Christian News from Christians Unite.

[Shammu]

Liberty Counsel Announces National 'Friend or Foe' Graduation Prayer Campaign

by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
May 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian law firm and a Christian university have teamed up to educate public school officials about students' rights when it comes to graduation ceremonies. The result is the "Friend or Foe" Graduation Prayer Campaign, a joint project between and Liberty University and the Florida-based legal group Liberty Counsel.

Dr. Jerry Falwell, founder and chancellor of Liberty University, joined Liberty Counsel founder and chairman Mat Staver in announcing the launch of the Friend or Foe Graduation Prayer Campaign on May 4. Staver observed that Liberty Counsel is offering school officials and others a free legal memo that outlines what current law has to say about religious expression at school graduations. He also noted that the pro-family legal organization's attorneys are prepared to confront schools that engage in religious censorship and to take legal action, if necessary.

The head of Liberty Counsel notes that the firm has been defending graduation prayer ever since it was founded in 1989. In one such battle, Adler v. Duval County School Board, the organization argued a precedent-setting case against the American Civil Liberties Union and won the right of students to pray or give religious messages during graduation.

The case went before a federal appeals court five times and to the U.S. Supreme Court twice, but the final ruling established the legal principle that public schools may safely adopt an equal access policy for graduation events, with students and other speakers being allowed to present either secular or religious messages, including prayer.

[Photo compliments of Liberty Counsel]
Mat Staver   �
Liberty Counsel Chairman Puts Public Schools on Notice
In announcing the new "Friend or Foe" Graduation Prayer Campaign, Staver said Liberty Counsel will gladly educate and, if necessary, litigate in the interest of ensuring that prayer and expressions of religious viewpoints are not censored from graduation events. The attorney says Liberty Counsel attorneys will defend any school that follows the law with regard to allowing graduation speakers to express their religious viewpoints. And, he adds, when school officials censor graduation prayer or religious speech, Liberty Counsel will file suit.

While some school officials may censor out religious viewpoints in an effort to avoid being accused of violating the Constitution's establishment clause, Staver says he wants public school administrators to understand that they can actually avoid litigation by not censoring religious speech at commencement ceremonies. In many cases, he notes, the legal problem arises when schools single out those viewpoints that are religious in nature and attempt to purge them from their graduations or other school events.

"For example," the Liberty Counsel spokesman explains, "if a valedictorian, a salutatorian, a class officer or another class representative gets into the podium because of their position, they obviously can talk about secular topics and viewpoints." However, he believes many school officials fail to understand that these student speakers can also talk about religious viewpoints, including prayer.

"And the same is true for an outside speaker that is selected from the community or from the nation to address the graduating body," Staver insists. "That person can also include religious viewpoints and prayer." And furthermore, he adds, public schools can freely hold graduation ceremonies at churches or other religious venues if those sites are chosen using religion-neutral criteria and offer a more convenient facility than the public school can provide.

School officials need not fear that they will be violating the First Amendment if they do not censor all religious expressions from their graduation exercises, the pro-family attorney says. "This country, indeed, was founded upon prayer," he contends, "and, of all places public schools ought to recognize that history and respect our Constitution."

Clearly, Staver emphasizes, public school students or outside speakers do not shed their free speech rights when they enter the graduation podium. "They have the same rights of free speech," the Liberty Counsel founder says, "even though it happens to occur in a public venue." Private, voluntary speech on public property, he asserts, is constitutionally protected.

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[Shammu]

School District Sued After Suspending Christian Student

by Jim Brown
May 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A North Carolina school district is being sued over its decision to discipline a student for passing out leaflets which presented a Christian viewpoint on homosexuality.

Midway High School in Dunn suspended Benjamin Arthurs for distributing religious flyers regarding the "Day of Truth," an event where Christian students share a biblical perspective on the homosexual agenda. Sampson County Schools superintendent Stewart Hobbs claims Arthurs was trying to push his religious beliefs on others, and thus violated the so-called "separation of church and state."

But according to Arthurs' attorney, David Cortman with the Alliance Defense Fund, the First Amendment says otherwise. "This school district permits the [pro-homosexual] 'Day of Silence' to be promoted, which is of course the homosexual agenda being promoted in the schools," the attorney explains. "And the day after, Alliance Defense Fund has begun what is called the 'Day of Truth.'"

Cortman explains that Arthurs, a ninth-grader who is a member of the Bible Club, Who's Who, and the National Honor Society, felt the "Day of Truth" observance would afford him the opportunity to give a Christian perspective on the homosexual agenda. Instead, notes Cortman, the student was given in-school suspension for his efforts. The ADF spokesman sees a double standard.

"One of the problems is that the much touted tolerance that we hear about often doesn't seem to extend to people of faith," he says. That is why ADF has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the county's board of education on the student's behalf, alleging his First and Fourteenth Amendment rights have been violated.

"The first thing we would like to see, obviously, is the in-school suspension removed from Benjamin's file," says Cortman. "Just as important as that is we would like to see the school adopt a policy that respects religious speech and permits it on the same terms and conditions as it permits other student speech."

The lawsuit seeks to have the suspension expunged from Arthurs' record, and argues the district's policy against religious expression is unconstitutional. It also states that the ninth-grader's Christian beliefs "compel him to share his faith and to address relevant subjects from a biblical point of view with other students."

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[Shammu]

Former Homosexual, Now a Christian, Highlights Starbucks' Strong Support for Homosexuals

by Mary Rettig
May 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian activist in California who has left the homosexual lifestyle says the coffee giant Starbucks has some troubling ties with homosexual activism.

James Hartline, a former homosexual, notes that the first time he became aware of Starbuck's support for homosexuals was during a local San Diego "gay pride" festival. He says the company chose not to pull its sponsorship from the event, even after being notified that convicted pedophiles were involved in the homosexual celebration.

Also, Hartline asserts, Starbucks is a big supporter of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, or GLAAD. And this year, when that group held an awards ceremony "to honor Brokeback Mountain and homosexual, lesbian and transsexual success stories in the media," he says, "Starbucks was a major corporate sponsor again of that event."

GLAAD has an extensive history of doing two things, the Christian activist contends. The group works tirelessly to promote homosexuality and "gay," lesbian, bisexual, and transsexual acceptance in the media, he says, and "additionally, from a political perspective, they have a long history of going after and boycotting Christian enterprises -- groups that are opposed to homosexuality."

GLAAD activists target faith-based groups that express biblical views or pro-family oppositions to homosexuality and "they attack them," Hartline contends. And when he sees a company like Starbucks supporting the homosexual group and others like it, he questions why people of faith would want to support the corporate giant with their consumer dollars.

Hartline says Starbucks does not franchise to individual business owners as a rule, which means a portion of all its sales ends up in the corporate coffers, and a portion of that money goes on to be distributed to homosexual activist organizations. In light of this, he feels Christians consumers need to make a choice between convenience and conviction.

There are plenty of places where believers can get coffee, not to mention that they can make it at home, the California Christian points out. "So it really comes down to the issue of Christians giving their money to Starbucks in light of the fact that they have other options," he says.

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[Shammu]

Shareholders May Strike 'Sexual Orientation' from Ford's Employment Policy

by Allie Martin
May 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Ford Motor Company shareholders are preparing for their annual meeting on May 11 where, among other things, they will act on a proposal to amend the company's equal employment policy to exclude sexual orientation.

Ford's policy currently states that the automaker will not discriminate on the basis of gender, religion, sexual orientation, and other factors. But shareholder Robert Hurley, a retired doctor from Alton, Illinois, has submitted a proposal to be read during tomorrow's meeting in Wilmington, Delaware -- a proposal recommending that Ford change the policy to exclude any reference to sexual interests, activities, or orientation.

Initially, Ford asked the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to omit Hurley's proposal from its proxy statement. The SEC refused, however, and so the company recommended to shareholders that they vote against the proposal.

Ford has argued that amending its equal employment in the manner suggested could hurt its sales to homosexual rights supporters. Officials with the auto giant have also claimed that making the proposed changes would hurt the corporation's ability to recruit talent from some colleges and universities.

Hurley believes the recruitment concern is unfounded. Because his proposal addresses the auto manufacturer's written policy and not its actual activity, he contends, Ford is free to go and recruit personnel anywhere they choose, including the best universities in the country."

"And no university, as far as I've been able to discover, has any requirement that they have a written policy specifically listing any group or any activity of any group," the Ford investor insists. He feels the automaker should have no such requirement either, as he says a company has no business including privacy issues related to sexual interests or activities in its equal employment policy.

But what particularly concerns Hurley is the perception he believes the company's equal employment policy fosters -- the perception that Ford supports homosexuality. He says since a high percentage of AIDS cases are related to homosexual activity, the policy could be construed as indicating that the company is in favor of an unhealthy lifestyle.

That is the wrong message to send, the retired physician notes, especially with "16,000 people dying [from AIDS] every year, 45,000 diagnosed anew every year, and over 1.2 million cases in North America, 25 percent of which don't even know they have it yet. That's a public health problem."

Hurley suggests that he wrote his proposal recommending that Ford's equal employment policy exclude references to sexual orientation because he feels the company is, in effect, designating homosexuals, who lifestyle can be deadly, as being among special classes or groups to be singled out for preference. "It just appears to me," he says, "that if you name these groups then you appear to be promoting an adverse public health approach."

Ford sent out its proxy statement last month, and the company's shareholders have voted on the proposals submitted, including Hurley's. The results of the proxy vote will be announced at tomorrow's meeting.

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[Shammu]

Southern Baptist Seminary Appoints Creationist to Head Center for Theology and Science

by Jim Brown
May 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Young Earth creationist will be replacing a leading intelligent design (ID) proponent as director of the Center for Theology and Science at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.

The new center will be led by Dr. Kurt Wise, who recently directed the Center for Origins Research at Bryan College, a school located in Dayton, Tennessee, home of the famous Scopes evolution trial in 1925. The new director of the Center for Theology and Science at SBTS says he intends to take a different approach than that of his predecessor, leading ID theorist Dr. William Dembski.

While Dembski was an outspoken participant in the debate between the religious and secular scientific communities over evolution and a vocal promoter of ID in opposition to mainstream Darwinist theories, Wise says he hopes to "focus more on the Christian world and how Christians should respond to the entire issue of origins."

As a creationist who holds a master's degree and a doctorate in paleontology, Wise contends that scripture provides what is by far the best evidence for creation. "I'm very interested in the specific claims the Bible makes about science," he notes, "and I'm less interested in the secular world's response to those things."

Interestingly, the new head of the Center for Theology and Science received his doctoral degree in paleontology at Harvard under the advisement of famous evolutionist Dr. Stephen Jay Gould. Yet while the creationist scholar personally believes in the biblical account of the origins of life, he does not feel Christians should be trying to get either creationism or intelligent design taught in public schools at this time.

Public schools today need far more than the introduction of ID or creation science into their curricula, the theology and science scholar suggests. "I think we need to change all of science education," he says. "We need to teach what science really is."

In actuality, Wise asserts, science is not a product and should never have come to be understood as being "the answers," collectively, to the questions people ask. "Science is the way we find the answers to the questions people are asking," he insists. "It's a process."

And until science is taught that way in the classroom -- as a process rather than a finite product, the Christian paleontologist adds, "I don't think we have any business being in there or trying to get a creationist or an ID theory in there."

Dr. Wise is looking forward to leading Southern Baptist Theological Seminary's Center for Theology and Science. However, he acknowledges that his appointment as director is likely to cause consternation within even the Christian community, as Young Earth creationism is a minority position in the church.

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[Shammu]

Pro-Legal Immigration Ads Put Positive Light on Doing Things 'by the Book'

by Chad Groening
May 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Mainstream media has dishonestly portrayed the issue of illegal immigration, says a pro-family citizens group. That's why the group has launched a radio campaign designed to counter that misperception.

Colin Hanna is president of WeNeedaFence.com, which is a project of the Pennsylvania-based group Let Freedom Ring. The group has proposed a fence design integrating barbed wire, ditches, 12- to 15-foot high fences on either side of a patrol road, surveillance cameras, and buried motion detectors. And the group argues that a secure, state-of-the-art border fence must be one element of a comprehensive effort to address the problem of illegal immigration into the U.S.

But one of the problems, says Hanna, is that the mainstream media has ignored the distinction between illegal and legal immigrants in its coverage of the recent pro-immigration protests around the country. So Hanna says Let Freedom Ring has produced a series of radio ads focusing on legal immigrants who have played by the rules.

"We began a radio campaign that focuses very positively on the accomplishments and the patriotism of several specific [examples] -- real-life cases with real names -- of legal immigrants and how proud they are to be Americans," Hanna explains. "That's the kind of message I think we ought to be sending." The organizers of the recent demonstrations, he suggests, "were sending just the opposite [message]."

And the purpose of the ad campaign? "It has a lot to do with countering the claims and charges of those on the left who like to paint anyone who is in favor of border security as being somehow anti-immigrant or anti-Hispanic or some other form of racist -- and that's simply not the case," says Hanna. "I thought it was worthwhile doing a positive campaign for those who have come here, made a contribution, bought into the American dream, [and have] become American citizens."

Legal immigrants, says Hanna, are an asset to be celebrated. The five public service announcements feature the real-life stories of actual legal immigrants who abided by the law, immigrated to the United States legally, became successful members of American society, and love their adopted country, he explains.

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[Shammu]

ICR Hopes Online Master's Will Create Science Teachers with Biblical Worldview

by Jim Brown
May 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A well-known creationist group is now offering an online master's program for science teachers. Through the Internet-based curriculum, the California-based Institute for Creation Research (ICR) is hoping to reach out to more educators and create a network of science teachers.

Those teachers who enroll in the program will learn how to design grade-level appropriate science lessons and help their students discern between the evolutionary and biblical worldviews of science. The 11-course program includes a core comprised of science education, educational psychology, curriculum design and research courses; prescribed electives in specific areas of science, including astronomy, ecology, physics and geology; and two electives of the student's choice.

Dr. Patricia Nason, chair of ICR's Science Education Department, says the Institute has had a graduate school for many years, offering face-to-face instruction and degree programs. However, she notes, for many potential students it is difficult for them to put their career, family or other obligations on hold in order to travel to San Diego to get their degree.

Nason says ICR is hoping this new degree program will help current and aspiring science teachers who need the convenience of a distance education model. And at the same time, she adds, "Hopefully this will create a network of teachers so that we're all working together and we have a good explanation for why we believe in creation science -- not just because it's biblical."

The ICR Graduate School administrator emphasizes that this field of study, while it has a basis in scripture, is an empirical, scientific discipline -- not a philosophical or religious one. "And I'm not saying that loosely," she asserts, "but there is a scientific foundation to creation science."

Part of the vision for ICR's online Master of Science Education program is for those who take part in it to go on to contribute to a larger scheme of "turning the country around with a creation worldview," Nason says. But before these teachers can begin transmitting that worldview, she notes, it must be instilled in the educators themselves.

"I find that many science teachers in Christian schools do not have enough of a science background to be able to even talk about the difference between evolution and creation," the Institute's Science Education chair says. "And the biggest problem," she adds, "is many of them use secular textbooks because there aren't very many Christian textbooks in science education."

Dr. Nason says the Institute's online science education master's degree program is designed to help science teachers "communicate the truths of biblical creation to middle and high school students." All the courses in the program approach the content in the same way that ICR researchers approach the study of origins, she asserts -- that is, if an idea is contrary to God's Word, it is false.

The ICR courses for this online master's program are offered in 12-week quarters. In addition to Internet-based instruction, the courses will include quizzes, class discussions, written papers, projects, class presentations and student interaction.

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[Shammu]

Bay State Activist Blasts Governor's Promotion of Homosexual Youth Event

by Jim Brown
May 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Massachusetts pro-family group is denouncing a large homosexual and transgender youth event in Boston this weekend -- an event that is being promoted by Governor Mitt Romney's office.

This Saturday in Beantown, the Governor's Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth will be holding a rally and march called "Youth Pride," which is billed as "the oldest and largest event for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer youth and their allies in the nation." Kelly Lydon of Massachusetts Youth Pride says the event, contrary to some critics' fears, does not promote teenage sexual activity.

"It's a safe space," Lydon asserts. "There's no alcohol, drugs, cigarettes or sex allowed. There will be police there, there will be adult chaperones that will be there, and there's usually no problem," she says. "It's a really safe space, and it's a great day for youth."

However, Brian Camenker with the pro-family group Article 8 Alliance contends otherwise, insisting that students at Youth Pride are encouraged to flaunt their homosexuality or transsexuality. He believes claims that the yearly event does not promote homosexual lifestyles and deviant behaviors are not only false but disingenuous.

"Every year it's the same lie," Camenker says. "It's 100 percent about homosexuality and cross-dressing and various other perversions." For example, he notes, one of the speakers at the Youth Pride rally in Boston this Saturday, according to Lydon, will be a teenage boy dressed as a woman who calls himself "Foxy Cleopatra."

The Article 8 Alliance spokesman says Governor Romney, who is a possible 2008 Republican presidential candidate, is giving homosexual activist groups carte blanche to "have their way with kids in Massachusetts." He contends that there is a "huge amount of hypocrisy" in the governor's political pitches to values voters, particularly as he travels to South Carolina and other southern states, "talking about what a conservative he is and how pro-family he is, when he allows this to happen."

Camenker is outraged by Romney's promotion of Youth Pride and the blatant way his administration has underwritten it. The Massachusetts pro-family activist notes that this homosexual and transgender youth celebration "was advertised by stationery with the governor's name on it, from his office."

Although the Youth Pride celebration was created by a former governor's executive order, Camenker believes Romney could easily dissolve the annual event, if he wanted to do so.

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[Shammu]

More Churches Upgrading Technology to Reach Cyber-Savvy Masses

by Ed Thomas
May 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A spokesman for a coalition of groups utilizing Internet evangelism says he's not surprised at a report that faith-based organizations are going after technology to reach the current generation in a way like never before.

The Christian Post reports that several secular media sources, including the New York Times, have noted the hiring of a major advertising agency by Teen Mania, a Christian youth ministry. Founder Ron Luce says the secular ad agency was brought in to help bring the youth-targeted organization's "Battle Cry" campaign website get up to speed with all available web technology.

Because the current generation is tech-savvy, Luce observes, Teen Mania needed the best consultant it could find to help the ministry compete with MTV and other rival influences. The practical impulse behind that decision is echoed by Robby Richardson, vice chairman of the Internet Evangelism Coalition (IEC), who says when it comes to reaching young people, Christian outreach must go as far as the modern technology available can take it.

"In proclaiming the gospel, in trying to reach people with the good news of Jesus Christ," Richardson says, "we need to use the best tools available and to use them in the best way possible. And I think ministries are becoming savvy and are looking for ways to do that."

Just last weekend, the IEC organized its second annual Internet Evangelism Day, a yearly event designed to promote the use of the latest online technology for churches and faith-based groups in their evangelism. The group's vice chairman says the pursuit of technology does appear to be a rising trend among faith-based groups in general, as well as those that interact specifically with today's technologically adept teens and young adults.

For many young people, Richardson says, "twenty-five years [old] and down, maybe 30 years and down, the Internet is a first language. It is the way they communicate." Therefore, he asserts, for churches and ministries to reach these youth, "to be in front of them with the gospel or to give them opportunities for relationship and for follow-up, involves utilizing that medium. There's no question about that."

On the other hand, Richardson points out, it is still important for Christians not to become totally reliant on technology for evangelism. Ultimately, he says, coming to the faith requires a relationship with Jesus Christ and with other believers.

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[Shammu]

Voicing Values Via Investments

by Randall Murphree
May 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Over the past two decades, most of the best-known names among financial services companies in the U.S. have followed lock-step fashion after politically correct liberal icons. "They are rushing toward the perceived pot of gold at the end of the gay-and-lesbian rainbow," said Stephen Bolt, co-founder and president of Faith Financial Planners, Inc.

Bolt and his brother, Andrew, launched Faith Financial in 2002 to offer financial services that integrate values-based research, products, education and advisor training to meet the unique needs of the Christian community. It is a company with a conscience.

For the Christian investor, the amoral bent of the investments industry has led to a dilemma that grows more problematic each year. For example, some of the major players only follow the trend of offering special benefits to homosexual employees. Unfortunately, that practice is guided not only by political correctness but also by legal and social pressure generated by a powerful pro-homosexual lobby.

However, beyond that trend, many companies eagerly jump aboard the pro-homosexual bandwagon by sponsoring or contributing to various "gay pride" festivals, parades, conferences and events of all sorts. So the question remains -- "How do I invest my retirement dollars with companies I can trust on moral issues?"

"I have always considered the idea of developing a national financial services company dedicated to the needs and values of the Christian community," Bolt said. Subsequently, Faith Financial now has a solution for Christians who wants their investments placed with companies that reflect their own moral values.

Faith Financial is based on the triune principles of Faith and Values, Academic Integrity and Product Neutrality. To uphold those principles, Faith Financial screens out companies whose products, services or philanthropy involve abortion, pornography, gambling or the homosexual activist agenda. Bolt also helped develop MoneyAndValues.com, the first Internet screening technology that allowed financial advisors to see what values are being supported by the stocks comprising 14,000 mutual funds and variable annuity sub-accounts.

Bolt's first book, Money for Life, was published in 2000 and his current release is Money On Loan from God. (See review below) Both titles answer a lot of the questions with which Christian investors struggle. Bolt's insights help the investor apply biblical principles in the sometimes-frightening financial world.

Today, the Nashville-based company's retinue of 100 financial advisors is in rapid growth mode. With sister firm American Values Financial Group, Inc. and broker dealer Capital Financial Services, Faith Financial boasts innovations such as PKValuesTrade.com, the industry's first values-based discount brokerage service, offered in association with Promise Keepers.

The company's wholly owned subsidiary, the Research Institute for Corporate Accountability (RICA), offers the most comprehensive data on publicly traded companies with regard to socially conservative issues of concern to most Christians.

According to media surveys, e.g. Time magazine (December 2004), and industry interest groups, most people desire to invest in a way that reflects their values. However, historically, even so-called socially responsible funds have failed to offer a true conservative investment option. And in today's social climate, many large financial services companies routinely tout their strong support for the homosexual agenda.

Faith Financial responds to both of those issues by offering strong support for traditional American values and by giving their financial advisors the training and resources to help each client integrate personal faith into an investment portfolio. The company is prepared to meet the needs of individual investors, corporate investment programs and financial advisors interested.

"Helping each individual investor develop a financial plan that integrates his or her values is of primary importance to us," said Bolt. "So, too, is the idea of helping foundations, endowments, churches and institutions manage their money with a focus on their values." Faith Financial offers a way to voice one's values with his investments.

Money On Loan From God
In this, his most recent book, Stephen Bolt weaves biblical principles and wise investment strategies into a method to help the reader develop a customized financial plan that also advances the investor's Christian values. Bolt discusses:

    * What insurance and investments are most important?
    * Can I get a good return without investing in the stock market?
    * Can I guarantee my retirement income if my retirement money is invested in the stock market?
    * How do I know which investments are right for me?

Bolt uses anecdotes and experiences from 25 years in the industry where he has been a top financial advisor, hedge fund manager, founder of MoneyAndValues.com and Research Institute for Corporate Accountability, co-developer of a mutual fund family, author, speaker and host of two radio programs.

Whether the reader is a retiree looking to secure a nest egg, an investor looking for more sophisticated ways to manage a portfolio, or a young family looking to develop a financial plan, Money On Loan From God has answers that are more than rhetoric.

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[Shammu]

Ford Shareholders Turn Away Proposal to Amend Non-Discrimination Policy

by Allie Martin
May 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A pro-family activist says he's not surprised that a motion to remove sexual orientation from Ford Motor Company's equal employment policy did not pass. However, conservatives still say it was a victory.

Flanked by four high-level corporate officers, Ford Motor's chairman William Ford, Jr., opened today's annual shareholders meeting by saying the company is profitable in most of the world. "Worldwide our total vehicle sales have gone up for the last two years," he said. "The exception to our worldwide success is our North American automotive operations."

The two-hour meeting gave shareholders the chance to review a list of ten proposals, among them a resolution from a retired Illinois doctor that asked Ford to remove reference to sexual orientation from its written non-discrimination policy. William Ford recommended a vote against the proposal. "Ford believes that our workplace should be free from discrimination," the company leader stated. "Such an environment is conducive to productive workers."

Ford shareholder Tom Strobhar, who is a pro-family activist from Ohio, publicly read the proposed resolution and spoke in its favor. He outlined several reasons why he felt his fellow shareholders should pass the resolution.

"Ford is paying domestic partner benefits while cutting retirement benefits. Our company is closing plants while building gay and lesbian centers," he stated. In addition, he said, the company gives shareholder money -- which Strobhar described as "the fruit of all our employees' labor" -- to the largest homosexual organizations in the country. "These organizations use it to aggressively promote same-sex marriage. In addition, we advertise in publications whose primary focus is gay sex."

The activist and shareholder rejects claims from Ford Motor that it needs homosexual-friendly policies to attract good people to work for the company. He attempted to prove his point by reading a campus recruiting policy from the University of Michigan.

"The University of Michigan policy asks that the company sign something saying they do not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation," he explained, "but they do not require the employment policy to state as such. So I think [company leaders are] being a little bit disingenuous to suggest that our employment policy must reflect that."

He said it is no coincidence that Ford has lost billions of dollars while reaching out to pro-homosexual groups. "These policies have come about in the last few years. During that time we've lost over $50 billion in market value, and [investment firm] J.P. Morgan predicts there's a 43 percent chance of bankruptcy," Strobhar said. "It's a simple fact that some people are refusing to buy our products because of the above policies."

He adds that he knows of no other company that is doing more to promote homosexuality than Ford Motor or that has been more egregious about it. Ford, he says, "has kind of spit in the eye of conservative religious groups."

When all was said and done, the shareholders voted down the proposal to amend the automaker's equal employment policy to exclude sexual orientation. However, it needed one percent of the vote to be brought up again; it received five percent. Strobhar says he plans to have the proposal on the agenda at next year's meeting -- and hopes to have the support of a group of concerned Christian shareholders with him.

Shareholder Vote Is a Victory
Dr. Don Wildmon, founder and chairman of the American Family Association (AFA), says he is extremely pleased with the Ford shareholder vote. "The mere fact that five percent voted for this proposal came as a shock. I think it sends a loud message," says the AFA leader. "And we're very grateful that we got that five percent and that this issue can come back up again next year. We have a lot of time to work on it."

In March Wildmon's group announced a one-year boycott of the Ford Motor Company because of its ongoing financial support -- through advertising and grants -- of homosexual groups that promote same-sex "marriage." AFA had been closely monitoring the progress of Strobhar's proposed resolution.

Meanwhile, the head of the Center for Reclaiming America for Christ says 50,000 people have signed its online pledge to boycott Ford until the automaker stops supporting homosexual rights groups. Gary Cass says the petition and signatures have been delivered to Ford Motor Company chairman William Ford.

Cass notes that Ford is already in serious financial difficulty, but in his words, "We must put the well-being of our children ahead of Ford Motor Company's bottom line." The Center for Reclaiming America for Christ is one of more than 20 groups involved in the Ford boycott initiated by the American Family Association.

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Drug Rehab Ministry Faces Florida County's Axe; County Faces Lawsuit

by Allie Martin
May 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - In one Florida county, officials have told the leader of a men's outreach organization that its headquarters can no longer be used for Christian meetings or discipleship.

Men of Destiny Ministries, a self-described "Christian discipleship program" for men with "a history of life controlling problems," operates out of a 6,300-square-foot home in Osceola County, Florida. Fourteen men live at the ministry headquarters, go out to work during the day, and have Christian meetings at night.

The meetings are led a pastor who encourages the men, teaches them about Christ, and helps them overcome various addictions and pursue wholeness through a spiritual "regeneration" process designed to heal the damage caused by their destructive behaviors.

Last month, however, the Osceola County Commission voted to shut down the ministry.

Commission officials told Men of Destiny that the men in residence could continue to live in the home, but the faith-based drug "regeneration" program and the Christian teaching going on there must stop. The pro-faith and pro-family legal organization Liberty Counsel has filed suit against the County in an effort to reverse the decision.

Liberty Counsel president Mat Staver finds the Florida county commissioners' demands outrageous. According to the County, he notes, while the Men of Destiny residents are free to gather in the same house for secular purposes and go on living there, "they can't gather together for Christian meetings and talk about staying drug-free."

Not only does that make no sense, but "certainly it violates the Constitution," Staver asserts. And, he points out, "It also violates another federal law known as the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act; plus, it violates several other laws, such as the Fair Housing Act and the Americans With Disabilities Act and many others as well."

The County's reason for imposing these restrictions on the Christian group, Staver contends, is that the area is not zoned "to discuss drugs or to discuss church-related issues." The attorney says the County has basically told the Men of Destiny program participants that "you can stay in this home and you can discuss anything else you want to, but you can't talk about drugs, you can't talk about a regeneration program, you can't encourage your fellow housemate to stay drug-free, and you can't open up the Bible to talk about religious instruction."

The Liberty Counsel spokesman says he and his organization "believe that [the Commissioners' position on Men of Destiny and its activities] is wrong, and it's unconstitutional." The pro-family legal defense group has filed suit against the County in an effort to reverse its decision regarding the ministry.

Staver says Osceola County officials have told Men of Destiny that the ministry must cease operations by the end of May or else face daily fines.

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More Churches Upgrading Technology to Reach Cyber-Savvy Masses

by Ed Thomas
May 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A spokesman for a coalition of groups utilizing Internet evangelism says he's not surprised at a report that faith-based organizations are going after technology to reach the current generation in a way like never before.

The Christian Post reports that several secular media sources, including the New York Times, have noted the hiring of a major advertising agency by Teen Mania, a Christian youth ministry. Founder Ron Luce says the secular ad agency was brought in to help bring the youth-targeted organization's "Battle Cry" campaign website get up to speed with all available web technology.

Because the current generation is tech-savvy, Luce observes, Teen Mania needed the best consultant it could find to help the ministry compete with MTV and other rival influences. The practical impulse behind that decision is echoed by Robby Richardson, vice chairman of the Internet Evangelism Coalition (IEC), who says when it comes to reaching young people, Christian outreach must go as far as the modern technology available can take it.

"In proclaiming the gospel, in trying to reach people with the good news of Jesus Christ," Richardson says, "we need to use the best tools available and to use them in the best way possible. And I think ministries are becoming savvy and are looking for ways to do that."

Just last weekend, the IEC organized its second annual Internet Evangelism Day, a yearly event designed to promote the use of the latest online technology for churches and faith-based groups in their evangelism. The group's vice chairman says the pursuit of technology does appear to be a rising trend among faith-based groups in general, as well as those that interact specifically with today's technologically adept teens and young adults.

For many young people, Richardson says, "twenty-five years [old] and down, maybe 30 years and down, the Internet is a first language. It is the way they communicate." Therefore, he asserts, for churches and ministries to reach these youth, "to be in front of them with the gospel or to give them opportunities for relationship and for follow-up, involves utilizing that medium. There's no question about that."

On the other hand, Richardson points out, it is still important for Christians not to become totally reliant on technology for evangelism. Ultimately, he says, coming to the faith requires a relationship with Jesus Christ and with other believers.

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Pro-Family Supporters Frustrated Over Stalled Broadcast Decency Bill

by Bill Fancher and Jenni Parker
May 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Congressman Fred Upton's broadcast decency bill (HR 310) passed in the House with a vote of 389-38 last year, but the Senate version has faced delay after delay in getting through the other chamber of Congress. And now, supporters of the measure fear it may be close to death as Senate rules have the legislation, S 193, bottled up in committee.

The bill, sponsored by Republican Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, would increase the maximum fines levied by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from $32,500 to $325,000 per violation. Support for increasing the penalties has grown ever since the 2004 Super Bowl Halftime Show broadcast, when a performance by singers Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson ended abruptly in a now notorious instance of indecent exposure due to a so-called "wardrobe malfunction."

According to the Los Angeles Times newspaper, similar legislation has overwhelmingly passed the U.S. House of Representatives twice and the Senate once. However, the Times reports, such broadcast decency regulation measures have lately been derailed in Senate by parliamentary procedure and by objections from influential senators. Also, members of the broadcast industry have voiced strong resistance to the idea of higher fines and have lobbied hard in opposition to them.

Lanier Swann of Concerned Women for America (CWA) says several senators are against the idea of increasing fines for decency violations. "Majority Leader Frist had hoped to hotline that bill and bring it to the floor for a vote by a unanimous consent," she notes, "but unfortunately, a number of senators placed a hold on the bill."

Many pro-family groups thought Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens of Alaska was purposely holding up the bill, but Swann says, "We know now that Chairman Stevens agreed to the hotline vote with the Majority Leader. So what we have now are a number of unnamed senators who have come forward and held up this bill."

The CWA spokeswoman points out that Senate rules allow senators to put a hold on bills they dislike anonymously, which is the case here. "Now what we're working on is trying to find a way that we can see final passage out of both chambers on any type of legislation that would simply increase the FCC fines," she says.

Swann says it is "high time" lawmakers crack down on "the garbage that comes through the airwaves" by increasing penalties against those broadcasters that air material that defies federal decency standards. She urges citizens to contact their representatives in Congress and voice support for legislation aimed at raising fines against broadcast decency violators.

ICANN's Nixes .XXX Domain Idea
But although the progress of Representative Upton's broadcast decency bill through Congress has been slow and frequently stalled, CWA has been monitoring another fight in which the pro-family group is seeing some encouraging progress. Recently, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) rejected a special .xxx domain for pornography sites on the World Wide Web.

The 9-5 decision by the private agency that oversees Internet operation reverses its preliminary approval last June of a domain name for voluntary use by the adult entertainment industry. CWA's chief counsel Jan LaRue is calling the vote "a win against a multi-million dollar, six-year effort on behalf of the porn industry." She says the vote demonstrates the power "regular folks" can have by raising their voices against "the power-brokers who think they can run the universe without opposition."

Last year LaRue met with officials at the Department of Commerce to express vehement opposition to the new .xxx domain. CWA urged its members and supporters to contact government officials and voice their disapproval of the idea as well.

After the Department of Commerce received thousands of e-mails voicing similar objections, the Bush administration announced its opposition to the creation of the domain. Opposition letters were also sent to Paul Twomey, CEO of ICANN, who later told media that the ICANN board was "certainly very conscious" of the controversy, although its decision to reject the .xxx domain was not driven by political considerations.

LaRue says the pro-family group objected to the porn domain for several reasons, but the most obvious concern was that, under this plan, porn site operators would be free to keep all their current domains while adding the new .xxx domain. "Anybody who thinks that would help parents protect kids from porn on the Internet has crashed in the cranium," she says.

CWA's chief counsel considers the decision by ICANN a major victory indicating the power of the pro-family public, and she is hopeful that this turn of events will send a clear message to U.S. lawmakers. "Now that ICANN has had the good sense to listen to the American people," she asserts, "those in Congress who are proposing legislation to create a porn domain need to take a virtual reality check."

The special .xxx porn domain was a bad idea for many reasons, LaRue contends. Among these, she contends, is that the domain would appear to legitimize the porn industry and its creation would mean, in effect, allowing an industry that violates federal obscenity laws with impunity to regulate itself.

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Congressman Asks Bush to Help Save San Diego Cross

by James L. Lambert and Jody Brown
May 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The chairman of the House Armed Services Committee is asking President Bush to help save a 29-foot cross standing on San Diego city property from being removed by court order.

California Congressman Duncan Hunter is calling on the president to exercise his power of eminent domain and take over the half-acre cross site atop Mt. Soledad. In personal correspondence to the White House, the Republican lawmaker on Thursday (May 11) urged Bush to "protect the [Mt. Soledad] Memorial for future generations of veterans and San Diego visitors and residents" by using his "authority found in 40 U.S.C. 3113 to begin immediate condemnation proceedings and [to] bring the [Mt. Soledad] National Veterans' Memorial into the federal park system."

By designating his Interior Secretary to sign an executive order, President Bush and the federal government can effectively complete the land-transfer initiative that began in November 2004 -- and was approved by voters the following summer -- allowing the Mt. Soledad site to fall under the jurisdiction of the federal government.

A federal judge last week ordered San Diego to take down the cross within 90 days or face fines of $5,000 dollars a day. The injunction was the latest twist in a 17-year battle waged by an atheist against the cross, which was raised in 1954 in memorial of Korean War veterans. Congressman Hunter says, "The federal government has lots of memorials with crosses on it," including Arlington Cemetery.

Hunter and others, including San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders, believe the action is necessary considering the long legal battle the city has endured against an atheist and his lawyer, James McElory. According to Congressman Hunter, the memorial "has been under siege by a single individual and his team of lawyers who have ignored the broader historical context and community support ...."

    
San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders speaking at Mt. Soledad press conference on Thursday
(Photo by James L. Lambert)

A certified copy of Hunter's letter [PDF] to the president was given to Mayor Sanders. Faced with a court-imposed order to remove the cross, Sanders said that "some battles are worth fighting for." The mayor explained during a press conference at the memorial site on Thursday that he is unsure whether the majority of San Diego's council members will support an effort to continue to contest the case legally.

However, Sanders did indicate that he is in support of exploring every legal option in order to retain the cross at its present location. Apparently the mayor feels compelled to listen to the 197,000 voters who, in July 2005, requested transfer of the land where the cross is located to the federal park system. Hunter's amendment to a defense appropriation bill in December 2004 allowed for this transfer. But Judge Patricia Cowett, who has been involved in a local non-profit organization with attorney McElroy, threw out the transfer authorization that was approved by San Diego voters last summer. (See related story)

Support Coming Alongside
Meanwhile, the Thomas More Law Center has launched an online national petition drive that dovetails with Hunter's request. The petition requests that Bush direct the Secretary of the Interior to "immediately begin legal proceedings" to take the land by eminent domain. The Law Center says the petition will be sent directly to President Bush.

Various Christian groups have decided to join the Law Center in their effort to keep the cross at its present location in the San Diego suburb of La Jolla. Late last week the American Family Association sent out 2.9 million e-mails to its supporters encouraging them to send a communication to the president regarding Hunter's request. AFA founder Don Wildmon, retired House Speaker Newt Gingrich, American Center for Law & Justice founder Jay Sekulow, Liberty University founder Rev. Jerry Falwell, and Coral Ridge Ministries' Dr. Gary Cass have all expressed interest in contacting the White House regarding this matter.

Local clergy who joined Mayor Sanders at Thursday's press conference included Pastor Leo Giovinetti (Mission Valley Christian Fellowship) and Bishop George McKinney of St. Stephen's Church of God in Christ.

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