These are the concessions Christians should make on religious freedom laws

We need to pick our battles much more wisely

Indiana protest
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Nate Chute))

I've repeatedly defended Indiana's controversial new religious freedom law, and have been a pointed critic of its opponents. (Though the opponents seem to have won a small victory; on Thursday, Indiana lawmakers seemed to back down somewhat to progressive critics who said the law would discriminate against gay people.) But I also think the current fight is, if you'll pardon the expression, a come-to-Jesus moment for Christian conservatives.

First, let's consider how this debate must sound to many people who do not share our socially conservative perspective. These liberals have fought with us — or really against us — over the legal status of same-sex relationships for more than two decades. In many cases, they were the parties to those committed same-sex relationships.

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W. James Antle III

W. James Antle III is the politics editor of the Washington Examiner, the former editor of The American Conservative, and author of Devouring Freedom: Can Big Government Ever Be Stopped?.