Republican state Rep. Nate Schatzline of Fort Worth spoke Friday about the need for churches to influence politics during a panel discussion at the state GOP convention in San Antonio.
Schatzline, a former pastor, is director of operations for The Justice Reform, an anti-human trafficking organization affiliated with Mercy Culture Church in Fort Worth. He spoke during a discussion called “Upholding Our Judeo Christian Heritage and Values,” sponsored by the faith-based nonprofit Salt & Light Council of Solana Beach, California.
“The local church is the hope of the world,” he said. ‘No one is coming to save you. It is not an elected position that will bring salvation to our country. It is a revival of the Holy Spirit that will fill us, transform us and light a fire in America.”
He expressed frustration with conservatives who do not follow Christian values.
“I’m tired of politicians who shout ‘faith, family and freedom’ and prostitute the church for a vote and then fail to uphold our values once they get into power,” Schatzline said.
Schatzline was Texas Right to Life’s Pro-Life standout freshman of the 88th Legislature. He addressed his Republican colleagues who are concerned about the popularity of the abortion ban among voters.
“I would rather lose every election fighting for the unborn than have to answer to God and say, ‘I haven’t done enough for those who don’t answer for themselves,’” he said.
A 2023 Associated Press poll found that a majority of Americans opposed a total abortion ban.
Schatzline then pivoted to speak about the “sexualization” and “indoctrination” of children in public schools, saying conservatives “need to continue to turn those school boards around.”
Sen. Angela Paxton of McKinney, wife of Attorney General Ken Paxton, said she received a “great public education” in the Mansfield school district but supports school choice, reflecting on her time at a private school her children attended. She has worked as a teacher and supervisor for more than twenty years.
“I am the first teacher to be elected in over 20 years,” she said. “And I think the Lord sent me here with that background. As an educator, as a school counselor, for a time like this.”
She criticized schools for having sexually explicit material in their libraries, for promoting transgender ideology and for allowing boys in girls’ locker rooms.
Paxton also spoke about abortion, drawing on her own experience as an adopted person.
“I have been a strong supporter of pro-life legislation,” Paxton said. “My life started as an unexpected pregnancy, and I am so grateful that my birth mother Linda chose life for me.”
