Church Attendance Continues To Decline

Written by Rev. Jason J. McGuire

According to The Atlantic, over the past 25 years, 40 million Americans have stopped attending church.

Professor Ryan Burge of Eastern Illinois University states that 45% of members of Generation Z (persons born in the 1990s or later) have no religious affiliation. On the basis of this fact and of other data, Professor Burge asserts that nearly one-third of America’s 350,000 churches are “‘on the brink of extinction’” and that thousands of churches will close in the next few decades.… Continue Reading

SPOTLIGHT: Religious Liberty in America

Written by Alyssa Sonnenburg

This episode of Illinois Family Spotlight features remarks from Ariella Del Turco on the topic of religious liberty in the first half, along with a question and answer segment with Ambassador Sam Brownback during the second half.

Arielle Del Turco is the director of Religious Liberty at the Family Research Council (FRC) and is the co-author of FRC’s “Hostility Against Churches” report.

Sam Brownback is the former governor of Kansas, formerly representing Kansas in the U.S.… Continue Reading

SPOTLIGHT: The Status of Religious Liberty

Written by Alyssa Sonnenburg

In this episode, Illinois Family Spotlight features remarks and insights made by the honorable Sam Brownback that took place during an IFI Forum on religious liberty.

Sam Brownback served as governor of Kansas, represented the people of Kansas in the U.S. House & Senate during President Trump’s administration, served as the U.S. Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom, and is currently the chairman for the National Committee for Religious Freedom.… Continue Reading

SPOTLIGHT: Cancel Culture & Keeping Christ First

Written by Alyssa Sonnenburg

This episode of Illinois Family Spotlight features remarks made by Kevin Sorbo during IFI’s 2022 Faith, Family & Freedom Banquet.

Kevin Sorbo is an actor, director, author, and is best known for his role in Hercules: The Legendary Journey, Andromeda, and God’s Not Dead, to name a few. He has also become an outspoken and witty conservative pundit with 1.7 million Twitter followers. We recommend that you follow him @ksorbs.… Continue Reading

SPOTLIGHT: Education Freedom: Insights From Sam Sorbo

Written by Alyssa Sonnenburg

This episode of Illinois Family Spotlight features remarks given by Sam Sorbo at Illinois Family Institute’s 2022 Faith, Family, and Freedom Banquet.

Sam Sorbo is an actress, filmmaker, radio host, and a staunch advocate for educational freedom. Her book, They’re Your Kids: An Inspirational Journey from Self-Doubter to Home School Advocate, chronicles her family’s experience with homeschooling.

In her speech, Sam insightfully notes the lies of the educational framework in America, what true education is, and how parents can fight for their child’s education.… Continue Reading

SPOTLIGHT: Project 21

Written by Alyssa Sonnenburg

In this episode of Illinois Family Spotlight, Monte Larrick interviews Horace Cooper. Cooper is a senior fellow with the National Center for Public Policy Research, chairman of the Project 21 National Advisory Board and a legal commentator.

In response to the attack that Christianity and the Church is facing, Cooper notes,

As Christians, one of things we need to understand… American Christians are one of the most powerful forces on the planet.

SPOTLIGHT: Celebrating American Independence

Written by Alyssa Sonnenburg

In this episode of Illinois Family Spotlight, Monte Larrick interviews attorney David Shestokas, a former 2022 candidate for Illinois Attorney General. Mr. Shestokas is involved in the battle for election integrity, and is the author of two must-read books: Creating the Declaration of Independence and Constitutional Soundbites.

In this episode, Shestokas emphasizes the important role that the Declaration of Independence currently plays in preserving American freedoms. He notes,

“What the Constitution is intended to do is to execute the ideals that are found in the Declaration of Independence… the Constitution itself is a pretty mechanical document, but the Declaration of Independence defines really what it means to be an American.”

The Bad and the Good About America

Written by Robert Knight

Independence Day is a good time to take America’s measure. The United States is the first nation created with secured rights derived from nature and nature’s God — not man. We grew rapidly and providentially into a world power with unrivaled liberty and wealth.

Along the way, we endured a bloody civil war and got rid of slavery. We defeated Nazism, Japanese imperialism and the Soviet Union.

We’ve seen unprecedented material progress and such varied marvels as an end to polio and the introduction of digital timers to speed up the game of baseball.… Continue Reading

SPOTLIGHT: The Consequences of Sexual Immorality

Written by Alyssa Sonnenburg

In this episode of Illinois Family Spotlight, we are featuring remarks made by Dr. Jonathan Diggs during Illinois Family Institute’s 2023 Worldview Conference.

Dr. Jonathan Diggs has been practicing medicine for over thirty-five years, is an American Board of Internal Medicine diplomat, is a motivational speaker, and is a guest on national television and radio programs.

In his speaking segment, Dr. Diggs outlines three consequences of sexual immortality, which include the following:

1) unwanted pregnancies,
2) sexually transmitted diseases (STIs),
3) and the disruption of social cohesion.… Continue Reading

SPOTLIGHT: Facing the Truth with Eric Scheidler

Written by Alyssa Sonnenburg

In this episode of Illinois Family Spotlight, Monte Larrick discusses the pro-life movement with Eric Scheidler, who is the executive director of Chicago’s Pro-Life Action League. During their annual “Face the Truth” tour, dozens of volunteers line sidewalks adjacent to streets near busy intersections in Chicago and the suburbs, silently and often prayerfully holding photographs of aborted babies.

When asked about the public reaction to these photographs, Scheidler notes,

We expected to see more hostility and anger and we’ve had some incidents… But, what I’ve found more notable is kind of a lack of curiosity… it seems more difficult to get people to take a piece of literature from you… That’s troubling.