Pages

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Starbucks or the Bible? Choose.l

Starbucks Shows No Respect For Christians
by Michael G. Mickey
Excerpt from a ChristianNews.Net article:

At the annual Starbucks shareholder’s meeting this past Wednesday in Seattle, company officials told those who support Biblical marriage that they “can sell [their] shares in Starbucks and buy shares in another company.”

According to reports, during the meeting, the founder of Corporate Morality Action Center expressed concerns over the company’s support of homosexual marriage. Tom Stobhar from the organization cited that the company’s stance affected shareholder earnings after Starbucks backed efforts to legalize same-sex “marriage” in Washington state last year. The company’s announcement had resulted in boycotts against the coffee king.

“In the first full quarter after this boycott was announced, our sales and earnings — shall we say politely — were a bit disappointing,” shareholder Tom Strobhar stated.

“Not every decision is an economic decision. Despite the fact that you recite statistics that are narrow in time, we did provide a 38% shareholder return over the last year,” responded Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz. ”I don’t know how many things you invest in, but I would suspect not many things, companies, products, investments have returned 38% over the last 12 months.”

“Having said that, it is not an economic decision to me. The lens in which we are making that decision is through the lens of our people,” he continued. “We employ over 200,000 people in this company, and we want to embrace diversity — of all kinds.”

The response drew both applause and cheers.

Schultz then concluded by saying, “If you feel, respectfully, that you can get a higher return than the 38% you got last year, it’s a free country. You can sell your shares in Starbucks and buy shares in another company. Thank you very much.”

Click HERE to read more, including information about a website currently taking action on behalf of people of faith.

So, that's how it's going to be, Starbucks? Okay, but I have a question. Why can't you, as a company, embrace the "diversity" of your Christian customers?

If being a Christian in today's world, striving to walk in obedience to God while the majority of the world is spitting in our Creator's eye, isn't one form of the "diversity of all kinds" Starbucks claims it wants to embrace, I need a solid explanation as to why.

Until I get an explanation that doesn't fly in the face of my Christian faith, it seems proper for me to show Starbucks that, contrary to what CEO Howard Schultz is quoted as saying above, it has, in fact, made an economic decision. Starbucks has decided it doesn't need my support nor the support of fellow bible-believing Christians anymore.

As you wish, Mr. Schultz. But you're not taking a position of moral superiority, unless your opinion trumps Almighty God's.

Leviticus 18:22: Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.

God meant that, Mr. Schultz! All Scripture pertaining to this matter, both Old and New Testament, is clear. So, what is a Christian to do, Mr. Schultz, when your company makes a mockery of that, even telling supporters of traditional marriage to take their investment dollars elsewhere if they hold Starbucks stock? Don't look now, but I think you're about to find out.