though both paid the ultimate price for their commitment to their ideals I still wouldn't do it well not very many people have that kind of Courage but I for one am grateful for those that do you know those who stand up for what they believe have a good [Music] day are you Pastor Dave I am I'm Martin nice to meet you my friend Josh Beaton said you might be able to answer my questions about God well that definitely Falls within my job description how many questions have you got so far 147 is
something wrong no Josh encouraged me to write them down and be as comprehensive as possible of course he did well I'll have to thank him next time I see him come on so what's your first question Grace I just have to hear it from you did this happen if you're asking whether I responded to a student's question yes if you're asking whether her question and my answer both reference Jesus as it was relevant to the history lesson we were discussing again I'd have to say yes good afternoon Miss Westle
y I've asked Bob fesler to sit in he's the school's attorney to advise us on any legalicious we might be brushing up against should I have a lawyer too I don't see the need for that Miss Rizzo is present as your union representation okay we are here to hear your side of the story now I understand a student in your second period history class asked a question about parallels between the teachings of Gandhi and remarks allegedly made by Jesus yes that's correct and your answer Incorporated specifi
c detailed reference to those teachings that included scripture itself the words of Jesus yes what were you thinking Grace do you believe your response was in line with District policy yes as well as in compliance with state and federal guidelines yes sir well miss Wesley unfortunately for you I'm fairly certain the school board will disagree no coach you're not hearing me no prayers no moments of Silence nothing not on the field not in the locker room not in the parking lot for that matter okay
okay thanks coach come on hi Brooke you wanted to see me Miss Wesley is currently under disciplinary review all of our classes have been reassigned until things are settled I don't want you to have any contact with her none whatsoever either on or off school property do I have any say in this no I've already discuss things with your father and he agrees since when does my dad care Rook the important thing for you to remember is you've done nothing wrong neither did Miss Wesley all she did was a
nswer a question Miss Wesley's answer was not in line with school policy really I mean aren't we allowed to say what we believe when did that change I'm not going to argue with you and I don't want you discussing the situation with anyone do you understand do you understand yes are you Tom endler your union appointed attorney oh don't look like a lawyer thank you not sure I meant that as a compliment I'm determined to take it as one shall we sit so uh have you defended many teachers in disciplin
ary matters nope you're my first just hired on from the public defender office criminal law no offense but I I'm not a criminal don't be so sure of that your kind of case makes everybody uncomfortable School boards teachers parents makes him feel yucky yucky is that a technical legal term you got a better word for it Grace I'm going to level with you nobody wants your case I I drew it because I'm low man on the totem pole in a place where seniority means everything if for whatever reason you're
not happy with me you're on your own you're free to hire your own attorney out of your own pocket educational law isn't exactly a common specialty so what's the good good news I don't like to lose and I'm willing to fight for you are you a Believer you mean I'm Christian no but I I think that's an advantage why you're passionate about what you believe I mean let's face it it's why you're in trouble in the first place but it blinds you to the realities of procedure okay okay what okay I agree to
let you represent me good good David are you okay uh terrific there was a young man in here brilliant kid with no exposure to scripture until a few months ago he came in with some questions 147 of them to be exact feel like I've been hit by a truck loaded with Bibles big heavy ones those thick covers always be ready to give answer as to why you believe and the reason for your hope first Peter 3:1 15 yes and where were you four hours ago trust in the Lord with all your heart and not on your own u
nderstanding in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your path straight father I need you I can't do this alone I know that you're in control please give me the courage in Jesus name amen call to order I assume Miss Wesley understands that this board has the power to recommend any number of disciplinary actions up to an including termination she does and this board should be aware that in the event of such termination which we would view as both wrongful and without cause she reserves
All rights of redress I may have a solution there might be a way around all of this unpleasantness that would satisfy all parties a disciplinary notice in M Wesley's file stating the school board's objections to her behavior a response from Miss Wesley confessing the inappropriate to some and apologizing for her actions along with a pledge not to engage in similar discussion of Jesus in the future I'm confident that we can move forward on that basis no Grace I can't I'd like to request a brief r
ecess to have a word with my client excuse me wa Grace this is exactly what we're hoping for this is the part where you say you're sorry thank your lawyer go back to your classroom pick up your life and move on I can't do that why I gave an honest answer to a student's legitimate question in history Grace Grace you don't want to do this it's the wrong decision is it I would rather stand with God and be judged by the world than stand with the world and be judged by God I am not going to be afraid
to say the name Jesus I know her she's not going to go for it how do we make this go away and not get blood on our hands that's the easy part we let the ACLU do it they'll file suit against Miss Wesley and if she's found liable which she will be then we fire her for cause but the school district will certainly be named as a codefendant we don't have the financial wherewithal to fight that they've already been in touch they aren't interested in punishing the school they want her are you sure tru
st me they've been dreaming of a case like this while miss Wesley apologizes for any inconvenience her actions may have caused Miss Wesley stands by her statements and she does not retract or recant them either in full or in part so noted having little choice this board recommends continued suspension henceforth without pay pending review by a court of competent jurisdiction to determine whether or not M Wesley violated local state or federal guidelines this proced stting is adjourned the last t
hing we need is a bunch of religious Fanatics protesting outside of our house we'll work to keep it out of the media for now but next year when you're applying to all the colleges you'll be able to tell the story of how Brooke was part of a landmark constitutional case concerning the separation of church and state believe me there is not an IB League admissions board that could resist that and think of the other children out there innocent children who are subjected to their repressive belief sy
stem and not forgetting the financial opportunities I yes Miss Wesley is an employee of the school board we went in court and we establish her misconduct as said paid employee well there's nothing to change changes policy faster than a big expensive settlement we're going to prove once and for all that God is dead Brooke is a minor as far as the court is concerned she has no rights that simply means I won't be asking her to be a witness I feel supremely confident about this okay injunctive relie
f and they're asking that you be fired plus revocation of your teaching certificate what how am I supposed to plus attorney's fees essentially you'll you'll lose everything why are they doing this they want to make an example of you to them your beliefs are like a disease whose time is coming gone sort of like small pox or polio or the plague so what do we do we [Music] win hey what's going on Rook is exercising her right to purchas idiot hey shut up loser at least she's standing for something B
rook you need to stop this immediately Brook this is the last time I'm going to tell you if you don't stop this right now there going to be some consequences actually I don't think that there will because this is a sidewalk which is public property my dad's a lawyer well actually side walk is on school property I suggest you girls aren't late for class yes ma'am hey what are you doing I'm just you know reading the paper while my laptop goes through my online jewelry orientation that should you b
e paying attention please remember consumption of alcoholic beverages nonprescription drugs and weapons are prohibited in the courtroom still is it nit to your civic duty theoretically yeah but Matthew 22:14 no many are called few are chosen exactly 300 people show up they sit around for 8 hours and at the end of the day they all go home having not been selected statistically I have a better better chance of being hit by lightning got to get some coffee all right it's called V deer means that we
get a chance to eliminate any potential juror that may have a bias against you sir hope thank you sir so how are you feeling I'm good this is a bit of an arduous process they bring all these jurors in it's going to take the whole day but I think this is where we can win the case all rise for honorable Judge Robert stennis I'm noran matter of thy versus Wesley you may be seated so it says here what does it say it says you're a psychic yes ah do you know who's going to win this case no don't don'
t answer that we're going to challenge this juror your honor Miss Bailey what's your favorite TV show Pretty Little Liars peremptory Challenger honor what is your favorite TV show Duck Dynasty perter challenge your honor Duck Dynasty M Smith Smith are you involved in any Community or charitable organizations yes the Salvation Army we'll accept this jury your honor uh juror number nine you're a teacher I'm a retired teacher ever have any disciplinary run-ins with the administration never acceptab
le to the plain of your honor acceptable your honor foror you challenge your honor we'll take your honor thank you Mr Cherry preemptive challenge your honor number two just screams Marine I don't want him it mean blowing our last challenge well we have no choice me what part of God country and core do you want to put on that jury um what was your last pave position artillery forward Observer United States Marine Corps peremptory challenge your honor thank your honor we'd like to challenge for ca
use why is that oh your honor the Manson ordained minister need I say more the juror is excused objection your honor basis Miss discriminatory your honor peremptory challenges cannot be used to discriminate against a certain class of Juror based on race ethnic background religion or gender and the fact that religious belief is tangential to this case doesn't change that upon further reflection I find the respondent's assertion is correct sustained you're not her pastor are you uh no your honor y
our honor I must protest here Mr Kan now you had a set number of preemptor challenges all of which you have used therefore it's up to opposing counsel we accept him your honor welcome to the jury sir henceforth jury number 12 I hope you enjy enjoy your service to the community better chance of being struck by lightning it amazes me how we as human beings think when I was battling for my life I was willing to hold on to anything including God even though I really didn't believe in him until that
moment I was convinced that I felt him but now that I'm officially in remission I find myself questioning everything so effective immediately this blog is the Personal Diary of one woman's exploration of faith on her own terms caner free hey Martin how's it going uh very good Pastor Dave you sure well it seems that for every question you answered three or four more questions spring up yeah but that's a good thing right it's like what Einstein said about science picture what you know like the lig
ht of a candle as The Circle of Knowledge expands so does the circumference of Darkness around it so I'm actually learning even though it might not feel like it yes exactly well I've been studying the Beatitudes very hard one might say impossible to follow completely here in Luke's account Jesus says do unto others as you have them do unto you but how is that possible how can I react to the needs of everyone else the same as my own even for one day let alone my whole life and how can I reconcile
my inability to do so with scripture yeah that's good questions okay let SC it over what is it Luke yes 620 Jesus said to his disciples you who [Music] don't do anything wrong shouldn't suffer at the hands of the law you know what hate is Tom I'm not talking about the fairy tale stuff I mean real hate I hate what people like your clients stand for and what they're doing to our society and Stannis does too even if he doesn't admit it well the jury doesn't hate her yeah but that's a secret Tommy
they don't need to hate her they just need to see a tiny flaw in her a Hal truth a small inconsistency just a little bit of doubt and they'll find against her nice [Music] shoes you ready Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof the first half of this passage is known as The Establishment Clause the second half is known as the free exercise clause now there has been an ongoing debate about what the role of government should be be
cause in practice these two Provisions are often in Conflict which is what brings us here today in the matter of thy versus Wesley is the plaintiff prepared to make its opening statement we are your honor then proceed uh ladies and gentlemen in a jury of this size I'm imagining that there are probably among your ranks a few Christians hopefully practicing ones and that's a good thing that's fine because Christianity is not on trial here even though my opponent will try to convince you that it is
nor is Faith on trial only miss Wesley is on trial here today now ask any fourth grader they're probably familiar with the phrase separation of church and state and that is guaranteed to us under our laws the plaintiffs are the parents of a student in Miss westley's class who was subjected to hearing the teachings of Jesus Christ being favorably compared to the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi we all know that Jesus is part of a particular religious tradition these parents who are trying to raise a
daughter to be a free thinker free of any religious Dogma are wholly offended by what went on in that classroom and she reciting the words that were allegedly attributed to Jesus who allegedly lived 2,000 years ago gave a clear and compelling indication of what she believes what she supports what she endorses now let me put it this way I I don't mean to offend anyone who may be a Muslim here and I do not want to slight the prophet of Islam but if you were to ask me a question concerning the Qura
n the sacred text of Islam and I could come up with the answer with great speed and accuracy and I could quote the proper Surah or chapter then it would be reasonable for you to infer that I was not only a follower of Islam but that I considered it to be superior to all other forms of religion if I did this in a house of worship that would be fine but if I did it in an 11th grade classroom in a public school that would be preaching not teaching so why why in the world are we here today why becau
se Miss Wesley refused to apologize and that means that her true motivation in that moment in her classroom was to take an innocent question and turn it into an opportunity to preach not teach if we Grant Miss Wesley the right to do that and by extension everyone else to violate the law based solely on our own private beliefs then our society will crumble I believe that so I implore you please do not set this precedent do not the future of our Republic depends on it what's going on BR is exercis
ing her right to protest Brooke I need you to stop this immediately Brooke this is the last time I'm going to tell you if you don't stop right now there going to be consequences hey hey Marlene yeah I just saw the video what's going on so you remember my friend Brooke yeah well she got a teacher in trouble for asking her about Jesus what now she's not even supposed to talk about it and we can't even cover it in our school paper is there any way that I can meet with her the teacher no Brooke Mr i
nler you opening statement ladies and gentlemen of the jury I have here a copy of the Constitution of the United States of America and its Bill of Rights arguably the two most important documents in the history of our great nation but despite Mr K's impassioned rhetoric you know what you won't find in there no matter how hard you look the phrase separation of church and state that's right it's not in there never has been because that phrase comes from a letter written by Thomas Jefferson now iro
nically Jefferson was writing to a Baptist congregation ensuring them that they would always have the right to believe as they wish free of government interference but lately that phrase has been taken out of context and twisted and contorted to mean the exact opposite you know one morning early this year my client Miss Wesley she woke up as usual she drove to work at her job as a teacher at Martin Luther King High School a place where she was teacher of the year her lesson plan for second perio
d AP History that morning it didn't include in any mention of God or Jesus she didn't have a a Bible sitting on her desk in plain view she didn't start her class with a blessing she didn't lead her students in prayer no all she did was answer a question because that is what she gets paid to do and Mr Caine will insist loudly and often that Faith isn't on trial here but that is exactly what is on trial the most basic human right of all the right to believe Mr Kane's afraid he's afraid that you th
e jury the Touchstone of Common Sense might not agree with his tortured interpretation of the Constitution you might understand that my client has rights rights that Trump his agenda and then in realizing that you will hold as I do that my clan is guilty of no wrongdoing and innocent of any and all claims against her thank you very much and now it's become this huge deal and all she did was answer my question why do you think your parents are doing this because my mom thinks it'll help me get in
to Stanford or one of the IVs and my dad thinks it'll help pay for it and nobody's asked you what you think no so are you going to help her I don't know I would at least like to talk to her maybe I could help get her story out there great because everyone's telling me to stay out of it do you always do what you're told what is your heart telling you to do Mr Thorley how did you feel when you found out that your daughter had been exposed to faith-based teachings in class well it felt like we had
been violated this was supposed to be a history class not Sunday school my wife and I are free thinkers were rationalists we believe in a non-theistic worldview and that's how we were trying to raise our daughter uhhuh and did you discuss this incident with your daughter well I tried but it's hard discussing anything with kids that age she's 16 some of you know what that's like it's hard enough trying to maintain credibility as a parent without a teacher jumping in and arguing against your posit
ion now we trust the school not to overstep its bounds in terms of what is and what isn't appropriate is that too much to ask well thank you Mr thy that's all your honor your witness Miss andler no questions your honor next witness Mr K Mrs Rizo did M Wesley talk about Faith issues on the school campus all the time everybody knows she's a Christian I don't think she'd chew a stick of gun without praying first it makes everyone feel awkward thank you no further questions your honor your witness M
iss Mrs Rizzo you stated that Miss Wesley talks about her faith all the time I'm curious can you give me a specific instance well not off the top of my head well has she as far as you're aware ever started her class with a prayer no has she ever asked anyone in the teacher's lounge to pray with her no has she ever asked you personally to pray with her objection onative the question has effectively been asked unanswered your honor Mrs Rizzo's sworn testimony states that Miss Wesley talked about h
er faith all the time yet she's failed to sight a single instance I'm I'm merely trying to discover some BAS for her opinion sustain M Chandler we're done with this line of question Mrs Rizzo in the school's initial inquiry into this matter you were Mrs Wesley's representative on behalf of the teachers union were you not yes and did you ever consider that your disapproval of her faith might Tain her ability to represent her properly objection speculative sustain God bless you careful or you migh
t end up on trial Mr enler further question joh so when are these religious zealots going to realize it's not only disrespectful of them to push their beliefs on others in this case it's actually illegal This Woman This fundamentalist use her position of influence as a teacher to fill the minds of our children with nonsense if you ask me the religious extremist we need to worry about are the hardcore Christians how about we show up in force and show Miss W Ley just exactly what we think of her p
rizing principal Kenny what was the school district's final determination well Grace has been suspended without pay pending the results of this trial isn't that rather unusual leading it up to a third party to determine whether Miss Wesley is fired we've decided to accept the Court's interpretation of wrongdoing either way no question jna your witness Miss Miss Kenny can you tell me the full name of the high school over which you reside Dr Martin Luther King Jr Memorial High School I noticed tha
t the name fails to mention Dr King's title is Reverend doctor it's his work in the field of civil rights that we prefer to highlight but that's the whole point you consider his faith and politics to be separate things but I don't and he certainly wouldn't have objection your honor Cil is testifying sustained jur is instr instructed to ignore Mr endler's preceding remarks Miss Kenny are you familiar with Dr King's letter from a Birmingham Jail yes it's a simal piece of civil rights history in th
at letter Dr King makes numerous faith-based references does he not off hand I don't recall allow me to refresh your memory he cites the example of the three youths from The Book of Daniel who were tossed into the fiery furnace by King neb Nezar because they refus to worship Him elsewhere he urges action with Jesus and here I quote extremist love and in his speech I've been to the Mountaintop he stated that he just wanted to do God's will is this coming back to you now yes in your opinion would
miss Wesley had she chosen to do so have been allowed to present the examples that I just mentioned in her class objection speculative I'm going to allow it over ruled witness May answer no if it were up to me she would not have been allowed why not because those examples are too closely associated with Fai in other words they're they're facts but they're just facts that are too dangerous for discussion the word I would use would be controversial but aren't facts just facts I mean there's nothin
g controversial about 2+ 2 equaling 4 or eal mc² or the date man landed on the moon so why the controversy about these facts I think the fact that we're all here today speaks for itself thank you for your honesty one last question in your orientation at the beginning of the semester your memo to the staff stressed diversity and tolerance did it not yes well would it be fair to say that except for Christianity all other forms of diversity are welcome objection your honor I will withdraw the quest
ion Mr andler you seem to have a pinion for injecting commentary where it doesn't belong you would do well to avoid further provocation of this court I apologize your honor I'll look to cril it in the future redirect your honor Miss Kenny I understand that you attended a service at Miss Wesley's Church a short while ago is that correct yes that's correct it was an event honoring several students who attend that church for their community service M and who was it that invited you to that service
chce Wesley I see where were you when this invitation was extended at my office on school grounds yes during work hours yes thank you one last question is it true that Miss Wesley accepts donations for a faith based charity Convoy of Hope right there in the classroom yes she does thank you again no further questions your honor you may step down m Kenny what's a jourm Grace can I ask you a question off the Record sure these people they're looking to destroy you and I don't just mean financially d
o you think it's worth it I hope so so do I fishy and cheesy at the same time David this tuna mil is exquisite oh yeah Exquisite it's the pro alone that was my idea I love what it does to the flavor of the fish I know you you're from Blaze's car rental right oh yeah yeah that gig didn't really work out for me I don't think customer service is my forte so you decided to become a waiter well this is where I do my dinner theater in the morning as I serve up croissance and evenings I serve up check
off hey uh listen sorry about the whole car not working thing it's okay I learned my lesson prus starts every time I same guy same guy amazing gentlemen I don't want to spoil your brunch but uh I'm hearing from a friend of mine in the prosecutor's office about a subpoena that just came down demanding that we submit copies of our sermons for the last three months for review can they do that they tried it in Houston so now the government can determine what we can and can't preach at our churches l
et's not overreact I'm I'm sure there's no ill intent here unfortunately I think this is just the beginning we've been ignoring it and now we're paying the price for it well don't forget the silent majority they're out there they just need something to stand for I I'll admit there's pressure but I think with time this will correct itself forgive me but I I think you're wrong I'm serving on a jury in a case right now that touches on these issues of course I'm not allowed to talk about it but I me
an the one thing that it's convinced me of is that if we stand by and do nothing pressure that we're feeling today is going to mean persecution tomorrow what makes you so sure Speedy change viciousness of the opposition the message of the Gospel has a standing in a way of a lot of things that powerful people want and our resistance to change that message because it's not ours to change has made us a lot of enemies whether we admit it or not we're at War the war of Ephesians 6 not against flesh a
nd blood but against the powers of this world against the spiritual forces in the Heavenly Realms and if we insist on denying that and we've already lost brought a giant pack of Chinese food and a briefcase full of files let say we eat first I say you're a genius does Walter want to join us oh no he's hiding in his room how come uh he's treating this like it's a date which should give you some indication of what my social life is like don't worry I won't tell falls under attorney clent privilege
so is this what you always saw yourself doing the lawyer thing no um I wanted to be Batman how about you your your parents have you all set to go to the convent actually there were no bedtime prayers in my childhood I was raised in a house without much faith when did you decide to become a Christian I was walking home from class it was dark and I was struggling with a lot of things and I I turned the corner and right there in front of me was this church had this old sign out front but it just i
t stopped me in my tracks and and the sign the sign said who do you say that I am and as I read it I could hear the Lord speak to [Music] me I couldn't get that question out of my head for days so that was the start of a journey that didn't end until I found the answer spee fore for foree for foree should the foreign fore foreign [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] my God [Music] to [Music] you know I that was beautiful forgive me but I did not know anyone was here oh no plea
se don't apologize I didn't mean to interrupt I just didn't know where else to go I'm Martin I'm Brooke do you think I could ask you a few questions that would be fine good because I have a lot he doesn't make mistakes but I thought you proved bias I mean principal Kenny and Mrs Rizzo those were just Jabs we need a knockout punch why did you feel compelled to bring Jesus up in History Class why shouldn't I have Grace I'm not here to debate with you what you think you're right words Tom listen th
is isn't about faith this is about history okay maybe I'm wrong here I'm not the law expert but I think they've missed the point I'm I'm not sure I follow their whole attack it's about me preaching in class but I didn't do that they're saying you did you cited scripture you talked about Jesus's teachings just like they were any other verifiable fact well what if they're just that I mean just because certain facts happen to be recorded in the Bible doesn't mean they stop being facts we can separa
te the history based elements of Jesus's life from the faith-based element in my my classroom I didn't talk about Jesus as my Lord and Savior you know all I did was comment on quotations attributed to Jesus the man and I did it in AP History there was nothing wrong with the context and any rulle saying that you can talk about any historic figure that ever existed except Jesus's discriminatory they can't Institute that and every credible historian admits that Jesus existed I mean there's just too
much evidence Grace I love it this is our defense Jesus as a historic figure just like everyone else and you know what Kane will never see it coming you got some reading to do he just had so many notes written in the margins that for the first time I felt like I was truly getting to know my brother like God gave me the extra five minutes that I so desperately needed with him I just don't understand why he never told me about his faith sharing one's Faith with family especially not knowing how t
hey will react can be difficult count our struggles as blessings right that is exactly right there are more than five minutes a waiting you and your brother John 11 verse 25- 26 says I am the resurrection and the life he who believes in me will live even if he dies and whoever lives and Believes In Me will never die do you believe this I do then invite him into your heart heart and make him the Lord of your life dear Lord I'm not quite sure what to say but thank you for dying on the cross for me
please forgive me of my sin Jesus please come into my life and I will follow you as my Lord and Savior amen thank you can you state your name and occupation for the court my name is Lee Strobel I'm a professor of Christian thought at Houston Baptist University and the author of more than 20 books about Christianity including the case for Christ can you help me prove the existence of Jesus Christ absolutely Beyond any reasonable doubt how so actually this court already affirmed it when we were c
alled into session and the date was given our calendar has been split between BC and AD based on the birth of Jesus which is Quite a feat if he never existed beyond that historian Gary habermass lists 39 ancient sources for Jesus from which he enumerates more than 100 reported facts about his life teachings crucifixion and Resurrection in fact the historical evidence for Jesus execution is so strong that one of the most famous New Testament scholars in the world gared lunman of Germany said Jesu
s death as a consequence of crucifixion is indisputable now there are very few facts in ancient history that a critical historian like G ludman will say is indisputable one of them is the execution of Jesus Christ forgive me but you're a Believer are you not a Bible believing Christian guilty is charged so wouldn't this tend to inflate your estimate of the probability that Jesus existed no because we don't need to inflate him we can reconstruct the basic facts about Jesus just from non-Christian
sources outside the Bible and gar ludan is an atheist in other words we can prove the existence of Jesus solely by using sources that have absolutely no sympathy toward Christianity as the agnostic historian Bart man says Jesus did exist whether we like it or not I put it this way denying the existence of Jesus doesn't make him go away it merely proves that no amount of evidence will convince you thank you no further questions your honor m g your witness no questions your honor that's lunch we'
ll recess until 2 p.m. can I help you with something oh hi I was looking for Pastor Dave my friend Mina she said I should come see him she said he's really easy to talk to he won't be back until after next week oh okay thanks sweeping is something I only do part time I enjoy it because it helps me think but if you need to talk I'm actually the pastor it's been 3 weeks since my doctors told me I was in remission oh Amy that's wonderful it is yes but even though I've been given this gift I've been
questioning my faith I know Jesus existed I'm struggling to believe actually I think you already do believe believe and the proof is you're not willing to put God back on the Shelf now that your cancer is gone he won't let you dismiss the thought of him part of you senses Jesus's presence and wishes that he would just go away and leave you alone actually now that you mentioned it I had thought of that he Delights in using Us in ways we never dreamed of and giving us things that we never even kn
ew we wanted we just have to give him a chance will you thank you I am Reverend David Hill sermon transcripts right yes put it right there been coming in all morning I'm sure they did what they thought was best that's it those are your entire sermons for the past 120 days no that's a letter that I wrote explaining why I'm not going to hand them in excuse me I know it's unusual for a Christian Pastor to willfully resist a subpoena issued by a lawful government Authority and it's even more unusual
that he should feel compelled to do so are you sure you want to do that something that I have to do you know the old saying the squeaky wheel gets the grease don't you I have another saying a nail that sticks up gets hammered down Susan what I'm seeing is a teacher who answered a students's question to the best of her ability Amy it sounds like you're taking the side of Grace Wesley here surely you see that she used the students question to promote her Christian agenda actually Susan that's not
how I see it I Believe Miss Wesley's entitled her own opinions and that includes in the classroom she didn't try to convert these students in fact the reason that I must say I'm shocked at what seems to be a complete 180 from the typical stance of your plot let's just look at the facts of this case for a minute she clearly I have an idea come over as soon as you can okay you look terrible you really ought to ask to be excused no I'm fine I really need to be here all right you may be seated J nu
mber 12 is there something you'd like to say I'm sorry your honor I got I guess that proves there is no God cuz they just lost the only juror they could count on any dizziness yeah vomiting about a half hour ago does this hurt how about this I hope you're not too attached to your appendant Brook marene it's not looking good in [Applause] there M Marshall are you prepared to fulfill your duties as an alter yes I am your honor Mr dler next witness would you state your name and experience for the r
ecord my name is James Warner Wallace I'm a retired homicide detective from Los Angeles County and are you the author of the book Cold Case Christianity yes I am can you share the subtitle of the book with the court please a homicide detective investigates the claims of the gospels would I be correct in saying that your your duties as a homicide detective include investigating Cold Case homicides yes that is and was my expertise don't most of those cases get solved with DNA evidence objection le
ading and council is testifying again your honor I'll rephrase how many of your cold cases were solved through the use of DNA evidence none not one that's uh often popular on TV but our department has never had the Good Fortune of solving a cal case with DNA well how do most of these cases get solved Often by examining eyewitness claims witness claims that were made many years earlier even though often our Witnesses are now deceased forgive my ignorance Mr Wallace but how is that possible well w
e have a number of techniques that we can use to test the reliability of an eyewitness including something called forensic statement analysis that's a discipline where we scrutinize the statements of eyewitnesses and looking at what they choose to minimize what they choose to emphasize what they omit altoe how expand time or contract time and when we examine these kinds of eyewitness accounts we can usually tell who's lying and who's telling the truth and even who the guilty party is and did you
apply this skill set anytime outside of your official capacity yes I applied my expertise to the death of Jesus at the hands of the Romans and I actually looked at the gospels as I would any other set of forensic statements within a matter of months I determined that the four gospels written from different perspectives contained the eyewitness accounts about the Life Ministry death and resurrection of Jesus and did you consider that the four accounts might be part of a conspiracy designed to pr
omote belief in a fledgling Faith yeah you have to consider conspiracies when assessing eyewitness accounts but successful conspiracies typically involve the fewest number of people it's a lot easier for two people to lie and keep a secret than it is for 20 and that's really the problem with the conspiracy theories related to the apostles in the first century there are just far too many of them trying to hold this conspiracy for far too long a period of time and far worse they're experiencing pr
essure like no other unimaginable pressure every one of these folks was tortured and died for what they claimed to see and none of them ever recanted their story so the idea that um this is a conspiracy in the first century is just really unreasonable instead what I see in the gospels something I call unintended iwitness support statements what's an unintended eyewitness support statement if I can borrow your Bible let me uh go to the gospel of uh Matthew for an example of this I'll start with a
passage in which Jesus is in front of uh Caiaphas at a hearing it says here then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists others slapped him and said prophesy to us Christ who hit you that seems like a very simple request given that the people who hit him are standing right in front of him what this makes no sense what why would it be prophecy to be able to tell you who hit you but it's not until you read Luke Luke that you get an answer to this he says the men who were guarding Je
sus began mocking and beating him they blindfolded him and demanded prophesy who hit you so now we know why this was a challenge because Luke tells us the thing that Matthew left out that he was actually blindfolded the time this took place this is very common this kind of unintentional eyewitness support that fills in a detail that the first witness left out after years of scrutinizing these gospels using the temple that I used to determine if an eyewitness is reliable I concluded the four gosp
els in this book contain the reliable accounts of the actual words of Jesus and that's to include the statements quoted by Miss Wesley in her class absolutely thank you detective your witness detective Wallace I'm not going to try to match biblical knowledge with you but isn't it true that these gospel accounts vary widely in what they say that there are numerous discrepancies between these accounts absolutely but that's exactly what we should expect I don't quite understand that well reliable I
witness accounts always differ slightly in the way they recall the story they're coming to it from different Geographic perspectives their history even where they are located in the room when I examine the gospels I was trying to determine if these were accurate reliable accounts in spite of any differences that might be between the accounts ah and as a devout Christian you feel you succeeded no Mr Kan I think you misunderstand me when I began this study I was a devout atheist I began examining
the gospels as a committed skeptic not as a Believer you see I wasn't raised in a Christian environment although I do think I have an unusually high regard for the value of evidence I'm not a Christian because I was raised that way or because I hoped it would satisfy some need or accomplish some goal I'm simply a Christian because it's evidentially true motion to strike your honor granted jury is instructed to ignore detective Wallace's last remarks no further questions witness is excused thank
you your honor Mr enler your next witness we don't have one your honor she didn't do anything wrong she was just trying to help me Brook order I'll have order young lady your youth is no excuse for disturbing the sanctity of this court but this case is supposed to be about me I'm almost 17 years old it's not like I can't think for myself I just don't have the right to speak Brook what are you doing not unless you are called as a witness young lady if I put her on the stand what am I going to he
ar then she asked a question and I answer it your honor we'd like to call Miss Brook tholly to the stand objection your honor Miss tholly is a minor her parents do not want her subjected to the emotional pressure of testifying against her own teacher Miss thy are you willing to testify on your own behalf yes your owner and do you understand that you will have to answer all the questions truthfully regardless of your feelings and that failure to do so is punishable by law yes to your honor I'm no
t afraid of telling the truth I'm only afraid of not being able to tell [Music] it I will allow this witness objection overule Brook in class who first brought up the name Jesus you or Miss Wesley I did as part of a question yes and at that time did you feel like you were asking a faith-based question no not really it just seemed like Martin Luther King and Jesus were saying similar things so I brought it up and did you consider Miss Wesley's response to be a reasonable answer to your question y
es so if I'm hearing you correctly you asked a question in history class about a historical figure and your history teacher answered it in a sensible manner yes thank you your witness Miss Ry do you like Miss Wesley yes would you say she's your favorite teacher yes absolutely do you think Miss Wesley likes you objection speculative your honor speaks to the State of Mind of the witness if not miss Wesley herself I'm going to allow it from rule she may answer the question yes I think she likes me
uhhuh do you think there's any possibility that in answering your question she may have tried to share some of the ideas of her faith the faith that she holds most dear uh no not at that moment not at that moment you mean to say that there were other moments in which she talked to you about her faith M thy please you must answer the question Mr yes but it was outside of school and it was only one time move to strike your honor this is irrelevant no actions off the school campus are at issue here
good night this SC seem to found a loose thread I'm inclined to let him pull it see what I'm rles thank you why didn't you tell me about this you didn't ask and I didn't think it mattered Brooke you realize that you have to tell the truth here you understand that correct yes so what did you mean when you said that that you had talks about faith outside of school my brother died in an accident 6 months ago Miss Wesley noticed that I wasn't doing so well so she asked me if everything was all righ
t after class MH I told her I was fine but I went and found her later on at the coffee shop and did Miss Wesley refer you to any kind of psychological counseling no uh did she suggest that perhaps she wasn't the right person to be discussing this with you no well then what did Miss Wesley do she was really nice we talked for a long time and I could tell that she really cared I asked her how she kept it all together so well and she said Jesus so she's the one who brought up Jesus did her endorsem
ent of Jesus move you to explore Christianity yes at first but when the Salvation Army came to pick up my brother's things one of the ladies found his Bible and she gave it to me I didn't even know that he had one so I started reading it and once I started I realized that I didn't want to stop that's why that's why I came up with a question that I asked in class now if I understand you correctly without Miss Wesley's direct involvement you never would have asked that question in the first place
would you I don't know after all of your Bible readings do you feel now that you're a Believer yes maybe even a Christian yes at the risk of sining redundant do you think any of this the Bible readings the question about Jesus in class the new found commitment to Christianity is it likely that any of that would have occurred without Miss Wesley's direct involvement no it wouldn't I thank you for your honesty no further questions your honor Sandler do you wish to redirect now your honor you may s
tep down St why do they look so angry because they think we lied to them but I didn't doesn't matter this court is a Jour I have to prepare you Grace we're going to lose this case I know you were right I'm going to lose everything we saw a very large crowd out here at the courthouse yesterday both in protest and support of teacher Grace Wesley who is on trial for allegedly prosing in the classroom now in an unexpected move yesterday we saw some of Wesley's former students come out to silently de
monstrate their support for their teacher father please take this from I don't know what to do please don't forsake me please hey Brock I ruined everything didn't I it's okay you don't have to answer I know that I did I'm not even allowed to talk to her how do I let her know that I'm sorry without making things worse I can't tell you what to do but whatever you do just let her know you care recently when I've been praying it's like Jesus isn't letting me feel his presence usually I can almost Re
ach Out And Touch him but but right now it's like it's like he's Million Miles Away honey you of all people should realize when you're going through something really hard the teacher is always quiet during the test [Laughter] [Music] God all the world th [Music] hands I see the star I the roll ther throughout the Universe dising my soul my God to the how great thou how great thou then sings my soul myor God to the how great th how great first of all this trial took an unexpected turn when Wesley
's Council decided to try to prove the existence of Jesus Gary this kind of your area of expertise how do you convince the Skeptics well Governor I employ what I call the minimal fact method which uses only the historically events that are so well evidenced that they're accepted across the board even by skeptical and non-Christian Scholars as a result now I understand what it is you weren't allowed to talk about I wish I still wasn't allowed to talk about it she needs me on that jury have Fai Da
vid God's plan is at work how'd you get here anyway I bored your Prius very nice and don't get too comfortable I'm planning a full recovery rise do you believe that she was prizing to her students Governor not at all Jesus Christ was the most influential person who ever lived how could you ignore that fact and teach history I think the real problem is this hey Martin more questions I wanted to make sure that you were okay yeah I'm fine they're just holding me over for a little observation I'll b
e released soon something different about you are you okay I should say so yes I believe God wants me to be a minister to return to my country and become a pastor just like you that's great there'll be challenges in your country are you prepared for them I am I'm proud of you you're that's awesome it's a shocking reality that Christians are soon going to be forced to choose between obeying the law of man are following the word of God I'm Mike Huckaby we'll see you next time on point of [Music] v
iew hey Brooke why don't you get be with Miss Wesley I think we can handle this yeah seriously we got backup coming we covered we get [Music] him God's got this [Music] where is Tom all right be seated are we missing someone sorry your honor my apologies to the court that's unexpected he almost looks like a lawyer your honor I have one Final witness to call Grace Wesley Miss Wesley please approach the witness stand do I have to I'm afraid so your honor given the witness's reluctance to testify c
an I have the Court's permission to treat her as a hostile witness you may proceed at your own Peril you swear to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth I do please be seated Grace I want you to do something for me something for everyone in this courtroom I want you to apologize I want you to say you're sorry and that you made a mistake your honor what's going on here do Grace I can't do that why why can't you do that Grace because I don't believe I did anything wrong well as y
our attorney I'm advising you to do it anyway to at least pretend that you're sorry and throw yourself on the mercy of the Court don't be a lie so what everyone lies not everyone are are you looking to become a martyr what in the world is he doing no IDE me and what is it that you want Grace tell me tell us I want I want to be able to tell the truth the truth whose truth and what truth are you referring to Grace is there some truth that you know that no one else knows oh that's right the other n
ight didn't you tell me that Jesus spoke to you personally why are you doing this I'm the one asking the questions Miss Wesley did you or did you not tell me that Jesus spoke to you personally yes and what did he say I'll make it easier for you didn't you say that he asked you a question that was personal you weren't supposed to I don't care the other night you told me that Jesus asked you something what did he ask you Grace tell all of us I think we deserve to know why are you doing this to me
answer the question they won't believe me doesn't matter all that matters is that you believe it tell us Grace under penalty of perjury what was the question that God presented to you personally that night on C campus answer the question answer the question he asked who do you say that I am and what did you answer you are the Cor Christ the son of the Living God well there you have it your honor I I think we've all heard quite enough Miss are you looking to change your clients's plea no your hon
or I say she's innocent of all wrongdoing but I'm asking the jury to find against her anyway I mean Le let's face it she has the audacity to believe not only only that there is a God but that she has a personal relationship with him which colors everything that she says and does I think it's time that we stop pretending that we can trust a person like this to serve in a public capacity in the name of Tolerance and diversity I say we destroy her that's enough Miss then we can all go to our Graves
content knowing that we stomped out the last spark of faith that was ever exhibited in the Public Square that's enough Miss en I say we make an example of her Miss enla that's enough let's set an new president that employment by our federal government mandates that you must first announce any belief system you have M that is a n you are and if someone slips through the cracks and and and hides their beliefs then we arrest them and find them and if they don't pay then we seize their property and
if they resist well let's not kid ourselves enforcement is always at the end of a gun Mr you out of Bo I charge you with contempt I accept the charge because I have nothing but contempt for the proceed meetings if we're going to insist that a Christian's right to believe is subordinate to all other rights then it's not a right somebody is always going to be offended 2,000 years of human history proves that so I say we get on with it site the law charge the jury and send them off to deliberate s
o be it now we are going to bypass the usual closing arguments unless Mr King finds a need to further address the jury no your honor we can ask nothing more my instructions to you are simple uphold the law without unfairly prejudicing your decision or risking a mistrial on appeal now I believe I can safely say that the respondent's counil has dared you to convict his own client the jury will now be dismissed for deliberation we are a Jour she hasn't got a prayer let's go remind me to send him a
thank you note yeah for thank you so much thank you guys thanks for coming out hey right now on the phone A friend of mine named Amy is on the line and she's calling about a woman who's on trial for her Fai this woman has risked everything for Jesus Amy's asked me to pray for this woman will you guys join me Lord we know that to risk anything for you is a complet honor with eternal rewards but if it's within your will can you please restore This Woman's hope and make her faith an example to all
of us Lord show your power to a Fallen World we know you have the power to do anything so we ask you right now crying out as the body of Christ move the hearts of those people Lord the judge and the jury to let them know the beauty of your majesty and we all said amen [Music] [Music] amen [Music] ladies and gentlemen of the jury have you reached a decision we have your honor and how do you find we the jury find in favor of Grace [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] Wesley we are [Music] J nice
[Music] [Music] shoes [Music] Grace I'm sorry I couldn't tell you had to come as a surprise otherwise the jury wouldn't have been swayed by your reactions so you did have a plan no you did you stood up for what you believed in and you held on to your faith I don't know anybody that would have done that you they were hoping to make an example of you but instead you became an inspiration wa did it hey you've kept quiet long enough why don't you go share the good news hey thank you yeah [Music] Ru
only free become incorrect speak the truth about when your gave us all eternity [Music] I'll [Music] be God not [Applause] [Music] de right [Music] [Applause] the to give [Music] myth in a case that was turning for the worst but was included with a powerful happy ending for Miss Grace Wesley live here at Hope Springs God good oh wait I want to hear this in the case of versus Wesley they have in favor of Grace Wesley the crowd is in full here at so are you going to say it or should I say what God
is good all the time and all the time God is [Music] good I want to be guilty by associ aaim Your Truth your [Music] the I'll get to work on the appeal don't bother if we appeal and lose we'll set a precedent I don't want that I don't understand how we lost this he elmart at us he played our role in attacking Wesley he made the jury hate everyone one but her not to mention you Prov the existence of Jesus [Applause] [Music] Christ alive he's alive dead he's surely alive God's not dead he's surel
y alive God's not dead he's surely alive God's not dead he's surely alive God's not dead he's surely alive he's living on the [Music] lioning like a lion like [Music] letre my God's Not Dead he's surely alive he's living on [Music] theive like a lion not dead surely alive he's living me inside like a [Music] lion [Music] Li [Music] [Music] take all that you're afraid to and [Music] quiety [Music] in light it up for [Music] [Music] [Music] want silence you [Music] going no nothing's going to chan
ge if you don't be the hard you [Music] Ence you know I'm going to need my keys back I know two days of ice chips I'm starving I'm hungry as well David how about I take you for a nice tuna melt David help yes you're under arrest for what contempt of court you failed to produce your sermons upon court order please put your hands behind your back please be gentle he's just been released from the hospital I don't understand what is he being accused of you have the right to remain silent anything yo
u say can and will be used against you in a court of law you have a right to an attorney if you cannot afford an attorney one will be provided for you do you understand the rights that I have just read to you yes sorry about this pastor it's okay looks like I'm going to need you to fill in for me a little while longer of course David anything you need what do we do now same as always Martin we pray in faith
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