Some of you long-time readers may remember I stalked Joel Rosenberg at the International Christian Retail Show in Atlanta last summer. One of the questions I asked him was if he had any suggestions for how to get Christian fiction a broader voice in the marketplace <he had said on his website he was disappointed to find only non-fiction got much play in Christian circles>. He basically said he had no idea; that he was given a voice and wild popularity because he’d written a novel that had basically come true.

I read a lot of news and consider myself fairly well informed, and yes, I’ve seen echoes of my novel in recent anti-Christian legal actions around our country -- the most eerily similar a Utah homeschooler who fled her home after being ordered to enroll her children in public school -- but I have to say I did a double-take when I saw this headline:

2nd petition opposes homeschooling ban
Legal team warns of possible fines, parenting classes, loss of custody

The story relates to the recent anti-homeschooling ruling in California where the court required a couple to enroll their children in public school or a different private school than they were currently associated with <sort of an independent association of homeschoolers>.

The blogosphere is up in arms, homeschooling families are freaked and online petitions abound. I’m fairly certain the California Supreme Court will overrule such a ludicrous ruling, but what troubles me is that -- if the ruling stands -- the alarmist rhetoric illustrated by the above headline...is neither alarmist, nor rhetoric.

Say this couple <or other homeschooling families hit with the precedent> decides to defy the court? The court would have no choice but to impose punishment. Fines, parenting classes and loss of custody are not out of the realm of possibility in such a scenario.

Parents having to decide whether to give up their beliefs or risk losing custody of their children sounds an awful lot like my novel coming true.