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Lesbian Sues Pro-Family Activists for Exposing Truth About Pro-Homosexual Event

by Jim Brown and Jenni Parker
April 7, 2006

(ChristiansUnite.com) - - A lesbian who was fired for her role in the notorious "Fistgate" conference at Tufts University has brought a civil suit against two Massachusetts pro-family activists who attended the 2000 conference and then proceeded to expose what went on at the pro-homosexual event.

The statewide conference that took place March 25 of that year was actually called "Teach-Out," and was sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Education, the Governor's Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth, and the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network. The event's scandalous nickname comes from one of the many sexually explicit topics discussed at the conference before audiences that included children and teens.

Several presenters tried to foster "open discussion" by familiarizing their listeners with graphic details about homosexual sex and sexuality. At one point in the conference, "fisting" was discussed by one Teach-Out presenter, who described the practice as "an experience of letting somebody into your body that you want to be that close and intimate with ... [and] to put you into an exploratory mode."

Many concerned parents learned about "Fistgate" and its sexually graphic content through the efforts of Massachusetts pro-family activists Brian Camenker and Scott Whiteman, who attended the "Teach-Out" specifically to bear witness to and gather evidence of what went on there. That is why the two men are now facing legal action, along with the Parents Rights Coalition, which is also named in the civil suit.

Former state employee Margot Abels alleges Camenker and Whiteman violated her free-speech rights by tape-recording two workshops in which she instructed children as young as 12 years of age in how to engage in homosexual sex acts.

Abels claims the men broke an obscure Massachusetts wiretapping law that was designed to fight organized crime. In her lawsuit, she argues that the audiotape and her subsequent firing have both caused her emotional distress. But Camenker, who heads the pro-family group Article 8 Alliance, believes she is just resurrecting a dormant lawsuit in an effort to punish him and Whiteman for blowing the lid off "Fistgate."

"The statute says that you can be charged with a crime and punished and sent to jail and fined," the pro-family activist points out. However, he notes, "Nobody ever charged us with a crime; nobody every fined us. None of this every happened. I think they knew they couldn't pull this off as a real crime, so they're trying to use the civil suit approach."

And Camenker believes the plaintiff's attorneys are eager to attack. "They are really out to go after us," he contends. "The lawyer has already said to me, point blank, 'What are your assets; do you own a house?' She said that they're going to do their best to get as much money out of us as they can."

But beyond that, the Article 8 spokesman asserts, "The homosexual movement wants to punish anyone who exposes their activities with kids."

Nevertheless, the pro-family advocate says he means to put up a fight and even intends to play the tape recording of the Teach-Out presentation at trial. "And we're certainly going to let the court know," he adds, "that if we committed a crime, [we weren't informed of it.] How come we weren't charged with anything?"

Attorney Steve Crampton, chief counsel of the American Family Association Center for Law & Policy is representing Camenker in the case. A judge has set a July 10 trial date for the lesbian activist's lawsuit against Camenker, Whiteman, and the Parents Rights Coalition.

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Priest Gives Music of Bono's Band His Blessing for Communion Services

by Jim Brown
April 7, 2006

(ChristiansUnite.com) - - At some Episcopal Church services, hymns are out and U2 is in. The popular Irish rock band's songs blared from speakers at a recent "U2 Eucharist Service" in Providence, Rhode Island, where 130 worshippers were offered fluorescent glow sticks and earplugs.

Priest Robert Brooks said the service was meant to attract young people and those interested in social activism. The strategy appears to be working well, as Episcopal parishes from California to Maine are weaving U2's music into the denomination's traditional liturgy.

But Whis Hays, also an Episcopal priest and head of the Pennsylvania-based "Rock the World" Youth Mission Alliance, says such services have taken place in the Episcopal denomination for a long time. "Going back to the 80s, I was actually using U2's rendition of the 40th Psalm, which is their song 'Forty,' in services that I was in charge of," he notes.

"So, from the perspective of whether the music could be used in a liturgy that the Episcopal Church has," he continues, "been there done that."

In February, U2's colorful and often controversial lead singer Bono spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, DC. President George W. Bush and several members of Congress were in attendance, and Bush praised the singer as "a great guy" who used his talents to effect positive change.

Hays believes the social activism of the internationally renowned recording artist arises out of his personal faith in God. "To be sure," the priest notes, "his social activism has a broader appeal, but I think he's somebody -- as I understand what he's said -- who has a vital faith in Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Savior."

Bono's social activism "comes out of that," the minister contends. Nevertheless, he acknowledges, "I'm not sure whether that's really being reflected in these services or not."

In any event, although Bono and his band members occasionally use profanities and some of the songs they sing are about sex, Hayes says he sees nothing wrong with incorporating many of U2's more meaningful music into Episcopal Church communion services.

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Yale, DePaul Top 'Campus Outrage Awards' for 2006

by Jim Brown
April 7, 2006

(ChristiansUnite.com) - - One Ivy League university's recruitment of a former Taliban official has landed the school a dubious "Campus Outrage Award."

The Collegiate Network has unveiled its ninth annual list of the most outrageous abuses of power and students' rights by college and university administrators. Topping this year's "Polly" awards list is prestigious Yale University, which enrolled as a student a former Taliban official who has a fourth-grade education. Sayed Rahmatullah Hashemi, the former deputy foreign secretary of the Taliban, is quoted as saying he is "the luckiest person in the world" because "I could have ended up in Guantanamo Bay. Instead I ended up at Yale."

Collegiate Network executive director Steve Klugewicz says Yale has taken the idea of "diversity" to the extreme.

"Now diversity applies just not to people of various sexes, creeds, races, ethnicities, sexual preferences and practices, but also now to enemy combatants of the United States," says Klugewicz. He notes that Yale has barred ROTC from its main campus. "So if you're in the armed forces of the United States, you're really not welcome on Yale's campus," he points out. "But if you're an enemy combatant, someone who basically had a role in what happened on 9/11 [and in] killing Americans -- well, you're welcome at Yale."

Yale is a repeat winner, having taken the top award in 2004 for its role in supporting "Sex Week at Yale." Several of the events during that week were sponsored by an adult film company that also provided a female porn star as a keynote speaker.

Second on the "Campus Outrage" list for 2006 is Chicago-based DePaul University, which the Collegiate Network says has all but declared war on free speech with which it disagrees. First, the group cites the school for suspending -- without a hearing -- a professor who engaged in a heated on-campus debate with students who were distributing pro-Palestinian literature. DePaul's award was based on other criteria as well.

"DePaul also branded as propaganda a College Republican protest of a Ward Churchill speech on campus," says Klugewicz . Churchill is a University of Colorado professor who has referred to American victims of the 9/11 attacks "little Eichmans." Klugewicz says "just for protesting Ward Churchill's visit, the [DePaul] administration said this is wrong, this is propaganda -- and they really harassed these College Republicans."

Klugewicz notes DePaul also shut down a satirical affirmative action bake sale sponsored by the College Republicans, and charged the event's organizer with "harassment."

"Apparently," says the Collegiate Network, "free speech is allowed at DePaul only as long as it accords with the political views of the university administration."

Rounding out the "Polly" awards for 2006 are Stanford University, College of the Holy Cross (in Worcester, Massachusutts), the University of California System, the University of Iowa, and Buffalo, New York's Canisius College.

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Gospel for Asia Plans 2006 'Renewing Your Passion' Conference

by Allie Martin
April 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The head of a ministry that trains and equips Christians in India to spread the gospel throughout their native country is bringing a bit of the mission field to believers in the United States this summer.

For the second year in a row, Texas-based Gospel for Asia (GFA) is holding a conference on bringing the gospel to people as yet unreached for Christ around the globe. The event, called "Renewing Your Passion," will be held in Dallas from June 30 through July 2 and will feature missionaries from the ministry sharing about the struggles and triumphs of working in some of the most unreached areas of the world.

Dr. K.P. Yohannan, president and founder of GFA, says if he could, he would take believers from America to the mission field to witness "the amazing miracles and wonders the Lord is doing" there. But barring that, he says the 2006 Renewing Your Passion conference will give participants a sampling of what life is like for the ministry's native mission field leaders as they share their hearts about the realities of bringing the love of God and the good news of Jesus Christ to the lost in unreached regions.

Participants will also hear a message from GFA's founder and have opportunities to meet and talk with members of the ministry's home staff and leadership. A Saturday evening prayer meeting and corporate worship on Sunday are also planned, and throughout the event, those gathered will hear encouraging stories bearing witness to the power of intercession and the Lord's faithfulness in answering prayer on the mission fields of Asia.

This year's Renewing Your Passion conference will be a dramatic time of sharing that will have a lasting impact on the lives of American Christians, Yohannan promises. "The three days people are here," he says, "we'll have a dozen of our significant leaders from all these nations like Bangladesh, India, Bhutan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka."

These servants from the mission fields "will be speaking, and there'll be stories and testimonies of people who have been to jail, [telling of their] imprisonment and the scars they have on their bodies," the ministry leader continues. He says the 2006 gathering in Dallas "is an opportunity to really encounter some authentic, radical followers of Christ and be impacted by their presence and their stories."

Yohannan feels members of the church in the U.S. can learn a lot about authentic Christianity from native missionaries who have had to endure many hardships for the sake of the Gospel, even as he himself has learned -- and continues to learn -- a great deal from them.

"What I'm learning, once again," the GFA president observes, "is there's no authentic Christianity one can experience without our willingness to suffer. I don't mean just physical suffering, but accepting the inconveniences that our flesh literally hates."

After the first "Renew Your Passion" conference last year, Yohannan adds, several participants told GFA the experience had changed their lives and revitalized their churches. The ministry's founder feels certain the same will be true for this year's participants as well.

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Researcher: Abortion Advocates Manipulate Data To Make RU-486 Look Safe

by Bill Fancher and Jenni Parker
April 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A pro-life activist says while the abortion lobby "plays with numbers," women are dying from the use of the abortion drug RU-486.

According to Randall O'Bannon, a researcher with the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC), the pro-abortion lobby claims more than half a million women have taken RU-486 -- also known as mifepristone -- with only a handful of problems occurring. However, he contends, this claim about the broad-scale use and low incidence of complications "doesn't seem to be true on either side."

Since RU-486 was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2000, six women in the U.S. and one in Canada have died after taking the abortifacient, causing some abortion providers to suspend use of this chemical method of causing an abortion. However, many "abortion rights" proponents continue to tout the drug as a relatively safe medication, estimating the number of patient fatalities in mifepristone abortions at about one in 200,000.

But O'Bannon believes pro-abortion advocates are playing with the numbers, first of all in order to exaggerate the number of women actually taking the dangerous drug, and secondly to downplay its harmful effects. "They count these by the doses that are sold to clinics or doctors, not actually the number of women who have taken the pill," he says, "and then they multiply those sales figures by a factor of three because a lot of these people are changing the dose."

Meanwhile, the researcher points out, women who experience complications after taking RU-486 are usually treated in hospital emergency rooms, not by the doctor or clinic that originally gave them the drug. "They may or may not even be able to tell the doctor that they've taken this pill," he says. And generally, when one of these "chemical abortion" patients dies as a result of the complications, he adds, "it never gets reported as being a death due to this whole sort of process here."

In such cases, O'Bannon asserts, deaths that occur as a result of RU-486 may actually get recorded as being due to complications from serious infections or natural miscarriages. In any event, he insists that RU-486 is far more dangerous than the abortion lobby suggests.

"We think that they're overestimating how many women have used it," the NRLC spokesman says, "and they may be grossly underestimating the number of women who have been injured or have died because of this."

O'Bannon is convinced the abortion lobby is being untruthful when it says half a million women have taken RU-486 with only a minimal number of problems reported. The pro-life researcher believes that assertion is a disingenuous claim based on manipulated numbers and that RU-486 is in fact responsible for many more than the seven deaths currently attributed to the drug.

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Christian Plaintiffs in Upstate NY Censorship Case Win Free-Speech Victory

by Jim Brown and Jenni Parker
April 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A federal judge has ordered an upstate New York school district to return bricks inscribed with Christian messages to a high school walkway, and a pro-family civil liberties attorney is praising the outcome as a victory against viewpoint discrimination.

The dispute arose after the Mexico Academy High School class of 1999 in Mexico, New York (Oswego County), sold bricks that could be inscribed with personal messages and included in a walkway as a fundraiser. However, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) complained that certain bricks, particularly those inscribed with the messages "Jesus Saves/John 3:16" and "Jesus Christ, the only way," constituted public school endorsement of Christianity.

The ACLU maintained that the bricks violated the so-called "separation of church and state," and the group's complaints prompted school officials to remove the contested bricks in 2000. Other bricks purchased by private individuals bore messages that referred to God or to local churches but were allowed to remain in place; only the bricks mentioning Jesus were taken out of the walkway.

Two community residents who had purchased the extracted bricks filed a lawsuit challenging the school district's censorship of their messages. In that case, Judge Norman Mordue of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York has now ruled that removal of the bricks bearing the Christian messages was a violation of the free-speech rights of those individuals who paid for them.

Although the District Court initially refused to grant a preliminary injunction to have the bricks reinstalled, it was forced to reconsider the issue when the Second Circuit Court of Appeals remanded the case for reconsideration. The court's ultimate ruling orders school officials to restore the bricks inscribed with religious messages to the school walkway.

Pro-family attorney John Whitehead is president of The Rutherford Institute, the civil liberties and human rights defense organization that represented the Christian plaintiffs in the lawsuit, arguing that the school's censorship violated rights guaranteed to citizens by the First and Fourteenth Amendments as well as by the New York Constitution. He is pleased with the court's ruling and says it is consistent with the outcomes of many similar suits in which his legal group has been involved.

"We've won several of these cases in this area," Whitehead notes. " It's called viewpoint discrimination. You can't discriminate against the religious viewpoint, and the judge said that's what happened here. It violates the First Amendment."

The attorney asserts that officials with the high school, in initiating the walkway fundraiser, created a public forum that allowed for private speech, and apparently the bricks with the Christian messages were initially welcomed. "But when the ACLU threatened a lawsuit," he says, "they actually removed the bricks, and the judge said that's viewpoint discrimination. That violates the First Amendment when you have different messages on a sidewalk or in [another public] forum."

One More Victory in the Ongoing Battle for Faith in the Public Square
Although the court ruled in accordance with the Constitution this time, Whitehead believes such cases will not simply go away. He predicts that people's right to free religious expression will continue to face challenges and says this is because public schools are becoming increasingly secular -- and are by far "more secular than they were 25 years ago when I started The Rutherford Institute, even though we've won cases."

That is why Christians need to "get in there and really fight" for their viewpoint, the civil liberties defender contends. Believers need to wake up and join the battle for the right to express their faith in the public square, he says, including "the right just to say Jesus' name along with other gods or other viewpoints, in the public schools."

If Christians lose the right to express their viewpoint in the public schools, Whitehead warns, "all those 50-some million children there are probably going to think Christians are kooks because we're going to get so marginalized."

But for residents of Oswego County, New York, at least, Christians' equal right to express their religious viewpoint along with others' private expressions has been upheld in what the Rutherford Institute president is calling "a great victory for free speech." In concluding that the removal of the Christian-themed bricks from the Mexico Academy High School walkway constituted viewpoint discrimination, Judge Mordue rejected the school's arguments and cited the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Good News Club v. Milford Central School -- an earlier Rutherford Institute victory -- that "speech discussing otherwise permissible subjects cannot be excluded ... on the ground that the subject is discussed from a religious viewpoint."

Whitehead says The Rutherford Institute is pleased with the outcome of this case and appreciates the district court's thoughtful consideration of the constitutional issues. Still, he urges Christians to remain vigilant and aware of their rights, and to stand up against attempts to censor their expressions of faith.

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Coming Up Snake Eyes

by Ed Vitagliano
April 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Apparently Americans have more money than they know what to do with.

According to U.S. News & World Report's Kim Clark, each year Americans lose $80 billion to gambling in its various forms -- from casinos to bingo to online gambling to horse racing.

Gamblers get plenty of opportunities to play. Forty-eight states have some form of legalized gambling, says Jeffrey Kluger of Time -- and that does not include the Internet, which is quickly becoming a wide-open portal for those with an itch to bet.

Even by 1996, says Kluger, the annual take for the U.S. gambling industry was "more than that from movies, music, cruise ships, spectator sports and live entertainment combined."

Empty Promises
When most people think of legalized gambling, places like casinos are probably the first image to pop into their minds. Small wonder, since there are more than 1,200 casinos, card rooms and bingo parlors in the U.S. And casino gambling is extremely popular.

Clark says that about 73 million Americans visited a casino in 2005 -- up from the more than 53 million that did so in 2000. The rate at which patrons visit casinos is growing, too. The average gambler visits a casino six times a year, which is almost double the number of trips 10 years ago.

But state lotteries are also extremely popular -- 42 states run them, according to the Education Commission of the States (ECS). Total lottery profits in the U.S. in 2004 amounted to almost $14 billion.

How did these lotteries spread so far and so wide in the U.S.? Marjorie Coeyman says in The Christian Science Monitor, "Many states sell the lottery concept to the public with the promise that a large portion of the proceeds will benefit public schools."

In fact, as of February 2006, of the 42 state lotteries, 24 earmark some proceeds for education funding. Politicians promising that lottery profits will be sunk into better schools and more teachers is, after all, an easier sell than raising taxes.

But like many things in politics, empty promises are easy to make. ECS researcher Molly Burke says, "The proceeds from state lotteries are less than you might think. Even if they're all earmarked toward education, it isn't a huge amount. It's never quite as much as states would like the schools and the taxpayers to think."

For example, the organization says that what New York funnels to schools from its state lottery amounts to only 5 percent of all public school revenue. Only 2 percent of public school funds comes from the lottery in California.

Moreover, say critics, state legislatures that receive lottery proceeds for education often simply lower their education expenditures coming out of the general fund. In the end, the schools see very little net gain.

"It's not a bonus for the schools but a substitution," argues Rev. Richard McGowan, professor at Boston College's Carroll School of Management.

In fact, Coeyman says that one study that examined Ohio's lottery (which directs 100 percent of lottery winnings into education) found that spending on education actually shrunk as a result.

"The study demonstrated that, after Ohio's 1974 promise to devote all lottery winnings to public schools, state spending on education dropped from 42 percent of its total budget in 1973 to 29 percent in 1994," she says.

Poker-Faced Kids
With lotteries often being sold to voters as a way to help school kids, it is ironic that the gambling craze sweeping the adult world is sucking many kids in as well.

Poker is especially hot right now among the nation's youth. According to the 2005 National Annenberg Risk Survey of Youth (NARSY), conducted by the Annenberg Public Policy Center, the rate of young people age 14 to 22 who play for money each month increased 20 percent in just one year.

"Based on our latest estimates, there are approximately 2.9 million young people between the ages of 14 and 22 who are gambling on cards on a weekly basis," the Center said. "Over 80 percent of these youth are male."

The Annenberg survey found that 37 percent of males in high school and 50 percent of those in college reported gambling on cards at least once a month.

"The word, conservatively, is 'epidemic,'" Edward Looney, executive director of the New Jersey-based Council on Compulsive Gambling, told USA Today.

The increased interest of young people in gambling has, not surprisingly, spilled over to Internet gambling. Between 2004 and 2005, the percentage of young men who reported weekly gambling online more than doubled, with nearly 20 percent of males saying they engage in Internet gambling at least once a month.

Annenberg estimates that more than half a million young people gamble online every week -- most being under age 21.

Unfortunately, online gambling may be even more problematic than other forms. A Brown University study found that Internet gamblers who get addicted usually do so within a single year -- a much faster rate than gambling addicts who play more traditional forms, whose addiction takes an average of three-and-a-half years.

Why have poker and other forms of gambling become so popular among youth? For one thing, experts cite the popularity of poker shows on television networks, such as ESPN and Bravo. But others point to the fact that gambling, in general, is losing its negative image.

"Gambling has become a more mainstream activity," says Romer, although he says its impact on youth, especially, is worrisome.

Paying the Price
That danger is what motivates Jeffrey Derevensky, who helps head up the International Centre for Youth Gambling Problems and High-Risk Behaviours at McGill University in Montreal. He believes adolescents should be warned about the dangers of gambling.

"We go into schools and try to teach students that gambling is dangerous and potentially addictive, just like drugs or alcohol," Derevensky told the McGill Reporter. "We also try to teach them that it depends on luck and not on skill, so they won't equate it with video games .... The students are very receptive to our message because they all seem to know someone who is in trouble because of gambling. The resistance we get is mostly from educators and parents. Some schools don't want us to come to class to talk about gambling because they don't see the point."

But there is a point. Derevensky estimates that 4-8 percent of youth in North America have a serious gambling problem, with another 10-15 percent being at risk.

NARSY Director Dan Romer is also concerned. "The rising rate of card playing and overall gambling is worrisome," he said. "Young people are more prone to addiction, and increased exposure to gambling during the adolescent years increases the chances of developing gambling-related problems."

But gambling addiction is not simply a danger for the young. Adults, too, are finding that gambling problems are ruining their lives, families, finances and careers. One study estimated that 2.7 percent of adults are either pathological or problem gamblers. (See "Do You Have a Gambling Problem?" at conclusion of this article.)

While at first glance that may seem like a small percentage, it should be viewed in the wider context of other addiction phenomena. For example, 3.6 percent of Americans have a drug abuse or drug dependency problem, and yet that problem gets plenty of publicity.

For critics, it only makes sense that in states where there is more exposure to legalized gambling, more people will become enticed -- and overcome -- by its power to addict.

Statistics bear this out. According to The Christian Science Monitor, a study of Nevada's gambling industry in 2002 found that 6.4 percent of the population in that state were either pathological or problem gamblers -- more than double the nationwide figure of 2.7 percent.

"One not unexpected result was that the prevalence rate in Nevada was higher than in virtually every other state that we looked at," Rachel Volberg, a gambling-impact researcher who helped lead the Nevada study, told the newspaper. "That obviously speaks to the impact of exposure."

Kluger agrees. "What makes people start gambling may also be a function of availability. A 1999 study ordered by the U.S. Congress found that people who live within 50 miles of a casino have two times as much risk of developing a gambling problem as those living farther away."

Nevertheless, the gambling industry -- with support from many state legislators -- continues to push the expansion of casinos, lotteries and the like.

But before voters roll the dice when asked to legalize gambling, they may want to remember that at least some of their neighbors will come up snake eyes.

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Open Doors Hails Persistence of China's Persecuted House Churches

by Allie Martin
April 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - President George W. Bush has promised to talk about the need for greater religious freedom in China when that country's president visits the White House later this month. But despite the restrictions imposed by the Communist regime, government authorities have not been able to stop a revival that is taking place in China's house churches.

For more than half a century, Communists have ruled China, outlawing Christian churches that refuse to register with the government. Nevertheless, millions of Chinese Christians have formed "house churches" where believers meet and pastors preach without government restrictions.

Dr. Carl Moeller of Open Doors USA, a ministry to the persecuted Church, says although house church members risk arrest and imprisonment, a revival continues to spread among unregistered congregations. "It's been called the greatest revival in the history of Christianity," he notes, "and we're not talking about the Welsh Revival or the Chicago Revival, or even the Great Awakening in the United States."

This phenomenal Christian revival about which so many believers are talking "is the Church in China from 1948 to 2006," Moeller says. "The tens of millions of individuals who've come to personal faith in Jesus Christ despite 50-plus years of Communist oppression is remarkable."

As president of Open Doors USA, Moeller works to spotlight the plight of persecuted Christians worldwide and to encourage prayer and advocacy on their behalf. He points out that a massive crackdown on house churches throughout China has resulted in the arrests of thousands of believers lately, yet the underground church persists and continues to show an exciting rate of growth.

"We're excited because God is building His church," the ministry spokesman explains. "He's building His church in a paradoxical way, using persecution to spread the faith in prisons, in places where people's lifestyle can be witnessed by those who oppress them. And we're seeing a revolution happen."

Still, Moeller points out that China ranks in the top ten among the world's worst religious persecutors, according to Open Doors 2006 "World Watch List." He says recent remarks by President Bush regarding his commitment to raising the issue of religious freedom in China are encouraging. China's president is scheduled to visit the White House on April 20.

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Educator Defends Guidelines for Dealing with Homosexuality in Schools

by Jim Brown
April 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A psychology professor and anti-bullying expert is rejecting claims that the Christian Educators Association International (CEAI) caved in to pressure from homosexual activists by reaching an agreement with the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) on how to deal with the issue of sexual orientation in public schools.

Division remains among conservative Christians over the First Amendment guidelines endorsed by GLSEN and CEAI. Pro-family activist Linda Harvey of Mission America has condemned the "Common Ground Guidelines," saying homosexuality is not a viewpoint, but rather "an array of high-risk abnormal behaviors" -- and Christians have no business dialoguing with GLSEN, she adds.

But noted mental health counselor and sexual orientation researcher Dr. Warren Throckmorton contends there are a variety of viewpoints Christians disagree with that are constitutionally protected.

"There are people who are attracted to the same sex, but don't act on it," the Grove City College educator offers. "There are young men and women who are gender non-conforming in their preferences, and they're teased and harassed at school because they look gay. That's not a behavior. They're not doing anything."

In a recent column for Townhall.com, Throckmorton and author Chad Thompson argued Harvey and other critics are missing the central aim of the guidelines. "All kids deserve respect," he says. "Likewise, all viewpoints on matters of education deserve a hearing -- and that's all that the guidelines really express."

Throckmorton believes conservative Christians often downplay the harassment and discrimination of homosexual students. "Our principal concern is that the real problem of harassment in schools not be overlooked," he explains. "We believe that there is a problem. It may be overstated by those in the gay activist community, but we [also] believe it may be understated by those on the conservative side of this issue."

Throckmorton says one of the risks of understating the problem is that there is very little done from a conservative perspective to address the real needs of children who are "gay"-identified and treated poorly in school.

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Part 2 (to be posted on Tuesday, April 11) addresses why some Christians are denouncing the guidelines endorsed by GLSEN and the Christian Educators Association International. It features comments by Linda Harvey of Mission America.

My note; Which will be my first post in this topic tommorrow.

Family Advocate Denounces Pact Between Christians, Homosexual Activists

by Jim Brown
April 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A pro-family activist says the Christian Educators Association International (CEAI) kowtowed to homosexuals by reaching an agreement with the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) on how to deal with the issue of sexual orientation in public schools.

The First Amendment guidelines on sexual orientation endorsed by the two groups propose that no viewpoints on the issue of sexual orientation should be marginalized or silenced in schools. (See earlier article) Noted mental health counselor Dr. Warren Throckmorton and author Chad Thompson, a former homosexual, have written a column for Townhall.com defending the "Common Ground" guidelines. They argue conservatives often wrongly suggest that bullying of homosexual students is isolated.

However, Linda Harvey of Ohio-based Mission America says more often than not, Christians are having a "civilizing and unifying" influence in schools -- not contributing to the bullying problem.

"I don't think Christians, per se, have a lot to apologize for on the whole -- here and there, possibly. And of course we know bullying occurs," Harvey says. "But you just can't lay this at the feet of Christian values. To do that, it's basically the same notion [in saying] that we in America, who are indeed imperfect, are responsible for the 9/11 terrorism."

Harvey -- who voiced her criticism of the agreement in a column for WorldNetDaily -- says she believes Throckmorton and Thompson are being too tolerant and naïve regarding homosexual activism. "I don't see in Dr. Throckmorton and Chad Thompson's material any kind of perception that this is dangerous to kids," she notes. "They continue to talk about it as a viewpoint, and unless you are willing to look at this the way the Bible looks at it, and the way public health statistics [report it], and really just looking at some homosexual materials, I don't understand how people can purport to speak for a body of Christians."

Harvey says just as Christians "would not sit down at the table with those advocating the benefits of anorexia, child abuse, or binge drinking as alternative 'viewpoints,'" they should not be seeking common ground with advocates of child homosexuality. Likewise, she says, Christian educators should never seek to find common ground or negotiate with homosexual activists because homosexuality is an "abomination" that should not be tolerated.

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Ford Supports Same-Sex 'Marriage' Movement

by Ed Vitagliano
April 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - If one looks for the company which has done the most to affirm and promote the homosexual lifestyle, he would be hard-pressed to find a company which has done more than Ford Motor Company.

That's the conclusion reached by the American Family Association (AFA), and it is the reason why the pro-family organization has called for a boycott of the automaker, which makes not only Ford products, but also Lincoln, Mercury, Mazda, Volvo, Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles.

Ford's support for the homosexual lifestyle is well known to homosexual organizations like the Human Rights Campaign (HRC). The group gave Ford a 100% corporate rating -- meaning its promotion of issues important to HRC and other homosexual lobby groups was perfect. Fox News reported that Ford was the only automaker to receive the top score.

AFA has created a website -- BoycottFord.com -- to inform consumers of the depth of commitment Ford has to the homosexual agenda. Among the controversial steps taken by the company:

Donating to homosexual-rights groups -- Ford has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to homosexual groups which push the same-sex agenda, especially the drive to legalize same-sex marriage. For example, in 1999 Ford gave $200,000 to the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and $100,000 to the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Campaign.

In 2005 the company donated $250,000 to help build Affirmations, a homosexual community center, in Ferndale, Michigan. The top gift in the campaign to build Affirmations -- $500,000 -- came from Allan Gilmour, a homosexual and former vice chairman of Ford Motor Company. Before he retired, Gilmour was chairman of the Ford Motor Company Fund through which gifts to homosexual organizations are made.

Moreover, last year for every Jaguar or Land Rover purchased, Ford pledged to give up to $1,000 to the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. In similar fashion in the past, Ford's Volvo division donated $500 to HRC for every vehicle purchased or leased.

The company is also an "Emerald Sponsor" of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), a national organization promoting the acceptance of a kid's homosexual orientation, should they claim to be "gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered" (GLBT).

Ford is an annual sponsor of the Reaching Out MBA Conference that promotes the education, visibility and networking capabilities of GLBT business leaders in the U.S. and around the globe.

Sponsoring homosexual pride events -- In the 2005 Gay Pride Day in Ferndale, Michigan, Ford boasted that it had generously sponsored the "family area," which portrays same-sex couples as the heads of so-called families.

Ford has consistently sponsored these types of events. It gave more than $5,000 to help sponsor the 2004 Motor City Pride Weekend, and again helped sponsor the event in 2005. Last year the event included a homosexual "commitment [marriage] ceremony."

The company donated a red Mustang Cobra convertible to the Michigan Gay Pride March, becoming the first auto manufacturer to donate a vehicle. Ford also sponsored the "pride parade" in London in 2004 and 2005, and also was the main sponsor of the London Mardi Gras, a homosexual event.

Ian McAllister, chairman and managing director of Ford Motor Company Limited, praised the company's support for the homosexual community. "Ford has been supporting gay, lesbian and transgender events and charities for many years, and this year, Ford will be a main sponsor of the London Mardi Gras," McAllister said. "We believe at Ford in helping a global society that is more open and tolerant, and one that values diversity. Our presence at the Mardi Gras underlines that philosophy."

Advertising in homosexual media -- Ford supports homosexual publications with ads, including sexually-oriented ads. One such ad for Ford's Volvo division contained a photo that is obviously intended to represent male arousal.

The company hired a Washington, DC, marketing firm to target the GLBT market, which developed a plan to involve Ford in the day-to-day business of selling vehicles worldwide to homosexual customers. Moreover, Ford actively recruits homosexuals for employment by advertising on homosexual job websites.

Pushing employees to accept homosexuality -- Ford held the first automotive conference aimed at bringing diversity to the car industry.

"Diversity" is a code word used by many companies to force employees to accept homosexuality. By defining themselves as a minority such as African-Americans, homosexual activists seek to bolster their claims of needing special treatment.

Encouraged by Ford, more than 100 multinational companies attended the meeting which, according to 365Gay.com, included a goal of "broadening the number of LGBT workers in the field."

The company was also an executive sponsor of the 2004 Out and Equal Workplace Summit Conference. The purpose of the event was to advance the homosexual agenda, including homosexual marriage, in major corporations.

All of this effort on behalf of the homosexual community has gotten Ford noticed by homosexual activists. The company has been on the DiversityInc.com Top 50 Companies for Diversity list in each of the four years the rankings have been published.

"Ford enthusiastically supports the homosexual lifestyle and homosexual organizations -- all of which are vigorously promoting same-sex marriage," said AFA president Tim Wildmon. "We just can't sit idly by while a once great car company chooses sides in the culture war."

AFA is asking those who oppose Ford's promotion of homosexuality to boycott the company and to sign a petition to that effect at the BoycottFord.com website.

"Call your local Ford dealer as well as dealers for the rest of Ford's automotive divisions, and let them know you will not buy products from a company which will use some of those profits to undermine marriage, the family and our culture," Wildmon said.

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Family Advocate Fears Pro-Homosexual Education Bill Will Pass California Senate

by Jim Brown
April 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A California pro-family activist says a bill in the state Senate requiring public schools to teach homosexual, bisexual, and transgender history is an assault on the minds and bodies of school children.

A bill sponsored by lesbian Senator Sheila Kuehl, SB 1437, places new mandates on California public schools to approve a curriculum that promotes and celebrates the lives of transsexual, bisexual, and homosexual "role models." The legislation has already passed the Senate Judiciary Committee, despite pro-family opposition.

Randy Thomasson with the Campaign for Children and Families (CCF) testified against SB 1437 at a recent hearing. He is calling on California citizens to ask Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to veto the controversial measure.

Thomasson believes the pro-homosexual bill is aimed at encouraging children not just to tolerate but to emulate homosexual behavior. "This is really teaching children this is how [they] can be, too," he says.

"Under the proposed curriculum changes homosexuals, transsexuals, and bisexuals will be depicted as 'heroic,'" the pro-family activist contends, "and this is all part of their agenda -- to be role models for children, so more children will enter these sexual lifestyles, perhaps even get a sex change."

According to Thomasson, the California Department of Education will undoubtedly use SB 1437 to erase all traditional distinctions or gender standards. He says the bill is designed to penetrate the academic purpose of schools with sexual, social engineering targeting children as young as kindergarten by requiring every aspect of the public education system in California to accept, embrace, teach, and promote homosexuality and other harmful sexual lifestyles.

The CCF spokesman fears the bill is likely to pass the Senate. For that reason, he is urging Californians to contact their governor and ask him to pledge to veto SB 1437, as his response to the measure is not something conservative and pro-family citizens dare take for granted.

"We need to understand that Democrat politicians all across California and more so across the country are in favor of all of the transsexual, bisexual, and homosexual agenda," Thomasson asserts. "We also need to understand that liberal Republicans like Arnold Schwarzenegger are going to go back and forth on whether to sign or veto."

SB 1437 is "frightening for parents who want trustworthy schools," the pro-family advocate adds. He hopes those parents and other Californians will join him in calling on Governor Schwarzenegger to veto a bill that requires schools to teach students favorably regarding deviant and unhealthy sexual lifestyles.

Thomasson believes Christians in particular should be speaking out against SB 1437. He says the church is a problem when it is uninvolved and a solution when it is involved in fighting such proposals.

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Internet Porn, Plus Child Predators, Make Web Doubly Dangerous for Children

by Mary Rettig and Jenni Parker
April 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Family Research Council (FRC) vice president Charmaine Yoest says although it may be difficult for many Americans to imagine that sex tourism could be such a big business in their country, the fact that it is can be attributed largely to the proliferation of pornography in the U.S.

A recent article by Reuters noted that the FBI has identified 14 U.S. cities as hubs for forced child prostitution, including Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, and New York. The report also said many times initial encounters between the child exploiters and their victims are set up through the Internet.

However, to the FRC's Yoest, these revelations come as no surprise. "You're tying some things together that may seem different," she says, "but, in actual fact, the message that people need to get is that pornography and child exploitation and online predators are all connected together."

While pornography may generally begin in a print form, the pro-family spokeswoman notes, cyberspace has created an opportunity for an evil industry to extend its reach. "Now that you have the Internet that's capable of spreading [pornographic material] further," she says, "it just is a real tool for child predators and for pedophiles."

Yoest points to two recent news stories she feels have added to the already ample evidence that steps must be taken to stop Internet pornography now. The first was the disturbing incident of an official in the Department of Homeland Security, Brian J. Doyle, who was arrested and charged after holding sexually explicit conversations online with someone he thought was a 14-year-old girl, but who turned out to be a detective.

According to a SecurityFocus website article, Doyle allegedly tried to talk the "girl" into buying a webcam after discussing sexual acts he wanted to perform with the supposed minor, and even sent "her" pictures of himself taken at the DHS headquarters wearing a Homeland Security pin.

The second story indicating the urgency of addressing the Internet porn problem, Yoest notes, involves the Senate testimony of Justin Berry -- a boy who, at the age of 13, bought a webcam in hopes of meeting other kids online. But instead of finding the friendship he craved on the Internet, this lonely boy was drawn in by voyeuristic child predators, who seduced him into secretly selling sexual images of himself on the web.

According to the New York Times' report, Berry's tragic exploitation is a "collateral effect of recent technological advances" which allow children, often under the online influence of adults, to use inexpensive webcams in setting up for-pay porn sites featuring their own images. And very often, the article points out, "these kids perform from the privacy of home, while parents are nearby, beyond their children's closed bedroom doors."

While tales like these have caught many in the U.S. by surprise, Yoest says they should prove to caring parents that watching children's Internet use is of the utmost importance. She urges parents to be aware of to whom their children are talking on the Internet, and to educate themselves as well as their kids about the dangers lurking there.

"We've been sounding the alarm for years that there really is a problem with sex trafficking and that people don't understand that it's not necessarily a problem that only happens in other countries," the FRC vice president notes.

"This question of child porn, child exploitation -- it's a good thing that it's in the news so heavily," Yoest adds. She says the fact that the Internet is so ubiquitous and so easily accessible to children should spur parents on to action in the fight against pornography.

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Conservative Lawmaker Hopes Hastert Will Act to Block Amnesty Legislation

by Chad Groening
April 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An Arizona Congressman has said he will call on Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert to use a procedural move to block any Senate bill that contains a guest worker provision.

Representative J.D. Hayworth, a member of the House Immigration Reform Caucus, is pleased that so far, at least, the Senate has failed to pass a bill that would offer amnesty to thousands of illegal aliens. If such a bill is passed, he says he intends to encourage Speaker Hastert to block it by simply not calling for conferees to iron out a final bill with the Senate in a conference committee.

"Quite frankly, I don't believe that Speaker Hastert is under any obligation to name conferees," Hayworth contends. "I would ask him not to because, that way, we don't have to entertain any of the guest worker amnesty talk, which I believe is just absolutely the wrong policy at the wrong time for the wrong reason."

It is entirely possible that one chamber or the other could refuse to name conferees, the congressman points out. "That has happened before," he notes. "That's a way that bills die, quite frankly." However, he says he is so alarmed about the implications of this legislation that he has determined, if the Senate in fact passes this bill, to advocate that Speaker Hastert "just refuse to name conferees so the House does not even have to entertain this notion of a guest worker amnesty."

But if Hastert chooses to appoint conferees anyway, Hayworth suspects there are enough "open borders" Republicans who would join the Democrats in approving a final guest worker amnesty bill. "The Left would vote for this bill in overwhelming numbers," he says, "so you would have the spectacle of a minority in the majority party voting for this type of guest worker legislation and the bulk of the Democrats voting for it."

Hayworth earnestly hopes that vote never happens. He says he believes Republicans will suffer at the ballot box in future elections if they ultimately approve an amnesty bill for so-called "guest workers."

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Judge's Transcendental Meditation Sentence Crossed the Line, Attorney Says

by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
April 11, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An attorney with the American Family Association Center for Law & Policy (AFA Law Center) says a circuit judge in St. Louis, Missouri, may have overstepped his authority when he sentenced a woman who plead guilty to voter fraud and drug possession to take part in a transcendental meditation program.

When Michelle Robinson pleaded guilty to 13 violations of election law and possession of crack cocaine and a crack pipe, Judge David Mason sentenced her to four years of probation for all charges. He also ordered her to get training in the Hindu practice known as transcendental meditation.

AFA Law Center attorney Brian Fahling is troubled by the judge's sentence. "Even if you don't regard transcendental meditation as a religion within the constitutional sense," he explains, "what you have here is a judge ordering an individual to engage in a practice that does have a spiritual dimension to it, and it intrudes on the heart and the mind."

What that means, Fahling says, is "you've got a governmental actor who's ordering an individual to participate in something that perhaps may run contrary to their own particular beliefs and belief system." Still, the attorney says he is not really surprised by the judge's order because it is consistent with a larger trend toward secularization that is progressing in America.

Transcendental meditation, of which Judge Mason is an advocate, is traditionally associated with Hinduism; however, it is practiced by members of many world religions and has become popular with adherents of New Age spirituality as well. Those who engage in "TM" are encouraged to clear their minds and sit in silence, with eyes closed, mentally repeating a simple sound known as a mantra, their objective being what practitioners call "pure consciousness."

The question of whether or not transcendental meditation constitutes a religion is one that is still being debated, even though those who say it is a religion can point to a wealth of prima facie evidence. The abundant proofs include TM's references to and use of Hindu astrology, terms, scriptures, and even ceremonies, including one in which practitioners are asked to get on their knees and bow before a picture of Guru Dev, a revered Hindu "enlightened" master.

A federal court has even weighed in on this debate. In Malnak v. Yogi (1979), a U.S. District Court ruled that under the establishment clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, transcendental meditation is too religious to be taught in public schools. Nevertheless, the practice continues to be promoted by advocates under the rubric of health and wellness and stress-reduction programs, and other attempts have been made to incorporate TM techniques into public schools and other institutional settings.

Christian Lawyer Sees in TM a Poor Substitute for Spiritual Truth
Fahling believes the persistent popularity of such pseudo-spiritual techniques is a by-product of spreading secularism in America -- the effect of a society that has largely rejected biblical truth yet still hungers for something to believe in. "To coin an old phrase, nature abhors a vacuum," he notes. "The nature of man, as Luther said, [is that] there's a God-shaped void in his heart.

"To the degree you take out Christianity as the predominant 'hole filler,' if you will, then something is going to rush in to fill that void," the pro-family attorney continues. "And so, certainly, it's not unexpected [that] we do see this increasing cultural embracing of anything else -- other than Christianity -- that has a spiritual dimension to it."

Among the primary appeals of transcendental meditation, according to proponents, is that it offers a scientific means of overcoming stress while conferring many physiological benefits. Critics, however, contradict this claim and point to studies and anecdotal evidence suggesting that TM may actually be hazardous to participants' health and psychological well being.

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Christian Group's Brochure Offers Schools Help in Understanding Tolerance

by Jim Brown and Jenni Parker
April 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A California-based Christian group called Gateways to Better Education is offering students and teachers an alternative way to respond to an upcoming homosexual activist event being promoted in public schools.

April 26 marks another "Day of Silence," an annual event organized by the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) and designed to protest the perceived intolerance and the "silence that LGBT people face each day." The event is meant to highlight what GLSEN sees as bullying and harassment of LGBT or lesbian, "gay" bisexual and transgender students by others. But on the following day, April 27, many Christians nationwide will be holding the second annual "Day of Truth," an event established to counter the "Day of Silence" and to express a viewpoint that opposes the homosexual agenda from a Christian perspective.

With these objectives in mind, the group "Gateways to Better Education" is asking Christian students and teachers to circulate a handout that the organization hopes will help clear up confusion on campuses regarding the issue of tolerance. The handout is titled "Promoting Tolerance," and Gateways president Eric Buehrer says his group is distributing it because tolerance is a word that is all too often misinterpreted to mean acceptance. He feels a better understanding would be to define tolerance as showing respect and courtesy while holding firmly to convictions.

"Too often, when someone is rightly intolerant of a particular belief or behavior or action, that's labeled as hate or bigotry, and that doesn't have to be labeled that way." Buehrer contends. "When someone is intolerant of something," he insists, "what's most important is the character they exhibit in their intolerance."

Based in Lake Forest, California, Gateways to Better Education exists to involve, equip, and support Christian parents, teachers, administrators, and school board members in America's 92,000 public schools. The group seeks to encourage these individuals in efforts to bring the influence of their Christian faith and values into their various areas of activity in academic settings.

Needed: A Working Definition of Tolerance That Tolerates Truth
Gateways has noted that schools, particularly in recent years, have given an increasing amount of attention to issues surrounding tolerance, and the group has identified a growing need for a clear and practical definition of the term. Tolerance does not mean universally accepting everyone's ideas or behaviors, Gateways' president says, and yet many students have been taught to understand the concept that way.

Buehrer believes schools need to focus more on character issues and less on pushing ideas that confuse students over what to tolerate and what not to tolerate. "The problem," he asserts, "is that too many people think they're being tolerant when actually they're only expressing indifference -- like, 'Oh, whatever'; or apathy, 'Who cares?'; or even recklessness, you know, 'Why not?' -- and they interpret that as tolerance."

The Gateways to Better Education spokesman feels such misinterpretations are morally dangerous to young people. "When tolerance is improperly understood, it can actually lead to disarming students of their proper convictions," he says.

The "Promoting Tolerance" brochure is designed to help students keep their convictions while responding to differences, Buehrer adds. The information in it can help students respond to events like the "Day of Silence" with biblically-based tolerance, showing courtesy and respecting others' differences while holding onto their own Christian beliefs and values.

Teachers and others interested in obtaining the "Promoting Tolerance" resource can go to Gateways' website (www.gtbe.org) or call 1-800-929-1163 to request the brochure.

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PFLAG's Palm Sunday Fundraiser Gets Attention of Massachusetts Activist

by Jim Brown
April 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Massachusetts pro-family activist says a recent fundraising concert hosted by a high school in Concord on Palm Sunday encouraged and celebrated sodomy.

Last Sunday, Concord Carlisle High School hosted a fundraiser for the homosexual activist group Parents, Friends, and Family of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG). The event featured homosexual-themed songs performed by the Boston Gay Men's Chorus.

Lee Ann Kay, who wrote a letter to school officials protesting the Palm Sunday event, says among other things, the fundraising concert was disrespectful to those who worship Jesus Christ. "Holy Week is particularly important to Christians," she says, "and to celebrate homosexual practices on Palm Sunday, I believe, is a slap in the face to students at the high school whose families uphold traditional moral and religious beliefs."

She also is concerned because of the implication of the event. "[T]his fundraiser for homosexuality [also] sends the false message to students that homosexuality is normal and it's healthy," Kay notes, "and we all know that homosexuality is dangerous to the health and welfare of students and society."

The family activist shares that her letter to the Concord superintendent of schools protesting the event went unacknowledged -- and that when she called the principal of the high school to protest the event, he hung up on her after she voiced her concerns. "He told me that he made the decision to sponsor this fundraising event for PFLAG on Palm Sunday," she says.

"We had some conversations about the effects this event would have on our community. Mr. DeLong denied that the fundraiser encourages homosexual experimentation among students -- and he abruptly ended our conversation when I pointedly said to him, 'You are celebrating sexual perversion on Palm Sunday.'"

Although Kay is not a lawyer, she suspects the pro-homosexual event was illegal because the state has regulations prohibiting political organizations from fundraising in public buildings. PFLAG is actively involved in promoting same-sex "marriage" in Massachusetts.

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Pastor's Visit to France Reveals 'Cultural Warfare' Going On

by Allie Martin
April 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A northeast Mississippi pastor says tensions between Muslims and Christians in France are at an all-time high.

Rev. Terry Pierce, pastor of Tupelo Free Will Baptist Church, and two other area ministers from his denomination recently traveled to southern France to encourage and minister to missionaries working with Muslims in that area. Pierce says the missionaries face difficult situations as they work with Muslims who come to France looking for jobs, but oftentimes cannot find work.

The pastor, who hails from southern Illinois, encourages Christians in America to pray for missionaries who are trying to share the message of the gospel with the Muslims. "Pray for them to just be encouraged as they build relationships both in the French culture and in the Muslim community," he says.

Pierce explains the significance of the mission work in southern France. "We can't get missionaries into North Africa," he points out, "but being at that port city, they are able to take the gospel into there." The pastor then re-emphasizes the importance of prayer for the missionaries' work. "We all know that the Word is more powerful than anything else -- and so as that Word goes into Algeria and other North African countries, we know that God will bless them."

During his week-long stay in France, Pierce and others in his group witnessed the aftermath of the recent riots carried out by Muslim youth in the area. He also recalls his encounter with another aspect of the "cultural warfare" he saw occurring between the French and the Muslims.

"They have these things called al-Salams," he says. "They'll be 30 stories tall, with their laundry literally hanging off the balconies -- and [the area] was so dangerous that I filmed a little bit of it when I went through and took some pictures." He says he believes terrorists are being recruited from that community.

According to Pastor Pierce, the French police discourage foreigners from entering those areas. "They tell you if you're French or if you're American [and] you go into those areas, [they] will not come and get you if you get caught in there," he shares.

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Hopegivers Perseveres Despite Leader's Imprisonment, Hindu Radicals' Persecution

by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
April 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The president of a ministry that reaches out to orphans in India remains behind bars on charges made by militant Hindus. Dr. Samuel Thomas, president of Columbus, Georgia-based Hopegivers International, was arrested more than a month ago, accused of publishing and distributing a book that is allegedly offensive to those who follow the Hindu religion.

The executive director of Hopegivers International has called upon Christians around the world to pray and to advocate for the safety of the ministry's president, whose life has been threatened repeatedly by the Hindu extremists. Dr. Thomas has an upcoming court date set for April 24, and attorneys for the organization are working to prepare his defense, even as they appeal to India's central government and national government officials to intervene.

Although the ministry insists it had nothing whatsoever to do with the writing or publishing of the banned book, local government and law enforcement authorities have done nothing to stop the campaign of violence and terror that has been waged against the Christian group.

Some Hopegivers officials believe the authorities in the northern state of Rajasthan, India, many of whom belong to a powerful Hindu political party, are behind this terrorism and are promoting it -- or that they are, at the very least, looking the other way while the authorities in Kota aid and abet radical Hindus in the persecution of the ministry's local staff and leadership.

Meanwhile, the ministry and its programs are suffering the effects. Schools, bookstores, churches, orphanages, and other outreaches supported by Hopegivers International have had their operating licenses revoked by Kota officials. On February 20, the police revoked the documents without any hearing or due process, even stripping licensure of the Christian organization's affiliated hospitals, its leprosy and HIV-AIDS outreaches, its printing presses, and other institutions.

Also, all bank accounts were frozen and the business administrators of the mission and orphanage in Kota were arrested and held without bail as police investigations continue. Threats were also made to cut off electricity and water to the facilities. In many ways, the Christian organization's facilities have been under siege, with little recourse to any kind of justice.

Standing Strong, Meeting Needs Amid Persecution
But Hopegivers International communications director Bill Bray says the ministry's local staff in Rajasthan are standing strong, despite the extreme persecution and government opposition. "Not a single school has closed," he notes. "We just began a new term last Monday, the students are coming back, and the faculty is carrying on without salary."

Admittedly, the ministry is experiencing serious hardship, both due to the strain the Hindu militants' opposition has put on operations and due to the legal expenses involved in fighting for the release of Thomas and other ministry leaders and workers. Nevertheless, Bray notes, "All the orphanages are still open; we're feeding over 10,000 orphans a day," and other outreaches continue as well.

"Even though we don't have bank accounts, and we can't pay our bills in the normal way, we are getting food," the Hopegivers spokesman adds. "People are delivering food from all over India and bringing cash to the orphanages -- other Christians, other Christian organizations, even Hindu organizations."

Hopegivers has organized a Legal Defense Fund to help free Dr. Thomas and the other members of the ministry's staff who have been arrested. The ministry's executive director, Michael Glenn, says while prayer is the most important thing right now, financial support is also needed, as are more correspondents for the letter-writing campaign that has been initiated on the president's behalf.

Christians across India are offering their prayers and their support as well. Recently, hundreds of Christians in India's capital of New Delhi turned out for a rally to protest the arrest and incarceration of Dr. Thomas, and comparable numbers showed up for another peaceful rally in Jaipur, Rajasthan. The Indian believers marched through the streets of the cities, raising an outcry over the Christian leader's arrest and the atrocities being committed against Christian missionaries and institutions in Rajasthan.

The Global Council of Indian Christians, which organized the rally in the capital, has called on the National Human Rights Commission in New Delhi to take "appropriate action" to ensure Dr. Thomas' safety and well being. Meanwhile, the Federation of Indian American Christian Organizations in the USA has joined with thousands of Christians across India and around the world to protest the growing persecution of religious minorities in Rajasthan.

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Catholic Group Criticizes Notre Dame Official's Response to 'V Monologues'

by Jim Brown
April 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A conservative Catholic group is criticizing the University of Notre Dame for once again allowing a homosexual film festival and a vulgar feminist play on the Indiana school's campus.

Notre Dame's President John Jenkins recently stated that he saw "no reason to prohibit performances of the V Monologues on campus." His position comes as a surprise to some who object to the play's content, which includes profanity and graphic descriptions of lesbian sexual relationships.

The prestigious Catholic school near South Bend, Indiana, has hosted the V Monologues for the last five years and a "gay and lesbian" film festival for the last two years. Patrick Reilly, president of the Catholic watchdog group the Cardinal Newman Society (CNS), says he is not surprised the university is continuing to allow homosexual activism on its campus.

"What is surprising," the CNS spokesman notes, "is that Father Jenkins had made it very clear a few weeks ago in a public address to the university that he found these events to be totally inconsistent with the Catholic identity of the institution."

For Jenkins now to "turn around and not impose even the slightest restriction on these events, smacks of hypocrisy," Reilly asserts. However, he acknowledges that that very hypocrisy could be part of a larger trend: he points out that a majority of Notre Dame's faculty employed over the past few decades were hired without the administration expressing any expectation that they support the school's Catholic identity.

In fact, the president of the Catholic watchdog group believes most Notre Dame faculty are strongly resistant to any idea of restoring the school's faith-based identity. And he feels it is disingenuous for administrators like Jenkins to claim Notre Dame is not endorsing the V Monologues and other pro-homosexual events when it is obviously funding them.

In light of the school's apparent indifference to its church roots, Reilly wonders whether some sort of official sanction may be in order. "A bishop does have a right to declare an institution no longer Catholic," he says, and "this certainly ought to add to the evidence, at least, of such a concern."

But as far as how individual Catholics should respond to a production like the V Monologues goes, "The question is just whether it's sinful, whether this is scandalous, whether we're leading people away from the church," Reilly contends. "And I think there's no doubt that these events clearly scandalize the faithful."

The Cardinal Newman Society has led several national protests against productions of the V Monologues over the past few years. The group's efforts have dramatically reduced the number of Catholic campus performances and readings of the play from 32 in 2003 to 22 this year.

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Christian Superintendent Protests Universal Criticism of Public Schools

by Jim Brown
April 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A public school superintendent in South Dakota says he wants to dispel the notion that all public schools are harmful to children. Christian administrator Dr. Gary Harms contends that many public schools do not fit the description of some liberal education institutions on the east and west coasts and in some urban areas.

Harms, a school superintendent in Aberdeen, South Dakota, believes a strong Christian influence remains in many school districts in the Dakotas, Minnesota, Kansas, and down through the Bible Belt. As evidence of that influence in his district, he notes, at least 11 of 19 songs performed at a local high school's spring concert had their roots in the church.

In addition, the school administrator says, student-led prayer at graduation and off-campus faith-based instruction during school hours are permitted in his district's schools, and abstinence is at the core of the school system's sex education curriculum. "Our district patrons would be disappointed if we did not carry through with the values that are started in the home and are also reinforced in the churches," he notes.

"We're limited, of course, by law in what we can and cannot do within our buildings," the Aberdeen superintendent says, "but it doesn't mean that we are as liberal and as disallowing as some of the schools in California and Massachusetts."

Of course, Harms admits that liberal efforts to squelch Christian expressions of faith and free speech in public schools do occur, even in the heartland. For instance, three years ago veteran teacher Barbara Wigg successfully sued the Sioux Falls, South Dakota, school district over its ban on her participation in an after-school Bible club.

However the Aberdeen school official insists that such religious discrimination does not occur in his district's schools. And, although intelligent design and other alternatives to the theory of evolution are not officially a part of the district's science curriculum, he says Aberdeen teachers are not discouraged from discussing intelligent design theory or creationism with their students.

"There are many Christian administrators and teachers within our country," Harms insists, "and for us to be generalized as public schools that are creating some controversy either unwittingly or knowingly is really unfair.

"There are some absolutely wonderful public schools that are encouraging students to hang onto what they believe and what they've been taught, both at home and in the church," Harms adds. For that reason, the superintendent says, he gets really tired of hearing "generalizations" warning people against educating children in public schools.

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20 Reasons There Is Hope for America

by The Church Report
April 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - If you believed everything you read in the liberal press, you would think that Christian leaders were actively working in Washington to dismantle our government and set up a theocracy, similar to that in Iran. The facts, however, say something different -- but one thing is clear: the old guard of Christian political involvement has some powerful new members.

We looked at 20 of the top Christian "political" organizations in an attempt to see through the liberal smokescreen and see what old members were still in their seats of power, and who the young whippersnappers who had gained seats at the table were. The results, in no particular order, were quite eye-opening as the influence of these organizations is quietly being felt around the country, and their connections to each other are many and varied.

Read 'Special Report: Top 20 Christian Organizations' (http://www.thechurchreport.com/content/view/1256/32)

The Family Research Council (FRC) is the powerhouse of Christian influence in Washington. Founded in 1983 by Dr. James Dobson of Focus on the Family, the FRC is led by former Louisiana state representative Tony Perkins. The FRC reportedly has the ear of many members of Congress, the White House, and Christians nationwide. FRC is actively involved in educating religious leaders about moral issues being affected by decisions in Washington, and also in representing those leaders directly to the decision makers themselves. You will find them well represented on news channels and radio stations nationwide, and at meetings where key strategies are planned -- like the Arlington Group.

The Arlington Group is a networking organization, similar to the conservative networking organization, the Council for National Policy. However it is limited in scope and only deals with moral values at risk in America. The assault on traditional marriage is a key area that the group, and its exclusive membership of around 100 leaders, focuses and coordinates on. Members include FRC's Tony Perkins, Focus on the Family's Dr. James Dobson and Rev. Rick Scarborough, head of the judicial-focused Judeo-Christian Council for Constitutional Restoration (JCCCR).

The JCCCR is an outgrowth of years of work with churches nationwide by Rev. Rick Scarborough. He is a Baptist minister whose life was changed when he took a stand against pornographic sex education in his daughter's school. Today the JCCCR is an active presence on Capitol Hill and hosts regular conferences that attract key conservative leaders. Both Rev. Scarborough and the group's executive director Philip Jauregui, former legal counsel to Chief Justice Roy Moore, are a common sight on Capitol Hill. The JCCCR is a key driving force behind the "Values Voter Contract with Congress," which is also heavily supported by Phyllis Schlafly of Eagle Forum and Ambassador Alan Keyes of RenewAmerica.

Eagle Forum -- led by the Margaret Thatcher of American conservatism, Phyllis Scholarly -- is a long-time force in Washington, DC. Based in both St. Louis and Washington, Phyllis Schafly's influence extends far beyond the halls of Congress as her opinion is held in high regard by most Christian organizations who work in "political" arenas. Her behind-the-scenes leadership has been a powerful voice of reason and experience as more and more Christians take the biblical mandate of societal involvement seriously. Key strategy sessions often find her and Ambassador Alan Keyes, former presidential candidate and the head of RenewAmerica, at the same table.

Ambassador Keyes' and RenewAmerica's influence is profound, and his ability to see through political pandering and cut to the heart of an issue being discussed is well documented. A key area where Ambassador Keyes pulls no punches is the issue of abortion -- and he has, on numerous occasions, been known for "calling the kettle black" when others in the room see a shade of gray. His direct comments are usually accompanied by nods of agreement from the others in the room, which reveals the deference this man is shown.

Sharing this passion for protecting the unborn, and often in the same room, is Father Frank Pavone, who heads Priests for Life and who is considered a key leader in the fight to protect life in America. Father Pavone is considered a go-to man on the life issue, and there is hardly a pro-life press conference or a meeting on the subject that does not have him in a prominent position. At those same meetings you will also usually find the presence of two lesser-known but very influential men, Rev. Rob Schenck of Faith and Action and Tom Smith of America 21.

Faith and Action has a solid presence on Capitol Hill from their offices right next door to the U.S. Supreme Court. Faith and Action is not a lobbying organization, however; it is specifically a missionary organization to Capitol Hill, but its influence is just as profound. Many days will find staff members in prayer sessions with decision makers in Washington, and their sharing of the gospel with those in power has changed lives for the better. A few houses down on the very same street you will find America 21. Tom Smith, the head of the group, is a quiet, focused individual whose legal expertise and outside-of-the-box thinking has made him a voice of reason and influence in many policy discussions and strategy sessions. He was a lead influence in the drafting of the Constitution Restoration Act, along with Herb Titus, former dean of Regent University, and is a profound force in the battle to protect innocent life in America that is daily raging in our courts.

Cont'd next post

Fighting the battle in our courts and found in many of the same strategy sessions are organizations such as the Alliance Defense Fund, Liberty Counsel, the Foundation for Moral Law, and the American Center for Law & Justice. These organizations actively work within the court system, fighting to protect the freedoms granted to American citizens by our founding documents.

The Alliance Defense Fund, led by Alan Sears, provides effective pro-bono legal defense on religious issues, as does Mat Staver's Liberty Counsel. Liberty Counsel led the recent fight in the U.S. Supreme Court to protect the display of the Ten Commandments in McCreary vs. ACLU, a court case that saw most of these top 20 organizations filing supporting amicus briefs. The American Center for Law & Justice, led by Jay Sekulow, is believed to have very close ties to the current White House, which sets it as quite different from, but just as powerful as, the Foundation for Moral Law, which was founded by former Chief Justice Roy Moore, who is currently running for Governor of Alabama and is not known as an establishment insider.

Equally as important as the direct hands-on fight in our nation's court system is the ongoing battle for the hearts and minds of the American people. This is where organizations like Joyce Meyer Ministries (JMM), the Center for Reclaiming America, and Vision Forum Ministries come into play -- and again, these organizations are well represented when decisions are made.

JMM's "Stand Up and Be Counted" program is reported to have over 140,000 active participants spread across the country. This program uses the web and direct email campaigns to deluge members of Congress on issues of moral importance, and also to educate Christians about their heritage, their freedoms, and their duty to protect both. Likewise, D. James Kennedy's Center for Reclaiming America is focused on both education and influence. Both organizations put a huge emphasis on educating people, and thus empowering them to make a difference.

Equally as focused on education, but with the emphasis of future leaders, is Vision Forum Ministries. Another non-lobbying organization that has made our list, Vision Forum is effectively raising up leaders and working to see that those who lead our country in the future are grounded in a biblical worldview. Led by Doug Phillips, son of Howard Phillips who still leads the Conservative Caucus and has the ear of many conservative leaders, Vision Forum is quietly making waves that will be felt in the coming decades.

Working alongside some of these organizations we find a couple of very effective Internet communication organizations that have had profound success in harnessing the power of the Internet. RightMarch.com and the American Family Association are found at most strategy sessions involving Christian organizations in Washington, DC, and their trademark is effectively activating concerned citizens using technology and the Internet. RightMarch.com is led by William Green and Phil Sheldon, and their involvement in the recent battles over Supreme Court nominees was quiet, yet profound, and contributed significantly to the confirmation of both Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito. The American Family Association led by Don Wildmon has an extensive reach into the lives of concerned Christians and has reportedly been quite effective both in Washington and in influencing corporate America.

Finally, we find both the Traditional Values Coalition and Concerned Women for America, which work hand in hand with many of these organizations and often are seated at the same table during key strategy sessions.

The Traditional Values Coalition, led by Rev. Lou Sheldon, is currently having a profound influence through educational efforts on Capitol Hill. Also working on Capitol Hill on similar issues is Concerned Women for America, the brainchild of Beverly LaHaye, which educates and activates women from across the country and, at the same time, employs a staff of highly effective activists in Washington.

Today, these are the top 20 Christian political organizations in America, along with an honorable mention for the Conservative Caucus.

These names are always changing -- more will be added, some will fade -- but one thing is true: these organizations are organized and are working together like never before towards common goals and moral purposes. Their agenda is that which they see in the Word of God -- and Catholics, Protestants, Baptists, and others are working hand in hand to ensure that our nation continues to be a nation where the freedom to acknowledge God and promote morality to our children is a freedom honored and protected for generations to come.

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Reality TV Is Setting for New Suspense Story from Christy-Winning Novelist

by Randall Murphree
April 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The surreal world of "reality" TV gets pretty crazy in Atlanta lawyer Randy Singer's latest suspense novel, The Cross Examination of Oliver Finney (WaterBrook). The award-winning novelist has spun another intriguing tale, this time in a context made popular by prime-time TV. Singer's Directed Verdict won a 2003 Christy Award for excellence in Christian fiction.

Read Randall Murphree's review of Directed Verdict (http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/11/182002f.asp)

In the new title, Singer grabs our sympathy right away by introducing a character called simply The Patient, a 35-year-old billionaire who has just been diagnosed with inoperable brain cancer. Doctors warn him to anticipate a series of symptoms, each worse than the one before -- "behavioral changes, impaired judgment, memory loss, reduced cognitive function, vision loss, partial paralysis."

Then comes the clever story line. Grappling with his own mortality, The Patient begins to second-guess his agnostic attitude toward religion. Subsequently, in a bizarre quest for meaning in life, he decides to produce the greatest television reality show ever -- a debate among adherents of the world's major religions plus a proponent for science-not-religion.

For his TV extravaganza, The Patient hand-picks one representative from each religion. Each contestant must not only be a worthy advocate for his faith, but also be terminally ill. Judge Oliver Finney, a persnickety but wise, cigar-smoking 59-year-old whose body is losing to lung cancer, is chosen to argue for the Christian faith.

Next, a few diverse and antagonistic characters converge. Pitted against the spirited Finney are Kareem Hasaan, a Moslem; Dr. Hokoji Ando, a Buddhist; Swami Skyler Hadji, a Hindu; and Victoria Kline, an atheistic scientist. (A Jewish rabbi withdrew from the contest.) During their stay on a remote island, participants are forbidden any communication or contact off the island.

Author Randy Singer �
Finally, the element of suspense emerges. Along the way, the contestants discover what they believe to be a conspiracy/plot among the show's creator and producers to hurry death for at least one of them.

Finney devises a subversive means of Internet communication via a code through which he is able to enlist the assistance of Nikki Moreno, his protege and law clerk. Both Finney and Nikki have appeared in some of Singer's earlier novels, but his books are not sequential, each having its own set of unique characters and story lines.

A stark contrast to Finney's crusty public persona as quirky jurist is his reputation as scholarly theologian. He has, in fact, published the popular The Cross Examination of Jesus Christ. Well, not in fact, for Finney is, in fact, fiction.

Now don't grow confused. Here's the lowdown:

Fiction: Judge Finney is the fictional author of The Cross Examination of Jesus Christ in the novel The Cross Examination of Oliver Finney.

Fact: Randy Singer is author of The Cross Examination of Jesus Christ, a non-fiction companion book to his novel The Cross Examination of Oliver Finney.

Singer's creativity shines bright in this clever marriage of fiction and nonfiction. While reading his novel, readers can enjoy Nikki's decoding the judge's messages using clues from the judge's book. At the same time, readers are challenged to solve the novel's suspense by decoding Singer's messages in The Cross Examination of Jesus Christ. The bonus benefit of reading the latter volume is that we're likely to become better advocates for our Christian faith.

There's one drawback to Singer's master plan. The novel is so well written, the story so captivating, that it's hard to slow down long enough to try our decoding skills. It's another vintage Singer suspense story. And maybe it will lead us to the second book as well.

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Author Not Optimistic About Cornell Univ. Giving ID a Fair Shake

by Jim Brown
April 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A leading proponent of intelligent design predicts a new course on the subject being offered at Cornell University this summer will attempt to undermine the theory.

Cornell professor Allen MacNeill will be teaching a four-credit course called "Evolution and Design: Is There Purpose in Nature?" The course will reportedly be a history of biology class that examines ethics and philosophy. Among the books the course will use is Debating Design: From Darwin to DNA by Dr. William Dembski and Michael Ruse.

Dembski, a former professor at Southern Seminary in Louisville, doubts the course will accurately portray intelligent design. "Given that I regard myself as a fair-minded person -- and given that I understand the professor of the class has called me a bald-faced liar -- I would guess that [it's] probably not going to be a fair treatment," Dembski offers. "But who knows?"

The author offers another "given" -- that taking into account a claim by Cornell president Hunter Rawlings that ID is a "religious belief masquerading as a secular idea," the class will likely have a strong pro-Darwinist bias.

"I would think that [for] the president of Cornell, this is not a way of him endorsing it or thinking there's anything of intellectual merit there," Dembski conjectures. If anything, he adds, "the academic mainstream ... is hunkering down, stonewalling, [and] wanting to say there's nothing of merit here, we've got to shut this down -- and if we're going to teach a course on it, it's purely to debunk it."

Dembski believes the Cornell course is a concession to a "wider cultural movement" that is more sympathetic to intelligent design.

Another book by Dembski -- The Design Inference: Eliminating Chance through Small Probabilities -- is also among the recommended readings for the course, as are Darwin and Design: Does Evolution Have a Purpose? by Michael Ruse and Darwin's Black Box: The Biochemical Challenge to Evolution by Michael Behe. Dembski says regardless how Professor MacNeill may "skew" the discussion about ID in class, students will benefit from reading the books being used as the basis for class discussions.

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VOM Rejoices Over Christian Schoolmaster's Release from Pakistani Prison

by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
April 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian accused of blasphemy has been released after years in a Pakistani prison. Five years ago Parvez Masih was running a private middle school comprised of Christian and Muslim students near Lahore, Pakistan, when he was arrested and jailed on false charges of blaspheming the prophet Muhammad.

Muslims who ran a rival school reportedly became jealous of the success of Masih's facility, Iqbal Memorial School, and a teacher at the Muslim school is believed to have instigated the accusations against the Christian educator. It was shortly after he responded factually to some of his Muslim students -- who asked him if Muhammad truly had a nine-year-old wife -- that Masih was arrested and charged with blasphemy.

Todd Nettleton is a spokesman with Voice of the Martyrs (VOM), a ministry to the persecuted Church. He notes that in Pakistan, an accusation of blasphemy, even without evidence, is enough to land a believer in jail. "Often, blasphemy charges are used as a way to settle disputes," Nettleton says, "even a property dispute, or even an argument. If you accuse the Christian of blasphemy, he is arrested."

According to VOM reports, the Christian school leader was arrested on April 1, 2001, and was soon thereafter taken to a nearby river, where his captors demanded at gunpoint that he deny his faith in Jesus. However, despite being subjected to violence and threats, Masih refused. And later, after the Christian man was jailed, several of his cellmates repeatedly fought with him, and he suffered three separate police beatings as well.

During the years of Masih's imprisonment, VOM has been helping to support him as well as his family members, who have run the Christian school in his absence. The financial hardship during his incarceration has not only put a strain on the jailed headmaster's family but has also hurt the school, causing its enrollment to drop from 150 students in 2004 to 70 in 2005.

But finally, after years of inhumane treatment, threats, beatings and trials, Masih was found not guilty of violating Pakistan's Law 295C -- blaspheming the prophet Muhammad -- and was released. However, Nettleton says the former captive is not out of danger.

"We have heard stories in Pakistan before," the VOM spokesman says, "of Christians being set free from prison only to be gunned down in the streets. And so there is still a need for us to pray for Parvez Masih and his family, that God will watch over them, as he is now a free man."

VOM's monthly assistance to the family went to help pay for Masih's medicine, clothing and food expenses in jail, as well as to help his family members travel to court hearings and meet other financial needs.

Voice of the Martyrs has asked its supporters to consider donating to the ministry on behalf of Masih and his family. A statement on the VOM website also calls on supporters to "join us in thanking the Lord" for Masih's release and to continue praying for him as he readjusts to life outside of prison.

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Retired AF Pilot Upset About Media Focus on Military's Iran Plans

by Chad Groening
April 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A former military attach� to President Bill Clinton says it's not wise for members of the media to put American troops in danger with unsubstantiated reports about future military actions. He says he is concerned about a recently published report that the Bush administration is planning possible military action against Iran.

In the April 17 issue of The New Yorker magazine, reporter Seymour Hersh cited mostly unidentified current and former officials who stated that President Bush considers Iran's new president as "a potential Adolf Hitler," and sees regime change in Tehran as the ultimate goal. The article went on to state that the Pentagon is making plans to attack Iran, even with nuclear weapons if necessary, to damage or destroy that nation's underground nuclear sites.

From 1996 to 1998 Lt. Col. (Ret.) Robert "Buzz" Patterson was responsible for the president's Emergency Satchel -- otherwise known as the "Nuclear Football" -- a black bag with the nation's nuclear capability that accompanies the president at all times. The former Air Force pilot says it is really "nothing new" that the U.S. has plans to stage a preemptive attack in Iran.

"In the Pentagon, in the U.S. military, we have war plans for virtually every imaginable scenario that we might find ourselves in, to include -- I guarantee you -- a potential invasion or retaliation with Iran," Patterson says.

He says that, according to his sources in the Pentagon, such plans were in the works as far back as six to nine months ago. "We already had plans in place going back that far because we knew about Iran's nuclear capability," he says. "And we can't let them acquire the bomb, bottom line," he adds.

That being the case, the retired Air Force officer still takes issue with the New Yorker article. "Seymour Hearst's article doesn't do anything but aid and abet the enemy, in this case Iran," says Patterson. "And if we do have to strike, hopefully we won't lose any U.S. Air Force pilots, or Marine pilots, or Navy pilots because of Seymour Hearst's irresponsibility."

As upset as he is about Hersh's article, Patterson says there are members of Congress who he believes are far worse in aiding and abetting the enemy. He calls them part of the "fifth column" movement.

"There is a fifth column -- and I can name you some folks that come to mind," he says. "John Murtha, Teddy Kennedy, John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean. They are doing nothing to support our troops overseas and everything to support our enemy -- and that is a fifth column in my estimation."

Patterson is author of two New York Times bestsellers: Dereliction of Duty: How Bill Clinton Compromised America's National Security, and the recently released Reckless Disregard: How Liberal Democrats Undercut Our Military, Endanger Our Soldiers, and Jeopardize Our Security.

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Population Research Expert Criticizes Dutch Proposal to Penalize Stay-At-Home Moms

by Mary Rettig
April 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An official with the Population Research Institute says a proposed law in the Parliament of the Netherlands discriminates against educated women who choose not to work outside the home.

The Institute's vice president of communications, Joseph D'Agostino, says a prominent female Dutch Parliament member has proposed fining college-educated women for opting to stay at home and take care of their children rather than to get jobs. Apparently, Member of Parliament Sharon Dijksma considers that choice a waste of a government-sponsored education.

According to Expatica news reports, Dijksma calls the decision by any eligible, college-educated woman not to seek a job in the paid workforce a "destruction of capital." The lawmaker recently explained her position, declaring to women across the Netherlands, "If you receive the benefit of an expensive education at the cost of society, you should not be allowed to throw away that knowledge unpunished."

But D'Agostino feels the Dutch legislature would be sending the wrong message by approving the MP's proposal. He says the Dutch government should be rewarding women -- not punishing them -- for choosing to stay home with their children because, for one thing, those women are more likely to have more than child.

Currently, the Institute spokesman notes, the birthrate of the Netherlands is plummeting. At the moment, he points out, that statistic is not even high enough to replace the country's current population. Since housewives are more likely to have larger families than career-oriented women, he believes a better policy for the Dutch government would be to encourage women who choose stay-at-home parenting.

Also, D'Agostino contends, the government should realize there is nothing wasteful about women with college educations staying home with their kids. "I think that children can very much benefit from having an educated person with them all day every day," he says, "and if that person is their mother, all the better. I don't really understand how that would be a waste."

That is especially true at the present time, "when home schooling has become so common and so popular because our schools are so awful," the population research official notes. "And so it's really important that whoever is taking care of the children should really have that kind of education, because the schools themselves are so bad that people just can't send their kids there."

D'Agostino believes MP Dijksma's proposal emerges from a socialistic, big government mentality. "In the Netherlands people are very heavily taxed," he explains, "and then people get some of their money back in the form of certain benefits, like free college tuition."

However, the Population Research Institute's vice president of communications points out, this kind of socialist system that the Netherlands employs, with its offers of "free" services and benefits, unfortunately allows the government and its agents "to then try to take over your life."

MP Dijksma "wants to do that by penalizing women who choose to take care of their children rather than work full time," D'Agostino asserts. He maintains that her proposal to charge college-educated Dutchwomen for "wasting" their schooling by not getting jobs outside the home is not only ludicrous but bad for the nation as well.

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Idaho Group Urges Support for Measure Blocking Eminent Domain Seizures

by Allie Martin
April 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian values and religious freedom advocacy group is urging pastors, their congregants, and others in Idaho to support a petition drive to protect churches and church members' private property from eminent domain abuses.

Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the case of Kelo v. City of New London, Connecticut, et al. that the Constitution of the United States does not prevent government officials from condemning churches and private homes under eminent domain and seizing the property for commercial development projects.

However, individual states can pass laws prohibiting abuses of "eminent domain" and of the government's condemnation powers. The Kelo decision has prompted citizen activists in a number of U.S. states to push for such protections and to urge their lawmakers to move on enacting the necessary legislation.

Pastor Bryan Fischer is executive director of the Idaho Values Alliance. He says a petition drive has been initiated in an effort to put on the November ballot a proposed state law that would protect individuals and churches from entities seeking to exploit eminent domain to take their property. The proposal would prohibit local governments from condemning churches, homes, or businesses for private development projects.

"Any church in America can be vulnerable to eminent domain abuse," Fischer observes. "In fact," he notes, "the more attractive the location of a church is, the more vulnerable it is to abuse because greedy local governments can look at the best locations as prime spots for commercial development."

The Idaho Values Alliance spokesman believes the Kelo decision placed the free-speech rights of religious individuals and institutions at stake. "The motivation seems to be clear," he notes. "Churches generate no property tax revenue for local governments, and businesses do; so it's made churches especially vulnerable to eminent domain abuse."

Organizers must gather 70,000 signatures by April 30. Fischer is mobilizing an army of volunteers to gather the needed signatures by the deadline in order to get the proposed law on Idaho's November ballot.

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The Serpent of Porn

by Steve Gallagher
April 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Solomon intimately understood how powerful sexual temptation can be for a young man. It was with him in mind that he wrote the fifth chapter of Proverbs. "My son, give attention to my wisdom, incline your ear to my understanding .... For the lips of an adulteress drip honey and smoother than oil is her speech" (Proverbs 5:1-3).

Those two sentences perfectly describe both the power of sexual temptation and its antidote. The wise king understood that, if a young man is to successfully withstand the charms of the temptress, he must be prepared ahead of time. Time spent in the Word every day builds up a man's immune system against the poison of pornography. The scriptures are simply the thinking and perspectives of the Lord. As a man continually immerses himself in the Bible, he will gradually take on God's mindset toward life, people and, yes, even sexuality. a man who devotes daily time to the Word is given spiritual insight into the power of temptation and how it works.

Notice again what Solomon says about sexual sin. He personifies it as an adulteress whose lips of honey represent promised fulfillment. The temptation seems irresistible because it is laced with deception -- namely, that the act of sin will bring about tremendous pleasure and satisfaction. The tantalizing thought is presented and all thoughts of resistance are forgotten. the act of sexual sin looks absolutely intoxicating and therefore irresistible. The smooth oil represents the craftiness of the enemy .... Fully camouflaged and extremely calculating, he presents the perfect illusion, timing each consecutive attack "to steal, and kill, and destroy God's property."

The wise man, whose heart has been fortified with the Word of God, sees the devil behind that intoxicating temptation. In the Garden, Satan exposed himself as the "crafty" serpent he is. I imagine him being very much like a cobra. Known for the hideous hood it extends when preparing to attack, it actually spits into the eyes of its victim before striking. With its target blinded and helpless, the serpent could easily squirm away into the brush. But this viper is not content with escape; it enjoys killing. With bared fangs, it lunges, injecting its deadly poison into its victim's body.

Injected ... Infected ... and Helpless
This is a fitting picture of the man lured into viewing pornography. The temptation usually begins when he comes across a glimpse of flesh and/or a sexually suggestive hyper-link. It is just enough venom to temporarily blind him to the impending danger. The initial presentation is stimulating, creating a sensual atmosphere which spiritually incapacitates him.

Now the serpent moves in for the kill. That one glimpse of porn unleashes a poison that rockets into the man's soul and instantly spreads throughout his being. Just like a snakebite victim, he enters a catatonic state of mind: a sexual trance where all reason seems to abandon him. Lust rushes through his body; his face flushes with excitement; his palms get sweaty. Solomon described this spiritual stupor this way: "With her many persuasions she entices him. With her flattering lips she seduces him. Suddenly he follows her as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as one in fetters to the discipline of a fool, until an arrow pierces through his liver; as a bird hastens to the snare, so he does not know that it will cost him his life" (Proverbs 7:21-23).

Conversely, the man who "receives with meekness the engrafted word" discerns the source of temptation that comes his way. He understands that, behind the beautiful illusion of pleasure, there is a snake -- coiled and ready to strike. He has been bitten by it before and has learned the hard way the price that is paid for every indulgence. He has the heart-knowledge (much different from head-knowledge) to "be a doer of the Word" and turn away from the temptation.

Continuing in Proverbs 5, Solomon went on to speak of the "aharit" -- the end -- of sexual sin: "But in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. Her feet go down to death, her steps take hold of hell." This Hebraic term describes the inevitable consequences of all sin. He would later write, "There is a way which seems right to a man, but its 'aharit' is the way of death" (14:12).

Once a snake bites, its victim then becomes vulnerable to other predators. Some time ago, I watched a National Geographic special that showed a lioness who had been bitten by a cobra. For days, she suffered under the effects of its venom. Weakened to the point of collapse, she faced great danger from a roving pack of ravenous hyenas. She was helpless to defend herself from their savage attacks.

This is certainly true of the man who views pornography. Its poison, rather than dissipating after he has completed his act of lust, continues to contaminate his heart over the coming days. Its toxin remains in his system, altering his perspectives, polluting his mind, and spreading darkness over his soul. The lust it initially appealed to is now inflamed into burning desire. Rather than satisfying the man's sexual passion, it only serves to further ignite it.

Not only must the infected man deal with the after-effects of the bite, but now he is even more weakened spiritually against the enemies of his soul. He attempts to go about his daily routines, but lascivious memories continue to haunt him. These images are like Third World beggars crowding around him, clamoring for another handout. No matter how much you give them, they're never satisfied. Indeed, every gift only emboldens them to demand more.

No wonder Solomon warned: "Keep your way far from her and do not go near the door of her house, or you will give your vigor to others and your years to the cruel one" (5:8-9). The house of the adulteress -- much like an X-rated website -- is nothing more than a den of writhing vipers. It would be wise to avoid such a place!

God's Word is the Antitode
The poisoned victim's only hope for freedom is to go "cold turkey." Just as a heroin addict must lock himself up until the drug gradually works its way out of his body, so too it takes time for the venom of pornography to lose its power. Every tick of the clock could be harboring a voluptuous temptress, ready to lure him back into sin. And yet, every minute that passes without failure, delivers the man that much further out of her reach. When it comes to porn addiction, the longer he stays away, the better his chances of escaping her evil clutches for good.

Just as the Word of God prepares a man to face temptation, it is also the only antidote for the man once he has been bitten by the serpent of lust. Regular doses of Scripture are the very thing he needs to be built up spiritually and thus counteract the effects of the poison of pornography. "Precept upon precept; line upon line; here a little, and there a little ..." (Isaiah 28:10). Every word, verse and chapter he meditates upon serves to strengthen him.

Christian men must do everything within their power to avoid the "house" of the adulteress. Two practical measures a man should take would be to use an Internet filter on his computer and controlling his television viewing. However, the fact remains that we live in a snake-infested world. In our day and age, it is almost inevitable that men will face this temptation at some point. The wise believer will prepare himself for that day with the Word of God. It is only "the sword of the Spirit" that can sever the head of the serpent of porn.

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PCUSA May Allow Homosexual Clergy, UMC Group Sympathetic With Pro-Homosexual Cause

by AFA Journal
April 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The Presbyterian Church USA (PCUSA) may be on the verge of allowing the ordination of homosexual clergy, despite the wishes of the majority of its members. That's the disturbing claim being made by Presbyterians for Faith, Family and Ministry (PFFM), a group of Presbyterian clergy and laity who hope to work within the denomination to restore biblical and confessional fidelity.

The group says that in June, the General Assembly -- the denomination's highest court -- will consider the recommendations of the "Peace, Unity and Purity Report," which deals with the issue of homosexuality in the PCUSA. A PFFM letter concerning the report states that, "if approved, [it] will permit the ordination of practicing, unrepentant homosexuals in our denomination."

When the question has been put to local presbyteries in the past, nearly three-quarters have rejected the ordination of homosexuals to ministry. However, PFFM says the procedures being applied in this instance would circumvent the presbyteries, which serve a function similar to a local congressional district.

That means that should PCUSA convention delegates approve the report, "it will permit governing bodies to ordain whomever they wish regardless of the clear constitutional standards approved by 73% of the presbyteries," says PFFM. "The changes proposed by the report will not return to the presbyteries for a vote."

In order to forestall what it calls "a serious biblical and constitutional crisis" in the denomination, PFFM recommends that presbyteries carefully consider who they elect as representatives to the General Assembly.

The crisis comes at a time when the PCUSA is already facing a serious financial crunch. According to Associated Press, the denomination of approximately 2.4 million members reported that it must cut its budget over the next couple of years -- starting with a $2.7 million cut this year. In addition, AP reports the denomination will cut jobs at its headquarters for the third time in four years. Church officials say they need to cut enough jobs to save more than $14 million over the next two years. In 2002 and 2003, some 85 jobs were cut through layoffs and attrition.

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'Tiktaalik' Simply Shows God's Divine Design, says Ken Ham

by Allie Martin
April 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The founder of a Christian apologetics ministry says a so-called "missing link" found in the Canadian arctic doesn't prove that land animals evolved from fish, despite reports in the secular press.

Earlier this month the secular press announced the discovery of a fossil known as "Tiktaalik." Scientists said the fossil -- purported to have lived 375 million years ago -- had the characteristics of a fish, but also had characteristics that made it a predecessor of amphibians, reptiles, and dinosaurs.

"Experts said the discovery, with its unusually well-preserved and complete skeletons, reveals significant new information about how the water-to-land evolution took place," reported Associated Press on April 5. And while Jennifer Clack of Cambridge University, an expert unconnected with the study, told AP that it is impossible to tell if the fossil was a direct ancestor of land vertebrates, she admitted that if a scientist set out to design a plausible candidate, "you'd probably come up with something like this."

Ken Ham, founder of the apologetics ministry known as Answers in Genesis, says Tiktaalik does not show a transitional form of animal as evolutionists claim.

"If you look at a platypus, a platypus has features of reptiles, birds, and mammals," he notes. "Now, that's not considered to be a transitional form. But what you find is that God has used optimum features in different creatures. And so you see some similarities and you see differences, and so on -- just as the forelimb of a human is similar to the forelimb of a chimp is similar to the structure of the bones in other animals, other vertebrates."

The fossil -- which Ham describes as a lobe-finned fish -- is just another example of God's divine design, he says. "They're saying that it was evolving legs. But, you know, you've got a shallow water fish here, like the lungfish," says Ham, "and they have the strength in their fins -- these lobe fins. They're different from fins of other fish."

The Answers in Genesis spokesman explains. "The lobe fins' bones give them some strength so they can crawl along the mud," he says. "I mean, so what? That's not a transitional form. That's a fish designed to do what it does do in shallow water."

Ham says if evolution is true, there would be millions of fossils representing transitional forms of animals. And he contends the secular press has once again shown its bias toward evolution by heralding the recent discovery as one that, as AP put it, "sheds new light on one of the greatest transformations in the history of animals."

Researchers have not yet discovered any remains from the hind end of the creature's body -- only from the jaw, snout, and neck areas.

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Effort Aims to 'Evangelize' Families into Home Schooling

by Jim Brown
April 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Experienced home-schooling families are being encouraged to take part in "home-school evangelism" by bringing friends, neighbors, and relatives into home schooling.

An estimated 700,000 American families have five or more years of home-schooling experience. According to Dr. Bruce Shortt of Exodus Mandate, if just 25 percent of those families brought new families into home schooling each year, the number of home schoolers would easily double in a few years.

The idea is called "Homeschooling Family-to-Family" (HFTF), an effort started last year by Exodus Mandate to grow home schooling and strengthen state and local home-school organizations. Shortt says there are four reasons to get involved in the long-term project. The first, he says, is that helping families get started in home schooling "rescues" children from what he calls "government schools."

"Second, it's a great way to share the gospel or help disciple new Christians," he continues as he describes HFTF. "Third, when we grow home schooling, we're promoting revival in families, churches, and communities." And finally, he says, "if you don't care about anything else, every home schooler -- Christian or otherwise -- needs to understand that we're always just one election away from disaster."

Shortt, an advisor to the National Black Home Educators Resource Association, is among those heading up HFTF. He says getting involved in the effort does not require a large time commitment.

"Can you take someone along with you to a home school co-op meeting? Can you take that person with you to a home school convention or book fair?" he asks. "Can you introduce that new family to some of your home schooling friends? Can you spend a little time helping the new family decide on curriculum and provide some periodic encouragement during a first year?"

He contends the main barrier preventing most families from home schooling is fear. "[F]rankly, there are a lot of families who would begin home schooling if they had someone they know providing just a little guidance and encouragement during the first year," Short suggests.

Short, author of the book The Harsh Truth About Public Schools, believes the fruit of home-school evangelism and outreach can be immense. "Unlike the gimmicks that often pass for Christian evangelism today, Christian home schooling is true revival," he says, "and HFTF is the perfect opportunity for Christian home schoolers to become more evangelical."

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Liberty Counsel Files in Indiana Case, Says Legislative Prayer Part of History

by Allie Martin
April 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian law firm is defending the 188-year tradition of opening prayer in the Indiana Legislature. Liberty Counsel says legislative prayer is not unconstitutional and should be permitted.

Last year a federal district court ordered the Indiana Legislature to halt the tradition of opening sessions with prayers. The court said if the tradition continued, the prayers had to be non-sectarian. That decision came after a lawsuit by a state resident who was offended by prayers mentioning the name of Jesus Christ.

Now Florida-based Liberty Counsel has filed a brief in the case, arguing that legislative prayer predates the First Amendment. The group's general counsel and president says such prayers are not unconstitutional -- but that efforts to censor them are. Prayer, says Mat Staver, are "part of who we are as Americans."

"What this lower court has done is rule against much of our American history, ruled against the First Amendment, and ruled against common sense," the Liberty Counsel attorney explains. "We're asking the Federal Court of Appeals to reverse this lower-court judge and to rule that legislative prayer -- just like the Supreme Court's already found -- is indeed constitutional."

According to Staver, the case is now on appeal. "It's a very important matter because this has the ability to affect legislative prayers all around the country," he says, adding an optimistic note. "I think when this case, if it does, gets to the United States Supreme Court, with the new makeup of the current Supreme Court, that court will rule soundly in favor of legislative prayer."

The first legislative prayer dates back to at least the Constitutional Convention in 1787. And as recently as 1983, the Supreme Court upheld Nebraska's tradition of legislative prayer. That is why Staver says to eliminate such prayer would be "contrary" to the history of the nation as well as inconsistent with the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

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Bush Expected to Address Human Rights During Talks with China's Hu Jintao

by Chad Groening
April 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An official with an organization dedicated to the persecuted Church around the world says he expects President Bush will discuss Chinese human rights violations when he meets with China's communist leader today.

Members of Congress say President Bush should insist that China respect its citizens' religious rights. That is one of the issues likely to be raised when Chinese President Hu Jintao visits the White House today. The agenda also includes China's currency, trade policies, and the nuclear programs of Iran and North Korea.

At a House hearing on Wednesday, New Jersey Congressman Chris Smith said Chinese "citizens practicing a faith other than officially sanctioned religions are often subjected to torture, imprisonment and death, at which time prisoners' organs are often harvested to meet demand." Smith said that while trade, nuclear proliferation and other important issues will be on Bush's agenda, it is America's "moral duty to stand with the oppressed, not with the oppressor."

Todd Nettleton, director of media services at Voice of the Martyrs, believes President Bush will bring up the human-rights question when he meets behind closed doors with the Chinese leader.

"President Bush has brought up the issue of human rights in China [before]," notes Nettleton. "When he was in Beijing, he talked about human rights, he talked about religious freedom, and I believe it's a priority for him personally -- and I think out of that personal priority flows his conversation."

But Nettleton says it is unfortunate that the president does not have much to bargain with in order to achieve any real progress with the Chinese. "We've given [Communist China] permanent normal trade relations, the 2008 Olympics was awarded to Beijing -- you know, there is no great thing that we can say, 'Well, wait -- if you don't do this, then we're going to do this,'" he says.

"Obviously we're going to continue the trading relationships that we have, so there isn't a huge stick that he has to wave."

Still, the VOM spokesman believes President Bush will attempt to bargain with the Communist leader as best as he can. "He doesn't always bring ... up [his commitment to human rights during] real "in-your-face," public moments, but we're told that he does bring it up behind closed doors -- and he does mention it as he is briefing the news media, as he's talking to reporters," Nettleton observes. "So, hopefully that will be a part of the discussion along with the economic issues and the copyright issues and the other things that Bush is planning to discuss. "

China's communist regime has sought to rein in Christianity's rapid spread by targeting preachers for arrest and intimidation. Many have been jailed or driven into exile or deeper underground, depriving Chinese Christians of some of their best-organized and most entrepreneurial leaders. While Buddhism remains China's most popular religion, Christians are now estimated to number 35 million, up from less than one million 50 years ago. Most worship in private homes rather than in churches monitored by state-backed religious organizations.

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Expletive-Filled Video Lands Teacher in Hot Water

by Jim Brown
April 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An Alabama lawmaker is calling on a political opponent to apologize for showing a profane, anti-George Bush Internet video to students in his eighth-grade science class.

The film shown during class by West Limestone High School teacher Mike White repeatedly uses an expletive to describe President Bush, members of his administration, and supporters. White, who is a Democratic candidate for the District 4 seat in Alabama's House of Representatives, also allegedly made a student says "John Kerry rocks" before leaving class one day.

Republican Micky Hammon, who is District 4's current representative, says he was appalled to hear White was attempting to indoctrinate students.

"That is definitely not appropriate material for 13-year-old, eighth-grade students," says Hammon. "Alabama is a conservative state. This is something you might see on the news from California or somewhere else, but not here in Alabama."

White also reportedly showed students an obscene video featuring an animated Bill Clinton. Alabama students deserve better, says Hammon.

"When I was in school years ago, we didn't know if our teachers were Republicans or Democrats, liberal or conservative or what. The thought didn't even cross our minds," he says. "And now, this is the point that we've come to. I just think it's terribly embarrassing to the state of Alabama."

Hammon says White would be wise to publicly apologize for his actions. The Democratic hopeful would not return calls seeking comment. The News Courier (Athens, Alabama) reports that White has been on administrative leave since the incident and is barred from the campus pending completion of an investigation by school system authorities.

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Ministerial/Laity Group: PCUSA May Allow Homosexual Clergy

by AFA Journal
April 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The Presbyterian Church USA (PCUSA) may be on the verge of allowing the ordination of homosexual clergy, despite the wishes of the majority of its members. That's the disturbing claim being made by Presbyterians for Faith, Family and Ministry (PFFM), a group of Presbyterian clergy and laity who hope to work within the denomination to restore biblical and confessional fidelity.

The group says that in June, the General Assembly -- the denomination's highest court -- will consider the recommendations of the "Peace, Unity and Purity Report," which deals with the issue of homosexuality in the PCUSA. A PFFM letter concerning the report states that, "if approved, [it] will permit the ordination of practicing, unrepentant homosexuals in our denomination."

When the question has been put to local presbyteries in the past, nearly three-quarters have rejected the ordination of homosexuals to ministry. However, PFFM says the procedures being applied in this instance would circumvent the presbyteries, which serve a function similar to a local congressional district.

That means that should PCUSA convention delegates approve the report, "it will permit governing bodies to ordain whomever they wish regardless of the clear constitutional standards approved by 73% of the presbyteries," says PFFM. "The changes proposed by the report will not return to the presbyteries for a vote."

In order to forestall what it calls "a serious biblical and constitutional crisis" in the denomination, PFFM recommends that presbyteries carefully consider who they elect as representatives to the General Assembly.

The crisis comes at a time when the PCUSA is already facing a serious financial crunch. According to Associated Press, the denomination of approximately 2.4 million members reported that it must cut its budget over the next couple of years -- starting with a $2.7 million cut this year. In addition, AP reports the denomination will cut jobs at its headquarters for the third time in four years. Church officials say they need to cut enough jobs to save more than $14 million over the next two years. In 2002 and 2003, some 85 jobs were cut through layoffs and attrition.

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Research Shows Early Porn Exposure Has Lasting Effects

by AFA Journal
April 21, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Recent studies confirming the corruptive impact of pornography on people revealed a growing concern among both secularists and Christians regarding its effect on children, especially if they are exposed at an early age.

Author Peter Stock addressed the concern in a document titled "The Harmful Effects on Children of Exposure to Pornography," in which he noted that viewing pornography distorts the sexual development of children and adolescents. Not only does it give an inadequate perspective of human sexuality, it dehumanizes women.

"This possibly violent, very degrading image or depiction of sexuality becomes the normal depiction of sexuality in the child's mind," said Daniel Weiss of Focus on the Family Action.

Even if the exposure to graphic sexual images is accidental, research shows that it can warp a child's understanding of sexuality. This twisted view follows them through life-tainting relationships well into adulthood, and creates a plethora of problems along the way. For example, experts associate early exposure to pornography with an increase in teen pregnancy, abuse, drug and alcohol abuse and relationship problems.

According to researcher Dr. Jeffrey Satinover, these problems surface when external beauty fades after years of marriage. "The ability to see the human being on the inside and respond erotically requires that you not have set up and trained yourself in a set of completely artificial, impersonal expectations," he said.

But with constant advancements in technology, these artificial expectations are staring kids in the face while making it more difficult for parents to protect them.

As reported by the U.S. Justice Department, nine out of ten school age children are exposed to pornography, usually while doing their homework online. In addition, the New York Times recently cited a study titled "Impact of the Media on Adolescent Sexual Attitudes and Behaviors" in which it was noted that one in five children ages 10 to 17 had "inadvertently encountered explicit sexual content, and one in five had been exposed to an unwanted sexual solicitation while online."

While Internet filters are helpful when it comes to protecting children from online pornography, counselor Joann Condie also encourages parents to help their children process a good, wholesome and healthy view of sexuality.

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'Conservative Pride' Celebrated in Sun Devil Country

by Jim Brown
April 24, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Conservative students at Arizona State University says they're fighting for their own opinions to be heard and respected on campus. They recently promoted a celebration focusing on the need for more academic diversity at the school.

The College Republicans (CRs) at ASU have just wrapped up their second annual "Conservative Pride Week." Last Monday (April 17) the group observed "Conservative Coming-Out Day," which featured members of the College Republicans and other conservatives coming out of an actual closet to happily proclaim their beliefs without fear of liberals on campus. On Tuesday the CRs held an "Anti-United Nations Day" in which students tossed water balloons at a picture of U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan.

On Wednesday, conservatives celebrated "Border Security Si Se Puede" day in protest of illegal immigration. Thursday was "Academic Diversity and Political Incorrectness Day," which was highlighted by a speech from conservative author David Horowitz on the topics of academic freedom and his new book, Professors.

Hieu Tran, director of public relations for the CRs, says there is a need for more conservative professors on campus -- especially in the political science department. In addition, he noted that a majority of columnists writing for the university newspaper are liberal.

"We have about two conservative columnists on the entire editorial board," he submits. "And I think that what really needs to happen is that conservatives need to be able to be a part of the university, an open part of the university, to have their viewpoints be expressed as well."

Reaction to the Conservative Pride Week has generally been positive, says Tran. "A lot of people are coming up, thanking us for doing this, because they're going to classes and they're hearing the other side -- but they're not hearing any of our side, the views of our side," he explains. "So they appreciate what we're doing."

"We're bringing out issues into the mainstream," Tran continues. "Also, a lot of liberals and other people in our community are coming up and saying, 'Well, why are you doing this?' And we're just saying, 'This is for debate.'"

Tran says people have not been talking lately about the corruption in the United Nations. But now they are because of the College Republicans.

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In Midst of Fun, Awana 'Summit' Focuses on Applying God's Word to Life

by Allie Martin
April 21, 2006

(AgapePress) - - More than a thousand high school students from around the nation are wrapping up a four-day event designed to test teenagers' abilities in sports, fine arts, and Bible knowledge.

For 21 years now, Awana Clubs International has hosted the annual gathering in places like Omaha, St. Louis, and Fort Worth. This year, "Summit 06" drew more than 1,500 high school students to Awana's world headquarters in Streamwood, Illinois, in the suburbs of Chicago. Kevin White, manager of youth ministries for Awana Clubs International, says the four-day event is about more than intense competition.

"We're trying to challenge the students just to take in the competition, take in the fun and the games and the events and all that, but [to understand that] it doesn't matter if you come here and win awards if you can't put it to work in real life," says the ministry spokesman. "And that's just a joy to see these students [understand that].

"When you've got 1,500 high students in the same place -- what a blast, what a joy to watch them actually be the hands and feet of Christ," he adds.

According to a press release from the organization, the fine arts competition is designed to encourage the participants to develop their ministry-related gifts -- whether they be musical or non-musical. The musical competition includes piano, solo and group vocals, and instrumental. The non-musical categories include public speaking and graphic design. Awana says college scholarships are available in some fine arts categories.

Another of the competitions featured at Summit 2006 is Bible quizzing. White shares that many teens are not only willing to learn God's Word, but also are eager to apply the Word in their daily lives.

"Scripture tells us to continue to hang on to the things you learned when you were young," he states, "and if we, as a ministry, continue to help develop [young people] and build them up throughout their teenage years, they will go out and be the next generation that changes this world."

Awana Clubs International is the world's largest Bible memory program for children and youth. White obviously relishes the opportunity to participate. "It's just a joy and a blessing to be a part of this ministry and a part of this event, to see these students [learning God's Word]," he says. "What a blessing to be a part of what God has called us to do."

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Author/Pastor Counsels Believers to Prepare for Da Vinci Code Fallout

by Allie Martin
April 21, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An upcoming movie based on a best-selling book that questions Christ's divinity can be challenged with fact and reason, says a Christian author. James Garlow advises Christians to be prepared to refute untruths that will be conveyed in Sony Pictures' The Da Vinci Code.

The movie, due to be released in the U.S. on May 19, is directed by Ron Howard and stars Tom Hanks. The film is based on the best-selling by Dan Brown, which asserts that Jesus and Mary Magdalene married and had children, and questions the divinity of Christ. The movie is rated PG-13 for disturbing images, violence, nudity, thematic material, brief drug references, and sexual content.

James Garlow is co-author of Cracking Da Vinci's Code, and he also compiled The Da Vinci Code Breaker. Garlow says Christians have an opportunity to counter the lies in Brown's novel with the historical truths found in scripture. He is convinced the Church must take seriously the challenge posed by the film.

"It'll either be catastrophic for the Church in terms of the unbelieving public losing a great deal of whatever confidence they may have left in the scriptures or in the person of Jesus," he says, "or if the Church is ready -- if we're able, as Peter writes, to give an answer for the hope that lies within us -- we can seize this opportunity and have fabulous evangelistic fruit ... or what I call pre-evangelism."

Christians, says the California pastor, must be willing and equipped to answer questions that will arise in the minds of non-believers about the reliability of the New Testament.

"If a person equips themselves on how to refute [the lies], they can just simply [say], 'Here, look at this information,'" he suggests, "and they can help a person establish a strong faith and even a sufficiently strong understanding of the historicity of the gospels, the historicity of Jesus and his life, even church history itself enough so that they can refute Dan Brown's notions."

Garlow's The Da Vinci Code Breaker is a sort of dictionary that contains numerous terms and facts about the people, places, and events referenced in the novel. One group -- Opus Dei, a conservative Roman Catholic group -- is depicted in the book as a murderous, power-hungry sect. The group has requested that Sony Pictures include a clarifying disclaimer in the film, saying "would be a gesture of respect toward the figure of Jesus, to the history of the Church and to the religious beliefs of viewers."

In its response, Sony does not say if a disclaimer will be attached, but insists that the film is "a work of fiction" and "not a religious tract."

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Abortion Clinic 'Buffer Zone' Bounced by Florida Judge

by Allie Martin
April 21, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The city of West Palm Beach, Florida, has been ordered to stop enforcing a buffer zone designed to keep pro-life activists away from the entrances of abortion clinics. The 20-foot buffer zone, says the winning Christian attorney, was both unprecedented and unconstitutional.

The buffer zone was adopted by the West Palm Beach city commission with the backing of Mayor Lois Frankel and the owner of a local abortion clinic. A city ordinance created the zone around "healthcare" facilities in the area. But federal judge Donald Middlebrooks found not only that the zone was not necessary, but also that claims by the city were unfounded. The city had argued that the ordinance was designed to protect healthcare facilities generally; in actuality, said Middlebrooks, the ordinance targeted pro-life demonstrators at Presidential Women's Center -- an abortion clinic -- in West Palm Beach.

The Center for Law & Policy (CLP), the legal arm of the American Family Association, had sued the city on behalf of three pro-life demonstrators, claiming the buffer zone was unconstitutional. CLP senior litigation counsel Michael DePrimo says the zone made it impossible for free-speech rights to be protected.

Michael DePrimo
"The largest buffer zone ever upheld by the United States Supreme Court was eight feet," DePrimo explains. "Other buffer zones allowed individuals to go into the zone and stand stationary so that they could actually hand out literature to willing listeners."

But as DePrimo explains, the zone enacted by West Palm Beach was considerably more restrictive. "This particular buffer zone just completely obliterated any opportunity for any demonstrator to be able to hand out literature or to, as I say, speak face-to-face with even willing listeners," he says.

The attorney says it was vital to fight for the rights of the activists -- and ultimately the lives of the unborn children on the verge of being aborted. He shares that pro-life demonstrators have had "great success" in counseling women outside the Presidential Women's Center.

"As a matter of fact, at the hearing on the preliminary injunction, two young women testified that they gave birth to babies only after they met the demonstrators at the abortion clinic," he says. According to DePrimo, those demonstrators -- his clients -- gave the two pregnant women literature which proved to them that their babies were not "blob of tissue" but, in fact, human beings. "And both those women now have healthy babies," DePrimo adds.

The CLP attorney recalls his legal firm warning the city, before the lawsuit, that a buffer zone of the type it was considering would be challenged in federal court, on the grounds that it was both "unprecedented and unconstitutional." But DePrimo says the city commission ignored that warning. "Now the taxpayers have to pay the price for the commission's failure to exercise sound judgment," he notes.

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Author Says Profs' Protest Propels Book Sales Skyward

by Jim Brown
April 21, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The author of a controversial, edgy, conservative book about what's happened to America is thanking liberal professors at Ohio State University's Mansfield campus for effectively publicizing the book.

By a 21-0 vote, with nine abstentions, faculty at OSU-Mansfield voted to have the school launch a formal investigation into the actions of librarian Scott Savage. Professors accused the devout Quaker of sexual harassment for recommending a book -- The Marketing of Evil by David Kupelian -- as required reading for the incoming freshman class. It was one of four recommended by Savage. (See earlier story)

Reportedly the charges against Savage have since been dropped -- and his attorney has not ruled out a lawsuit over the attack on the librarian's reputation. But the faculty vote apparently has had some unintended consequences. Author Kupelian says the almost two dozen professors who voted for the investigation have done him a big favor.

"It's a great irony -- a wonderful irony, from my point of view -- that these professors were so concerned about the possibility that their freshmen might read my book, that outside of the rarified air of the college campus the rest of America has heard about this story and has gone in droves to buy [the book]," he says.

Kupelian's book was published almost a year ago -- but because of the controversy on the OSU-Mansfield campus, sales have "skyrocketed," says the author. "Right now it's [number] 30 or 40 on Amazon.com -- and it's been the number-one current events book for the last three or four days," he says.

And what about the nine faculty members who abstained from voting? Kupelian says he has a theory.

"You have to wonder: why did they not vote on this matter? It can't be because they didn't have an opinion," he speculates. "I say it's because they knew that this was bogus [and] ridiculous to bring a guy up on charges of sexual harassment for recommending a book."

Consequently, he says, those professors could not vote in favor of the investigation against Scott Savage -- but at the same time they could not vote against it. Otherwise, says Kupelian, they would run the risk of being characterized along with him as "a homophobe and a bigot and a hater."

Kupelian, who is managing editor of WorldNetDaily.com, sees another irony in the whole ordeal: his book is available for purchase in the Ohio State University bookstore.

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Court Tells Christian Club Its Mission Not Harmed by Non-Believing Leaders

by Allie Martin
April 24, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An attorney with the American Family Association says a Christian club at a university in California likely will appeal a federal judge's ruling that a state law school can discriminate against the club.

The University of California's Hastings College of the Law, one of the largest law schools in the U.S., is located just off Market Street in the heart of San Francisco. Last week a federal judge ruled that the school can deny funding as well as official recognition to a Christian student club that requires its members and leadership to sign a statement of faith. Hastings claimed that statement violated the school's anti-discrimination policy. The club, in return, argued that the law school had violated its rights of free speech, free exercise, free association, due process, and equal protection.

The club also claimed it could not comply with the school's anti-discrimination policy without abandoning its Christian mission. But U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey White did not see it that way, finding instead that the club did "not demonstrate how admitting [as members] [unrepentant and/or practicing] lesbian, gay, bisexual, or non-orthodox Christian students would impair its mission."

Brian Fahling, senior trial attorney with the AFA Center for Law & Policy, says Judge White's ruling was astonishing and troubling.

"The court had said that there was no evidence that the Christian mission of the club would be impaired by the admission of voting members who were practicing homosexuals or members of different faiths," Fahling summarizes -- then offers this observation: "The court took upon itself the role of determining for a particular religion what is important to it in terms of those who subscribe to it or those who are in fact a part of that faith."

In effect, says the attorney, the court said "I know better than you, or two millennia of Christian teaching, about what your faith requires."

According to Fahling, the club permitted anyone to attend meetings and to participate in club events -- but in order to preserve its "distinctly Christian mission and character," felt it necessary to limit membership and leadership roles to professed Christians. But the attorney is concerned that, because of the school's decision -- now bolstered by the court's ruling -- other universities may follow suit and re-evaluate Christian clubs on their campuses.

Fahling expects that other schools -- "certainly in the Ninth Circuit," he says -- will examine the reasoning behind Hastings' move and perhaps apply it to their own funding and recognition of campus Christian clubs.

"And I think the result of this," he continues, "... is that you will find other universities and law schools who are going to say, 'We're not going to fund you because your requirements that people be Christians and live a life in accordance with that before they can become members is a violation of our anti-discrimination policy.'"

Fahling believes it is likely that the Christian club will appeal the decision of the district court. The case is CLS Chapter of University of California, Hastings College of the Law v. Kane.

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Media Monitor Calls for ABC to Apologize re: 'Embellished' Report on the Prez

by Chad Groening
April 24, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A conservative media watchdog group is calling on ABC News to publicly apologize to the White House and ABC viewers for accusing President Bush of knowingly misleading the public about weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) in Iraq.

The Media Research Center says Charles Gibson, host of the ABC News program Good Morning America, embellished a story published in the Washington Post. The newspaper story hinted that the White House intentionally lied to the public in 2003 when it insisted that some trailers discovered in Iraq were mobile laboratories used to manufacture biological weapons -- even though intelligence officials possessed powerful evidence it was not true.

MRC spokesman Tim Graham says ABC's Gibson enhanced the story to the point it sounded like an outright accusation. Graham contends ABC has "a story they want to tell" -- and that it does not matter "whether they have enough facts or not."

"Whether the story's actually new or whether the story's actually regurgitated and recycled from three years ago doesn't matter," he insists, "they have a message-of-the-day they want to put out -- and they will put it out."

The Post story is a case in point, he says. "The Washington Post has a story which basically suggested that the president should have known, if he didn't know, that these mobile bio-weapons labs they were assuming were part of Saddam Hussein's machinery were actually not bio-weapons labs," Graham explains. "Well, ABC then takes up this Washington Post story and Charlie Gibson says explicitly, 'The Post has a story today that the president knew at the time that that was not true.'"

According to the MRC spokesman, that amounted to a report that President Bush "basically ... was lying intentionally." Adds Graham: "Obviously ABC blew that one."

Graham says ABC has not issued a public or on-air apology for its mistake -- even though outgoing White House press secretary Scott McClellan told a White House briefing that one network has expressed their apologies to the White House. "ABC did no such thing," he says, noting only that "the White House reporter basically said that she wasn't getting enough information out of the White House -- no apologies, no regrets."

Graham says both the Post and ABC omitted evidence that indicates the White House based its WMD contention on the best information available at the time.

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Into Recycling? Don't Toss Those Old Sunday School Lessons

by Allie Martin
April 25, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An Alabama ministry is playing a pivotal role when it comes to spreading God's written Word worldwide.

More than ten years ago, Edwin Hodges -- a retired Southern Baptist pastor -- believed God was calling him to help Christians outside of the United States who needed Christian literature. He founded Edwin L. Hodges Ministries to provide Bibles and other Christian literature to churches, seminaries, and Bible schools worldwide. Since its founding, the ministry has shipped more than six-and-a-half-million pounds of Bibles, literature, books, tapes, and study materials to help pastors and laypeople teach and disciple fellow believers.

Hodges says there is a place and a need for most any Christian material -- even what some might consider to be "outdated" materials. "People always have a question: What about this old Sunday school literature? It makes no difference," he says.

He explains himself. "Americans are a little bit on the strange side, in my opinion -- we put a date on something, the date passes, and we just automatically assume this is no good," he shares. "Now you wouldn't through away a Bible because it's old; so you shouldn't through away this because it's got an old date on it. The truth is still the truth."

And any perceived language "barrier" is a non-issue, he says. English materials can be used around the world, the ministry leader explains.

"There's not a language on Earth, apart from English, that has enough Christian books to supply a library for a Bible school," Hodges observes. And that situation, he says, has greatly affected how those schools prepare their students. "It has forced Bible schools in countries throughout the world to teach English to their students -- and then try to get somebody from America to give them some books just so they can have a library," he says.

Studies show that 80 percent of Christian believers outside of the U.S. have no Christian literature available to them. And that's where Edwin L. Hodges Ministries comes in.

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Second Time Around -- Massachusetts Elementary School Shows Its Rainbow Colors

by Jim Brown
April 24, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Some parents in Massachusetts are fed up with Lexington school officials who are defending a second-grade teacher's decision to read students a book about homosexual romance and "marriage" in class.

Estabrook Elementary School teacher Heather Kramer read her students the book King & King, a story about a prince who spurns a number of eligible princesses to marry another prince. The story ends with the two men marrying and sharing a kiss. When parents Rob and Robin Wirthlin complained about what took place, the school's principal told them no parental notification was required, nor would it be given before future discussion on homosexual "marriage."

Read AgapePress' March 2004 story about King & King

Brian Camenker with the Article 8 Alliance in Massachusetts says Kramer and school officials violated the state's parental notification law, which he wrote. "At this meeting the teacher and the principal were rather insulting," he says. Camenker contends the school officials basically told the Wirthlins "We're not going to give you notification on this -- we're not even going to tell you after it happened, and you can't opt your child out."

The Alliance spokesman says the approach being taken by the school toward the law is ridiculous.

"The law talks about human sexuality issues," he explains. "[School officials are] saying 'Well, homosexuality isn't a human sexuality issue, it's a human rights issue.' So they're saying it doesn't apply here, 'and so we're not going to notify you.'

"It's monstrous that they can just blatantly redefine the English language like that," he says.

According to Camenker, Kramer attend a presentation last year conducted by the Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) on promoting homosexuality in the classroom.

One year ago, Estabrook Elementary School was the site of an arrest of the father of a kindergarten student who had been attempting for several months to get his son opted-out from discussions portraying homosexuality as acceptable. Last April, following a meeting with the school principal, David Parker was handcuffed, spent the night in jail, and appeared before a judge the next morning. Trespassing charges were eventually dropped against Parker, but a ban preventing the six-year-old's father from school property remained in effect.

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Posh Asian Healthcare Offerings Attracting Mainly the Wealthy, Says CMDA Official

by Mary Rettig
April 24, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The chairman of the ethics commission for the Christian Medical & Dental Associations says the growing popularity of "medical tourism" has its pros and cons. He believes the phenomenon, while growing, will not have a great impact on American medicine.

Some Asian countries are reporting major growth in this industry to the tune of 20 or 30 percent each year. Those countries offer first-rate medical care at Third World prices. Dr. Bob Scheidt of the CMDA says the low-cost healthcare -- combined with luxury rooms, spas, and other high-quality amenities -- are a major draw for well-to-do patients.

"Asian medical care is quite good if you're careful how you select it," Scheidt explains. "[M]ost of those doctors have either been trained in the United States or have been trained by doctors who have been to the United States -- so their care is very up-to-date."

According to the CMDA spokesman, many missionaries travel to mission hospitals where they know the surgeon to save on medical care -- but that is a very small minority, he says. The growth in medical tourism, he says, comes from well-to-do people who travel to those hospitals because they offer what many U.S. hospitals do not.

He describes the Asian facilities as "posh hospitals with vacations, spas, [and] places for spouses or relatives to enjoy themselves." Such places, which he says are "almost like a luxurious hotel for you to recover in," are going to very competitive with American hospitals.

"So we must be very much aware of it -- it is a very competitive thing in regard to the American market," he says. Still, Scheidt believes the competition will be mainly for wealthy patients. Consequently, he says, it is unlikely to have much, if any, effect on healthcare costs for the middle- and lower-class in the U.S.

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Church Takes Stand for Sexual Morality, Outreach to Homosexuals

by Randall Murphree
April 25, 2006

(AgapePress) - - First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas, is taking a pro-active step to reach the homosexual community with the truth of the gospel. On Saturday, May 6, the church is hosting a one-day conference titled "More Than Words" (MTW). The conference is an event that features Tim Wilkins, founder of Cross Ministry in 1996 and creator of the MTW conference.

Wilkins himself left the homosexual lifestyle more than 20 years ago, so he is able to empathize with those who are trapped in homosexuality and feel there is no hope. Wilkins, his wife and three daughters live in North Carolina where Cross Ministry is based in Wake Forest.

"No one has ever been argued out of homosexuality," said Wilkins. The focus of MTW is on building bridges to the homosexual community, offering hope and help for those who wish to leave the lifestyle. Wilkins said MTW wants to walk (versus talk) people out of homosexuality.

He is a graduate of Southwestern Seminary in Ft Worth, Texas. He has spoken for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (Amsterdam 2000), at Saddleback Church, and at Christian and secular universities across the country. MTW conferences will be at Eagle Rock Church & Lakewood Chapel in Cleveland, Ohio, July 8-9; and at First Assembly of God in Raleigh, North Carolina, August 12. Over the past five years, Wilkins has conducted more than 30 MTW conferences.

"People do not consciously choose to be attracted to the same sex," Wilkins said. "One of life's mysteries is that we don't get to choose what we are tempted by." But Wilkins does make the distinction that acting on those attractions is a conscious choice and is sin, just as adultery is a sin.

Wilkins, whose articles and commentaries have been featured in numerous publications, was the first person ever to make a motion at the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) asking the convention to develop resources for reaching homosexuals with the gospel. Since that motion in 1997, literature has been created to evangelize homosexuals, numerous testimonies have been given at annual conventions, this area of ministry has been spotlighted at the 2003 and 2005 SBC annual meetings, an exhibit specific to reaching homosexuals has been featured at annual SBC conventions, and an SBC Task Force on Ministry to Homosexuals was created.

LifeWay Christian Resources, an arm of the SBC, has created The Way Out, a highly-identifiable name for this area of ministry. Some Southern Baptist seminaries have begun to recognize the need to specifically address this issue in training its students.

"Homosexuality crosses denominational lines and so does Cross Ministry," Wilkins said. "Denominations that invite us include United Methodists, Assemblies of God, Independent Baptists, General Baptists, Lutherans, and Southern Baptists."

Conference topics include: If a Friend Says "I'm gay"; Loving and Reaching the Gay Community; "What's a Parent to Do?"; Untwisting "Gay Theology"; "They didn't teach me this in Seminary!" and The Church: "Walking by Faith, not by Fright."

Don Schmierer, author of An Ounce of Prevention: Preventing the Homosexual Condition in Today's Youth, will also speak at the Dallas event. His book is the first ever dealing specifically with prevention. Schmierer speaks extensively around the world and has been involved in interpersonal ministry for more than 20 years.

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Networks' Ad Campaign No Solution to Indecency Violations, Say Critics

by Jody Brown
April 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Family-friendly media watchdogs say the television industry is merely trying to dodge its responsibility to police itself and its content. And the head of the FCC says the multi-million-dollar ad campaign just announced by the industry won't be enough to satisfy his agency's mandate to patrol the airwaves for indecency.

At their annual convention on Monday, the National Association of Broadcasters heard a pitch from the former head of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) about an upcoming ad campaign designed to inform parents about V-chip technology and television program ratings. "We want to tell parents that they, and they alone, have total power to control every hour of television programming," said Jack Valenti in announcing the $330 million ad campaign.

Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council has his own translation of Valenti's statement. The "avalanche" of ads, he says, is designed to persuade parents it is their sole responsibility to monitor what their children watch on TV. "In other words," says the FRC president, "the MPAA wants to continue to pump out the sewage and make you [parents] responsible for the cleanup."

"How noble. How empowering for you," Perkins says tongue-in-cheek. "And how ridiculous."

The announced ad campaign comes in the wake of a $3.6 million fine recently proposed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) against CBS for what the agency determined to be indecent programming, and the FCC's decision to uphold another half-million-dollar fine against the network for the infamous "wardrobe malfunction" debacle during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show. At the same time, the federal agency cited several TV programs -- but did not fine the originating networks -- for violating the standards for broadcasting indecent language. (See earlier article)

Since the FCC's announcement in mid-March, the four major networks -- ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox -- have sued the FCC over the indecency rulings. The networks claim the FCC "overstepped its authority" in making rulings that are "unconstitutional and inconsistent with previous FCC decisions."

Some media watchdogs claim that lawsuit is nothing more than an attempt by the networks to obtain the right to indiscriminately broadcast foul language in violation of current law. One of those who feels that way is L. Brent Bozell of the Parents Television Council (PTC) -- and he has a similar response to the ad campaign being promoted by Valenti and the MPAA. Bozell says his group's research has shown that the V-chip and the ratings system -- the core elements promoted by the ad campaign -- have failed.

"We have found that most television programs airing foul language, violence, and inappropriate sexual dialogue do not use the appropriate descriptors that would warn parents about the presence of offensive content," the PTC president notes. "Without accurate descriptors, the V-chip fails -- and thus, the ratings system is rendered meaningless."

According to Bozell, the only solution is for the industry to "clean up its act," rather than to try to make the public more aware of technology and ratings that have been proven to be ineffective. The ad campaign, he asserts, will not solve the problem.

"They're spending $300 million to defend themselves against their wretched excesses," he says. "Why don't they just stop airing their wretched excess?"

Someone else agrees with Bozell's assessment of the multi-million-dollar advertising blitz -- and that someone is Kevin Martin, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. "I'm not sure that's the complete answer," Martin said of the campaign Tuesday in Las Vegas. He noted that live sports programming, such as the Super Bowl, is among the type of programs not rated.

In addition, Reuters reports, Martin observed that his agency's research indicates that upwards of 40 percent of the TV sets in the U.S. do not have V-chips or other blocking technology. He believes that other initiatives -- such as family-tier options or "a la carte" offerings by cable companies -- would give consumers more choice. Consequently, parents would have more control over what they allow into their homes.

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ADF's Lawsuit Claims High School Censored Christian Club's Viewpoint

by Jim Brown
April 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A suburban Philadelphia public school district is being sued for allegedly imposing an "extreme" amount of censorship on Christians students. For example, the lawsuit filed by the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) accuses the Downingtown Area School District of forcing the campus "Bible Club" to meet as the "Downingtown Prayer Club" instead.

School officials also allegedly would not approve a poster promoting a "See You at the Pole" prayer event until the student group removed a Bible verse, a cross, and all mention of God from the poster. ADF-affiliated attorney Randall Wenger says the school has what he describes as a "totalitarian" speech policy in place.

Wenger says the students at Downingtown High School East Campus could actually run into disciplinary procedures for all kinds of things they have been doing as part of their regular Prayer Club activities. "If they talk about homosexuality, they could potentially get into problems," he says. "In fact, there is part of the speech code that basically equates expressing a religious viewpoint with expressing obscenity."

Christian students should have the right to express their beliefs just like everyone else in America, the Pennsylvania pro-family activist insists. "They shouldn't be muzzled because they want to speak from a religious viewpoint," he asserts, "and they shouldn't be muzzled in their ability to express their love for God, to talk about God, to quote Bible versus, or even, of all things, to put a cross on a poster."

According to the ADF's complaint, the school district's policy of lumping religious points of view and profanity into the same category of prohibited speech is unconstitutional. Wenger goes further, calling the school's policy "outlandish" and saying, "if this weren't such a serious offense, you'd think it was a joke."

The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States "absolutely guarantees" the right of students to hold and express their viewpoints, the pro-family attorney points out, and that includes their religious viewpoints. Nevertheless, he notes, "on campuses across the nation, Christian students are facing harassment by school administrators who use their position as a bully pulpit."

The Alliance Defense Fund filed a complaint in the case of Downingtown Prayer Club v. Downingtown Area School District in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Attorneys with the ADF are seeking a preliminary injunction to defend the First Amendment rights of the Christian students.

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Christian Attorneys Hopeful of Favorable PBA Ruling from SCOTUS

by AFA Journal
April 27, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The legal arm of the American Family Association says it will be filing a friend-of-the-court brief in a major case before the U.S. Supreme Court when it considers the issue of partial-birth abortion.

In late February the high court agreed to hear the case of Gonzales v. Carhart, which will deal with the constitutionality of the federal partial-birth abortion ban. The case presents the first opportunity for the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice John Roberts, to address the issue. It will also be Justice Samuel Alito's first chance to vote on such a case. Both Roberts and Alito are conservative justices recently confirmed to the high court.

"We intend to file a friend-of-the-court brief and are hopeful that the Roberts Court will uphold the right of Congress to enact legislation outlawing this hideous practice," says Stephen Crampton, chief counsel for the AFA's Center for Law & Policy (CLP). Crampton says the CLP also co-authored a brief in the last partial-birth abortion case, Stenberg v. Carhart, in which the Supreme Court struck the Nebraska statute banning the procedure, 5-4.

Brian Fahling, senior trial attorney for the CLP, says, "This [partial-birth procedure] constitutes nothing less than infanticide. We look forward to the new court's consideration of the case and fully expect a victory for the cause of the unborn."

Carhart is one of three cases in which a federal appeals court has ruled the federal ban unconstitutional. The other cases arose in California and New York. The challenges to President Bush's 2003 Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act were filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, and the Center for Reproductive Rights. The Act was signed into law by the president on November 5, 2003, after both chambers of Congress had passed the legislation -- in the House by a 281-142 vote, and in the Senate 64-34. The first challenge was filed moments after President Bush signed the measure.

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Attorney: Texas Case Will Address Court Interference in Church Matters

by Allie Martin
April 27, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The Texas Supreme Court has announced it will hear a case that could determine whether courts have the authority to interfere with matters such as church discipline.

The case known as Penley v. Westbrook dates back nearly six years to when Buddy Westbrook, pastor of Crossland Community Bible Church of Fort Worth, Texas, disassociated female church member Peggy Penley over divorce and adultery. Pastor Westbrook was sued after sending a letter to church members informing them of the situation.

Hiram Sasser is with Liberty Legal Institute, which is representing the church in the matter. He maintains that the United States Constitution protects churches and pastors when it comes to internal matters such as church discipline, and he says this case is "extremely important," in that it deals with this fundamental First Amendment issue.

According to Sasser, Pastor Westbrook followed the three-step model for conflict resolution outlined in Matthew Chapter 18 and was left with no other choice but disassociation after Penley refused to repent of her sin.

The attorney says Westlake had approached Penley about her inappropriate relationship with another man as well as her decision to terminate her marriage without any biblical basis. It was only after these efforts failed and Penley refused to repent that Crossland Community Bible Church's pastor wrote the letter to congregation members outlining the reasons for Penley's removal.

Increasingly over recent years, Sasser notes, a pattern has existed "of new lawsuits against pastors for following biblical principles and following the Bible." One of Liberty Legal Institute's goals in this case, he points out, is "to make sure that we establish clear precedent that pastors are immune from suit under the Constitution of the United States."
Now the Texas Supreme Court will hear the case, one that the Liberty Legal Institute spokesman believes could have a major impact in the future on whether courts have the authority to meddle or intervene in internal church matters, particularly with regard to church membership, governance, and other similar issues.

"This case, perhaps, could forever settle this new trend of suing pastors for engaging in church discipline and following biblical principles," Sasser contends. He says the U.S. Constitution protects the right of a church to choose its members and govern itself "in any manner it chooses according to doctrine and faith, without government interference."

Likewise, Sasser asserts, pastors have a constitutional right to inform their congregations of "the influence of sin on church members and the steps being taken to address such sin." He says the U.S. Constitution prohibits individuals from suing churches or pastors for simply following biblical mandates that require disassociation from unrepentant members.

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SCOTUS Upholds Christian Student's Rights in Viewpoint Discrimination Suit

by Jim Brown
April 27, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Recently, in a major victory for a Christian student in New York who encountered viewpoint discrimination at his public school, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a unanimous ruling by the 2nd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. The court found in favor of young Antonio Peck, who was censored by his Syracuse school because an art poster he drew for his kindergarten class assignment contained an image of Jesus.

Antonio Peck, who is now in the fifth grade, drew the picture as part of an assignment to design a poster about protecting the environment. The child's work was displayed on a school cafeteria wall along with 80 other student posters during an event where parents were invited to view the students' posters. However, the Christian kindergartener's poster had been folded in half in order to cover the image of Jesus.

School officials explained to Antonio and his parents why his poster was folded, arguing that the child's poster, because it included an image of Jesus, violated the separation of church and state and would give the impression that the school was teaching religion. When the school refused to remedy the situation, to apologize, or to adopt a policy that would prevent future censorship, a suit was filed by the religious freedom defense group Liberty Counsel on the Peck family's behalf.

Attorney Mathew Staver is President and General Counsel for Liberty Counsel. He says the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to uphold the earlier federal appeals court ruling sets an important precedent.

"Whenever a student responds to a class or curricular assignment," Staver notes, "whether it's artwork, a book report, an oral report or whatever, as long as their response is consistent with the assignment, their Christian viewpoints cannot be censored." The high court's decision is "a great ruling for the rights of students and their Christian viewpoints and expression around the country," the attorney says.

By allowing the earlier court decision to stand, Staver asserts, Chief Justice Roberts' court has signaled that the Supreme Court is no longer a place that can be used by left-wing groups like the American Civil Liberties Union to undermine the religious and moral values of Christians.

The willingness of little Antonio Peck and his family to stand and fight against censorship and viewpoint discrimination has paid off, the Liberty Counsel spokesman says. "This has been a long case," the pro-family lawyer observes, "and I think he and his family are certainly to be congratulated for standing up and making a difference."

The Peck family had a choice, Staver adds, "just like all of us do. They could have allowed the censorship to continue and just walked away, but that would have created bad precedent for religious expression." But instead, he points out, the family "decided to take a stand, and stand they did."

Although fighting the school's actions has been a long, drawn out process, Staver notes, the result has been the creation of great legal precedent, not only for the Pecks' situation but for all the students and families that may face similar challenges to their religious freedom in the future.

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Groups Endorse Risk Audit as Tool to Fight Homosexual Agenda in Schools

by Jim Brown
April 27, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Several pro-family, conservative groups are backing a new method of assessing the extent of homosexual activism at work in public schools. The "Risk Audit Project" involves a comprehensive survey to measure the promotion of homosexuality in a given public school district.

The project was developed by Linda Harvey of the Ohio-based group Mission America following last year's approval of a Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) resolution urging parents to investigate whether their school is collaborating with homosexual activists.

Steve Crampton is chief counsel at the American Family Association Center for Law & Policy (AFA Law Center). He says far too many parents are simply unaware of the radical agenda homosexual activists are pushing on school campuses across the U.S. today.

"The overwhelming majority of Christian parents who even have gone out of their way to become involved and to try to determine what's going on in their local schools will be surprised at how extensive the pro-homosexual agenda is in every government school in the nation," Crampton observes.

"And I think that is reflected as well in the breadth of the pro-family groups that have come together in this project," the pro-family attorney adds. Among the many groups endorsing the "Risk Audit," he notes, are the Family Research Council, Concerned Women for America, the Illinois Family Institute, and the American Family Association.

The Risk Audit Project measures the extent to which public school districts are collaborating with homosexual activists by determining, among other things, whether schools have adopted pro-homosexual policies or curricula, and whether the school district is sponsoring pro-homosexual clubs, events, or activities. Crampton feels the risk audit is not a luxury for schools but a necessity.

"We believe that since schools are called upon and required to protect children while they're at school, by that same token they have an absolute obligation to do no harm to the children that are under their care," the AFA Law Center spokesman says. "And so this risk audit is an effort to first ascertain the extent of the activities in our schools and, second, to let the American public know what's really going on."

The AFA Center for Law & Policy has joined the other pro-family groups in endorsing the Risk Audit Project. This coalition is urging parents and other concerned citizens to look into whether homosexual indoctrination is going on in their school systems as a preliminary step in combating the problem.

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Rallies, Prayer Vigils Shining Light on North Korea's Cruelty and Persecution

by Chad Groening and Mary Rettig
April 28, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The co-sponsoring organizations of North Korea Freedom Week are exposing the public to the atrocities being committed upon that nation's population by its government. At the same time they are calling on Christians worldwide to pray for their brothers and sisters in Christ there who are suffering persecution and imprisonment for their faith.

Several human-rights organizations are gathered in Washington, DC, to protest the horrific treatment of North Korean citizens by their own government. In addition, a number of prayer vigils are planned in front of Chinese consulates around the U.S. The activities are part of North Korea Freedom Week (April 22-30), which is being sponsored by Open Doors USA and the North Korea Freedom Coalition.

Jerry Dykstra, media relations coordinator for Open Doors, says North Korea continues to be one large concentration camp. "North Korea's been ranked number one on the Open Doors 'World Watch List' for the last four years," he says, explaining that the list ranks countries according to the degree of severity of persecution against Christians. "We know that between two and three million North Koreans have died over the past 10 years," he notes.

Dykstra points out that Christian activists are holding prayer vigils at the Chinese Embassy in Washington, as well as at the Chinese consulates in Houston and Los Angeles because of the communist regime's policy concerning North Korean refugees.

"Obviously, we're concerned about the role that China plays in all this," the ministry spokesman says. "The fact is that many North Koreans, including many Christians, are trying to flee into China -- to actually go to visit families or looking for freedom. The problem is they're being captured by the Chinese, put in prison camps, and then brought back into North Korea where they face certain death or a life of misery in political [prison] camps."

As part of the week-long observance focusing on North Korean repression, several escapees from that country testified before Congress to call attention to the brutality of the Pyongyang government. Emphasizing their stories, Open Doors president Carl Moeller says the goal of North Korea Freedom Week is to appeal for prayer and international pressure on the communist regime. Christians there, he says, face imprisonment, torture, and execution.

"Those that are religiously persecuted in North Korea suffer a great deal," says Moeller. "About 200,000 Christians are [currently] in labor camps." The treatment at those camps, says Open Doors' leader, is beyond imagination. "By labor camps I mean the worst kinds of human experimentation, privation, torture, and horrific conditions for everyone. It's virtually a death sentence to be even sent there."

The North Korea Freedom Coalition estimates that more than two million North Koreans have perished under the country's dictatorial regime since the mid-1990s due to starvation, torture, and execution in the large network of concentration camps.

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2006 Nat'l Day of Prayer Urges America to Honor God

by Jody Brown
May 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Fifty-four years ago the U.S. Congress established an annual day of prayer, and in 1988 designated that day should occur on the first Thursday of May each year. Predating either of those designations was a proclamation by the Continental Congress in 1775 setting aside a day of prayer. But one critic believes the National Day of Prayer (NDP) has become a vehicle for Christian conservatives to promote what he categorizes as a "regressive" agenda.

The theme of this year's National Day of Prayer (May 4) is "America, Honor God" -- a focus based on the Old Testament scripture found in 1 Samuel 2:30: "Those who honor me, I will honor." The observance in the nation's capital will feature an address by well-known Christian author and pastor Dr. Henry Blackaby, and the song "America, Honor God" performed by Christian artist Rebecca St. James.

NDP chairman Shirley Dobson, wife of Focus on the Family's Dr. James Dobson, says it is vital that "God's people stand firmly in defense of the precepts He's laid out in His Word" -- particularly when society has rejected so many of the principle found in Scripture. For example, Mrs. Dobson has stated she would like people "to be praying about the institution of marriage, how God designed it." Believers, she says, are engaged in a "cultural battle," and only one thing will assure the success of their efforts: "consistent, fervent prayer for God's intervention."

Barry Lynn, the executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, has trouble with that. He says Congress never should have established the event, and so he and his organization have launched a pre-emptive strike on this week's National Day of Prayer. A press release from Americans United accuses "religious right leaders and politicians" of using NDP to "politicize religion and divide Americans."

"James Dobson has shamelessly exploited [NDP] to advance his divisive political agenda," says Lynn. "This merger of religion and politics is exactly what our nation's founding fathers hoped to avoid." AU's executive director also accuses the Dobsons of intentionally excluding "millions of Americans who differ with the Religious Right's narrow religious and political agenda."

Mrs. Dobson, however, strikes a more positive note, suggesting that the national observance provides individuals the opportunity to humble themselves before the Almighty and to ask God "to forgive our collective rebellion against Him." In addition, she encourages people to pray for the nation's schools, the media, and governmental leaders -- in the case of the latter, specifically asking God to grant those leaders wisdom for the challenges they face every day.

But Lynn says promoting prayer is a matter best left to houses of worship. "Most organizations that do prayer days are ones that want you to pray every day," he tells Associated Press, "and those are called churches, synagogues, temples, and mosques.

"There's no reason for the Congress to tell any of us who pray regularly anyway that we should pray longer, faster, or harder just because it's the first Thursday in May," Lynn says.

City Hall Meetings Tie-In with NDP
Despite Lynn's objections to a National Day of Prayer, millions of Americans are expected to participate at the local level. According to the American Family Association, numerous city halls across the country will be the gathering place on Thursday for those interested in praying for the moral rebirth of America.

In coordination with the NDP, AFA is sponsoring its 15th annual Meet At City Hall from 12:20-12:40 p.m. During this 20-minute time span, people are encouraged to meet at their local city halls and publicly take a stand for the values on which America was founded. The Mississippi-based pro-family group encourages the involvement of public officials and administrators, local pastors, and church choirs.

"America desperately needs a moral rebirth," says AFA founder and chairman Don Wildmon. "We need to implore God's blessings on our country and ask Him to forgive our sinfulness and restore our moral perspective."

Some Americans are not waiting until Thursday to proclaim God's Word across the nation and solicit His guidance. On Capitol Hill this week, the entire Bible is being read aloud, from "In the beginning" to the final "Amen" of the Book of Revelation. The 17th annual National Bible Reading Marathon began Sunday evening on the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol and continues non-stop for 90 hours, concluding Thursday on the National Day of Prayer. This year's volunteer readers include children, clergy, and members of Congress.

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Catholics Demand Answers From O.C.'s Reportedly Profligate, Pro-Homosexual Bishop

by Jim Brown
May 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Several Roman Catholics in Orange County, California, are criticizing their bishop for, among other things, his support for homosexual marriage and his lavish lifestyle.

Concerned Catholics of the Diocese of Orange has sent a letter to Bishop Tod Brown, asking him why he proudly backs same-sex domestic partnerships and has appointed a number of men to positions of authority in the diocese, even though they reject the church's teachings on sexual morality.

Lately, Bishop Brown has come under fire for shutting down a Catholic school in order to pay a settlement he has reached with victims of priest sex abuse. Some critics have also accused him of using diocesan money to live a life of excess. For example, the Bishop of the Diocese of Orange County reportedly has his own personal chef from a five-star restaurant, as well as his own sushi chef.

Michael Tripoli, one of those individuals who signed the letter to Brown, says the bishop is unfortunately accountable to no one in the church except the Pope. Brown can "spend money as he wills," Tripoli says. "He can take first-class plane trips to Hawaii and Rome, and he can buy million-dollar homes and all of these things, because he has absolute control over what goes on in the diocese."

Meanwhile, Tripoli notes, the lay people in the diocese have virtually no recourse, even if they feel Brown is spending diocese money irresponsibly and ignoring church teachings. "They have nothing that they can say or do in response to that," the concerned Catholic says, "but the power that they do have is to expose things."

And among those things that Brown's critics feel need to be exposed is the fact that he once allowed the diocese's former Director of Liturgy and Evangelization, Rod Stephens, to live with his boyfriend and business partner, Howard Sellers. There are also allegations that the two men were allowed to line their pockets through suspicious business practices involving church property.

"Bishop Brown was aware of all these things," Tripoli asserts. He says the diocese official knew "that these men had a relationship of a questionable nature, and he was aware that they were making a good deal of money -- hard-earned money that Catholics were putting into their collection plates -- renovating or some call it 'wreck-ovating' Catholic churches."

The Concerned Catholics of the Diocese of Orange member says he finds it "deeply disturbing" that Brown did nothing about all this and in fact "countenanced it." And there is no question as to whether the diocese leader knew about the two men's homosexuality, Tripoli asserts, because "Father Rod very proudly told his relatives that Bishop Brown was aware of his lifestyle, as was Cardinal Mahoney."

Also, less than two years ago Bishop Brown raised the ire of conservative Catholics by refusing to intervene when a Catholic school in Costa Mesa allowed a homosexual couple to enroll their son at the school. Tripoli and the other signatories of the open letter to Brown are demanding answers from the bishop about why he persists in rejecting church teachings on sexual morality and apparently supporting homosexual behavior.

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Strategy for Exiting Public Schools Described as 'Call to Holiness'

by Jim Brown
May 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - One of the authors of a proposed resolution urging the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) to come up with a plan to pull its children from public schools says the resolution is a "call to holiness" and a "call to obey God's Word."

A proposed resolution submitted for consideration at the denomination's annual meeting in June calls on the SBC to develop "an exit strategy from the public schools that would give particular attention to the needs of orphans, single parents, and the disadvantaged." The resolution is co-sponsored by Dr. Bruce Shortt, an attorney and author of the book The Harsh Truth About Public Schools, and Roger Moran, a member of the SBC executive committee.

Moran, a leader in the Missouri Baptist Convention, says he and Shortt want to stress the point that "biblical truth matters -- and it matters supremely."

"Somehow when we get to the issue of public education, truth doesn't seem to matter as much anymore," Moran offers. Members of the traditionally conservative denomination, he says, seem to be "okay" with the fact that their children are being taught such things as Darwinian evolution and that homosexuality is perhaps "an acceptable kind of thing," and that school officials can transport children to abortion clinics without the knowledge of the parents.

Yet "all of these things [constitute] just generally a worldview that is the antithesis of biblical Christianity," the SBC committee member notes.

In a recent interview with Associated Press, Dr. Shortt commented on the oft-heard argument that Christians should view their children as missionaries to the public schools. Shortt disagrees with that stance. Schools, he says, are "aggressively developing bad character" -- and that is having a detrimental effect on Christian students.

"

ur children are not evangelizing in the schools," he told AP. "The schools are evangelizing them out of Christianity."

The Shortt-Moran resolution asserts that recent federal court rulings have favored public schools "indoctrinating children with dogmatic Darwinism" and have limited parents' rights regarding what their children are taught, including what schools teach them on matters of sexuality. Moran says Southern Baptists need to be training up children in the ways of the Lord, not the ways of the world.

"I think [this tells us] we have lost, in large degree, our biblical understanding of the seriousness of sin," Moran says. "And because of that [I think] we have lost, in significant degree, our passionate pursuit of holiness and purity and obedience and faithfulness -- those things that matter supremely to God."

Fifty-six pastors and leaders from the Southern Baptist Convention and the theologically liberal Cooperative Baptist Fellowship recently signed a letter urging Southern Baptists "to speak positively about public education."

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Founder Anticipates Creation Museum's Spring '07 Opening With Excitement

by Allie Martin
May 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Progress is being made on a facility that will house exhibits designed to proclaim the authority and accuracy of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. The Creation Museum, located near the Cincinnati International Airport in northern Kentucky, is well under way; and later this month, the museum will be unveiling its large and uniquely designed bookstore.

The Creation Museum is a project of Answers in Genesis, a ministry that helps Christians become equipped to defend the biblical account of creation. The 50,000-square-foot museum will feature exhibits and other teaching tools that will show visitors how science confirms biblical history.

Answers in Genesis president Ken Ham says the project is on target for its opening next April, and the opening of its 3,000-square-foot bookstore May 20. The bookstore is "done up as a medieval castle inside, with a theme of 'Dragons and Dinosaurs,'" he says. Replicas of those mighty creatures will be incorporated into the store's design," Ham notes, along with "a big sculpture of St. George and the Dragon."

And even the outside of the store will reflect the theme, the Creation Museum's founder points out. "It has a big, animatronic pterodactyl above a cave that's an entrance into the bookstore," he says. "The lobby is almost complete."

According to Ham, the museum is already receiving worldwide attention. "The international press are getting very, very interested in this," he says, "and it's going to be not just a national event here in America. It's going to be an international event when it opens in April 2007."

The Creation Museum project has a price-tag of $25 million, and Ham says he intends for the facility to open debt free. More than $20 million has been raised for the project so far.

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LifeWay's Leader: SBC Must Emphasize Evangelism for Church Growth

by Allie Martin
May 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The president of LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) says a recent report that showed a drop in baptisms for the denomination should serve as a wakeup call for church members.

Each year LifeWay releases its Annual Church Profile (ACP), which looks at various categories of trends throughout the denomination. For instance, the profile showed a net increase of 234 Southern Baptist churches established last year for a total of 43,699 churches. That number is up slightly from 43,465 the previous year.

However, the profile also shows some denominational statistics as exhibiting a downward trend last year. While baptisms in the SBC increased in 2004, they declined again in 2005: the ACP shows that baptisms fell last year from 387,947 to a total of 371,850 among Southern Baptist congregations.

Dr. Thom Rainer, president of LifeWay Christian Resources, says churches in the SBC need to regain their focus and their passion for evangelism if the decline is to be reversed. He feels the ACP report should be viewed as a wakeup call for the denomination.

"We're facing becoming, in appearance, a mainline church," Rainer warns. "If we're not doing evangelism, we're saying that we believe in the Word of God but we're not practicing our belief. We're at about a 20- to 30-year lag from [following] the same downward trend as what used to be the larger mainline churches."

Other areas that showed a drop included enrollment in Sunday school and men and boys' mission education. On the other hand, total offering receipts were up and total mission expenditures increased. However, the head of LifeWay feels the slump in baptisms is the statistic Southern Baptists need to be giving their urgent attention. "You can look at discipleship as being critically important, and I respond, 'Yes, it is,'" he says. "But there's no one to disciple if we have not seen people come to faith in Christ."

Furthermore, Rainer asserts, if Southern Baptists want to talk about worship, he insists that people "cannot learn to worship until they've become a follower of Christ." And, likewise, if a church wants to emphasize fellowship among its people, he says, "they can't understand Christian fellowship until they've become a follower of Christ; and I could go down the list."

To grow and to thrive, Rainer says, the SBC must begin with evangelism. "I'm not minimizing the importance of what else we do in the church, but if we're not doing evangelism, we soon won't have a church," he contends.

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Retention Down; Next Generation's Military Leaders Exiting Service

by Chad Groening
May 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A retired Army commander and West Point graduate says he's concerned that more than one-third of the West Point class of 2000 has chosen to exit the military for lucrative civilian opportunities. He explains that that means the military is losing men with combat experience that is irreplaceable.

Lt. Col. (Ret.) Bob Maginnis is concerned that last year's retention rate among West Point officers was the lowest in 16 years. Maginnis says the constant stress of deployment is taking its toll on these junior officers -- and that, he contends, is why many are leaving after their initial military commitment.

"It's inevitable that your junior officers, after having multiple combat tours, will find the enticements of the civilian economy far more welcoming than perhaps the combat realities of Iraq or Afghanistan," he comments.

Maginnis says the exodus is unfortunate because combat experience is not easy to replace. "The combat experience is irreplaceable -- and especially as you mature in the ranks," he says. "And the president has made very clear that he expects this is going to be a very long war, and we need combat experience in the officer rank as well as the enlisted rank."

According to the retired Army officer, the military has turned to incentives in an attempt to retain young officers in uniform. "The Army, in particular, is countering by offering graduate school and other perks," he explains. Those "other perks" include such things as the choice of an Army job or a pick of a desirable location for a home post.

"But that doesn't entice everybody," says Maginnis, "given some of the financial alternatives and the hardship alternatives that they face out there." Many, he points out, simply want the calmer civilian life and more time for family.

Maginnis says it is "very worrisome" to the higher-ranking officers that attrition is causing the military to lose some of its best young officers. "[T]hat's going to have long-term implications for the future leadership of the services," he says.

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California Democrats Endorse Boycotts Supporting Illegal Immigration

by James Lambert and Chad Groening
May 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Late last week, California State Senate Democrats passed Resolution 113, which endorses the "Great American Boycott 2006." The May 1 boycott is being used by pro-illegal immigration proponents to demonstrate their support for allowing amnesty for the 12-15 million illegal immigrants already in the U.S.

The initiative, introduced by Senate Majority Leader Gloria Romero (Dem-District #24) and State Senator Gil Cedillo (Dem-District #22), passed primarily along party lines. The measure compares the boycott to the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott that is says "galvanized the African-American community ... result[ing] in the landmark 1956 United States Supreme Court ruling against segregation."

While some black conservatives are reportedly appalled at this comparison, Cedillo's initiative commends immigrants for being a strong component of America's economy. Cedillo is best known for being the author of numerous bills to provide illegal immigrants with California State driver's licenses. The initiative delineates contributions immigrants have provided to the Golden State's society and economy, and makes note of the fact that an immigrant -- Arnold Schwarzenegger -- now occupies the position of governor of the state.

The initiative does not use the phrase "illegal immigrants." However, the tenth paragraph recognizes that "nearly 40 percent of California's foreign-born residents are United States citizens" -- implying, but neglecting to add, that over 60 percent of the state's "foreign-born" residents are in the state illegally.

Violence a Distinct Possibility
Meanwhile, an Arizona-based immigration reform activist believes the massive protest planned across the country could become violent. Glenn Spencer, president of American Border Patrol, says he has seen such protests in the past and has even been physically assaulted by radical Latinos who have opposed his work.

Spencer, who lives within a thousand feet of the U.S.-Mexico border, says Americans should not be surprised if the protests get out of hand.

"There is a potential of violence here that is going to be real, it is going to be manifest, and it's going to blindside the American people," says Spencer. "I've been in these fights, I have seen what they do -- they are capable of very, very bad things."

He claims the radicals behind the demonstrations want to intimidate anyone who might oppose them. "This is to demonstrate their power [and] to try to intimidate the Congress of the United States," he says. "A lot of people [such as the Spanish-language media] are trying to discourage them ... sort of half-heartedly, I believe, because they know the danger of it."

Spencer explains there is a danger for violence when people are angry and demonstrating. "And there might be others who are trying to ... go into a store or use some service or get something done and they get upset. It has the makings for possible conflict."

Spencer agrees with others who believe the protests will backfire on supporters of illegal immigration and on a delegation of representatives from the Mexico government who are in Los Angeles.

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Attacks Continue on NY's Marriage Laws

by Allie Martin
May 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian law firm is defending traditional marriage in New York's highest court. Florida-based Liberty Counsel has filed two separate briefs at the New York Court of Appeals defending that state's marriage laws.

In the case of Hernandez v. Robles, a judge declared in February 2005 that New York's marriage laws are unconstitutional. Judge Doris Ling-Cohen ruled at that time that individuals have a "fundamental right to choose one spouse," that same-sex marriage "would cause harm to no one," that there is "no legitimate purpose, let alone a compelling interest" in the marriage laws, and ordered that the terms "husband," "wife," "groom," and "bride" be construed as "spouse." The First Department of the Appellate Division later reversed that ruling and upheld the marriage laws.

In the second case -- Samuels v. New York State Department of Health -- Judge Joseph Teresi upheld the state's marriage laws against a challenge brought by 13 same-sex couples. Upon appeal, the Third Department of the Appellate Division also upheld the marriage laws.

Both cases are now before the New York Court of Appeals, the state's highest court. On behalf of the New York Family Policy Council and Concerned Women for America, Liberty Counsel has filed a brief in each of the two cases. Mat Staver, president of the legal group, says marriage laws in the state of New York are clear.

"They limit marriage to husbands and wives, brides and grooms, men and women, moms and dads, male and female," he says. "It's absolutely clear how the laws limit marriage -- and it's also clear why they limit marriage to one man and one woman."

Staver takes issue with Judge Ling-Cohen's remark that same-sex marriage would case harm to no one. He says the state has a legitimate interest in limiting marriage to the union of one man and one woman.

"[M]arriage is distinct and unique [from other personal relationships]," he points out, "[and] marriage between a man and a woman certainly benefit both the man and woman relationship -- but it also has particular benefit to children, to our society, and to the well-being of the state. Every civilized society has certainly based its marital relationships on people in opposite-gender relationships."

And in direct reference to the judge's argument, Staver says there is no fundamental right to "marry" a person of the same sex. "Marriage licenses should not be given to two people who simply say that they have some kind of affection to one another," the attorney says.

The Liberty Counsel leader contends that recognition of marriage between people of the same sex would result in "the abolition of male and female by making gender irrelevant." And that, he adds, would have "devastating effects on children, [who] do best when raised with a mom and a dad."

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Arrested Falun Gong Protester Reportedly Facing Possible Deportation

by Chad Groening
May 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Chinese immigrant who faces federal charges for shouting at President Hu Jintao during the communist leader's recent visit to the White House says if convicted, she could be deported back to China. The medical doctor says she wanted to call attention to persecution in her homeland.

Dr. Wang Wenyi is a pathologist who practices medicine in New York City. But the Chinese native is also a writer for the Epoch Times, and has reported on large-scale organ harvesting being conducted from living members of the Falun Gong spiritual movement. She shares why she verbally confronted the Chinese leader and President Bush with shouted statements.

"I say something to President Bush, tell him, 'Stop the persecution of Falun Gong, the killing of practitioners,' something like that," she says, "because as a physician you consider that humanity -- it cost everything."

Dr. Wang says she used her media pass to get close enough to shout at President Hu. "People [are] dying and at risk, and we need to really stop them [from being mistreated]," Wang says. "So that's why at the White House I just speak so loudly and ask them to stop the persecution against the Falun Gong, stop the harvest of organs from practitioners."

Wang explains that she took action even though she knew there would probably be consequences. She now faces up to six months in jail and a $5,000 fine -- and possible deportation.

"The lawyer told me the charges were serious -- coercing, threatening, intimidating, harassing, or something -- because I have not taken the oath ceremony yet, so [I'm] not officially a citizen yet," she shares. "Then they say that have a risk to be deported." She admits that "part of me is ready to be [handed over to] a foreign state."

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Bay State Parents Want to Know When Homosexuality Brought into Classroom

by Jim Brown
May 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A second-grade teacher and school officials in Lexington, Massachusetts, are being sued for refusing to notify parents before their children were read a book in class celebrating homosexual marriage.

Last year, Lexington parent David Parker was arrested at Estabrook Elementary School when he demanded that officials notify him before his young son is subjected to discussions about same-sex "marriage." And just a few weeks ago, at the very same school, a second-grade teacher read students a fairy tale about a homosexual romance.

Teacher Heather Kramer never notified Rob and Robin Wirthlin that she was planning to read their son the book King & King, an illustrated children's book about a young prince who spurns eligible princesses to marry another prince, with whom he shares a kiss at the story's end. The Wirthlins were initially surprised, then outraged. Last week they, along with Parker and his wife, filed a lawsuit alleging that school officials violated their state and federal civil rights as well as the state's parental notification law.

Rob Wirthlin admits that he and his wife never expected another instance of homosexual indoctrination would occur in the same school district after the Parker ordeal a year ago. "We're new to the area," he says, "and we -- I think the best way to describe it is -- we took a little solace in the idea that certainly they won't allow this to happen again."

The concerned father notes that Kramer and school administrators apologized for having offended his family but would not apologize for having subjected students to the pro-homosexual book. He says the incident has led him to consider pulling his son from the Lexington schools.

"We sat down as a family, and we talked about our options," Wirthlin recalls. "But I believe strongly in the value of a public education," he explains. "I went through public schools, and my wife attended public schools. I think that as citizens and as taxpayers in this country, [we feel] that public schools are there for all children."

Lexington District Superintendent Paul Ash and School Committee Chairman Helen Cohen have continued to express full support for the actions of the teacher and the principal at Estabrook Elementary School. Ash has stated publicly that sexual orientation and homosexual relationships do not constitute "human sexual issues" as described in the Massachusetts parental notification law, and therefore he has instructed teachers not to give parents any notification on these topics.

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Pro-Abortion Vandals Desecrate Princeton Group's Pro-Life Display

by Jim Brown
May 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Pro-abortion vandals have destroyed yet another campus pro-life display, this time at an Ivy League university.

The student group Princeton Pro-Life had erected a display featuring 347 flags designed to symbolize the estimated number of students who might have been a part of Princeton's class of 2010 if abortion had not been legalized. After being up just three days, the display was destroyed and signs bearing sarcastic pro-abortion messages were put up in its place.

Thomas Haine, president of Princeton Pro-life, says he finds it very ironic that pro-abortion liberals who claim to be proponents of tolerance and free speech so often display little or no tolerance for pro-life expressions. He feels the messages left by the vandals are truly indicative of liberal abortion advocates' brand of tolerance.

"Someone had added 30 cut-up coat hangers strewn around on the ground," Haine says, recalling the damage to the pro-life exhibit. "Our sign was trampled, and there were two other signs attached to ours: one that said, 'Support smaller class sizes -- support abortion'; and the other one that said, '347 coat hangers saved from mangling and mutilation.'"

The pro-abortion vandals' tableau was "a pretty horrific and obscene display," the Princeton Pro-Life spokesman says. "I can't imagine anyone laughing about a coat hanger abortion or proposing that these are good things, or anything. To poke fun at such a practice, even if you are pro-choice, seems a bit heartless."

The purpose of the Princeton Pro-Life's display with its 347 flags, was to give members of the university community some immediate sense of the number of people they were deprived of knowing because of the "barbaric act" of abortion, Haine explains. He feels the flag display was instigating a lot of positive debate on campus until the vandals struck.

Campus police brought the damaged pro-life display in to dust for fingerprints. However, Haine believes the investigation of this act of vandalism is very low on the police's priority list.

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Bauer Thinks Blackwell Could Bring Ohio GOP Much Needed 'Star Power'

by Chad Groening
May 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian conservative and former presidential candidate is watching today's Republican primary in Ohio with interest. Gary Bauer of American Values believes the state's GOP primary features a number of important races, including the contention for governor.

Current Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell hopes to be one of two black conservatives to be elected to the office of governor in the U.S. this fall. So far he has been leading Attorney General Jim Petro in GOP polls and has been receiving the endorsements of some high-profile leaders, including Bauer.

Blackwell has what the American Values spokesman describes as "star power," and he is hoping the Ohio GOP will start hitching their wagon to someone he sees as a rising conservative statesman.

"It's a tough year for Republicans in Ohio for a lot of reasons," Bauer says, "but I just think that Blackwell is the ideal candidate. I mean, he's a solid, pro-family, pro-life conservative. He's also conservative on all the economic issues. He's not afraid to talk about his faith."

The Christian pro-family leader is hopeful that the Republican Party establishment in Ohio, which he notes, "is always talking about the need for the party to reach out to minorities and yet with this gentleman has been very hostile," will recognize Blackwell's potential. "I think he's got a great future ahead," Bauer asserts, "and not only in Ohio politics but perhaps nationally."

The conservative spokesman and political observer believes his ideal candidate's "star power" emanates at least in part from his character and spiritual forthrightness. "He's not afraid to talk about his faith and the fact that that is what motivates him in public life," Bauer says.

Also, he notes, that Blackwell, as an African American, "certainly is a great positive for the Republican Party and for conservatives," many of whom have acknowledged the need to build bridges into the black community. Blackwell, according to Bauer, may be just the bridgebuilder the Ohio GOP needs. "It is my great hope that I will someday soon watch him being sworn in as the governor of that great state," he says.

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Christian Students Considering Lawsuit Over Suspensions

by Jim Brown
May 3, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Christian students who were punished by their California high school for protesting its celebration of an annual pro-homosexual event are threatening to sue over the incident.

Thirteen students at Oakmont High School in Roseville were suspended last week for refusing to remove shirts displaying the message: "Homosexuality is sin. Jesus can set you free." The students were countering the "Day of Silence," a project of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN). The event is designed to protest what GLSEN describes as "anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) name-calling, bullying, and harassment" in schools. Meantime, with the blessing of the school district, other students on campus were wearing shirts openly promoting homosexuality.

Brad Dacus is president of the Pacific Justice Institute (PJI), which is representing the thirteen suspended students free of charge. A lawsuit is "very likely," says the attorney.

"We've already entered the first phase of that through filing an administrative complaint with the school district," Dacus says. "And make no mistake: this school district in the end, we believe, will learn a valuable lesson -- that they cannot engage in the indoctrination of children into homosexuality and expect to be able to silence the First Amendment rights of those Christian students bold enough to speak up."

The PJI head believes a recent ruling out of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals prohibiting such religious expression will not stand long. "We believe that [the ruling] clearly trounces on the established case law and precedents with regards to the free-speech rights of students," he says, adding that he is both "hopeful and confident" the ruling will be either reversed or overturned before the full Ninth Circuit or before the U.S. Supreme Court.

According to a PJI press release, several students who came to school wearing the "Homosexuality is sin" T-shirts were given an ultimatum by school officials: remove the shirts, or face disciplinary action. When the thirteen students chose to stand firm and were suspended for two days, the school principal explained the action by saying "Many kids were upset because their shirts were rude." The legal firm points out the school evidently did not take into account where religious students may have been equally offended by pro-homosexual expressions on other students' shirts.

"Tolerance must be a two-way street," says Dacus. "Our society cannot afford the suppression of religious viewpoints just because some people disagree with or don't like those views."

At least one leader in the Sacramento Regional Gay Straight Alliance seems to understand that concept. The Sacramento Bee quotes high school student Lance Chih as saying, "If they're stating their own belief that homosexuality is wrong, that's not promoting hate or violence against us. If I want to promote my civil rights, I can't tell another group of students that they can't do it."

The PJI press release notes that students at other nearby high schools in Sacramento and Citrus Heights were suspended for similar actions.

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Paying Yourself First!

by Austin Pryor
May 3, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Years ago, when one of my college-age sons came to me for help in getting his finances organized, the first thing I did was get him set up on a pay-as-you-go basis using the so-called "envelope" system. That's where you cash your paycheck(s) and immediately divide your income into several envelopes, one for each of your major spending areas. When the money in a particular envelope is gone, that means no more spending in that area until the next payday. (Modern technology has enabled us to improve on this approach -- now we use the "Ziploc™ bag system" so all the loose change doesn't fall out!)

Here's the process my son used as he worked on building his emergency savings fund. After setting aside his tithe and taxes, what was left was his spendable income. This was the "pie" that he proceeded to "cut" several ways. The first piece of 10 percent went into his emergency savings fund account. Then, the remainder of his spendable income went into envelopes for paying his current bills, debt repayment, and monthly living expenses.

His emergency fund came in handy twice during his first few months using the system -- to pay for emergency brake and transmission repairs. The money in the savings account was used up, and he had to begin building it anew. But having it on hand prevented him from going back into debt to pay for those items. That's why it makes sense to set aside some savings in a contingency fund.

When it comes to saving, despite your best intentions, it's easy to rationalize putting it off until the next paycheck. Too many times, the "savings" envelope goes unfilled. One way to overcome this is to have some of your money put aside automatically before you have the opportunity to spend it. Here are two paths to automated savings:

* Sign up to have part of your paycheck (you decide how much) automatically deposited into your savings account at your credit union or local bank. It's easy, convenient, and offers some useful discipline. Plus, your savings are insured and available for withdrawal without penalty whenever you wish.
* For a higher rate of return once interest rates return to more normal levels, set up automatic transfers from your bank account to a money market mutual fund. Such funds typically accept transfers of $50 and up on either a weekly, every other week, or monthly basis. Most money market mutual funds offer this service; call them and ask for the forms to get started.

Consider a strategy of saving five to ten percent of your gross income when you're in your twenties. Initially, this will go toward building your emergency fund. Once that's in place, your savings can be used for a down payment on a house and other large purchases. (Eventually, the primary use of your savings will be to invest for retirement.) Then, move up to ten-to-fifteen percent in your thirties and forties.

Many couples believe they could never save that much. But let me ask you -- what would happen if a cutback at work resulted in fewer hours and a 10 percent reduction in your income? Wouldn't you make the necessary adjustments in your spending so that you could still cover the basics? Unpleasant though it might be, you would. In the same way, saving a similar amount is not beyond the financial capabilities of most families. Usually, it's a matter of having the willingness to sacrifice and make the necessary changes in one's lifestyle.

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Leader Released on Bail, But Hopegivers' Troubles in India Continue

by Allie Martin
May 3, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The president of a global Christian child care ministry who was jailed in Rajasthan, India, was recently granted bail. Dr. Samuel Thomas of Hopegivers International has spent more than a month and a half in the Kota Central Jail in the state of Rajasthan after being accused of distributing a book that militant Hindus found offensive.

Although Thomas contends he had nothing to do with the book's printing and circulation, he was nevertheless arrested and charged with creating communal disharmony by distributing a book that cast Hinduism in a negative light. Meanwhile, Hindu government authorities have stripped Hopegivers' schools, orphanages, and hospitals of their operating licenses and frozen their financial assets.

Although Dr. Thomas was released on bail after an extensive letter writing campaign on his behalf, the already high expenses for his legal defense continue to mount, and the ministry's day-to-day operations are in financial jeopardy as well.

Bill Bray, director of communications for Hopegivers International, says the false accusations, arrest, and imprisonment of Dr. Thomas have, along with the local authorities' persecution of the ministry, caused great financial hardship. "We're not able to pay our bills," he points out, "and we're having to operate strictly on cash donations from Christians and friends."

However, Bray notes, the ministry's ongoing ordeal has also "stirred up the Christian community in India in a wonderful way and brought revival to them and prayer." As a result, he explains, "Christians are coming from all over India just bringing money to Rajasthan."

In a gracious outpouring of support for Hopegivers, fellow believers from India and around the world have sent help, the ministry spokesman points out. Some Indian Christians and other local supporters are "coming on the train and the bus and bringing money to the orphanages and to the schools so they can keep operating," he says.

"Even Hindus are coming and bringing food to the children every day," Bray adds. Also, many are bringing other needed items in addition to the food, including "cooking gas and things like that," he says. "So it's like a war, keeping the ministry going."

Hopegivers International is now awaiting decisions from courts in India -- decisions that will hopefully restore the ministry's operating licenses and unfreeze its bank accounts. Meanwhile, the ministry is urging its supporters to continue in prayer for the organization.

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Truth Project Sets Out to Equip Believers With Biblical Worldview Training

by Allie Martin
May 3, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Equipping Christians with a biblical worldview -- that's the goal of a series of two-day conferences being sponsored by Focus on the Family. The events will be held nationwide and will feature speakers who seek to train and educate participants about the importance of living lives consistent with the Bible's teachings.

According to a recent Barna poll, only four percent of Americans have a biblical worldview. That is one reason, according to one Focus on the Family spokesman, that the Colorado-based Christian pro-family ministry is holding this latest conference series, dubbed "The Truth Project."

Mar Fey, community impact director for Focus on the Family, says the goal of the Truth Project is to establish and broaden the Christian worldview of the trainees. "What it helps Christians do," he explains, "is integrate their faith into every area of life and to integrate the truth in the Bible into every area of life."

Fey says the people behind the conference series are hoping to combat an unfortunate trend in the lives of believers. "What we've seen arise in the last 15 or 20 years in particular," he explains, "is a separation between the secular and the sacred," he notes.

The way this plays out for many Christians, the Focus on the Family official notes, is that these people will have one part of their faith "over here in church," but will live the rest of their life "over here" in a predominantly separate and secular realm. The Truth Project's objective, Fey says, is to aid Christians throughout the United States in "bringing those two worlds together to understand that faith really applies to all of life."

During the two-day conference, presenters will provide attendees with comprehensive biblical worldview training. Ideally, when the training is completed, conference participants will be equipped to bring the information back to their communities and lead their own small-group Truth Project trainings.
The inaugural Truth Project conference takes place this weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina. Focus on the Family is bringing the conference series to a number of locations nationwide throughout 2006 and beyond. Locations scheduled so far include Rockford, Illinois; Colorado Springs, Colorado; Seattle, Washington; Boston, Massachusetts; Atlanta, Georgia; and Washington, D.C.

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Columnist's 'Sheldon Award' Spotlights Campus Leaders Squelching Free Speech

by Jim Brown
May 3, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A conservative columnist has announced the latest winner of an annual mock award conferred upon "the university president who does the most to look the other way when free speech is under assault on campus." U.S. News & World Report columnist John Leo has declared a tie in this year's Sheldon Award competition.

The top prize in 2006 goes to Washington State University president Lane Rawlins, who financed and organized an attempt to shut down a student play, and who also threatened to expel a student from the school's teacher education program because of his conservative religious and political views. However, Rawlins must share the honor with the other award winner this year, DePaul University president Thomas Holtschneider.

This top "honor" was conferred upon Holschneider for, among other things, having censored a campus protest against affirmative action and having suspended a teacher without a hearing for debating pro-Palestinian students on campus. Leo calls Rawlins and Holtschneider "the Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig of Sheldonism" this year.

The dubious award is named after former University of Pennsylvania president Sheldon Hackney, who did nothing about a major theft of student newspapers on his campus. In that incident, Leo points out, "minority students got so angry at an editorial in their paper [that] they stole 15,000 copies, and Hackney let them go, but he reprimanded the guard who caught them. I thought that was an amazing touch."

Now, the U.S. News & World Report editorialist notes, "every time a university president exceeds all boundaries by allowing unconstitutional speech codes or theft of newspapers, I give an annual award -- a mock honor -- to the failing university president."

According to Leo, the conservative viewpoint is nearly always the one that gets punished, censored, or silenced on campuses across the U.S. "Every year," he says, "I look for liberal and moderate victims of this, and they're very hard to find because, as you probably know, the university has been taken over by the 60s radicals, and they don't like dissent on the right."

Both of the latest Sheldon Award "winners" have repeatedly attempted to censor the expression of conservative students, Leo asserts, and both have failed to stand up for the constitutional rights of members of their campus communities. For that reason, he contends, both Holtschneider and Rawlins are equally worthy of the award for this year's most "spineless" university president.

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Brownback Calls for Pressure on Senate Dems to Support Marriage Amendment

by Bill Fancher
May 4, 2006

(AgapePress) - - There is good news and there is bad news for supporters of a federal marriage amendment. The good news? The bill should be acted upon soon. The bad news? There may not enough support to pass it.

Kansas Republican Senator Sam Brownback says the federal marriage amendment will finally see action within a matter of days. "We will have it up probably coming to the full Judiciary Committee in two weeks," he says. "It will probably pass on a strict party line vote, defining marriage as a union of a man and a woman."

Then the measure will come to the Senate floor, he explains. "And I wouldn't doubt that the same thing will happen this time around that happened last time. That is, the Republicans will vote for it, and the Democrats will vote against it," he states.

That could be a problem -- because the current make-up of the U.S. Senate shows 55 in the Republican column. A two-thirds vote (67) would be necessary for the bill to move out of the Senate to the House for consideration. Brownback says without help, the amendment will not make it out of the Senate.

"I would urge people to contact their senators, particularly Democratic senators, and urge them to support the definition of marriage by the United States Congress as a man and a woman," the Kansas lawmaker says, adding that he sees that as the only way the amendment will have enough votes to pass.

Meanwhile, about 100 African-American and Latino pastors and religious leaders from around the country met in suburban Washington on Wednesday (May 3) to learn what they can do to work for passage of the federal marriage amendment scheduled to be introduced next month in the Senate. The gathering was hosted by Bishop Harry Jackson, senior pastor of Hope Christian Church, in Lanham, Maryland.

Jackson, who is also the founder of the High Impact Leadership Coalition, tells Associated Press that a marriage amendment is needed to cover holes in existing law. "There is a superseding amendment needed because of the things that may happen if a person tries to take a marriage license from Massachusetts and then go and get all the benefits of marriage in the state of Maryland, for example," he says.

Rev. Jackson says the Church has always had a role in the formation of marriage laws, and that contrary to what the press might report, the marriage amendment is not anti-"gay."

"There is a Judeo-Christian basis for all of our laws in America, and marriage came from the Church -- in a sense -- to the secular society," he explains. "We believe that marriage is a sacred right, not a civil right, and that there are ways that we can make sure that the civil rights of gays are taken care of.

"We don't have anything against gay people. This is for the protection of marriage, and we think a national 'umbrella' is necessary."

Jackson says support of the proposed legislation crosses cultural lines -- and that minority church leaders should be involved in promoting the marriage protection amendment. He cites a startling statistic.

"In the black community we have such a breakdown in the family structure now -- seven out of ten of our babies are born out of wedlock -- and there is a postponing of marriage," he states. "Therefore we can't sit idly by and let this go on. The whole Church -- black and white -- needs to say marriage is important ...."

Jackson says social justice issues such as justice and poverty are no less pressing, but that protection of marriage is critical.

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Pro-Family Groups Campaign for Cable Choice

by Rusty Benson
May 4, 2006

(AgapePress) - - If the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), pro-family groups, and consumers get their way, cable television customers may soon receive and pay only for the channels they want. The change could be mandated through legislation or come about as cable companies voluntarily offer the channels a la carte.

Presently, the majority of cable companies and program producers are unfavorable to such a change, claiming that in the end consumers will have fewer programming choices and pay more each month. They say the practice of offering only packages of channels -- especially the "expanded basic" bundle -- is the most cost-effective method of delivering their products. In recent decades, the industry has built its business around that model.

The American Family Association (AFA) and a coalition of pro-family groups who support a la carte pricing see the changes as a tool for families to protect themselves against offensive programming content. The 24-member coalition campaigning for cable choice includes other high-profile groups such as Focus on the Family, Family Research Council, Morality in Media, Concerned Women for America (CWA), and Parents Television Council.

"It only makes sense for a cable company to allow a family to pick what channels they want, and only pay for those," says Tim Wildmon, AFA president. "Such an a la carte approach would also help parents keep smutty television out of their homes."

The debate over a la carte came to the public's attention in the summer of 2004 when pro-family groups lobbied the FCC and key members of Congress to enact legislation that would require cable companies to allow consumers to pay only for the stations they selected. In response, Congress told the FCC to study and report on the impact of a la carte pricing.

In November 2004 the Media Bureau of the FCC issued its report to Congress. The report, which contained the Booz Allen Hamilton study (BAH), concluded that a la carte pricing was not economical.

However, a re-examination of the report revealed errors in calculations, underlying assumptions, and conclusions of the study, particularly in the BAH. As a result, the FCC reversed its earlier findings, stating in a February press release that consumers would be "better off under a la carte ...." (See related story)

The Further Report on the Packaging and Sale of Video Programming Services to the Public stated that in certain scenarios customers could purchase up to 20 selected channels and still save as much as 13 percent on their cable bills. Although the popular "expanded basic" package commonly includes 200-300 channels, most viewers only watch 15-17 channels a month, according to industry statistics.

Currently cable companies base their advertising rates on the number of people their systems reach. Expanded basic -- the "big bundle," in industry lingo -- reaches the most viewers, so it commands the largest subscription fees and ad rates. A la carte would likely reduce the number of big bundle customers, thus cutting into cable industry profits.

Critics largely agree that loss of profits is the reason the cable industry continues to stand against a la carte. In March the National Cable and Telecommunications Association and The Walt Disney Company released separate studies that support that position. A Disney executive called a la carte "an appealing and superficial sound bite."

However, CWA's Lanier Swann says the FCC's new report shows that the claim that a la carte will cost customers more money is untrue. Congress now has no excuse not to act on legislation calling for cable choice, she says.

Pro-family leaders have applauded FCC chairman Kevin Martin's support of a la carte. Along with recent large fines against CBS, they see a la carte as breaking the cable industry programming and pricing cartel while empowering families to reject offensive channels.

Other countries that already provide a la carte pricing include Spain, Italy, Canada, and Hong Kong.

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Critics Suggest Guttmacher's Pro-Abortion Report Ignores Negative Evidence

by Bill Fancher and Jody Brown
May 4, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Pro-lifers are condemning a pro-abortion report being released today by the Alan Guttmacher Institute. They say the report, titled "Abortion in Women's Lives," attempts to deny the mounting evidence that abortion harms women both physically and psychologically.

According to its website, the Alan Guttmacher Institute (AGI) began as a "semiautonomous division" of Planned Parenthood Federation of America -- and today remains a "special affiliate" to the taxpayer-supported abortion-provider. The Institute's namesake actually served as president of PPFA for more than a decade in the 1960s and 1970s. AGI's mission? To advance "sexual and reproductive health" -- buzzwords typically used by organizations that promote abortion.

Consequently it should come as no surprise that the Institute would release a pro-abortion report. Concerned Women for America (CWA) is not surprised, saying a Guttmacher report on abortion should be taken as seriously as a "tobacco industry report on nicotine."

"True to form, Guttmacher asserts that abortion is safe," says CWA president Wendy Wright, "then claims abortion providers have the solution for reducing what it says is harmless." Wright then offers this thought: "If abortion is harmless like Guttmacher claims, why should there be fewer of them?"

Wright's organization has chronicled the physical and emotional risks of abortion. "Clearly, abortion carries numerous medical risks -- even death, as we have seen with the abortion pill RU 486," says the CWA president. "The physical and emotional trauma a woman endures during and after an abortion can be excruciating." And taking an innocent human life simply because a pregnancy is unwanted or unplanned leaves scars, she says -- "some physical, some psychological, and some spiritual."

Wright's take on the new Guttmacher report lines up with that of Troy Newman of Operation Rescue. Newman says the report attempts to put a "nice face" on the evil of abortion, without any evidence. As he puts it: "Guttmacher loads their reports with quotes and evidence from themselves -- and it's full of junk science and junk reporting."

He points out that AGI ignores more than two dozen studies that have linked abortion to breast cancer. "They say that [abortion] may even prevent some forms of cancer, although they don't have any studies or proof to underscore that," he says.

"If it wasn't such a serious subject that millions of women have been injured through abortion, both psychologically and physically, this report would be absolutely laughable," Newman adds. "They whitewash abortion to the point where they want to say abortion's actually good for you."

The report says there is virtually no risk in first-trimester abortions and that there are no long-term mental effects of abortion. Newman suggests the Institute is releasing the report as a last-ditch effort to salvage what he says is a dying pro-abortion industry.

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Survey: Pastors Would Use Surprise Income to Build and Evangelize

by Allie Martin and Jody Brown
May 4, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A new survey shows what pastors nationwide would do if their church received an unexpected financial windfall.

The research was conducted for Facts & Trends magazine -- a publication of LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention -- and sought to clarify the overall budget and spending priorities of clergy and lay people. According to a survey conducted by Ellison Research, 31 percent of the more than 500 Protestant pastors surveyed said they would build, expand, or update their church's buildings and facilities. That preference was even more pronounced among Southern Baptist pastors, 43 percent of whom said they would spend the unexpected financial boon on facilities.

Sixteen percent of all pastors said they would use the windfall to increase community evangelism activities. Paying off debt (12 percent) and adding staff (10 percent) were also among the priorities expressed. Only one percent indicated they would use the windfall to increase the salaries or benefits for staff members.

In a companion survey of almost 1,200 Protestant lay people, the top three priorities for spending a windfall would be paying off debt (18 percent), increasing social programs (18 percent), and building, expanding, or updating church facilities (17 percent).

Dr. Thom Rainer, president of LifeWay Christian Resources, says the surveys show the need for a balanced perspective on what it means to be a church.

"It seems as if the research that we have done, which is published in the latest issue [May/June 2006] of Facts & Trends, is something that confirms that we can lose our focus when we start focusing on that which matters but which should be more peripheral than the main things, such as evangelism," Rainer notes.

The Facts & Trends article is written by Ron Sellers, president of Ellison Research. He observes that the findings may make it appear that evangelism, missions, and outreach are a higher priority for clergy than for their congregations. "[But] in reality, both put a fairly high priority on evangelism," he writes. "They just have different priorities for where the evangelism should take place."

Dr. Rainer offers a different perspective. "More than half of all members of churches in America will meet their Savior face to face without ever having shared Christ with anyone," he says. "On the leadership issue, 53 percent of pastors have not shared Christ, by their own admission, in the last six months."

The LifeWay leader admits he may be oversimplifying things, but offers this observation. "It seems to me, when someone [asks]: 'What's wrong with the evangelistic health of our churches?' -- I can give a simple response: We're not doing it."

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Repent America Questions Eastern University's Welcome of Homosexual Activists

by Jim Brown
May 5, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The leader of a Philadelphia-based Christian group says a private Christian university in Pennsylvania seems to be embracing homosexuality, and he believes the school is on the verge of abandoning the very biblical principles on which it was founded.

Recently the group Soulforce brought its "Equality Ride" bus tour to the campus of Eastern University in St. Davids, Pennsylvania. The intention of the homosexual group's tour was to "confront" colleges that bar homosexual students from enrollment.

While the young homosexual activists were on the Eastern campus, members of the group Repent America (RA) attempted to pass out literature to students regarding what the Bible says about homosexuality. University officials, however, ordered the Christian group to leave the premises.

RA's director, Michael Marcavage, says the school appeared to be embracing the homosexual agenda while claiming to hold Christian beliefs. "It was a very grievous situation," he contends. "Many of the students had no problem with the Equality Ride's lies."

These members of the Eastern student community, along with some of the school's administrators as well, indicated apparent support for Soulforce "by wearing buttons that promoted the group's agenda," Marcavage asserts. "They called RA's information offensive because it addressed homosexuality as a sin."

The Christian activist says some of the students present "unashamedly declared that they sin every day, and therefore it is possible to be a practicing homosexual and a Christian." Only a few students vocally agreed that homosexuality should be addressed as a sin, he notes.

Marcavage is outraged that Eastern officials would welcome the Equality Ride participants and allow them to engage in homosexual activism, but would try to kick Repent America members off campus. He says RA is calling on the supposedly Christian university to repent for "embracing the homosexual agenda."

Although most school officials and students RA encountered on the Pennsylvania school's campus were sympathetic to Soulforce's cause, Marcavage says the Word of God is "very clear" on this issue. "Homosexuality is sin, and Christ can set you free," he says, "but this message was not the message of the administration; nor was it the message of the students on the campus, and that's why we're grieved by this situation."

The RA spokesman adds that he is concerned about Eastern University and its witness. "I do believe the school is on the verge of apostasy," he says, "just like many other schools that started to train ministers to spread the gospel."

Although university officials initially tried to remove Repent America from the Eastern campus, Marcavage says God showed he had a different plan by intervening so the Christian group could set up an information table and speak with students for six hours.

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U.S. Navy and Chaplain Differ Over Basis for Charges

by Chad Groening
May 5, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An evangelical Navy chaplain says he is facing a possible court-martial for disobeying what he believes was an unlawful order. The Navy, however, is challenging Lieutenant Gordon Klingenshmitt's account of why he's facing the possibility of such a serious charge.

Chaplain Klingenshmitt says the U.S. Navy is trying to punish him for what he did on Lafayette Square near the White House on March 30. He says he faces disciplinary action for praying in the name of Jesus while in uniform outside a chapel setting.

"The new SECNAV instruction authorizes commanding officers to punish chaplains for disobeying orders if they pray in Jesus' name outside of a chapel," Klingenshmitt shares. "So that's what I'm being charged with -- willful disobedience of what they say is a lawful order. I say it's an unlawful order."

The event on March 30 in the nation's capital was a news conference protesting a ban on military chaplains invoking specific religious figures such as Jesus Christ in their prayers -- unless they did so in a chapel setting. Klingenshmitt admits he did pray in uniform at that event, and that one of the prayers ended with the words "through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen."

But Terry Davis, public affairs officer at Naval Station Norfolk, says the charges are not for praying in uniform, but for participating in uniform at an event supporting personal or partisan political, economic, social or religious issues -- and for violating orders. "The charges against Lt. Klingenshmitt were for violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice," she explains. "It's Article 90, which is willfully disobeying a superior commissioned officer, and Article 92, failure to obey a regulation or order."

According to Davis, charges against the chaplain "have absolutely nothing to do with the fact that he prayed. It has to do with his conduct as a naval officer and that the Uniform Code of Military Justice is very specific when service members can and cannot wear their uniform."

Klingenshmitt, who is filing a religious harassment complaint against the Navy, says he had prior written permission to wear his uniform to events he considered a "bona fide religious service or observance." And he says it is part of his job as a military chaplain to say public prayers in his uniform; he also noted there is a cross on that uniform.

It is unfortunate, he says, that the Navy has decided it is going to enforce the brand new Secretary of the Navy policy that bans Christian prayers outside of a chapel. "And since it was outside of a chapel setting, they're saying that I either had to pray nonsectarian prayers or I had to not wear my uniform," he explains.

Klingenshmitt says he has refused to accept a reprimand known as a "captain's mast" and has been read his rights. If he is court-martialed and found guilty, he could face up to five years in prison and be dismissed from the Navy with a dishonorable discharge. "We'll have to wait and see if the Lord comes and defends me," he says.

The Navy chaplain says the ball is now in the Navy's court, but he does not expect a court-martial summons any time soon.

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Charlotte Christians' Gospel Rally to Replace Annual 'Gay Pride' Event

by Allie Martin
May 5, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An annual "gay pride" rally that ordinarily takes place this weekend in a North Carolina city park has been replaced by a Christian event. The first "Not Ashamed Charlotte" rally is being held Saturday in Charlotte's Marshall Park and will feature Christians from various churches around the city.

For the past four years, a homosexual event known as "Charlotte Pride" has been held at the park during the first weekend in May. This year, however, the organizers of Charlotte Pride had to delay the event.

What that means, Coalition of Conscience director Dr. Michael Brown says, is that there will not be any of the public lewdness and vulgarity that usually happens in the park this time of year. Instead, he says, "We're going to have a city-wide rally. We'll have different pastors and leaders from the city giving a positive vision of what God can do and what He wants to do in the city."

Brown says Not Ashamed Charlotte is inviting the press to be part of its celebration of faith and positive, pro-family values. "And for everyone coming through the park in need," he notes, "we're going to have ministry available the entire day -- for hurting people, searching people, lost people, people that need freedom."

The Coalition of Conscience spokesman points out that his group was formed to work for social and moral change in the community through the gospel, which is why the coalition is planning Not Ashamed Charlotte and incorporating outreach into the event at Marshall Park. "We're going to be there to minister," he says. "So it's going to be a day to proclaim, a day to reach out."

And what is being offered and proclaimed is not a message of "gay pride" but of Christian truth, Brown points out. "We feel that if homosexual men and women can come out of the closet with pride, it's time for followers of Jesus to stand up and say, 'We're not ashamed of our faith, not ashamed of purity and morals. We're not ashamed of wholesome family living.'"

But at the same time, Brown adds, Not Ashamed Charlotte is about loving others, not condemning them. "We want this to be a day when we don't bash others," he says. "We want to bless. We're not there to criticize; we're there to walk in compassion."

Not Ashamed Charlotte is an event for the whole family, and the Coalition is encouraging families to come to the park early, bringing their blankets, picnic chairs, and games. The special day of worship, prayer, and proclamation officially begins at 12:00 noon on May 6, with the citywide rally taking place from 3:00-4:00 pm.

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Americans Are Losing Their Critical Thinking Ability

by Mary Rettig
May 5, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An author and editor for the National Post in Canada says Americans are losing the ability to think critically, a problem he relates to the lack of objective reporting in the media.

Michael LeGault is the author of Th!nk: Why Crucial Decisions Can't Be Made in the Blink of an Eye (Threshold Editions, 2006). He says his book discusses why the premise behind Blink: the Power of Thinking Without Thinking, a best-selling book by Malcolm Gladwell, does not work.

Gladwell's Blink extols and even advocates "gut reactions" and snap judgments. But LeGault feels this is poor approach for reasoning minds, and he is concerned that increasing numbers of people in America seem to be moving away from thoughtful, critical decision-making, and turning instead to their emotions.

"The result of this has been, ultimately, that more and more people rely on received knowledge," LeGault says. They take their information and conclusions "from news media primarily," he asserts, or in any case, "from other people, rather than doing thinking on their own or asking questions -- hard questions."

The author of Th!nk says this reliance on media for more and more information has caused the facts to be increasingly filtered through various biases. "Behind each one of these as it's presented in the media," he contends, "are other information and other sides to the story that are often not presented, and our general tendency is to believe these wholesale, without question."

Also, LeGault notes, this phenomenon has resulted in what he calls a "greatest hits" mentality, where news media outlets exploit hot-button issues in an effort to increase their ratings and bring in advertising dollars. As a result, he suggests, the public has come to rely on pithy pundits and appeals to passion instead of real, objective information.

Americans are buying into all kinds of media hype, LeGault asserts, because many have lost the ability to think critically, weighing information and separating opinion and propaganda from actual facts. He says this is why so many people tend to believe unfounded claims such as global warming theories or the idea that the Earth is running out of oil.

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Liberty Counsel Defends Christian Ordered to Copy Pro-Homosexual Videos

by Allie Martin
May 8, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Virginia businessman has been ordered by the Arlington Human Rights Commission to duplicate pro-homosexual videos, even though he says reproducing the material would violate his biblical values.

Earlier this year, Tim Bono, owner of Bono Film and Video, was contacted via e-mail by a potential customer, Lilli Vincenz, who asked him to reproduce two documentaries entitled Gay and Proud and Second Largest Minority. Bono informed Vincenz that he was refusing the job as his company does not copy material that is obscene or that could embarrass employees, hurt the company's reputation, or material that otherwise runs counter to the company's Christian values.

Vincenz contacted the Arlington Human Rights Commission, asking it to force to Bono to duplicate her videos, and last month the Commission ordered him to do so. Florida-based Liberty Counsel is defending him.

According to the Human Rights Commission's order, if the Christian businessman refuses to do the duplication job "after a reasonable amount of time, the commissioners can reassemble to discuss why the remedy was not done." The Commission could then forward the case to the full county Board of Commissioners and request permission to file a discrimination complaint against Mr. Bono in Arlington Circuit Court.

However, Liberty Counsel president Mat Staver says the film and video service's owner was within his rights to refuse to duplicate the pro-homosexual materials. "He did not discriminate against any person because of their sex or gender or their sexual practices," the attorney asserts. "Instead, he did what any person of common sense would do."

According to Staver, owners of video transfer and duplication businesses can certainly refuse to duplicate homosexual propaganda videos without discriminating on the basis of the customer's sexual preference, and they have every right to turn such work down.

"While lifestyle choices are not relevant to his business, what customers request Mr. Bono to duplicate is critically important," the Liberty Counsel spokesman contends. He says a Christian proprietor like Bono has " just as much right to refuse to duplicate videos which promote the homosexual agenda as he has the right to refuse to duplicate obscenity, pornography or hate speech."

Christian business owners "don't have to allow [their] business to be hijacked to promote the ideology of some radical, homosexual agenda," Staver insists. "That's what this lesbian activist is trying to do," he says, "and no business is required to do that."

"In fact," the attorney continues, "newspapers, or publishers or printers are not required to print every item or reproduce every copy that they receive. They have the discretion to not engage in every reproduction of a suggested item."

Mr. Bono would never be forced to duplicate videos promoting obscenity, pornography, or hate speech, Staver adds. And neither, he asserts, should the Christian company owner be forced to copy Vincenz's pro-homosexual videos or to allow his company "to become a vehicle of her ideological agenda."

Staver says it is possible that legal action will be taken against the Arlington Human Rights Commission on Tim Bono's behalf.

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Founder Hopes Christian Social Networking Site Will Fill Niche

by Jim Brown
May 8, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A new website designed in the sleepy coastal town of Pawleys Island, South Carolina, is offering Christians an alternative to questionable social networking sites like "MySpace.com" and "Facebook.com."

The "Oaktree.org" website orginally began as a "hope exchange" where people could post prayer concerns and words of encouragement for people depressed, hospitalized, or battling an illness. But last month the site was re-launched with more social networking features such as online journals, photos, biographies, discussion forums, and chat.

Oaktree.org founder Brady Stump says he and his wife felt this website could fill a void, as they did not see anything on the Internet fostering Christian community from a social networking standpoint.

What they happened almost spontaneously with the Oaktree.org site, Stump says, is "it flipped social networking on its head and created a place where people could share their testimonies, share their favorite Bible verses, where ministers and pastors and youth pastors could get on a forum, and they could share ideas on how to reach more people, how to reach more youth."

Right away, the Christian site's founder says he and his wife saw how a social Internet forum "could definitely be used for good if it was created correctly, and that's kind of what inspired us to do this."

Thirty-one-year-old Stump says the idea of a hope exchange site came about following the tremendous outpouring of support he received from fellow Christians after he lost his left leg in a car wreck in 1998. Now, he is seeing Oaktree.org help countless others find not only hope but purpose in life.

The hidden gem in the site, the website creator says, is a feature called Impact Projects. This area is "a place to put 'Purpose Driven' in action," he explains. "Under these Impact Projects we have on our site, you can put basically your life purpose, your Christianly purpose -- what you want to do to build the kingdom of heaven."

Once a community member puts down this spiritual plan of action, what happens next is "kind of neat," Stump observes. As other Christians visiting the site connect with a person about his or her Impact Project goals, he says, "the way it's developed is that other people almost turn into accountability partners."

Stump says the online profiles and posting areas at Oaktree.org are filtered and monitored regularly to ensure appropriateness. He hopes that as the membership of the Christian social networking website grows, more and more visitors will discover it as a place where they can find community, encouragement, and accountability as well as resources to help them grow in their faith.

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Christian Author Sees Confusion of Da Vinci Code as Useful

by Allie Martin
May 8, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian apologist is trying to help believers respond to claims made in the upcoming movie based on Dan Brown's best-selling book The Da Vinci Code.

Lee Strobel is co-author of a DVD-driven discussion curriculum kit called "Discussing the Da Vinci Code." The four-session study includes interviews with authors and experts who look at topics such as the reliability of the gospels, the deity of Christ, and the role of women in Christianity. Strobel says Brown's novel has caused confusion among Christians because it weaves together fact and fiction in its storyline. Still, he encourages Christians to see the movie -- but only as a method of outreach to unsaved friends or family members.

"I would really pray about it, and consider going to the movie so that you can engage with them in a dialog," the author says. He offers some suggestions for doing that. "Give them a resource like our book, Exploring the Da Vinci Code, invite them into a little discussion experience like our 'Discussing the Da Vinci Code' resource, and help them to come to an understanding about the real Jesus."

Strobel -- a former atheist who came to know Jesus as his personal Savior after a two-year investigation of the evidence of Jesus -- and curriculum co-author Garry Poole traveled to Europe and visited sites that will be featured in the upcoming movie, which stars Tom Hanks. Like the book, Strobel expects the Ron Howard-directed movie to also cause confusion.

"Dan Brown so cleverly mixes fact and fiction, people are getting spiritually confused," he says. "One out of every three Canadians who have read the book now believes that there are descendants of Jesus walking among us today."

In addition, says Strobel, 53 percent of Americans who have read the book say it has been "helpful in their personal spiritual growth and understanding."

On May 21 -- two days after Da Vinci Code hits U.S. theaters -- Strobel co-hosts a national satellite telecast on the Church Communication Network about the Da Vinci debate. The outreach event is available to churches for evangelism training, and features co-hosts Dr. Erwin Lutzer (pastor of Moody Church in Chicago and author of The Da Vinci Deception) and Mark Mittleberg, co-author of Becoming a Contagious Christian.

Strobel's award-winning books include The Case for Christ, The Case for Faith, The Case for a Creator, and Inside the Mind of Unchurched Harry and Mary.

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ADF Applauds UW Chancellor's Approval of Catholic Group Using Student Fees

by Jim Brown
May 8, 2006

(AgapePress) - - University of Wisconsin-Madison's Chancellor John Wiley has recommended that a campus Catholic group be allowed to use student fees to print religious booklets and support its religious activities.

Wiley says he will endorse $145,000 in funding for the UW Roman Catholic Foundation, even though he has concerns that it may violate the so-called "separation of church and state." The Catholic group, which is being represented by the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), had threatened to sue if the funding was not allowed.

David French, an ADF-affiliated attorney, is applauding the recommendation to allow use of the UW student funds for the campus religious group's materials and activities. He notes that student fees are used for a wide variety of expressions at the university.

"They pay for political activities, they pay for cultural activities, and they pay for athletic activities," French notes. He says student fees are used to "help students buy everything from drinks and food at events to ... print materials that they distribute at rallies."

This recommendation by Chancellor Wiley is part of a growing trend, the ADF spokesman says, a pattern that suggests Christian groups are increasingly no longer settling for discriminatory policies and unequal access on their campuses. He believes campus religious groups have become more assertive in demanding fair treatment over the last several years.

The case involving the UW Roman Catholic Foundation is "another in the long line of cases for the last 25 years on campus," French contends -- a succession that he says is "designed to demonstrate and to show that Christian student groups and Christian individuals on campus are not second class citizens."

Wiley's decision to endorse the $145,000 in funding for the Roman Catholic Foundation goes to the UW System Board of Regents next for final approval. The case is being closely watched by school administrators and religious groups across the United States.

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Study Shows Low Competition Among Health Insurers Is Costing Patients

by Mary Rettig
May 9, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The American Medical Association (AMA) says a study it conducted shows there is extremely limited competition between health insurance providers in many metropolitan areas of the United States, and this has heavy implications for Americans.

The AMA looked at nearly 300 metropolitan areas in the U.S. from 1995 to 2005 to determine what happened after a decade of unprecedented mergers and takeovers in the health insurance industry. The study found that in 56 percent of the markets, a single insurance company had a market share of 50 percent or greater.

Dr. Jim Rohack, the immediate past chairman of the AMA's Board of Trustees, says this lack of competition is very bad for the consumers. He says the researchers found that, under the kind of market consolidation they saw, patients had fewer insurance options and higher premiums. Also, due to those high costs, more people were uninsured.

"And the only one that was benefiting was the company itself, making record profits," Rohack adds. "Patients had less choice [in terms of] the health insurance that they could purchase, and we also found that the premiums had increased," he says, "yet the benefits provided to patients did not increase."

According to the former AMA Board of Trustees chairman, more competition among health insurance companies leads to lower costs for consumers as well as better healthcare, because it means patients have more choices. However, he says the recent study indicates that competition among the insurance carriers is on a steep decline, while health insurance premiums are rising quickly.

Rohack says the AMA's study will be turned in to the U.S. Department of Justice. That agency, he notes, will look further into the matter to determine whether any anti-trust laws have been violated by the insurance companies.

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New Bishop's Selection Reflects Anglican Church's 'Directive,' Say Observers

by Jody Brown and Bill Fancher
May 9, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The Episcopal Church USA may have dodged a bullet this past weekend when one of its dioceses decided against electing a homosexual bishop as its new leader. As a result, New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson remains ECUSA's only openly homosexual bishop.

Delegates from the Episcopal Diocese of California gathered Saturday (May 6) to pick their next bishop. Among the seven candidates were three homosexual church leaders. But the diocese chose the Rt. Rev. Mark Handley of Birmingham, Alabama, who is married and has two college-age daughters. His election must be endorsed by the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in June before being formally installed in late July.

Addressing the gathering by phone after his election, Handley alluded to the presence of homosexual candidates on the ballot and to the denomination's "inclusiveness" philosophy. "[Y]our vote today remains a vote for inclusion and communion -- of gay and lesbian people in their full lives as single or partnered people, of women, of all ethnic minorities, and all people. My commitment to Jesus Christ's own mission of inclusion is resolute," he stated.

A conservative Anglican leader in the U.S. believes the California Diocese, in selecting Handley, was right not to "short-circuit" decisions ECUSA must make at its General Convention about remaining with, or separating from, the worldwide Anglican Communion.

"The world church has clearly told us what we must do to stay in communion," says Bishop Robert Duncan of the Anglican Communion Network. "[And that is to] repent of our decision in 2003 to confirm the election of a bishop in a same-sex partnered relationship [Gene Robinson] and place moratoriums on further elections of bishops in same-sex partnered relationships as well as the blessing of same-sex relationships."

Pro-family advocate Bob Knight of the Culture and Family Institute agrees. "I think [the decision by the Diocese of California] was because the larger Anglican community warned them that if they did it again and they did it in their face like this, it would probably result in the Episcopal Church of the United States of America being excommunicated from the Anglican Communion," Knight opines.

The CFI spokesman says he was not surprised by the decision out of San Francisco. "People familiar with the situation in California acknowledge that they deliberately did not pick a gay bishop because they knew it would lead to a conflict with the larger Anglican Church," he says.

But according to earlier comments from a pro-homosexual group within ECUSA, the prospect of homosexual Episcopal bishops in the future remains alive. When the slate of nominees was announced in February, the group Integrity said in a press release that it was "inevitable" that another "gay/lesbian person" would eventually be nominated to the episcopacy. And whether or not the California Diocese elected a homosexual leader, Integrity predicted another Gene Robinson would eventually be elevated to the level of bishop.

"t is inevitable that another gay/lesbian person WILL eventually be elected, confirmed, and consecrated to that order of ministry," said Integrity, "as the Episcopal Church continues to live into its call to fully include all of the baptized into the Body of Christ."

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Senator's Support for Marriage Amendment Wins Over Family Activist

by Chad Groening
May 9, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An Ohio pro-family activist says a recent move by one of his state's U.S. senators has convinced him to now support the two-term incumbent's re-election.

It was November 2, 2004, and Ohio was one of 11 states allowing its citizens to go to the polls and defend traditional marriage by amending the state constitution to define marriage as between one man and one woman. By the time the votes were tallied, all of those states had overwhelmingly passed the marriage initiatives. In the Buckeye State, the measure won 62%-38% -- and many pundits credited the marriage amendment there with helping George W. Bush win the state, sending him back to the White House for a second term.

But one pro-family leader says he was not happy that Ohio Senator Mike DeWine chose not to support his state's marriage initiative in 2004. The family advocate also expresses dissatisfaction with the Republican lawmaker for joining others in the GOP last year to preserve the Democrat-led filibuster of judicial nominees.

But Phil Burress, president of the Cincinnati-based Citizens for Community Values (CCV) Action PAC, says DeWine has come around on the marriage issue and is a co-sponsor of the Marriage Protection Amendment to be debated in the Senate in early June.

"He's certainly not right on all the issues," acknowledges Burress, "and even though I've had a lot of problems with Mike and his voting record, I will be one of the first ones to put the yard sign in my yard in support of Mike DeWine."

As Burress explains, DeWine received the "wrath" of CCV over several issues, one of them being the senator's opposition to the 2004 marriage amendment. "But what saved him in the primary and made a huge difference in his numbers was the fact that, just a couple weeks ago, Mike came out in support of the Marriage Protection Amendment .... And he has not only has come out for it, but he is also a co-sponsor."

A recent Mason-Dixon Line poll showed DeWine ahead of his opponent, Democratic Congressman Sherrod Brown, by 11 points. Burress believes DeWine is a far better alternative than Brown, whom he likens to liberal Democrats such as Ted Kennedy, Richard Durbin, and Hillary Rodham Clinton.

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Author's Vivid Personal Account Speaks Volumes to Widows and Widowers

by Rev. Austin Miles
May 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The most gut-wrenching experience in life is to lose a spouse. The only person who can actually know the depth of that feeling is one who has gone through the ordeal. And the best person to counsel a survivor is the one who has been there, done that, and managed to go on with life. Richard L. Mabry, author of the just-published book, The Tender Scar: Life After the Death of a Spouse (Kregel, June 2006), is just that person.

A man deeply in love with his wife, Cynthia, he had built his entire life around her. They were planning a happy retirement together. Even after three years of "going steady" and then 40 years of marriage, they were still on their honeymoon.

When she unexpectedly died of a stroke in September 1999, he was as devastated as any man could be. First he had to face whether or not to pull the plug on the life-support equipment.

Then he had to deal with getting rid of her personal things -- what to keep, what not to keep. Should he move or stay in the home he shared with her? What about the wedding rings? What about "starting a new life"? And if so, for what purpose?

During his grieving time he dealt with every feeling, question, and anxiety that everyone else who has lost a spouse will immediately identify with and say, "Yes, that is exactly how I feel."

Richard Mabry had been advised to keep a journal following Cynthia's death, an activity which was not only cathartic but also very useful for his own recovery. Some of the journal entries were in the form of personal letters addressed to his beloved wife. He also sent e-mails to his children, friends, and his pastor that he shares with us in the book.

Mabry, a physician, has a natural instinct to help others and felt that he should share what he learned, how he recovered, and the mistakes he made, such as inadvertently building a shrine to his wife and trying to live her life for her.

He describes his own emotions, the good and the bad, the highs and the lows, and asked himself questions like, "When will this end?" or "Is it normal to feel this way?" or "What have other people done about this?" And how do you pray when prayer seemed unanswered and the only thing you can pray is, "Why Lord?" He managed to make it through that -- and he shows us what he learned.

Even though Dr. Mabry is a recognized professional, he did not just simply knock out this book. He first went to a Christian Writers Workshop in Glorieta, New Mexico, to fine-tune his writing instincts in order to produce a first-class book. And that he did. This slim volume is filled with digestible short chapters that open with a topic description followed by an entry from his journal and/or one of the personal e-mails he sent as he was going through each phase of the grieving process.

Next, the coping mechanisms he discovered are detailed. The counsel is solid throughout. Every section of the book ends with a meaningful prayer.

The literary quality entries from his journal and e-mails are so personal that the reader seems to be a part of the inside circle of a man of standing in his community. He is totally transparent as he discloses the wrong turns he took and how he worked out the emotional challenges he faced.

Dr. Mabry's thorough diagnosis doesn't miss one thing. He talks about visiting the grave, remembering an anniversary, and getting through the first holidays after the death. One chapter is devoted to "Being Open to a Second Chance." Should you ever fall in love again? Could you ever fall in love again? Would it dishonor my spouse? And he has chapters titled, "Avoiding a Self-Centered Outlook" and "Changing Your Way of Thinking."

The chapter titled "Expanding Your Horizons" ends with a prayer that begins: "Loving Father, we don't want things to be different, we want them to be back the way they were. Help us to accept the changes in our lives." And the reader is definitely strengthened by the rest of that prayer. The author articulates the feelings we all have had but may not be able to express. That in itself helps.

Dr. Mabry tells the reader how to reach "the other side of grief," how to "live hopefully ever after" and about learning to live "the new normal." He reminds us that, "For the Christian, the grave is not a monument to death, but the entrance to new life -- life eternal."

The Tender Scar should be purchased and given to anyone you care about who has lost a spouse. It offers valid, genuine help that well-meaning friends often cannot provide. It also gives the contact information for support groups. This is also a very valuable book for all pastors, counselors, ministers, and chaplains who so often deal with death issues.

Reading this book will compel you to rethink how important your own husband, wife, or companion is. It will spur you to make every minute count with your spouse even if it means turning off your favorite program in order to pay full attention to a soul mate who at that moment wants to talk.

Richard Mabry said that he wrote this book to bring something good out of something terrible in his life. His goal was accomplished. Romans 8:28 says: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." There is no better example of that famous Scripture.

Thank you, Dr. Mabry, for a fine diagnosis and the advice you give in your book. It couldn't be better.

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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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ADF Hails Judgment Upholding Street Preachers' First Amendment Rights

by Ed Thomas
May 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A federal district court judge has ruled that actions designed to prevent two Christians from preaching and proselytizing near a homosexual event in a Pennsylvania city park were unconstitutional restrictions of free speech. The declaratory judgment follows a jury's similar finding last December regarding one of the men's subsequent arrest during a 2003 "Pridefest" event in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Prior to the arrest of Pastor Jim Grove, he and Repent America leader Michael Marcavage were prevented from making contact with or preaching to people entering Riverfront Park for the Pridefest celebration while they were inside a permitted festival area that was not being used at the time. Police also tried to enforce an imaginary 50-foot no-speech zone against the two men to keep them away from the homosexual event.

Alliance Defense Fund-affiliated attorney Leonard Brown represents Grove and the Christian organization to which he belongs, Worldwide Street Preachers Fellowship. The lawyer says U.S. District Judge William Caldwell of the 3rd Judicial Circuit ruled that both actions by the police were violations of the Christians' free-speech rights.

"Our clients were outside of the confined area," Brown points out, "in an area of the park that people were using like people normally use a park -- to walk their dogs, to ride their bikes, to jog -- and the police kicked them out because of the content of their message. So that's what the judge said was unconstitutional."

The outcome in this case, Worldwide Street Preachers Fellowship v. Reed, is important to Christians who want to witness at Pridefest and other future events in the park, the ADF-allied attorney asserts. Hopefully, he says, the judge's ruling has helped to "seal the deal" legally on a religious free-speech victory.

There are two parts to the ruling, Brown explains. "We had a jury trial in December, where a jury found the two officers had arrested Pastor Grove in violation of the First Amendment," he notes. "The second part was asking the court for an injunction and declaration, as a matter of law, that what the city was doing violated the Constitution."

The ADF-member litigator says he and his clients are pleased that the court correctly recognized the unconstitutionality of the Harrisburg officials' actions. "Mr. Marcavage and Mr. Grove's right to free speech in Riverfront Park and elsewhere can no longer be hindered by the city's restrictive ordinance," he says.

"Christian speech should not be treated differently than any other kind of speech," Brown insists. He says the ruling in this case clearly shows that other Harrisburg officials violated basic constitutional guarantees when they had a city police officer stop Groves and Marcavage from speaking in the vicinity of the Pridefest celebration.

ADF has won major decisions in two other similar free-speech cases in separate federal districts this year. Brown believes those court victories may have helped to set a precedent for the ruling in the case involving Pastor Groves. The attorney says he hopes this latest win will put an end to any policy of discrimination against public street preachers by the city of Harrisburg.

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Le Moyne College Condemned for Pulling Student Newspaper's Adviser

by Jim Brown
May 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Catholic college in New York State is being accused of unjustly punishing a student newspaper and its faculty adviser for criticizing the school. A spokesman with the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) says the adviser's dismissal by Le Moyne College in Syracuse reflects a growing trend on U.S. campuses toward administrative control of student press.

Professor Alan Fischler had served as faculty adviser for Le Moyne's student newspaper, The Dolphin, ever since he was chosen by its staff in 1996. Also, just last year he wrote a column for the paper, voicing disapproval over the college's dismissal of graduate education major Scott McConnell after he penned a paper expressing his conservative views.

Le Moyne has now "released" Fischler from his position with The Dolphin, reportedly telling him the school wants a "more hands-on" adviser. The professor, who continues to teach at the college, will be replaced by a faculty adviser selected by the administration, a move that has prompted a strike by the student staff of the campus newspaper in protest.

Greg Lukianoff, president of FIRE, feels Le Moyne is trying to punish The Dolphin staff for criticizing the school's actions in the Scott McConnell matter. FIRE brought public attention to McConnell's case last year, after the school kicked the degree candidate out of its teacher education program for writing a paper advocating corporal punishment and opposing multiculturalism.

Lukianoff believes Fischler has become a scapegoat in Le Moyne's attempt to suppress criticism or dissent from The Dolphin. However, the FIRE spokesman observes, "You're not a very effective student paper if you can't be critical of the university -- particularly one that did something as outrageous as Le Moyne did last year, flatly expelling someone because of his beliefs."

The dismissal of The Dolphin's faculty adviser is part of a rising trend, Lukianoff contends. "We've seen this on a number of campuses," he says, "and it's in violation of what a faculty adviser to a student newspaper has always been, or at least has been for decades now."

Ordinarily, the free-speech advocate points out, the faculty adviser is meant to be "someone that the student paper can go to and ask for advice on professionalism [or] on grammar and spelling." But in most cases, he insists, these advisers "don't have power. They don't have editorial power over the student paper."

The national organization of student newspaper advisers, College Media Advisers (CMA), has sanctioned Le Moyne for attempting to censor The Dolphin. In a May 3 statement, the group said the censure against the school "serves as a warning ... that Le Moyne fails to value the exercise of free speech and the value of a free press on the college campus." FIRE has joined CMA in condemning the school's actions.

Lukianoff says Le Moyne's dismissal of Fischler as newspaper adviser is only the latest example of a pattern of increasing university control over student media. The president of FIRE warns that, if organizations and individuals do not take a stand in opposition to this encroachment, independent student media may become a thing of the past.

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Virginia County Giving Cowboy Church a Rough Ride

by Ed Thomas
May 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A farmer in Bedford County, Virginia, has received a notice of zoning violation from his jurisdiction for allowing a "cowboy church" to hold services inside a barn on his property. In response, the religious-freedom advocate law firm Liberty Counsel has warned County officials of the farmer's basis for a federal lawsuit.

Garland Simmons allows The Cowboy Church of Virginia to hold a service every Thursday night in a barn on his 900-acre property. But a recent notice from Bedford County says the gathering is a code violation because Simmons' farm is not zoned for religious services and permits cannot even be issued to allow them. Simmons has 30 days to appeal -- but the only response thus far has been a letter from Liberty Counsel, written on behalf of the church's pastor, Raymond Bell.

Mat Staver, president and general counsel of that legal group, says the County policy targeting religious use, but allowing any other kind of barn activity, violates federal law.

"You can apparently use barns for all kinds of things. You can use a barn to have a dance to the tunes of Toby Keith or Reba," he suggests, "but a church service, reciting the Psalms of David or praise and worship with Casting Crowns, as an example, [is] prohibited."

Specifically, says Liberty Counsel, the County is violating the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, often referred to as RLUIPA. Staver says the measure was passed by Congress in 2000, just because of such indiscriminate prohibitions against religious gatherings.

"What we found leading up to that Act is that churches were having discriminatory zoning laws applied against them all over the country," the attorney explains. "Some municipalities were saying that churches could not even locate, you couldn't have worship in your home -- or if you already were located, you couldn't expand your ministry. So, as a result, the RLUIPA law ... was passed."

The letter, which alleges the County is also violating Simmons' First Amendment rights, demands officials withdraw the notice of violation and threatens a possibly federal lawsuit. The County, says Staver, is "treading on unconstitutional ground."

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Compilation a Valuable Resource for Learning to Share the Gospel

by Allie Martin
May 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An Alabama-based evangelist is trying to help Christians become better equipped to carry out the Great Commission.

Scott Dawson is president of the Scott Dawson Evangelistic Association. In that capacity he travels the nation and world conducting crusades and holding seminars for fellow believers, and has reached more than half a million people through those venues. Dawson says he has been concerned at the lack of personal witnessing among believers -- which led him to compile The Complete Evangelism Guidebook: Expert Advice on Reaching Others for Christ (Baker Books, 2006).

Evangelist Luis Palau, one of the book's contributors, summarizes in the foreword his own vision of the importance of sharing the gospel. "Evangelism saves people not only from dying without Christ, but also from living without Him. And as they live with Him and for Him, they become salt and light in a world lost in darkness, sorrow, conflict, violence, and fear.

"I cannot imagine anything that helps people more than introducing them to Jesus Christ," Palau writes.

And preparing Christians to do exactly that is the objective of the Guidebook. It features 57 Christian leaders, teachers, pastors, and authors who examine various aspects of personal witnessing. Section headings include "Defining Your Faith," "Demonstrating Your Faith," "Declaring Your Faith," and "Defending Your Faith." Following those sections are breakdowns for witnessing to various groups according to relationship, age group, vocation, religion, race, situation, and gender or sexual orientation.

Every believer, says Dawson, should be involved in evangelism. "The Christian understands that life is not about what you can get; the rest of our life is about what we can give," he shares.

And giving in a community, he asserts, is based on a person's love relationship with God and originates out of their burden and love for other people. He offers a word picture. "Hey, if the bridge was out down the road and you're driving a car, a real friend's going to say, 'Slow up. Slow down. Stop. Bridge is out. There is that negative. There is that sin. There is that punishment that's ahead -- but the good news is, you don't have to go off the cliff.'"

In that light, he says, personal evangelism should be viewed by believers as a privilege rather than a duty. "If we love Christ, the Bible says out of the abundance of the heart the mouth is going to speak," he says, referring to Matthew 12:34. "If we have that dynamic, vibrant love relationship with Jesus Christ, it's going to come out. So that's the number-one reason why it's not a duty, it's not an obligation, but it is a privilege to me to talk about the One that's changed my life."

Contributors to The Complete Evangelism Guidebook include Palau, Josh McDowell, George Barna, Rick Warren, Joni Eareckson Tada, Les and Leslie Parrott, and Dolphus Weary.

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Movie Analyst: Christians Should Not Shrink From The Da Vinci Code

by Dr. Marc T. Newman
May 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Seated across the aisle from me on a small regional jet out of Houston, a young woman pulled out a brand new paperback copy of Dan Brown's bestseller, The Da Vinci Code. I had just purchased a copy, confident that Sony would not be providing screenings for Christian cultural analysts (I have since been proven wrong), so I asked her how she liked it. She said that she had picked it up at the airport bookstore: "I just wanted to see what all of the fuss was about."

When books reach the kind of critical mass generated by The Da Vinci Code, they take on a life of their own. People, who ordinarily never would have dreamed of picking this thriller out of a sea of similar titles offered up each year, find themselves drawn to the cultural event. They want to know, what is the big deal? What is it about this book that has generated so much controversy? A desire to be "with it," to be culturally included, has driven Dan Brown's book into the stratosphere, and spawned a blockbuster film, starring Tom Hanks and directed by Ron Howard.

With dozens of books addressing problems with, or defending attacks on, The Da Vinci Code populating the Borders or Barnes & Noble near you, the question remains, "What is all the fuss about?" The question is emphatically not a request for more information; instead it centers on significance. And questions concerning the significance of spiritual things ricocheting across Western culture should excite every Christian that ever wanted to share his faith with the skeptical or otherwise disinterested. Sure, Hollywood may laugh all the way to the bank while the controversy over the film drives the box office. But that should be of limited concern to prepared Christians who will be presented with an evangelistic opportunity that might prove even more potent than that which followed The Passion of the Christ.

The Dangers of Boycotting a Cultural Event
The Da Vinci Code long ago ceased being simply another thriller. With over 40 million copies in print in hardcover it transcends mere book status. Make no mistake: The Da Vinci Code is a full-fledged cultural event. As a result, it has drawn a varied reaction from Christian leaders.

Some, shouting "Blasphemy," are calling for a complete boycott of the film. One of the reasons given is that we should be concerned about putting money into the hands of its makers. I have written often that Christians should vote with their wallets, because what makes money is what gets made. But in the case of The Da Vinci Code, there is no way that Christians can have any meaningful economic impact on the box office.

While no one should see The Da Vinci Code in violation of their conscience before God, I argue that some mature Christians should see this film, accompanied by non-Christians, because it will likely be the best open door to a conversation about the Gospel that will appear on a movie screen this year. Most important, our faith should not be threatened by the preposterous claims of The Da Vinci Code. If Hollywood churns out high production-value films that address spiritual issues and create opportunities to share the truth about the faith, then I am all for that. It is too much to expect that every film will be The Passion of the Christ or The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

A lot of people have read, and will read, The Da Vinci Code. Millions more will see the movie. In a nation as biblically and historically illiterate as our own, some will swallow the film's assertions without stopping to chew. At such a moment, viewers should not be abandoned by the very people who best can challenge the film's false claims. In a bizarre way, The Da Vinci Code may represent the kind of bad behavior that provides what parents recognize as "a teachable moment." The film could create even more opportunity than the book. Reading is a solitary activity. It takes most people days to finish a book. They stop and start, think along the way; it makes it hard to recognize the appropriate time to engage readers in conversation. But movies are group activities. The Da Vinci Code film will start and finish in about two breathless hours, and the discerning Christian can arrange for coffee shop time afterward to talk about the claims of the film.

The Power of Story
Some Christian leaders have claimed that marshalling the facts won't be enough to combat the compelling narrative of The Da Vinci Code. The theory is that stories trump exposition. The odd conclusion some have reached is that we shouldn't bother. Perhaps, if we ignore this film, it will go away? But The DaVinci Code is no Last Temptation of Christ. Boycotting the latter only drew more attention to a poorly made movie. A Christian boycott of The Da Vinci Code will land with an economic whimper -- this film is a pre-sold blockbuster.

And, no mistake, the story that it will tell will have power. We live in a time when people feel free to construct their own versions of the truth -- as paradoxical as that sounds. One of the ways people do so is through the stories they hear and tell. If people are looking for ways to discount the significance of Christ and distance themselves from a need to bow to His authority, then The Da Vinci Code provides seductive cover. The fact that most people are ignorant of world history, Church history, how Christians came by the Bible, and Catholic prelatures makes Brown's explanation of events as plausible to them as any other. Add to that the seductive allure of access to "secret knowledge," and some people will be hooked.

But narrative expert Dr. Walter Fisher notes that in order for stories to be persuasive, they have to be cohesive and have the ring of truth. The problem with The Da Vinci Code's story is that it cannot hang together under scrutiny. It isn't necessary for Christians to craft flow charts and recite dusty details to expose the flaws in Brown's tale -- and there are enough critics picking over minutiae, like mistakes in the angles of buildings Brown describes, to make that possible. Instead we should be willing and able to tell the true story of how things actually happened, focusing on important issues: the deity of Christ and the reliability of the Scriptures.

The Real Leap of Faith
And Christians need not spend all of their time merely defending Christian truths. The other side of this story is that pagan goddess worship is the alternative presented in The Da Vinci Code. The only defense offered in the book for goddess worship is that it is old, that European elites practiced it as part of a secret society, and that it was secretly endorsed by Jesus (who, if he wasn't divine, would have no more credibility on that issue than you or I -- you can't have it both ways). The startling aspect of the book, and I assume of the film, is that everyone involved appears to take all of the pagan goddess worship on faith. It should not get a free pass.

The Bible makes truth claims about God and His dealings with humans in history. Much of the Bible contains historical, testable facts. What claims do the goddess worshippers make that would be open for debate? There is no rationale provided, it is merely assumed. The quality of the truth claims (if you can call what the goddess worshippers believe "truth claims") are not remotely of the same class. Even the "evidence" for the anti-Christian claims is never ultimately produced -- the reader is simply expected to believe that the shadowy Priory of Sion has it. Talk about a leap of faith! It is startling that the book which provided Brown with much of the assumptions on which The Da Vinci Code is based -- Holy Blood, Holy Grail -- was dismissed by historians as pseudo-history as soon as it was published in 1982. Strange, isn't it, how the passage of 24 years, and a best-selling fiction novel, can breathe new life into spurious history? Perhaps the best way to expose the folly of The Da Vinci Code is to comment on how seriously everyone is taking the "arguments" in the book and then laugh about it.

A Backhanded Gift
One of the positive aspects of the release of The Da Vinci Code is that parishioners are probably more open to hearing their pastors teach on church history than ever before. If five years ago pastors announced a Wednesday night sermon series on The Church Fathers, the Council of Nicea, and How We Got the Bible, my guess is that attendance would be down. But now they can teach the same thing, and the pews will be packed. It just has to be called "Breaking, Demolishing, Deconstructing, Exposing and Otherwise Whupping the Tar Out of The Da Vinci Code!"

There is nothing like anticipated opposition to motivate Christians to get ready. More than a dozen books have been written to expose the flaws in The Da Vinci Code. Get a good one and read it. If the existence of the book and the film are what it takes to challenge Christians to learn their own history, then Dan Brown may have given the Church a much-needed gift -- one that will extend beyond anyone's remembrance of his film.

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Pro-Family Critics Blast Overturn of Georgia Marriage Amendment

by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
May 18, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Pro-family and conservative leaders are criticizing a state trial court judge's decision to throw out an amendment to the Constitution of Georgia defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Nevertheless, many traditional supporters believe that, despite the court's ruling, traditional marriage in Georgia will ultimately be protected.

Attorneys with the pro-family legal group Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) say Judge Constance Russell, the trial court judge who declared the Georgia's "Amendment One" unconstitutional, misused a technicality known as the "single subject rule" that says amendments may not deal with multiple issues and must address one subject only. However, ADF senior legal counsel Mike Johnson believes the judge's contravention of the will of Georgia's voters, who approved the marriage amendment in November 2004, cannot stand for long.

"Georgia's Amendment One has one purpose: to protect marriage from attack," Johnson asserts. "The 76 percent of voters in Georgia who voted 'yes' to the single subject of protecting marriage from all contemporary threats deserve to have their vote respected and not dismissed by radical judges," he says.

The ADF spokesman points out that a situation similar to this judicial reversal in Georgia happened in another state not long ago, when a district court struck down the Louisiana Defense of Marriage Amendment on the same grounds as were used to strike down the Georgia amendment. In both cases, he notes, the trial judges ruled that the amendments were invalid because they addressed two topics -- marriage and civil unions.

Johnson helped defend Louisiana's marriage amendment from that attack. In the case known as Forum for Equality PAC v. McKeithen, the Louisiana Supreme Court unanimously overturned the state district court judge's decision and reinstated the marriage amendment, and the ADF senior counsel is convinced that a similar scenario will eventually play out in Georgia.

"This ruling will be appealed," the pro-family litigator contends, "and the Georgia Supreme Court will understand, just as Louisiana's high court did, that the sole objective of these amendments is to protect marriage and that the language of the amendment is crucial in achieving that single goal."

The state trial court judge who threw out Georgia's Amendment One may try to claim that civil unions and same-sex "marriage" are different subjects, Johnson adds; "but the people of Georgia," he insists, "know better. They understand that protecting marriage means protecting it from all imitations."

[Photo compliments of American Values]
Gary Bauer
Bauer: State Controversy Proves Federal Amendment Needed
Conservative activist Gary Bauer of the group American Values agrees that Russell's ruling was a seriously flawed piece of jurisprudence. But while the judge's conclusion was based on "a contorted view" of Georgia's single subject law, Bauer observes, the state's political leaders appear to be united in their defense of traditional marriage.

The American Values spokesman notes that even the Democratic Attorney General of Georgia, Thurbert Baker, is calling the trial court judge's ruling "wrongfully decided." Meanwhile, the state's Republican governor, Sonny Perdue, has vowed to appeal the decision. He says he will call a special session of the state legislature to consider putting another marriage amendment on this year's ballot if the Georgia Supreme Court does rule on the issue by August 7.

Judge Russell's action striking down the Georgia marriage amendment is "just one more example," Bauer asserts, "of why we desperately need a federal marriage protection amendment." The United States Constitution is the "supreme law of the land," he contends, "and our public servants in Congress should act now by sending a federal marriage amendment to the states for ratification so the people, not unelected judges, can decide the meaning of marriage in America."

The Senate Judiciary Committee took a meaningful first step today (May 18) toward that end when it voted to approve a constitutional amendment that would outlaw homosexual "marriage." The vote fell along party lines, with ten Republicans voting in favor of protecting traditional marriage and eight Democrats voting against the measure. The approval clears the way for the full Senate to vote on the matter, which is expected the week of June 5.

Alabama Christians Urge Support for State Marriage Amendment
In the meantime, the battle over marriage continues in other areas around the nation. Even now, the Christian Coalition of Alabama is encouraging pro-family voters across that state to turn out in strong numbers next month for a vote on a state marriage amendment.

Senate Bill 109, also known as the Sanctity of Marriage Act, would preserve the definition of traditional marriage as being only between one man and one woman through a constitutional amendment. State law already prohibits same-sex marriage in Alabama, but many conservatives feel the amendment is needed to prevent activist courts from striking state marriage law.

John Giles, president of the Christian Coalition of Alabama, says a big turnout would help the cause tremendously. "When pro-family groups go to lobby the legislature for and against legislation," he notes, "it pretty well lets legislators know who's back home."

By coming out en masse to support biblical marriage, church members can demonstrate to lawmakers just what a "good Christian, conservative audience we have that are part of the voting electorate," Giles points out. With sheer numbers believers can show that they want marriage protected, he says, "and it certainly helps our job in passing good legislation and stopping bad legislation."

The Christian Coalition of Alabama spokesman notes that with courts all across the U.S. issuing conflicting decisions about the definition of marriage, it is important for a state to have its own laws clearly established. When states like Alabama and Mississippi enshrine the definition of traditional marriage in a constitution as being between one man and one woman, those states can more easily refuse to recognize unions from other jurisdictions that do not fit the traditional definition of marriage.

Also, Giles adds, having marriage protected in a state constitution "makes it stronger in the court cases as well." He says Alabama's marriage amendment vote takes place June 6, and pro-family supporters are praying that the proposal will get at least 85 percent of the vote.

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Report Reveals Numerous Child Molesters Working at McD's

by Ed Thomas
May 18, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Patrons of McDonald's have been shocked at the news that convicted child molesters are allegedly working at many franchise restaurants around the country. The story was uncovered as the result of some investigative reporting that began in Nashville, Tennessee.

Nashville NewsChannel 5 reporter Phil Williams uncovered several disturbing revelations concerning child sex offenders and their relationship to local McDonald's outlets. On Fox News' O'Reilly Factor, Williams said the investigation started with the local case of a convicted offender on probation who was discovered to be working under the "Golden Arches."

"He had been ordered not to accept any employment around children, and then he was hired at a local McDonald's, even though he was listed on Tennessee's sex-offender registry," Williams explained. The offender was subsequently re-arrested for possession of child pornography.

Further investigation revealed another convicted child molester who had been re-arrested at the McDonald's in Delaware where he worked. That offender, who faces new sex charges, was among 12 other employees on sex-offender registries in that state. The Nashville reporter told Bill O'Reilly's audience he found a combined total of 27 McDonald's workers on sex-offender registries in two other states -- yet they were all hired.

"We found dozens of convicted sex offenders, many of them ... with offenses against children, who are working at McDonald's restaurants around the country," he said. "And as we started looking at state sex-offender registries around the country, we found about five dozen offenders who are listed in about four or five states."

An official statement from McDonald's corporate office says the company does not knowingly hire sex offenders, and requires disclosure from potential employees. But Williams says the problem appears to originate with inconsistent application of that policy. His investigation indicates that locally owned franchises are given discretion in their employment practices, which has allowed many of them to skip background checks that would discover convicted sex offenders.

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Troops, and Now a Fence -- Capitol Hill's Plan for Immigration Legislation Taking Shape

by Jody Brown and Chad Groening
May 18, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The U.S. Senate has called for the construction of 370 miles of fencing along the U.S.-Mexico border to go along with the 6,000 National Guard troops President Bush says he plans to deploy to assist the work of the Border Patrol. While reaction is yet to come from the Mexican government to the Senate's latest move, the Vicente Fox administration has threatened to sue the U.S. if Bush actually does what he says he is going to do.

Immigration reform promises to be a hot topic as the 2006 elections draw nearer. With the Senate's move to construct an actual fence along the border -- and its approval of a provision giving immigrants who have been in the country for more than two years an eventual chance at citizenship -- the White House will likely turn its attention to the House of Representatives, where a contingent of Republicans seems reluctant to support Bush's overall plan. Their support would be critical if an immigration bill is to come out of Congress this year.

The Senate's proposal closely tracks the president's call earlier this week for a comprehensive immigration bill, which includes temporarily assigning several thousand National Guard troops to border hot-spots to provide logistical and other types of support to the U.S. Border Patrol. One report says those troops, if necessary, could be federalized, thereby allowing them to go into the border states over the objections of a state's governor.

Soon after President Bush's announcement proposing the use of Guardsmen along the border, the Mexican government issued a statement saying it will sue the United States if the White House moves forward with the plan. Robert Vasquez -- an American military veteran of Mexican descent who currently serves as a county commissioner in Canyon County, Idaho, and is running for a congressional seat from the state's First District -- says he was appalled by the Mexican government's announcement.

"It's the height of hypocrisy," he says. "The Mexican government has placed its military along its southern border. They have, in fact, been ordered or authorized to use whatever means necessary to stop illegal aliens from entering Mexico along the southern border."

The Idaho Republican sees another double-standard. According to Vasquez, "if you are caught as an illegal alien in Mexico, you are treated far more harshly, with far greater chance of some sort of physical injury, than if you're captured in the United States."

Vasquez says if Mexico takes legal action in the U.N. World Court, it would likely side with Mexico. He says the U.S. should simply ignore any threatened law suits from Mexico. "As far as I'm concerned, they can take whatever they want to the World Court, because it doesn't mean squat to America," he says. "Nor should it." The congressional candidate's website carries the campaign slogan: "Secure our borders -- Secure our future."

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Attorney: Georgia Marriage Amendment Ruling Proves Federal Measure Needed

by Allie Martin
May 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A spokesman with the American Family Center for Law & Policy (AFA Law Center) says the decision of a Georgia judge to strike down that state's ban on same-sex "marriage" clearly shows the need for a federal constitutional amendment to protect marriage.

On Tuesday, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Constance Russell ruled that the constitutional amendment protecting traditional marriage in Georgia violated the state's "single-subject rule" because it asked voters to decide on multiple issues in one amendment. A number of pro-family legal analysts and political leaders have criticized the judge's assertion that the amendment violated the rule by addressing both same-sex marriage and civil unions.

Some legal experts believe it is likely that Russell's decision will be appealed and overturned. Upon hearing of the ruling, Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue promised to weigh his options to protect the will of the people and has since vowed that he would appeal the decision himself. The governor also said he would call a special session of the state legislature to consider putting another marriage amendment on this year's ballot if the Georgia Supreme Court failed to act on the issue by August 7.

Steve Crampton
AFA Law Center chief counsel Steve Crampton, who specializes in American constitutional law, feels Judge Russell's reasoning was based on a flawed reading of the "single-subject rule" and he is convinced her ruling will not stand for long. "I am confident that whether it's at the Court of Appeals or at the Georgia Supreme Court, it will be overturned," he says.

However, Crampton points out, the reversal of the Georgia amendment, which was approved in November 2004 by a 76 percent majority of the state's voters, underscores the vulnerability of state marriage laws across the U.S., even when they have the people's mandate and are enshrined in the state's constitution. What this case does, he asserts, is "it sort of highlights the need for us to take steps to once and for all protect marriage."

The AFA Law Center spokesman notes that this can be a complicated task, given the limitations of state laws. "What they would say in Georgia in this particular case is, 'Oh, well, you can go back, put [the marriage amendment] on the ballot and vote again," he says, "with one amendment for marriage and a separate one for civil unions."

However, Crampton contends, that course of action is not as simple as it might seem. "First of all, that's enormously expensive," he observes. "Second, it is highly inconvenient." Also, even if the Georgia marriage protection amendment were reinstated, the state could still face court challenges from within and could still come into conflict with other jurisdictions where same-sex marriages or civil unions have been approved.

A federal marriage amendment is the only way to ensure the protection of traditional marriage from the attacks of homosexual activists and activist judges, Crampton insists. "The institution of marriage is God's very first social institution," he says. "Protection of the family begins with the protection of marriage, so Congress must act to amend the U.S. Constitution in order to preserve the institution of marriage against the efforts of those seeking to redefine it."

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Why Ears Itch for the Theology of The Da Vinci Code Film

by Dr. Marc T. Newman
May 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Da Vinci Code director Ron Howard was given a tall order. First, how do you make a talky thriller work when nearly your entire pre-sold audience has already read the book, and therefore knows the ending? The Da Vinci Code is not like the films made from the Bourne books, which can sustain their tension on action alone. Let's face it, Dr. Robert Langdon, the "symbologist" protagonist of Dan Brown's bestseller, is no Indiana Jones. Second, your supposedly "fact-based" source material that had faded into relative obscurity is now back on the front pages and everyone is reminded that it is a hoax. The answer? Make significant plot changes to keep 'em guessing and deny, deny, deny.

What is important for Christians to know, if they are thinking of using The Da Vinci Code film as an opportunity to talk about their faith, is that some of the plot changes are rhetorical devices designed to make the arguments in the film appear even more persuasive than in the book. Through these changes, Howard has tried to preempt the hoax criticism, use the conversion of a respected, yet hostile-source, character to bolster the credibility of the film's arguments, and try to blunt reaction from Christians by giving them a place (albeit a much smaller place) at the theological table -- all the while making everyone else feel good about themselves.

Preempting Criticism
When a book as popular as The Da Vinci Code claims that aspects of its story are based on fact, it may as well have thrown down a gauntlet to relentless hordes of apologists and historians. The response didn't take long. The major source material for The Da Vinci Code is Holy Blood, Holy Grail, a book that was dismissed by historians as pseudo-history shortly after its publication in 1982. The entire Priory of Sion hoax had been exposed -- the "organization" did not date from 1099, but from the 1950s, built from thin air by Pierre Plantard and "supported" by forged documents surreptitiously deposited in the Biblioth�que nationale de France in the early 1960s. By the time filming began, the filmmakers must have decided that their two fictional scholars, Langdon and Sir Leigh Teabing, would not be ignorant of the hoax claim.

Unlike the book, in which Langdon is depicted as a collaborator with Teabing, the film version of The Da Vinci Code paints Langdon as an unaffiliated lapsed Catholic skeptic who challenges Teabing's conspiratorial assertions about Church history. After Teabing explains to police cryptologist Sophie Neveu about the shadowy Priory of Sion, Langdon explodes, forcefully asserting that the Priory had been exposed as a hoax. Teabing, matching Langdon's intensity, replies, "That's what they want you to think." Of course, he never identifies who "they" are. I guess that the conspiracy now extends to such "friends of the Church" as all of mainstream academia, the New York Times, and the BBC. Using such an argument, Teabing places the conspiracy beyond dispute. Anyone with counter-evidence is merely a part of the cover-up. It is a classic form of the Begging the Question fallacy. It tries to provide cover for those who want to use these arguments to disparage Christianity.

The Reluctant Convert
Another way that the film attempts to make its arguments more compelling than the book is to cast Langdon as a reluctant convert. In the book, when Langdon brings Sophie to meet Teabing it is out of the respect Langdon has for Teabing's mastery of Holy Grail lore. In other words, Langdon is a fan. But in the film, Langdon and Teabing are portrayed as debaters trying to convince Sophie of alternate views of Church history. And while Langdon is not exactly championing the cause of the Church, he constantly throws cold water on Teabing's conspiratorial assertions by at least presenting the other side.

That the Church's position was given any credibility in the film was a surprise. But to have Langdon making these claims -- even lukewarmly -- was a shocking deviation. It seemed designed to let Christians in the audience breathe a little. But I had read the book, so I knew how this would end.

As I watched the film, I could not discern the precise moment that Langdon becomes a convert, but the longer the film runs, the more Langdon begins talking as if Teabing's assertions now have his Seal of Approval. There is something especially persuasive in seeing a respected person move from hostile source to confederate. It's as if to say, "If someone of Langdon's stature is convinced, then why can't I be more open-minded toward these ideas?"

The Unfulfilling Smorgasbord of Postmodernism
But Howard and company keep hedging their bets. They want to have it both ways, and apparently think that New Age polytheism will be okay as long as Christians have a place at the table. By the end of the film Langdon is waffling -- trying to incorporate a personal religious experience with Jesus into this newfound world of goddess worship. What Langdon essentially says is, "Maybe it's all true. Maybe the human is the divine. All that matters is what you believe." Howard's argument is a perfect example of what New York University professor Thomas de Zengotita describes in his book, Mediated: "Name a topic and, presto, everyone has an opinion, everyone can speculate, everyone has a 'take,' as we say nowadays -- implicitly acknowledging that no one has time for much more than that -- so, what the heck. Mine could be as good as the next one. To each his own worldview. Once again, it's all about you."

Christianity's exclusive claims are odious to those who demand an "inclusive" spirituality. The Bible claims truth, and many in the West echo Pilate, asking dismissively "What is truth?" Christ did not come to soothe the world but to save it. It is a demanding process; it cost Jesus His life. No watered-down version will do. The message of the Gospel is not compromise, but loving, "seasoned-with-salt" confrontation.

The Draw
What is it about these kinds of conspiracy-theory, Gnostic tales that people find so compelling? For some it is just the lure of a good, fast-paced thriller -- which is actually in short supply in the film. But I think that some devotees of the book (who are most likely to see the film early) like the idea that they can vicariously be a part of something larger than themselves. By sharing secret knowledge they enter the "in-group" -- joined to the luminaries of the Priory of Sion: Newton, Da Vinci, and Victor Hugo. If they are especially gullible, it might even make them feel smart.

The Opportunity
Despite the bad theology, false history, rhetorical attempts to make the film's arguments more compelling, and the uninspired filmmaking, The Da Vinci Code still represents a unique opportunity for Christians to engage their culture. Just last night, while checking in at a hotel for an academic conference, I spoke for about 30 minutes with a young hotel desk clerk. She was a Da Vinci Code fan, and said that she planned to take her mother to the film today. She thought there was something to the claims in the book, particularly concerning the authenticity and accuracy of the Bible. I introduced her to arguments I learned more than 30 years ago in From God to Us, by Norman Geisler and William Nix. She had never encountered those ideas before. The odds the conversation would have arisen in that lobby would have been small were it not for the presence of The Da Vinci Code to drive it.

In order to take advantage of this theatrical gift, it is not absolutely necessary to endure the film -- people in your sphere will talk about the film and the book. But reading the book and/or seeing the film will heighten your credibility and give you a greater appearance of objectivity when you discuss it. Now you aren't a crank, you are a fellow reader and viewer. But you must be prepared.

�
Order The Da Vinci Delusion featuring Dr. D. James Kennedy
There are a number of excellent books and articles that Christians can read to have the answers to the questions that arise from The Da Vinci Code. Greg Koukl, from Stand to Reason, and Dallas Theological Seminary both have outstanding articles and resources. MovieMinistry.com has created a Bible study designed for the film that goes beyond the factual debate. It can be used as an outreach to explore the itchy-ear syndrome that has affected a culture that will not endure sound doctrine, and challenges Christians to do something about it.

Films come and go, but the theater screens remain. Before long, and perhaps not too long, The Da Vinci Code will move from the cinema to the video store and other films will take its place. But Hollywood has seen that films with religious content (not necessarily accurate) can attract an audience. These movies will stir people, anger them, make them thoughtful, and (most important) provoke conversation about spiritual issues that might not arise in other contexts. Christians need to remain on the alert so that we can take advantage of every opportunity.

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Resource for HS Grads Hopes to Help Them 'Keep the Faith'

by Jim Brown
May 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - For 15 years, a youth ministry group has been offering a gift for high school graduates that's designed to help them keep their faith strong when they leave their church youth group for college.

"ConGRADulations!" is a "transition tool" for high school seniors that comes in the form of a CD and DVD. This year's CD includes an online graduate devotional journal, interactive scrapbook, links to campus ministries, and 11 contemporary Christian songs that deal with the issues graduates are facing. It is put out by an organization called Interlinc, which works with 60,000 churches helping youth pastors use music and media in evangelism and discipleship of students.

The group's founder and president, Allen Weed, says ConGRADulations! targets young people who often leave their parents' faith to find one of their own.

"Traditionally, books have been given [as graduation gifts]," says Weed. "We've found over the years that kids just -- well, all they need is one more book when their leaving high school. They're going to [think], 'I've been in the books all these years.'"

Weed contends what graduates really need is the content of those books. "But the question is, is there another way to formulate that message in a way that will be relevant to them and useful to them?" he notes. That is where ConGRADulations! comes in.

"It's a real deep project," Weed explains. "It's sort of a book in songs and video. It's got a lot of biblical content that we believe will get used. A kid might leave his books at home when he leaves home to go to school, but he's going to take his music collection and his DVD collection with him."

Weed says this year's project is titled "It's Time for Me to Fly," and features music and advice from bands like MercyMe, Building 429, P.O.D., and SuperChic[k]. It is sold in all Family Christian Stores and in the DaySpring card section of other Christian bookstores.

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Open Doors Wonders: Is Mistreatment of Believers in India Being Ignored?

by Allie Martin
May 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The president of a ministry that serves persecuted Christians worldwide is expressing shock that a government agency has not named India as a country of "particular concern" when it comes to religious freedom.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) recommended the U.S. Department of State keep India off its list as a country of particular concern, or CPC -- despite the fact that attacks on Christian churches and individuals have been on the rise throughout that nation. A press release from the Commission states that, even though "significant developments" affecting freedom of religion and belief have taken place, it is "closely monitoring the situations" in India, categorizing it as a nation that is "under scrutiny." Other nations with that designation are Russia and Sri Lanka.

Open Doors USA, which serves the persecuted Church worldwide, has documented 75 cases of persecution against Christians throughout India this year alone. Carl Moeller, president of Open Doors, says the U.S. government must put pressure on India to stop persecuting Christians.

"We need to pray for the persecuted Church in India, but we also need to pray for our representatives in the U.S. government, that we would take the high moral ground and stand for religious freedom," he urges, "even when this is an economic trading partner and a good friend on many levels. We need to keep putting religious liberty at the center of our foreign policy."

Moeller says the United States must not ignore documented abuses simply because India is considered an ally. "It's the world's largest democracy, and so it's surprising on the one hand because of the volume of incidents and the U.S. government not paying attention to that or the Commission not paying attention to that," he observes.

"But on the other hand, because [India] is a friend, I think it's not surprising [to find it is not on the list]," he continues. "We're all too willing often to look the other way when our friends do these things rather than those countries [where] we'd like to see change [in] their governments."

The State Department will make its 2006 CPC designations in September. Countries being recommended at this time by the USCIRF for that list include North Korea, Eritrea, Iran, Pakistan, People's Republic of China (Red China), Saudi Arabia, and Vietnam.

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Porn Industry Insiders Undone Over 'Rule 2257'

by James L. Lambert
May 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Lawyers defending the smut industry are concerned about "Rule 2257" (18 U.S. Code 2257) which requires pornographers to provide physical evidence that porn performers are of age (18 years or older). The newly updated federal code effects video, still images, and Internet content produced since July 3, 1995.

Jeffrey Douglas of the Free Speech Coalition -- a porn industry advocacy legal group -- feels the law places an "undue burden" on the industry. The group has filed a lawsuit in a Denver court asserting the code violates the industry's First Amendment rights.

Porn industry lawyer Paul Cambria conducted a seminar earlier this year at the Sands Convention Center in Las Vegas instructing industry producers of the nuances of Rule 2257. Adult Video News reports that during the seminar Cambria explained that "performers in sexually explicit material need to provide government-approved forms of identification." He also clarified the difference between the "primary" and "secondary" producers as it pertained to the newly updated code.

Comments by District Court Judge Walker D. Miller indicate that the thrust of the newly updated federal code is generally in compliance with the court's opinion. Walker indicated that the industry coalition has yet to establish "a strong likelihood of success in their First Amendment claim" (Wall Street Journal>). It is generally understood that the Justice Department will begin to enforce Rule 2257 after years of stonewalling by the porn industry.

Dr. Judith Reisman, author of the upcoming Kinsey's Attic: The Shocking Story of How One Man's Sexual Pathology Changed the World (WND Books, November 2006), recalls that the U.S. Commission on Pornography recommended in 1986 that adult performers should be 21 years or older. However after several years of debate, Congress lowered the age to 18. Reisman believes that U.S. agencies "that have pledged and are paid to protect the health and welfare of the American public have failed us." In making a case for a lower age of consent, pornographers can exploit and entice young girls who are desperate and in need of money so that they perform in adult venues, explains Reisman.

After Congress passed the consent and identification law in 1988, it was soon challenged by the porn industry. It has taken more than 17 years of legal challenges to get to the point where the law might finally show some teeth. According to the Wall Street Journal, "first-time violators can face prison sentences up to five years."

U.S.C. 2257 derives from the Child Protection and Obscenity Enforcement Act of 1988.

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As Code Draws Huge Crowds, Christians Question Film's Spiritual Impact

by Jenni Parker and Chad Groening
May 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Despite protests from the Christian community, moviegoers flocked to see the screen adaptation of Dan Brown's controversial novel The Da Vinci Code, the fictional plot of which depicts church conspiracy and cover-up, murder, and mysterious clues about a marriage between Jesus and Mary Magdalene. The film took in $224 million worldwide over its opening weekend.

Reactions to the film have been mixed, even among Christians. One conservative news and entertainment industry watchdog, Michael Chapman of the Media Research Center, is echoing the concerns of many believers who fear The Da Vinci Code will lead many people astray from the true biblical tenets of Christianity. He feels Brown's book and the film based on it are dangerous in that, if a person does not have a solid foundation in the Christian faith, he or she is vulnerable to being misled by the blasphemous assertions of the fictional plot.

Already, Chapman points out, some readers of the novel have been negatively influenced. "If you look at some of the surveys that they've done of people who have read the book, people are walking away and thinking it's true that Jesus did marry Mary Magdalene, that she did have a child," he says. He believes the movie could have the same effect.

"I think that was fully the intention of Dan Brown with the book and also with this movie," the MRC spokesman asserts, "to confuse, because he mixes truth with error. And that's the most dangerous, especially for young people, who only maybe know a little bit about Christianity but also those people who are not solid in the faith and in the Bible and [do not] know what they need to know."

The Da Vinci Code is a dangerous book because it "seeks to undermine and discredit everything that Christianity represents," Chapman adds. And the film based on it, he contends, is just "another tool for anti-Christian forces to damage Christianity and hurt the faith of millions of people and also lead millions of people astray."

Catholic Reaction: 'One of the Most Inane Films I Have Ever Seen'
However, some Christian leaders feel the spiritual impact of The Da Vinci Code book and movie may be less serious than feared. William Donohue, head of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, saw The Da Vinci Code last Friday and described it as "one of the most inane films I have ever seen," a cinema narrative with a "slumbering style" that failed to sustain momentum and with "one of the most thoroughly anti-climactic endings ever to grace the screen."

At the showing he attended, Donohue says only three or four people in the audience clapped when the film ended. Three or four others hissed, he notes, while most "just walked out in a zombie-like fashion, eerily mimicking the characters on the screen."

As for the film's much debated anti-Christian content, the Catholic League spokesman says it is a credit to movie director Ron Howard that he "softened the edges" of the anti-Catholic invective in The Da Vinci Code. Specifically, the Catholic leader explains, the conversation about the divinity of Christ and about religious belief in general was portrayed more sensitively in the film than in the book version, with the result that "the film may have lost some of its punch."

Had the movie been a success, Donohue adds, its effect would have been more troubling. "But because it fails to persuade," he asserts, "this is one movie practicing Christians have nothing to worry about."

Barna Survey Shows Code Confirming Preconceived Beliefs
A new nationwide survey conducted by Christian pollster George Barna's research group also seems to suggest that The Da Vinci Code may have fairly limited impact on those exposed to its anti-Christian ideas. The Barna Group study found that, of the 45 million adults who have read the Dan Brown novel, only 5 percent -- that is, about two million of them -- said any of their beliefs or religious perspectives had changed because of the book's content.

Many people reading The Da Vinci Code encountered information that confirmed what they already believed, Barna explains. "Few people changed their pre-existing beliefs because of what they read in the novel," he says, "and even fewer people approached the book with a truly open mind regarding the controversial matters in question, and emerged with a new theological perspective."

"The book generates controversy and discussions," the Christian researcher says, "but it has not revolutionized the way that Americans think about Jesus, the Church or the Bible.' If the movie has a similar level of influence on movie-goers as the book has had on adult readers, he notes, about a half-million adults could be expected to change one or more of their religious beliefs based upon the movie's content.

Still, Barna points out, "any book that alters one or more theological views among two million people is not to be dismissed lightly." And the most significant impact of The Da Vinci Code, he warns, could be on young people who see the film, since their belief systems are still being developed and are more susceptible to the influence of new teachings.

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Idaho Resident: Remove Sexually Graphic Books from Children's View

by Jim Brown
May 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Parents in an Idaho city want their local public library to remove from the shelves several books containing graphic images of heterosexual and homosexual sex and place them out of the eyesight of children.

At question are nine books in the non-fiction section of the Nampa Public Library, including titles such as The New Joy of Sex, The Joy of Sex Toys, and The Joy of Gay Sex. Nampa resident Randy Jackson filled out a complaint form at the library and even addressed the library's board of directors in January, but the board said the books would remain so that the needs of the whole community would be represented.

Jackson, who recently brought his concerns before the Nampa City Council, says parents are especially horrified with the book The Joy of Gay Sex.

"There's a chapter entitled 'Daddy-Son Sexual Fantasies' where it talks about two people having sex while pretending that they're father and son," the local resident explains. Another chapter in the book that he finds disturbing teaches teens how to surf the internet for homosexual sex -- and then cover their tracks.

"They have a chapter entitled 'Teenagers,'" he continues. "It explains to teenagers how they can go into online chat rooms on the Internet and how to meet people for sex in online chat rooms. It encourages them to learn to [delete] their web browser history so their parents won't be able to find out where they've been to on the Internet."

Jackson says the presence of the sexually explicit books is even more troubling given the recent rash of child enticement cases in the western Idaho community. He adds that a city council member plans to meet with the library board in June in hopes of resolving the issue of the books' accessibility to children.

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More Connecticut Homeowners Fighting City for Their Property

by Allie Martin
May 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Property owners in one Connecticut neighborhood face a showdown with city officials who want to evict the homeowners to make room for a commercial development.

It was nearly one year ago when the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark Kelo v. City of New London, which gave municipalities the right to use eminent domain for economic development. Today (May 22) property owners in the Fort Trumbull neighborhood of New London will hold a news conference to thank Connecticut Governor Jodi Rell for her support of homeowners.

Scott Bullock is senior attorney with the Institute for Justice, which is mounting the legal appeals for property owners. He says Fort Trumbull homeowners should be honored, not evicted.

Scott Bullock
"This isn't a situation where they're trying to shut down all development. They simply want to hold onto their homes," Bullock says. "And they should not lose those homes just because the government thinks a new owner could create more taxes or try to improve the economy. That's not a legitimate use of eminent domain."

The city has given property owners a deadline of May 31 to accept offers from the city to sell their homes, or the city will forcibly evict them and impose hefty fines.

"We'd like to see this issue -- and I think everybody would like to see this issue in New London -- put to bed," the attorney states. "It's been a long, long, hard-fought battle, but these people are willing to hang in there and to fight for their homes. We hope to accomplish that without having to resort to other legal means. We're looking at those options, which would just create more controversy and drag this process out further."

Bullock was co-counsel in and argued the Kelo case, and has worked with property owners in scores of other cities throughout the country challenging private-to-private transfers of property. He contends New London does not need the Fort Trumbull property for the proposed development projects.

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Group Urges Boycott to Make McDonald's Screen-Out Sex Offenders

by Ed Thomas
May 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - According to a recent media report, in the four states that identify employers on their sex-offender registries, some 42 offender names were listed as working for McDonald's. The news, along with documented incidents of employees being arrested for new sex-related crimes, has brought criticism from an organization that works to prevent child abuse.

The investigative report was done by Nashville's TV NewsChannel 5 and revealed a company employment policy that rules out hiring registered sex offenders at company-owned stores but leaves franchisee-owned stores free to set their own policies. However, a statement from the company notes that criminal background checks on those hired are not guaranteed even at corporate locations. (See earlier article)

Jody Gorran, founder of the National Foundation to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse, finds this unacceptable from a business that markets itself as child-friendly. There is no excuse for such a negligent policy, he contends, especially since computerized criminal background checks are available through commercial databases and from the Federal Bureau of Investigations.

Gorran feels the McDonald's officials should be held accountable and compelled to change their employment policy to require criminal background checks. "By hiring convicted sex offenders to work in their restaurants, they're putting not only fellow young employees at risk but also children from the public at risk," he says.

The National Foundation founder maintains several websites that teach individuals how to get both fingerprint checks and criminal background checks on prospective employees. However, he notes, dozens of the McDonald's staff members found to have sex crime backgrounds were even listed on Internet sex offender registries in their states.

It is ridiculous, Gorran contends, that fast-food giant's employment practices have allowed convicted sexual predators and child predators to be hired at its franchises across the United States. "I've never heard of anything like that," he says. "It's totally absurd. It's beyond the pale."

The fact that the popular restaurant chain "can have standards for making their hamburgers and making their fries but not have standards for their franchisees in terms of who they hire to work in their restaurants is outrageous," Gorran says.

A response statement from McDonald's notes that the safety and well-being of customers and employees is a top priority with the company and that the allegations are being investigated. Meanwhile, the National Foundation to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse is calling on parents and families to boycott McDonald's until the corporation requires its franchises to do background checks on all employees.

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Human Rights Group Questions Indonesia's Motives for Arresting Muslims

by Allie Martin
May 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The director of a human rights group says the recent arrest of seven Muslims in connection with last year's beheading of three Christian schoolgirls could be a political move by Indonesian officials.

The seven men are accused of taking part in the attack on four teenage girls as they walked to a Christian school in the community of central Sulawesi. Three of the girls were beheaded, but a fourth survived and was able to identify her attackers. Police believe some of the suspects were also involved in the July 2004 murder of a Christian pastor.

Ann Buwalda is director of the Jubilee Campaign, which monitors human rights abuses throughout the world. She believes the arrests of the Muslim suspects could be an effort by Indonesian government officials to divert attention from three Christian men who are currently facing the death penalty for acting in self-defense during riots between Christians and Muslims six years ago.

The Christian men are charged with having been ringleaders and stirring up the conflict, Buwalda notes. However, she says the conflict has much deeper roots.

"These men were involved in defending their homes and their churches from Laskar Jihad militants who were rampaging and burning them down," the Jubilee Campaign spokeswoman explains. "Many in the Christian community view these men as peacekeepers, as those who are trying to keep their community from attack by the Laskar Jihad."

According to the Center for Defense Information in Washington, DC, Laskar Jihad is an Indonesian militant group that has received attention in past years for its unrelenting attacks against Christians on the islands of Moluccas and Sulawesi. More recently, the radical Muslim organization has been under scrutiny for its possible connections with other international terrorist groups, including al Qaeda.

A number of Indonesian human rights groups have taken up the cause of the three Christian men -- Fabianus Tibo, Dominggus Dasilva and Marinus Riwu -- who have been denied clemency by Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. The three prisoners maintain their innocence and claim that their convictions resulted from irregularities during their trial.

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Hope Rwanda Brings Message of Healing to Scarred African Nation

by Allie Martin
May 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The anniversary of a tragic and a deadly event in Rwanda has become an occasion to share God's Word and bring healing and hope to the still-scarred African nation.

The Florida-based ministry Book of Hope is in its third week of its scripture distribution project in Africa, an initiative called "Hope Rwanda: 100 Days of Hope." Through this campaign, volunteers from the United States, Australia, Great Britain, New Zealand, and other countries are handing out more than two million copies of scripture to each child in Rwanda.

Rob Hoskins is helping to coordinate the campaign. He says Hope Rwanda is being held during the twelfth anniversary of the 1994 genocide in that country, a 100-day period of bloodshed in which more than one million men, women, and children were killed by extremist militia groups.

Participants in the international effort are trying to make a difference in the violence-devastated country "by working with the Rwandan government with an understanding that many people are still living with the pain and the scars of what took place 12 years ago," Hoskins says. He notes that many Rwandans still live in a state of hopelessness and despair.

"Rwanda is a country, like most of Sub-Saharan Africa, that is suffering from poverty, suffering from famine," the Book of Hope Ministry spokesman says. "Economic situations are fairly hopeless and unemployment is at nearly 50 percent," he adds. "And then, of course, there is the scourge of HIV/AIDS, which is affecting the country of Rwanda as well."

The Book of Hope is a scripture book that combines the stories and messages of the four gospels, told in chronological order. It has been distributed to school children in their own language in more than 125 countries around the world, each time at the government's request.

Hoskins notes that the Book of Hope ministry is hoping to dispel some of the despair left in the wake of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda by sharing God's Word. "So the initiative is to really try and bring hope, through the message of Jesus, to the entire nation," he says.

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Liberal Clergy's Opposition to Marriage Amendment No Surprise, Say Conservatives

by Bill Fancher
May 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Clergy opposed to a constitutional ban on same-sex "marriage" say religious conservatives who support the proposed federal marriage amendment are bigots. But those conservatives don't appear to be overly concerned about the left-leaning clergy's lobbying efforts to derail the proposed constitutional amendment.

Several dozen Christian and Jewish leaders held a news conference on Capitol Hill, where they are lobbying senators to reject the amendment when it comes up for a vote about two weeks from now. Involved in that coalition were United Methodists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Lutherans, United Church of Christ, Reformed Jews, and others.

The proposed amendment that protects marriage as defined in the Bible, as the union of a man and a woman, is supported by Roman Catholic bishops and the Southern Baptist Convention. But Rev. Paul Simmons, a Baptist minister and University of Louisville professor, said the amendment "has the smell and feel of Salem," comparing its supporters to the colonial Puritans who burned witches.

Simmons says he and many other clergy oppose a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage. "There is a broad and profound opposition to the proposed amendment among religious people," he noted. "The thunder of the Religious Right should be resisted as misguided and prejudicial."

And Rev. Kenneth Samuel, a United Church of Christ pastor and NAACP chapter president in Georgia, said black pastors who oppose homosexual marriage have turned their backs on civil rights. "A lot of what goes on is also tied on to the faith-based initiative money," Pastor Samuel said, "and I am sorry to say that many of our African-American clergy have been bought out."

Gary Bauer of the Campaign for Working Families is not concerned about the coalition of religious leaders who are lobbying against the marriage amendment. "I believe they're way out of step with church-going Americans who, every study shows, overwhelmingly support keeping marriage as the union of one man and one woman," he says. Every state that has considered a marriage amendment to its constitution has seen decisive majorities of voters -- as high as 70 and 80 percent -- approve the measure.

And Rob Schenck of the National Clergy Council says he is not surprised to see these groups and other liberal denominations speaking out against defining marriage as it is taught in the Bible. "This is completely predictable for this bunch," says Schenck. "Every time anyone anywhere asserts traditional moral values or traditional biblical positions on anything -- and most especially marriage and human sexuality -- you can predict that this same group will parade out and oppose it."

Schenck says these groups are not only on the wrong side of Christian doctrine and the wrong side of what he calls "the moral divide," but also on the wrong side of history. He believes that is why such groups are losing members. "While it's lamentable, while it's predictable, in the end it only makes them even more irrelevant than they are," he states.

Effect of Legalized 'Gay Marriage' on Traditionalists
Meanwhile, the president of The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty says churches and Christian schools that oppose same-sex marriage will face government pressure if it is legalized. Anthony Picarello says they could be barred from firing employees with same-sex spouses, forced to give them marital benefits, or lose charitable and property tax exemptions if they refuse.

Picarello and other legal experts took part in a recent panel discussion at the Heritage Foundation. Maggie Gallagher, a columnist who heads the Institute for Marriage and Public Policy, offered grim predictions about people and churches who oppose same-sex unions, should they be legalized.

"Once a court goes to rule gay marriage is a civil right, people who have an older, conjugal vision of marriage as inherently the union of husband and wife are going to be treated like racists in the public square," she offered.

And as for churches that believe homosexual marriage is immoral? "The temptation will be ... [to] simply mute your marriage theology," said Gallagher, opining that many people will find it hard to resist that temptation. "If you are just quieter about it ... as long as you're not too loud about this and keep your nose clean, you'll stay out of trouble."

She believes recent events have shown why a federal marriage amendment is needed. "Leaving it to the states right now is leaving it to state judges, not to the people in states," she noted. "We've already had judges in two states overturn state marriage amendments that were passed by more than 70 percent of the people."

In essence, said Gallagher, unless the U.S. Constitution is amended to protect traditional marriage, judges will probably force states to legalize homosexual marriage.

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Schenck: U.S. Must Stand Ready to Oppose Human Rights Abuses in Iran

by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
May 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian activist says believers must urge the United States government to take action against Iran if that country passes a law requiring Jews, Christians, and other religious minorities to wear identifying badges.

According to a United Press International report and other media sources, Iranian expatriates say Iran's parliament, or majlis, has approved a law requiring, among other things, that the roughly 25,000 Jews living in the Islamic Republic of Iran must wear a yellow strip of cloth attached to their clothing, while Christians would have to wear red badges, and Zoroastrians, blue badges. However, according to more recent reports several experts are casting doubt on the assertion that Iran has actually passed such a law.

Chris Wattie, a writer with Canada's National Post, followed up an earlier report about the law's passage with an update, noting that the Iranian Embassy in Ottowa has denied that the measure was approved. Also, the reporter notes, Sam Kermanian of the U.S.-based Iranian-American Jewish Federation, said in an interview that he had contacted members of the Jewish community in Iran -- including the sole Jewish member of the Iranian parliament -- and they all denied any such law was in place.

Kermanian did say, however, that the subject of "what to do with religious minorities" came up during debates leading up to the passing of a national uniform or dress code law, and it is possible that "some ideas might have been thrown around." However, the Federation spokesman added that, to the best of his knowledge, the final version of the law required no identifying marks by the religious minority groups. Nevertheless, Kermanian pointed out that Jews in Iran do face widespread, systematic discrimination. For example, he noted that if Jews want to sell food, they have to identify themselves and their shops as non-Muslim.

Wattie also reports that Rabbi Marvin Hier, dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles, admitted he did not have independent confirmation of the passage of a law requiring Jews to wear badges, but said he still believes it was passed. Hier said it is known that a national uniform law was passed and that certain colors were selected for Jews and other minorities, but he added, "If the Iranian government is going to pass such a law then they are not likely to be forthcoming about what they are doing."

An Idea Whose Time Should Never Come Again
Although the facts from early reports regarding the Iranian dress code law now appear inconclusive, the story has nevertheless sparked outrage and concern across the international community. The very idea that the Iranian parliament had approved legislation mandating that non-Muslims wear color-coded identifiers prompted some commentators to start drawing comparisons between Iran and the Third Reich.

Pastor Rob Schenck, president of the National Clergy Council (NCC), was among those outraged by the news of the ID badge law. "It is an offense against everything human," he remarked. "It sets up Iran for the same horrors that Nazi Germany produced 60 and 70 years ago."

The United States cannot afford to stand by and let history repeat itself, Schenck asserts. If Iran should ever attempt to pass a dress code law that forces non-Muslims to wear ID badges, he feels the church in America should be among the first to oppose it. "It is critical that Christians speak out loudly and immediately to denounce [such a] measure," he says.

If Christians do not speak out in the face of religious persecution and human rights abuses, the NCC spokesman says the world may well see a repeat of some of the most abhorrent episodes in human history. "During the 1930s, Christians were silenced. They were reluctant to act," he says.

"The United States was slow to respond, and in fact, in a couple of instances, turned people away who were seeking to flee from precisely this kind of persecution," Schenck continues. "That cannot happen again."

The U.S. clergy leader feels a law that would force Christians, Jews, and other non-Muslims to wear identifying markers obviously sets these religious minorities up for discrimination, persecution, or worse. If Iran takes steps in that direction, he says, the U.S. should act rather than turn a blind eye as some people in the U.S., even believers, did to Hitler's oppressive regime.

Americans are "wiser people now" and can no longer justify that kind of inaction, Schenck asserts. "We know the kinds of horrors that can happen in the world, that have happened in the east and in the west. We're no longer naïve," he says. "We can't use that as an excuse."

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Prof Faces Criminal Charges After Urging Vandalism of Pro-Life Display

by Jim Brown
May 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A judge says charges may be dropped against six Northern Kentucky University (NKU) students who destroyed a pro-life display on campus if they complete a community service program. However, a tenured feminist professor who encouraged the act of vandalism was not offered the same deal.

The students involved in the destruction of property have been charged along with NKU Professor Sally Jacobsen with "criminal mischief" and "theft by unlawful taking" for their role in trashing a display of 400 white crosses, put up in front of the University Center plaza by a student group called Northern Right to Life. The display, titled "Cemetery of Innocents," was designed to call attention to the unborn victims of abortion.

The 400 crosses from the pro-life exhibit, which had been erected with permission from university officials, were removed by the vandals, gathered up, and thrown in trash cans around the plaza. Also, Northern Right to Life's sign bearing the title of the display had been removed and members of the group were unable to find it.

Jacobsen, who has been charged with criminal solicitation, admits to having "invited" her students to participate in destroying the "Cemetery of Innocents," although she has withheld comment regarding her physical involvement in the act of removing the crosses. However, a number of websites and "blogs" have posted images in which the professor appears to be gathering up crosses removed from the pro-life display.

District Judge Karen Thomas says charges against the students involved in the vandalism incident would be dropped if they completed a diversion program. However, Assistant Campbell County Attorney Rick Woeste would not offer Jacobsen a similar plea deal.

"Everybody's entitled to their views on issues, no matter what they are," Woeste notes. "The right-to-life group did that correctly. They went [to school officials], as I understand it, got a permit and put up a display to present their point of view," he says. The teacher in this instance and the students who followed her lead "wanted to let their views be known," the County Attorney points out, "but they did it in a totally inappropriate, criminal manner."

Jacobsen was not given the diversion program option, Woeste explains, because "a distinction was drawn between the students and the person in charge of the students." Officials felt the professor used her authority to intimidate the NKU students into believing they would not be engaging in an unlawful act by destroying the pro-life display.

"We don't live in a country where we're allowed to destroy someone else's property or vandalize someone's else's property when we disagree with what they're saying," Woeste says. "If that were the case, we could never have political signs," he asserts. "The opposition would always destroy each other's signs, and there would be a total intolerance for other folks' views."

Charges against Jacobsen and the students who helped to dismantle the "Cemetery of Innocents" will be discussed today (May 23) at a pre-trial hearing. Meanwhile, a statement last month from NKU President James Votruba said that Professor Jacobsen had been removed from her remaining classes and placed on leave and that she would retire from the university at the end of the semester.

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Pro-Family Leader Pleased to Find Ohio at Bottom of Homosexuals' List

by Chad Groening
May 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An Ohio pro-family activist says the state should consider it a point of pride that a radical homosexual rights group has ranked Ohio last in the United States in terms of providing special rights to homosexuals and similar groups.

A pro-homosexual group calling itself Equality of Ohio recently published a nationwide study about so-called discrimination against "gays," lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered individuals. The study rated the state of Ohio dead last in protecting the "equality" of those groups.

But Phil Burress of the Cincinnati-based pro-family group Citizens for Community Values (CCV) says one has to understand what homosexual activists mean when they talk about equality. What they are really talking about, he asserts, is "special rights" for homosexual, bisexual and transgendered people.

"You would be surprised what it is that they really want," Burress says. "What they call equality is for everyone to accept their behavior and for them to have access to our children at a very early age, promoting homosexuality as normal." Opposing the homosexual activists' agenda is "what they call intolerance," he contends.

Equality of Ohio recently conducted a Lobby Day in Columbus, hoping to persuade Ohio lawmakers to support a bill that would give individuals special rights based on their sexual orientations and prohibit "discrimination" on that basis.

"What they're complaining about," Burress asserts, "is ... that they don't have rights and privileges that override the rest of us who are average working families and people here in the state of Ohio. They want special privileges."

Also, the pro-family advocate says, homosexual activists want access to the educational system and government sanction of same-sex marriage. "They want to have all the things that the people and the governments and the laws have said that they can't have," he says.

And because the majority of the people and their pro-family representatives are opposed to all these things the homosexual activists are demanding, Burress adds, "they feel like we're intolerant. So I guess we should wear that as a badge of honor."

Groups like Equality of Ohio want to force acceptance of their behavior and to promote it as normal, Burress points out; but he says the citizens of the state have apparently been resistant to that agenda. He feels Ohioans should be proud to come in last on the pro-homosexual group's list of states advancing "special rights" for homosexuals and other groups.

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Nebraska Lawmaker Chides NAACP for Filing Lawsuit Impulsively

by Jim Brown
May 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Nebraska lawmaker says the NAACP "compromised its professional principles and integrity" by filing a lawsuit challenging a new state law that's designed to reform failing Omaha public schools by giving them local control.

The law divides the largest school district in Nebraska into three smaller districts of roughly 15,000 students each. But the lawsuit by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) claims the plan designed by Senator Ernie Chambers of Omaha "intentionally furthers racial segregation" and is causing immediate harm -- despite the fact the district will not be divided until 2008.

Chambers, the only black lawmaker in the Nebraska Legislature, says he intentionally provoked the NAACP to file the lawsuit well before the law even takes effect. "They filed a stupid lawsuit too soon because they took the bait," he says, "and I think they're going to be greatly embarrassed before this is all over."

Chambers says the lawsuit filed in federal court even contains spelling errors. "Without even reading my log, without having the decency or professional courtesy to discuss it with me, they put themselves in a foolish, untenable position from which they don't know how to escape," explains the lawmaker. "So they signed onto a lawsuit which was so poorly crafted that it's a mockery throughout the city."

According to the state senator, the NAACP -- which he says is attempting to move to the middle of the road on social issues -- hastily responded to a newspaper article that reported billionaire Warren Buffet and others in corporate America opposed the law.

"[They're] trying to reach out to white corporate America for large corporate contributions because they are losing membership, not reaching the grassroots, because of the kind of thing they are doing in this lawsuit," he says. "So I think [when] they read this New York Times article, they said, 'These rich men are opposed to it,' the smell of money took over, and they said, 'If we jump into this on the side of these rich men, it will help what we're trying to do.'"

Senator Chambers says schools in Omaha have been segregated since 1999, so he is simply trying to reverse the harm that has been caused.

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Mexico's Threatened Lawsuits 'Ludicrous,' Says Attorney

by Allie Martin
May 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A constitutional attorney with the American Family Association says the recent threat of a lawsuit against the U.S. by the Mexican government over border security is absurd.

The threatened lawsuit is in response to President Bush's pledge to use National Guard troops along the U.S.-Mexico border to bolster the efforts of the Border Patrol, primarily in support roles such as logistics and medical support. The Pentagon has stated that the bulk of personnel for the mission would be taken from National Guard troops in California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas -- the four border states.

Following the president's announced intentions, a representative for Mexican President Vicente Fox stated that if the National Guard troops detain Mexican citizens crossing the border illegally, the Fox government will file lawsuits. Steve Crampton, chief counsel for the Center for Law & Policy and a constitutional expert, says while such a lawsuit is technically possible, it is not likely.

"What you have is Mexican nationals leaving their nation in droves, seeking to come to the free and prosperous nation of the United States on a permanent basis," he says. "And so, for Mexico to sue because of some actions of our National Guard troops within our own borders, in policing those borders, is basically ludicrous." And any lawsuits would be without merit, he adds.

The attorney believes the threat of lawsuits is meant simply to send a message. "The Mexican government wants to communicate to the U.S. government and to the world that they object to what's going on [along the border]," says Crampton. He contends they have a purpose in sending that message. "They want to make waves and try to work, I think, an agreement and a treaty whereby the Mexican government can profit from our own internal unrest and dissension on the issue of immigration."

This is not the first time Mexico has voiced such threats. Officials with the Mexican government have threatened lawsuits against the group known as the Minutemen Project when they started patrolling the southern U.S. border earlier this year.

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Senators Blasted for Vacillating Over English Language Provisions

by Chad Groening
May 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An English language advocate says more than two dozen members of the U.S. Senate are trying to have it both ways when it comes to legislation designed to strengthen English as the official language of the United States. That is why he has issued what he calls the "Weathervane Awards."

Jim Boulet is executive director of the advocacy group English First. He says 25 senators have voted for an amendment introduced by Senator Jim Inhofe that supports English as America's official language.

However, Boulet says those same senators have sent mixed signals to their constituencies by then turning around and voting for an amendment sponsored by Colorado's Ken Salazar, supporting President Bill Clinton's "Mandatory Translation Edict" or Executive Order 13166. The English language advocate feels the two measures are diametrically opposed.

Executive Order 13166 requires that recipients of federal funds to provide free translation and interpreter services for their non-English speaking clients. According to the edict, these federal funding recipients -- a large class that includes doctors participating in Medicaid or Medicare as well as state and local government agencies -- may be guilty of violating the ban on "national origin" discrimination in Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act if they fail to comply.

"One thing that keeps the Clinton executive order from being enforced more strictly than it is, is that both sides know it's not really a law like a congressional law," Boulet points out. "But if [proponents] can get Congress to pass something approving of the executive order," he says, "then it can be seen as a law."

Now, the English First official notes, it is up to a congressional Conference Committee to decide which of the English amendments goes into the final immigration package. "The conferees are, at best, weak on standing up for our borders, standing up for English," he says, "so we're going to need the House conferees to stand very strong."

Congress must be firm on a number of points in order to pass meaningful immigration reform legislation, Boulet insists. He says lawmakers have to be prepared to "walk away" from the immigration bill, particularly if it fails to include both border enforcement and English language provisions.

Also, the English language advocate contends, lawmakers should reject any sort of guest worker plan concessions. "Any reference to guest worker amnesty is just unacceptable," he says.

Salazar's amendment is designed to put the official stamp of approval on Clinton Executive Order 13166, Boulet asserts. He believes the senators who have voted in favor of both the Inhofe bill and the Salazar amendment are trying to have it both ways, which is why he is conferring the "Weathervane Award" on each of them.

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Ministry Nurtures Christian Leadership on Dark Continent

by Rebecca Grace
May 24, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Val Vickery, a resident of Jackson, Mississippi, and former missionary to Africa, had no idea how many lives would be changed as a result of her visit to a radio station on a college campus in Malawi, Africa, nearly 10 years ago.

She and her husband Barry had just moved from the United States to Africa where they would spend the next year and a half sharing the Gospel while teaching. They arrived during the summer months, so the school with which they would be working was not in session.

"We went to the radio station to learn from the manager because I thought I was going to be working with the radio station on that campus," Val said.

A friendship began to develop between the Vickerys and station manager Japhet Mchakulu, which prompted Val to ask Mchakulu about his education.

"Have you ever thought about getting more education?" Val asked Mchakulu.

"Why would I dream? Where would I ever get the money for that?" he replied.

"What if we could raise it?" Val questioned.

"Of course," Mchakulu said.

"OK, let's see what we can do," Val agreed.

And that was it -- the aspirations of a bright young man and a budding friendship that sparked the beginning of Educating Africans for Christ (EAFC).

Going Relational
EAFC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit ministry supported by donations. It was created in 1997 to educate and equip Africans to be missionaries in their own culture while inspiring Americans to get involved with the kingdom of God on the continent of Africa.

"During that time [in Africa], we became convinced of a great need, and that is a need for trained leadership," Barry explained. "We saw so many students who weren't able to go further, where their churches weren't able to train them in leadership. So, out of that grew our desire for seeing leadership trained for the church in Africa."

Specifically, the purpose of EAFC is "to equip those with a calling from God to do whatever work God has called them to for His glory, rather than for personal advancement," according to the EAFC board of directors. EAFC seeks to partner with churches in Africa as a means of providing monetary and relational support for its students in training.

"[But] we're not [only] a scholarship agency," Val explained. "I can't say that enough. We're about relationships."

Therefore, to avoid being mercenary in its function, EAFC institutes student communicators who are given the specific responsibility of keeping in touch with the African students throughout the semester and staying up-to-date on special needs and prayer requests. As a result, friendships are established and the Church is strengthened.

"We have learned that since the kingdom of God is global, we, as Christians, must act globally in our approach to responsibilities, giving and support of each other within the Body of Christ," stated an EAFC board letter.

Going Global
The call to global action became real to Diane Defore, an EAFC executive board member and graphic designer, when she went on a vision trip to Kenya last year.

"I came home moved by the students that I met," Defore said.

"When you go there [Africa], you cannot help but be changed by what you see, whether it's just the dire poverty or the incredible zeal that they have for the Lord," added Sarah Thomas, another vision trip participant.

Although similar to a short-term mission trip in nature, vision trips provide participants a means of observing and assessing the educational and spiritual needs of the African people and strategizing on how to meet those needs in partnership with African churches. Once the assessments are made, a selection process is instituted to choose students who are eligible for training under the ministry of EAFC.

"We are currently partnering with 62 churches in Africa," Defore explained. "We partner with African churches because this is all about the African church, not us. Our role is to come alongside the African church and help them accomplish what God has already called them to do."

The partnerships begin when African churches recommend students to EAFC and agree to take on "Africa-side" responsibilities for those students whose character, abilities and commitment to God have already been established. Support includes some financial assistance, as well as mentoring, guiding, praying for and communicating with the students.

"[The African churches] identify those God is raising up for leadership, and we simply assist them in getting the training they determine they need, but cannot afford," Defore added.

Once chosen, students submit an application that is then rated and categorized by the EAFC scholarship committee.

"As the partnerships grow, we give in relation to them," Val added.

To date, EAFC has supported nearly 100 students with financial scholarships that are used to pay for tuition, not living expenses, at various educational institutions in Africa. The scholarship money is sent directly to the institution the student is attending, and the cost varies based on the degree level on which the student is working. The average yearly cost to support one student at a certificate or diploma level is about $300. For a graduate-level student, the annual cost is closer to $1,000.

"It's just a case-by-case need and [depends] on how much money we have to give away," Val explained.

"We're always six months away from being bankrupted and have never been in the red. Isn't that amazing?"

EAFC seeks to use God's gifts wisely and does so by instituting a five-step process that involves exploring, serving, contributing, relating and evaluating. Using the evaluation step, EAFC decided it would be more efficient to change the location of the training.

EAFC began by bringing African students to the U.S. to study. Now 99 percent of the training received by EAFC men and women is taught in African institutions because it is more cost effective and culturally relevant. They are able to learn in the context of their own culture in the company of family and friends.

Going Long-Term
The ministry believes it is important to support the preparation and equipping of these students in any field of work "since those with a Christian worldview can serve God in many arenas."

For example, Mchakulu became the first EAFC-trained student and now teaches at the University of Malawi. He is a lecturer in communications, a preacher on the weekends, and a volunteer for EAFC. Another EAFC student works as a chaplain for the police force in Zambia. Medicine and community development are some other areas of study being pursued by EAFC students.

"This is a new concept for them [the churches] -- to invest in education for someone else, especially if it's not ministerial or theological," Val said.

But the vision for equipping Africans to minister in their native land continues to expand as churches catch on and long-range plans are put into action.

Within the next five years, EAFC plans to place a missionary in Africa who will act as a liaison between the two continents. The ministry also intends to institute several pilot programs as an attempt to improve communication and other organizational functions.

"A lot of the work we're doing now, we're going to shift to Africa, and the alumni of EAFC are going to be carrying out that work," Val explained. "As we grow and explore with them and seek to serve them, a lot ... will come forth as to how God wants to structure this five or ten years from now."

In the meantime, Val continues to challenge the Church to examine its priorities and recognize the need for global missions. "Do you want to see Africa equipped to spread the love of Jesus Christ on that continent?" Val asked. "The needs are huge. Can you join us?"

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British Okay Scrapping Embryos Based on Potential for Adult Illness

by Mary Rettig
May 24, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The executive director of the Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA) says Great Britain has taken a dangerous and unethical step in embryo screening.

The British Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority recently ruled that fertility clinics can screen out embryos that contain genes that raise the risk of cancer in adulthood. The doctors will do this by using pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, which removes a couple of cells from an eight-cell embryo.

Dr. David Stevens of the CMDA says while every doctor wants to ease suffering for his patients and prevent cancer, this move by the British is completely immoral. And further research has shown that in many cases, the move may be entirely unnecessary as well, he notes.

Stevens points to a new study that came out recently, which showed that many of these embryos which tested as abnormal at two to three days of life, once they were implanted or grown in the laboratory in culture media, subsequently tested as normal.

The researchers found that, 12 days after conception, about half of the embryos previously diagnosed as having defective genes "had actually reversed and were not abnormal anymore," the Christian doctor says. "Essentially, they repaired themselves."

Diagnosing possible adult diseases by pre-implantation genetic diagnosis is not 100 percent reliable, Stevens points out. And it is unfair, he asserts, to use such techniques to label a pre-born baby unfit to live, simply on the basis that the developing child might get cancer as an adult.

The British government may claim this new embryo-screening policy will prevent future suffering, but Stevens sees it as a dangerous step in the direction of creating government-sanctioned eugenics programs. "Eugenics," he explains, "means improving the human race by encouraging or permitting reproduction of only those with genetic characteristics judged desirable."

The CMDA spokesman feels officials at the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority are coming precariously close to playing God. "Essentially, what they're doing in laboratories is deciding who lives and who dies," he says, "and that's the same eugenics philosophy. First they started with lethal defects in England, and now we're on this slippery slope."

Stevens sees the Authority's decision to allow fertility clinics to screen-out embryos on the basis of pre-implantation genetic diagnosis as an immoral and a dangerous one. No pre-born baby, he insists, should ever have to die because of a disease the developing child may or may not get as an adult.

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Alabama Teacher Fired for Allegedly Showing Students Obscene Images

by Jim Brown
May 24, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An Alabama school board has fired a science teacher who allegedly showed some of his eighth-grade students Internet videos depicting sex acts and other obscene images.

Last week the West Limestone Board of Education voted 6-1 to terminate the contract of tenured teacher Steve White, who has been on unpaid leave since early April. Administrators concluded that White had shown obscene Internet clips, including an animated depiction of former President Bill Clinton engaging in sexual activity.

But Jimmy Corder, one of White's attorneys, insists the teacher did not show students any video film strip. "I was present for the hearing; I heard all of the evidence," the lawyer says. "There were several things reproduced, I think you would say, from his computer." However, Corder asserts, not a single one of these reproduced items, "so far as anybody could show," originated from the teacher's hard drive.

"Everything that anybody alleged was wrong were things that were sent to his computer," the attorney says. "All but one of them were, supposedly -- and I'm not a computer expert -- but all but one of them were somehow either put on his computer through an iPod, which he doesn't own and nobody in his family has, ... or a Flash [digital memory] card."

As far as the Flash card is concerned, Corder says he and his client "don't even know what that is," and only know about the possibility of that technology being involved in putting the images in question on White's computer "because the County had a computer expert go back and pull things off of the hard drive." The attorney claims the inappropriate images were imported into the teacher's computer without his knowledge.

White was reprimanded last month after parents complained that he had shown students an anti-George Bush Internet video in class. However, because of a new state tenure law, he is able to appeal his firing. The case will now proceed to binding arbitration.

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Calif. Activist: Gore's 'Global Warming' Film Taking Students, Others on a Ride

by Jim Brown
May 24, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A California pro-family group is criticizing a Los Angeles-area high school for busing students to watch former Vice President Al Gore's new movie on the theory of global warming.

According to the Drudge Report, 1,500 Beverly Hills high school students were to board 30 school buses this morning and be transported across town to watch the documentary "An Inconvenient Truth," which follows Al Gore as he tries to spread his message about the theory of global warming. The Drudge Report quotes Beverly Hills High School science teacher Sarah Utley, who says the free field trip "has been funded by a very generous alum."

The film follows Gore as he traveled around the country, speaking of an impending global climate crisis. It "offers a passionate and inspirational look at one man's fervent crusade to halt global warming's deadly progress in its tracks by exposing the myths and misconceptions that surround it," says the ClimateCrisis.net website, adding that "[global warming] is the biggest moral challenge facing our global civilization."

Randy Thomasson with the Sacramento-based Campaign for Children and Families believes that instead of carting students to view Gore's one-sided take on the issue, schools should be taking a balanced approach to global warming theory.

"High school students deserve a truthful measurement of science, not blatant propaganda," says Thomasson. "These children would be better served by having an expert for the global warming theory and then an expert against the global warming theory come to class or even come to the school and debate."

The family activist says he finds it ironic the school is using 30 gas-guzzling buses to transport the students across town to the theater. "This is a thing that should be debated on facts and real science, rather than [on] feelings and mere emotions," he asserts. "As it is, these children are getting just one side of the story -- and they're basically putting out a lot of gas fumes traveling across town to do it."

To counter Gore's film, the Competitive Enterprise Institute has been airing two 60-second television ads defending carbon dioxide as a beneficial natural resource rather than a dangerous pollutant, as it is portrayed in the documentary.

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San Diego Officials Vote to Appeal Order to Remove Mt. Soledad Cross

by Jenni Parker
May 24, 2006

(AgapePress) - - City officials in San Diego, California, have chosen to fight a federal court order requiring the removal of the Mount Soledad cross, part of a memorial built in 1954 to honor Korean War veterans. The controversial monument has been at the center of a debate over the separation of church and state for nearly two decades, and continuing the fight could cost the city $5,000 a day in fines.

According to a San Diego Union-Tribune account, the City Council voted 5-3 to appeal the federal judge's removal order and continue the protracted fight to keep the Mount Soledad cross atop the war memorial. Supporters of the cross were prevalent among the audience of around 60 concerned citizens attending the public hearing on Tuesday (May 23), many identifying themselves as Christians or war veterans.

In 1989, atheist Philip Paulson sued to have the Mount Soledad cross removed, arguing that its presence on city property violated the establishment clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, or the so-called separation of church and state. In 1991, a U.S. District Court judge agreed and ruled that the cross was indeed unconstitutional.

Supporters of the cross have tried to fight efforts to remove it by transferring ownership of the property on which the memorial stands to private entities or to the federal government. However, during the 17 years of litigation and debate since the controversy began, courts have invalidated three land transfers, including two sales to the Mount Soledad Memorial Association, the private group that originally built the cross and that still maintains the memorial site.

Also, just last July, city voters overwhelmingly voted in favor of a measure that would have allowed the city to transfer the cross to the federal government; however, a San Diego Superior Court judge ruled that even that proposition violated the Constitution. And on May 3, Judge Gordon Thompson, Jr. ordered the city to remove the cross from Mount Soledad by August 1 or face a fine of $5,000 for each day the city remains in violation of the order.

The Tribune notes that Mayor Jerry Sanders asked the San Diego City Council to consider appealing in order to seek a stay of the judge's 90-day deadline. Meanwhile, the mayor, along with State Representative Duncan Hunter, has called on the White House for help in preserving the cross and has recently been in Washington, DC, trying to persuade the federal government to seize the property on which the memorial stands through eminent domain.

Sanders, who met with White House officials last Monday, says they expressed support for the idea but foresaw possible legal difficulties. San Diego's chief executive is now hoping an appeal of the removal order will give the city time to explore all its options in the effort to keep the war memorial intact. However, the city's chief operating officer, Ronne Froman, told the Tribune that if the appeal fails, the mayor will comply with the judge's order.

Christian Leaders Rallying Support for SD City Council's Fight
A couple of Christian leaders who support the City Council's efforts to preserve the Mount Soledad cross are working to enlist the backing of other believers. Christian Newswire reports that National Clergy Council (NCC) president Rev. Rob Schenck, co-founder of the Washington, DC-based outreach Faith and Action, has traveled to San Diego today to meet with religious leaders throughout the state.

The Mount Soledad cross "affects more than the city of San Diego and California," Schenck contends. "It is of concern to millions of Americans across the country," he says, "and we must tangibly support the five courageous council members and the citizens they represent."

The National Clergy Council president is joining Rev. Patrick Mahoney of the Christian Defense Coalition in calling on churches throughout California and the United States to support the San Diego City Council in its fight and to send funds to the city to help with the costs of its appeal.

Schenck was scheduled to appear with Mahoney and several local Christian leaders at an afternoon news conference today at the Mount Soledad memorial to discuss the cross controversy and their plans to rally support for the city of San Diego's effort to preserve the cross.

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Downsized PK Ministry Now More Targeted, More 'Mature,' Says Leader

by Jody Brown
May 24, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Except for two holiday weekends between early June and late October, men will be gathering by the thousands around the country as a prominent Christian ministry reaches out with the Word of God to encourage and enlist them in spreading the gospel of Christ.

Promise Keepers kicks off its 2006 season June 2-3 at the BankAtlantic Center in Fort Lauderdale. The season concludes in the Great Western Forum in Los Angeles on October 20-21. Along with the 17 intervening conferences, PK says it hopes to reach more than 170,000 men across America. This year's conference theme is "Unleashed -- Releasing the Raw Power of Your Heart."

Promise Keepers president Thomas Fortson says the goal of this year's conferences is to unleash a man to serve God in every aspect of his life. "Not only does he have responsibility in his home as a husband or as a father, but also he has, and should have, an impact in his community," he says. That goal is consistent with PK's objectives since it emerged in the 1990s. Yet, says Fortson, the organization has changed since the days when it packed football stadiums.

"I think we're more mature. I think with time comes wisdom, and I think we don't have to be the big splash anymore. I think we're more targeted," the PK leader tells Associated Press. "But I think when you look at the condition of men, there's no question that there's a need for Promise Keepers." This year, according to a PK press release, the ministry has "retooled" its conference format to help men do three things: discover their potential, find a pathway to optimize that potential, and move in that direction with a few other like-minded friends.

In the past Promise Keepers has convened its men's gatherings in large venues like football stadiums, but now holds its conferences in basketball arenas, where the average attendance is about 10,000. "Whereas PK was the 800-pound gorilla in the nineties," says Fortson, "I think we live in a new age right now -- and our attempt is not only to continue to do the live event, but to expand into areas of technology." That includes online resources Promise Keepers provides to help men resist the lure of Internet porn.

At PK's annual media day in March, the ministry discussed why men seem to be shunning traditional congregations and what churches can do to reverse the trend. Fortson noted at that time a "disconnect" between men's deepest wants and needs, and the churches that so badly need men to be involved. "We find ourselves in the middle of this question," the PK president said, "inspiring men to go deeper and loving our pastors who shepherd the communities of faith."

James Ryle, a founding board member of Promise Keepers, offered this challenge for church leaders, which ties in directly with the purposes of PK's ministry. "The critical question," said Ryle, "is going to have to transition from 'how to get men to the church' to 'how to get men to become the church."

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Diverse Faith Groups Unite to Push for Federal Marriage Amendment

by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
May 25, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Several major religious denominations have come together to urge the U.S. Senate to approve a marriage amendment to the Constitution of the United States. The Religious Coalition for Marriage has released a statement signed by 50 leaders and expressing support for the proposed federal marriage protection amendment.

The Coalition is comprised of all eight U.S. Catholic cardinals, as well as officials of the Southern Baptist Convention, the Church of God in Christ, the Greek Orthodox Church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations, and the National Association of Evangelicals. While diverse in many ways, the groups represented share a singleness of purpose -- the protection of traditional marriage.

As Dr. Richard Land of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention notes, this alliance of faith groups is "truly an historic coalition." He notes that this is the first time these churches, religious leaders, and institutions have coordinated their efforts on this scale.

Land says this has happened because a constitutional amendment is needed to preserve marriage from "radical activists acting through activist courts." These activists who are pushing to legalize marriage between homosexuals are, he asserts, "determined to reinterpret this fundamental institution in novel ways and against the will of the American people."

American Family Association founder and chairman Don Wildmon believes the united effort of these groups is a testament to the importance of one-man, one-woman marriage to all of society. He says the groups involved are representing countless other pro-family Americans who want traditional marriage protected from those seeking to redefine it.

"People are getting fed up with having homosexual marriage crammed down their throats by activist judges across the country," Wildmon says, "and we are absolutely thrilled that all of these groups have come together." While many of the coalition's members "have very divergent and different theological perspectives," he notes, "they do agree that marriage should be only between one man and one woman."

Also, the AFA spokesman contends, the coalition members realize that pastors and other faith community leaders cannot remain silent on this crucial issue any longer. He warns those who choose to stay quietly on the sidelines while biblical marriage is under attack that "the day will come" when they may wish they had spoken out.

"Because of your silence," Wildmon says, "if this thing passes -- if homosexual marriage becomes legal -- the day will come when you will be silenced, and it will be too late to do anything about it at that point in time. That's just the bottom line."

The Federal Marriage Amendment was voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee last week. Next, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist will bring the marriage protection measure, known as Senate Joint Resolution 1, to the floor for a vote on June 6.

The Religious Coalition for Marriage is mounting a major grassroots campaign of support in advance of the vote. A letter has gone out to all Catholic bishops from the U.S. Conference and the Knights of Columbus have alerted their members nationwide as well.

Meanwhile, the highest authority in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the Quorum of Twelve, has endorsed the marriage amendment. And at the same time, all 43,000 Southern Baptist churches are being asked to take part in the campaign to advance the marriage protection measure and see it approved.

The Coalition has also launched a website (ReligiousCoalitionforMarriage.org) that enables church members to send messages urging their senators to approve the Federal Marriage Amendment, and a major grassroots postcard writing campaign is under way as well. Campaign organizers are predicting the Senate will receive millions of postcards and messages expressing support for the amendment.

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Online Smut Peddlers Using Dirty Tricks to Lure Kids, Pastor Warns

by Ed Thomas
May 25, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A black pastor affiliated with a ministry that trains churches and low-income or underprivileged citizens in computer literacy is sounding the alarm about how Internet pornography websites often use deceptive tactics to target certain demographic groups.

Pastor Bill Mooney-McCoy is director of TechMission's Safe Families program, which provides filtering software and educational materials at its website -- resources designed to help children and families stay safe online. He is also a member of the Black Ministerial Alliance of Greater Boston, a group that recently sponsored an online safety workshop.

During this information session, Mooney-McCoy took the opportunity to warn listeners about some of the sneakier practices of porn peddlers, including using disingenuous web addresses or false website descriptions in efforts to target particular ethnic communities or age groups.

"Basically, pornographers don't care how you get there," the pastor points out. "They just care that you get there, and so they will use many, many deceptive tactics. One of them is the actual use of misleading URLs or misleading descriptions."

For instance, Mooney-McCoy points out, some Internet pornography sites lure web surfers with universal resource locators (URLs) named after well-known black leaders or historical figures. "MartinLutherKing.com and JesseJackson.com are classic examples of that," he says. Unsuspecting web surfers, possibly even students looking for material for a school report, may go to these sites expecting to find information about the individuals named but instead find themselves linking to obscene material.

And sometimes, the minister adds, Internet pornographers are even bolder in their efforts to entice and entrap kids. "There was another case of, I think, almost thousands of names of children's cartoons that were used for the same kind of thing," he notes.

These practices, as well as spamming and many other unethical tricks, are designed and used by Internet porn profiteers specifically to pursue the youth market, Mooney-McCoy warns. Online purveyors of filth have all kinds of "dirty tricks," the pastor notes, and he urges parents to utilize all the Safe Families tools to educate and protect their families.

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Supremes Hearing from Pro-Lifers as Court Considers Partial-Birth Abortion Case

by Allie Martin and Jody Brown
May 25, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing from those who survived abortions as it decides whether to uphold a ban on partial-birth abortions.

Texas-based Liberty Legal Institute has filed a brief on behalf of two victims who survived late-term abortions and who now speak out on the partial-birth abortion case. The case, Gonzales v. Carhart, was picked up by the high court when the Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the federal abortion ban, also known as the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003.

Hiram Sasser, director of litigation at Liberty Legal, says his firm's brief is unique. "This is the first time in this partial-birth abortion arena that the U.S. Supreme Court's going to hear from survivors of late-term abortions," he explains.

"One of our clients was a victim of saline abortion," Sasser continues. "Her mother thought that she was dead, and the doctor thought she was dead. [But] when she came out she was alive and, miraculously, was able to be saved and go into a nice family home." The abortion survivor is now 30 years old.

According to the Liberty Legal attorney, members of the Supreme Court -- for the first time -- are going to be see the faces of children who are affected by late-term abortions.

"[The justices are] going to see that [these individuals'] lives are worthy of a chance to live and that they have a story to tell," he says. And that story, says Sasser, is a story of survival -- "that they are alive and [that] they, through their lives, represent those many children who are lost through these late-term and partial-birth abortions."

Sasser says there is no difference between killing a baby that is partially delivered, as in the gruesome partial-birth procedure, and one that is completely delivered.

Another pro-family legal group, Liberty Counsel, also filed a brief with the Supreme Court earlier this week, arguing that Congress was correct when it passed the PABA legislation in 2003 -- that is, babies who are only inches away from birth must be granted the same inalienable right to life that is granted to children who complete the birth process. The brief also contends that right should be interfered with by a claim that the "health" of the mother somehow justifies killing the child.

Erik Stanley with Liberty Counsel says the procedure is never necessary to protect the health of the mother. "Abortion doctors use the health exception, which contains no standards, to justify the procedure," he states. "This is a classic case of the fox guarding the henhouse." In addition, he says, if the same procedure were performed on a convicted criminal, it would constitute cruel and unusual punishment. "The partial-birth abortion procedure is gruesome and barbaric," Stanley notes.

Liberty Counsel filed its brief on behalf of Jill Stanek, an Illinois nurse who witnessed first-hand -- and subsequently testified before Congress about -- babies who were born alive and then set aside to die. Stanek's strong pro-life stand and personal accounts played a prominent role in bringing the disturbing practice to public attention.

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed in late February to hear Gonzales v. Carhart. It represents the first opportunity for the John Roberts-led court to consider the issue of abortion -- and the first chance for Associate Justice Samuel Alito to vote on such a case. The justices could issue their ruling next year.

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Researcher Gives Google a Thumbs Down on Impartiality

by Chad Groening
May 25, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A public-policy think tank is calling search engine giant Google to task for removing news organizations from "Google News" that have been critical of radical Islam. An official with the organization suggests the popular Internet website is practicing censorship and exercising a double-standard.

Google has removed sites like New Media Journal and the Jawa Report from its Google News service for what it calls "hate speech" against Islam. Sonia Arrison, director of technology at the Pacific Research Institute, points out the move was made at the same time Google was urging Congress to pass Internet neutrality legislation.

"It's somewhat ironic that Google is trying to censor some things from its search engine at the same time as it's making this very public plea for something called net neutrality, where it's trying to use Congress and legislation to regulate the Internet so that censorship doesn't happen," Arrison notes. "So the question is, what's really going on here with Google and net neutrality and censorship?"

She points out that Google is one of several search engines that have agreed to censorship in Communist China. "They recently agreed to censor a bunch of stuff in China, which led to a lot of outrage over here in America -- but nothing changed," says Arrison, adding that Google is not alone in this instance. "Yahoo and Microsoft are also over there censoring things for the Chinese government as well."

According to Arrison, Google has also given large sums of money to Democratic candidates in the U.S., raising concerns that more conservative websites might be removed from the search engine because of their content.

"If that happens, I hope that there's a huge public outcry and [that] Google's forced by the marketplace to have to rein in some of that censorship," she says, "because when people use a search engine they expect that they're actually searching all the news -- not just some of the news that Google thinks everybody should be seeing."

Arrison suggests conservatives might have to look for alternative search engines that are not governed by a left-wing political agenda.

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Baptist Pastor Trumpets Another Call for 'Exit Strategy' from Schools

by Jim Brown
May 25, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Southern Baptist pastor from Florida says Christians are losing the battle in public schools. The pastor, a member of the committee that brings resolutions forward for the denomination's consideration, says the Southern Baptist Convention should consider developing an "exit strategy" for children from those schools.

Pastor Darrell Orman is the pastor of First Baptist Church - Stuart, Florida, and a member of the Resolutions Committee for the upcoming SBC annual meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina. He says the denomination should consider a proposed resolution that encourages Baptists to develop a strategy for leaving the nation's public school system. Another education-related resolution that has been submitted for consideration urges Baptists to support public schools.

The Southern Baptist Convention has voted on similar education-related resolutions in the past, and last year approved a resolution calling on its churches to investigate what impact the homosexual agenda is having on public schools. Orman believes evangelical churches underestimate the influence of the public education system to silence even godly Christians working in it.

"Evangelism's down across the nation. People are intimidated. Our kids are not being the salt and light that a lot of times they should be," the pastor shares, "and that's why right now, the statistics I keep seeing over and over again say 85 to 90 percent of our kids, when they leave high school, ... also leave our churches and never come back." The Florida pastor says according to information he has been told, that ratio corresponds almost directly with the number of children in churches who are in public school.

Pastor Orman cites reasons he sees for the effectiveness of efforts to squelch the Christian message in public schools.

"I think the public school system has moved so far [to the] left, part of it with the influence of the teachers union and the left leanings of the teachers union across the nation," he says. "And then you've got the ACLU and others, the separation of church and state people, who are trying to inoculate the public system from Christianity, pretty much."

Orman suggests that churches, if they are able to do so, would be wise to start Christian schools that provide families an alternative to public education.

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Schools Blasted for Holding Separate Graduations for Homosexual Students

by Jim Brown
May 25, 2006

(AgapePress) - - USA Today reports that a growing number of colleges and universities are holding so-called "lavender graduations" to honor their "gay," lesbian, and transgendered graduates; but one campus watchdog group spokesman says schools should not be making ideological statements by sponsoring these separate ceremonies.

At the lavender graduations, students are often given awards and typically receive rainbow-colored tassels to put on their mortarboards during their commencement activities. But while these ceremonies are often touted as celebrations of cultural diversity and equality, Jason Mattera with the Virginia-based Young America's Foundation (YAF) feels these exercises actually turn true equality on its head.

"I thought the homosexual agenda was just 'Leave us alone,' right?," Mattera observes. "That's what they're saying: 'Oh, we don't want the government involved in our lives. We just want to be treated normally.' Well, here is an obvious example where they're looking for special treatment."

But rarely, the YAF spokesman points out, does any group of students get its own graduation ceremonies as a separate class. "Imagine," he says, "if the Christian club at any of the schools mentioned -- let's take the University of North Carolina -- if the Christian club gathered together and said, 'We want a separate ceremony in which we were going to read passages from Leviticus and passages from Rick Santorum's It Takes a Family.'

"Not only would they have been probably flogged by the diversity deans and multicultural deans on the college campus," Mattera asserts, "but they would be [charged with] hate speech incidents. They would be reported to the human resource department."

In any case, the conservative campus watchdog adds, the idea of lavender graduations is not a very inclusive one, since the schools that hold these separate ceremonies are in effect promoting segregation. Nor, he asserts, do such ceremonies truly respect homosexual students by honoring their achievements.

"I would even think the homosexual students on these campuses should be offended," Mattera says. Homosexual students should consider these separate ceremonies to be a slap in the face, he contends, because the "honorees" are not being rewarded for their academic merits but for their sexual behavior.

Ultimately, the YAF spokesman believes the lavender graduations that are being held by schools like Duke University, UCLA, the University of Georgia, and the University of Washington are rooted in anti-Christian hostility. But even if they are, as some homosexuals claim, simply celebrations of equality, he feels these ceremonies fail on that level as well.

If these and other colleges and universities are truly interested in equality, Mattera suggests, they could show it by doing away with race-based preferences and special rights for certain classes of students. And instead of trying to ring in a new, so-called "civil rights era" for homosexuals, he says, schools need to stop segregating people on the basis of sexual behavior.

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Schools Blasted for Holding Separate Graduations for Homosexual Students

by Jim Brown
May 25, 2006

(AgapePress) - - USA Today reports that a growing number of colleges and universities are holding so-called "lavender graduations" to honor their "gay," lesbian, and transgendered graduates; but one campus watchdog group spokesman says schools should not be making ideological statements by sponsoring these separate ceremonies.

At the lavender graduations, students are often given awards and typically receive rainbow-colored tassels to put on their mortarboards during their commencement activities. But while these ceremonies are often touted as celebrations of cultural diversity and equality, Jason Mattera with the Virginia-based Young America's Foundation (YAF) feels these exercises actually turn true equality on its head.

"I thought the homosexual agenda was just 'Leave us alone,' right?," Mattera observes. "That's what they're saying: 'Oh, we don't want the government involved in our lives. We just want to be treated normally.' Well, here is an obvious example where they're looking for special treatment."

But rarely, the YAF spokesman points out, does any group of students get its own graduation ceremonies as a separate class. "Imagine," he says, "if the Christian club at any of the schools mentioned -- let's take the University of North Carolina -- if the Christian club gathered together and said, 'We want a separate ceremony in which we were going to read passages from Leviticus and passages from Rick Santorum's It Takes a Family.'

"Not only would they have been probably flogged by the diversity deans and multicultural deans on the college campus," Mattera asserts, "but they would be [charged with] hate speech incidents. They would be reported to the human resource department."

In any case, the conservative campus watchdog adds, the idea of lavender graduations is not a very inclusive one, since the schools that hold these separate ceremonies are in effect promoting segregation. Nor, he asserts, do such ceremonies truly respect homosexual students by honoring their achievements.

"I would even think the homosexual students on these campuses should be offended," Mattera says. Homosexual students should consider these separate ceremonies to be a slap in the face, he contends, because the "honorees" are not being rewarded for their academic merits but for their sexual behavior.

Ultimately, the YAF spokesman believes the lavender graduations that are being held by schools like Duke University, UCLA, the University of Georgia, and the University of Washington are rooted in anti-Christian hostility. But even if they are, as some homosexuals claim, simply celebrations of equality, he feels these ceremonies fail on that level as well.

If these and other colleges and universities are truly interested in equality, Mattera suggests, they could show it by doing away with race-based preferences and special rights for certain classes of students. And instead of trying to ring in a new, so-called "civil rights era" for homosexuals, he says, schools need to stop segregating people on the basis of sexual behavior.

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Judge's Order Keeps Embattled Florida Drug Rehab Ministry Open For Now

by Allie Martin
May 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Florida ministry for men working to overcome addictions and other problem behaviors was targeted for closure by county officials; but now that a Christian legal group has intervened on its behalf, that faith-based rehabilitation program is no longer scheduled for eviction.

For several years now, Men of Destiny Ministries (MDM) has operated what it describes as a drug "regeneration" program in St. Cloud, Osceola County, Florida. The ministry is a one-year residential discipleship program that requires participating men to work regular jobs and live in a 6,300-square-foot home operated by the ministry, where they receive biblical counseling, therapy, and education.

Last month, the Osceola County Commission voted to shut down MDM because it was operating a drug rehabilitation program in a residential area. Commissioners gave the ministry 45 days to shut its doors or else face hefty fines. MDM sought help from Liberty Counsel, a pro-family legal organization, which filed suit against the County.

Last week, Liberty Counsel asked Judge Gregory Presnell to stop Osceola County officials from shutting down the rehab program. Now, thanks to the federal judge's order, MDM will not have to shut down its operations while the trial is expedited to a court date in late July.

[Photo compliments of Liberty Counsel]
Mat Staver
Liberty Counsel founder and chairman Mat Staver says Presnell saw through the County's arguments. "He said he thought he understood what was happening here," the lawyer notes. "It was the so-called NIMBY syndrome or the 'not in my backyard' syndrome."

The judge went on to point out that Osceola County's professional zoning staff actually recommended approving MDM's operation in the residential area, Staver says, "but then "politics and political pressure from some neighbors began to influence the elected officials, and they voted against this ministry simply because of pre-conceived stereotypes." Presnell even observed that the 45-day warning given to MDM appeared to be "vindictive."

According to Liberty Counsel, neighbors in the community surrounding MDM had made comments like, "once a drug addict, always a drug addict," and Staver believes these individuals' attitudes strongly influenced Osceola County to rescind its approval of the Christian drug program. However, he says more people need to understand that organizations like MDM serve a strategic purpose in a community.

"Christian ministries deserve a place," the Liberty Counsel founder asserts. "Christian ministries oftentimes are the only ones that can meet a need for people who are caught up in addictive behaviors," he says, "because it's only through the power of Jesus Christ that you can be set free."

That is why Liberty Counsel was happy to help defend MDM, Staver adds. "Once you have these zoning officials that try to stop these Christian ministries, we need to vigorously defend their religious liberties, because they are needed ministries in our communities," he says.

Liberty Counsel will be representing MDM again when the ministry goes back to court to resolve its fight with Osceola County. The trial has been set for July 26.

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Bay State Activist Bothered That Tax Money Going to Governor's Pro-Homosexual Group

by Bill Fancher
May 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A pro-homosexual commission under the direction of the governor of Massachusetts is poised to receive a big increase in funding. According to pro-family activist in the Bay State, school activities sponsored by that commission are not for the faint of heart.

The Governor's Commission on Gay & Lesbian Youth has been on a roller coaster ride recently. After being informed about the Commission's activities, Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney disbanded it. But attacks by the pro-homosexual lobby and the liberal press in the state led to its reinstatement.

Brian Camenker of the Massachusetts-based Article 8 Alliance has been a vocal critic of the Commission. He says the word "depravity" does not do justice to the nature of the events sponsored by the group. Camenker's organization obtained pictures and information from some of those events and delivered them to the governor's office.

"His staff was so sickened by what we showed them that a few days later the governor announced that he was disbanding this Commission," he explains. That led to a firestorm of attacks from homosexual groups and the press that, evidently, had its desired effect. The governor backed down, says the Article 8 spokesman. "He went back on his word and reinstated the Commission," he says.

According to Camenker, the Commission-sponsored events are pushed on children as young as kindergarten age. And despite Governor Romney's directive to the Commission to clean up its act, that has not happened, says Camenker. He says the May 13 "Gay Youth Pride" event was the worst ever.

In addition, dozens of high schools marched in a Commission-sponsored "Youth Pride Day" parade on May 21 through downtown Boston. Article 8 describes the event as "an entire day of celebrating homosexuality for kids" that was funded by taxpayer dollars.

The Commission received $425,000 from the state this past year, which Camenker says is spent "giving grants to high schools and other ways of pushing homosexuality to kids." And now, he says, the State Legislature is poised to quadruple funding for the Commission to almost $2 million a year.

"So if you think it's bad now -- if you think the school propaganda and the Governor's Commission events are horrible now -- wait until next year," says the Massachusetts activist. "It's just getting started."

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Senator Withdraws Bill Giving Custodial Parents Free Rein to Move Away

by Jim Brown
May 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A fathers' rights advocate is hailing the defeat of a California Senate bill that he says would have been devastating for children of divorce and their non-custodial parents. Liberal California Senator Gloria Romero has withdrawn a bill that would have created a "presumptive right" for a divorced parent who has custody to move children away from the other parent.

Critics say Romero's proposed legislation would have allowed a custodial parent, which is usually the mother, to move her children whenever and wherever she wanted, without any consideration by the courts of the children's best interests or the relationship between the children and their non-custodial parent.

According to men's issues columnist Glenn Sacks, founder of the Alliance for Children Concerned About Move-Aways, Romero received more than 4,000 phone calls, letters, and faxes opposing her measure. He says that is because "a lot of people within the mental health community, the psychological community, and the family law community recognize the value of fathers."

Numerous people in all these fields "recognize that children love their fathers, even if 'Mom' is mad at 'Dad,'" Sacks contends, "and they recognize that allowing mothers to destroy the relationships between children and their fathers by moving the children far away is very destructive to children."

Senator Romero's bill was being pushed by "misguided" radical feminist groups, the men's rights advocate asserts. Among the legislation's supporters, he notes, were the California National Organization for Women and the California Commission on the Status of Women, and he says several domestic violence groups were lobbying in favor of the bill as well.

Such groups "want to insist that if there's a divorce or separation, Mom should be able to do whatever she wishes with her kids," Sacks insists. "Those groups are funded by your tax dollars and my tax dollars," he says, "and basically all of these groups are trying to do whatever they can to change the law so that if a divorced or separated mother wants to get rid of her children's father, she can -- and there's going to be very little that can stop her."

The men's issues columnist says he welcomes the defeat of Romero's bill, which he believes would have allowed angry or vengeful divorced mothers to drive fathers out of their children's lives. Thankfully, he suggests, more people are realizing the importance of fathers' role in their children's lives.

Sacks says there is increased recognition within the family law and mental health communities, and among judges and legislators as well, that the relationship between children and their fathers needs to be protected.

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Penn State Seeks, Receives Help on New 'Speech Code' Policy for Campus

by Jim Brown
May 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A federal civil rights lawsuit has prompted Pennsylvania State University to dump a speech code that barred students from using words deemed to be "intolerant."

The Alliance Defense Fund filed the lawsuit on behalf of A.J. Fluehr, a student who claimed the policy allowed for viewpoint discrimination against conservative and religious students. Shortly after the lawsuit was filed, Penn State asked ADF to help the school draft a new policy. ADF attorney David French says the policy that resulted now fully protects free speech.

"We're very encouraged by this outcome," says French, "and I would like to applaud Penn State for bringing us into the conversation after the lawsuit was filed and ...for the changes that they made." The resultant policy was an "important change," he says, "and one that protects free speech at one of our country's most important public universities."

French describes the old policy as one of the worst speech codes he had ever seen. "The old draconian speech codes were unconstitutional because they enabled university officials to engage in viewpoint discrimination," he says. The policy enabled any student who felt offended on the basis of their sexual orientation, for example, to make a complaint against another student and have that student silenced and perhaps even punished, French states. According to an ADF press release, the school used the policy recently to prohibit a student from displaying an art exhibit designed to protest the culture of terrorism in the Palestinian territories.

"What we were trying to do [in changing the policy] is quite simple," the attorney explains. "[We were trying] to make sure that conservative students and religious students had the same rights to free speech as everyone else."

The old policy, he explains, discouraged open discussion on campus. "[And] it's a longstanding First Amendment rule that you can't censor speech just because somebody else feels that your speech is offensive or 'intolerant,' to use the word that Penn State used," he adds.

French says other universities should follow the Penn State model, which he says strikes a proper balance between protecting students from real misconduct while allowing the full range of free speech. "This is an excellent outcome for those who believe that universities are supposed to be the marketplace of ideas," he says.

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Hartline's San Diego Conference Promises to Equip Christians for Culture Wars

by Mary Rettig
May 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - James Hartline, a Christian activist in California, is pointing fellow believers to an event taking place this Saturday in San Diego that he says will help equip them to fight in the culture war. He says the "Shake the Nation Conference" will feature speakers from all facets of life, sharing their experiences dealing with opposition to Christianity in society.

Hartline says many Christians today are seeing their free-speech rights violated on a regular basis, even as some of the Shake the Nation Conference presenters have. "We have been very diligent to bring together speakers on every area that we feel we are having a problem with in the culture," he says.

Therefore, the conference guests will address a number of the "obvious" topics for Christians in contemporary society, the activist notes, including "the legal issues, religious freedom issues," and the truth about America's Christian roots. "We're dealing with our religious heritage," he explains, "because it's important for people to be reminded that this country was based on a strong biblical religious heritage."

Also, Hartline points out, the conference will include a number of sessions presented by believers who have seen their rights violated by secular forces. For instance, he says, "We have Greg Thompson, a former superintendent of schools who was terminated from his job for having the Ten Commandments on his school property as well as a Bible on his desk."

Also, the event spokesman points out, "We have Coach Dave Daubenmire, who was a public high school teacher, a very successful football coach for 25 years. And the ACLU sued him, merely because he prayed before games with his football players, and he refused to stop."

The conference will also feature workshops on the benefits of home schooling and on being a Christian teacher in a public school and ministering in that workplace. Others workshops will touch on believers running for public office and doing pro-life activism.

James Hartline says this Memorial Day weekend gathering is designed to help believers from all walks of life stand up for their rights and take back the culture. Hundreds of California Christians are expected to attend the Shake the Nation Conference, and the activist predicts that the participants will emerge well equipped for battle in the culture wars.

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GFA Hopes Newly Secular Nepal Will Give Christians More Freedom

by Allie Martin
May 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The president of Gospel for Asia (GFA), Dr. K.P. Yohannan, says he is cautiously optimistic about recent changes in Nepal's government.

Earlier this month the Parliament of Nepal stripped the king of political power, removing his control of the nation's army and declaring Nepal a secular state. That act ended the country's former status as the world's only Hindu kingdom.

However, Nepalese Hindus are protesting the Parliament's resolution. The Associated Press reports that a peaceful strike called by Hindu groups has closed schools and businesses in one southern border town and threatens to block imports of goods from neighboring India, and some 5,000 protesters have recently marched through Katmandu waving banners against the decision. More than 85 percent of the population of Nepal is Hindu.

But despite the protests, Christians working in Nepal are hopeful. For years now, GFA missionaries have worked in Nepal, planting churches and spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, and Dr. Yohannan, the ministry's leader, says major changes could be in store for the country's long oppressed Christian minority.

"We have experienced huge amounts of persecution, rejection, imprisonment, because the constitution of Nepal under the king says that if you convert someone you had to go to prison for many years," Yohannan explains. "And now, in spite of all the rules in Nepal, God is working, and we have over 200 churches planted there."

During the past decade, more than 14,000 people have died because of a war between Communist forces and the Royal Nepal Army. Meanwhile, missionaries like those serving through GFA have worked under the threat of persecution.

Even with the recent sweeping changes in the government, Yohannan observes, Christians may still face difficult times ahead. He cautions that, with India being so close, the possibility remains that religious fundamentalism could be adopted in Nepal just as it has been in India.

Nevertheless, the GFA president says he continues to entertain hope in "the possibility" opened up by the Nepalese Parliament's declaration -- the possibility that "the country will be wide open for the gospel when they have the new constitution explaining about what it means to be a democratic, secular nation."

If all goes optimally, Yohannan says the recent government changes could create not only more freedom for Christians in Nepal but more freedom for the work of missions agencies like GFA. "I hope they will do that," the Christian leader says. "If that be the case, it will be a huge breakthrough to see so much more done in the country."

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Remaking Man in Our Own Image:

by Dr. Marc T. Newman
May 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - C. S. Lewis argued in The Abolition of Man that humans, unmoored from the restraint occasioned by fidelity to a transcendent moral order, would create a world of their own choosing. Humans think that by doing so they will be free to make of themselves what they will, but Lewis disagreed, noting "For the power of Man to make himself what he pleases means, as we have seen, the power of some men to make other men what they please." The men in charge of such a program Lewis called "the Conditioners" - and they are making a spectacular appearance this weekend at your local theater in X-Men 3: The Last Stand (rated PG-13).

Memorial Day weekend has become the kickoff point for summer popcorn flicks, and in that area X-Men 3 does not disappoint. Summer films are dominated by action, and X-Men 3 has enough spandex-garbed mutant superheroes, battles to the death, explosions, gunfire, and other visual eye-candy to satisfy the adolescent male in many of us. And while X-Men 3 is the weakest in the series (blame the exit of director Bryan Singer, who left the franchise he built to direct Superman Returns), amidst the mayhem it still raises significant questions about the making of moral decisions in a culture that has abandoned God, the threat of Conditioners to remake humans in their own image, and the need to reassert a transcendent vision of humanity if we are ever to survive the technologizing of the West.

No Superhuman Authority

X-Men 3 frames the dilemma that pervades the film in an early scene. Professor Xavier, who runs the School for Gifted Children - a kind of Mutant U - is conducting a discussion about ethics in which he challenges his charges to try to determine where is the line between a responsible use of their power and tyranny over those who are weaker than they. In response, one of the students paraphrases this quotation from Albert Einstein: "I do not believe in immortality of the individual, and I consider ethics to be an exclusively human concern with no superhuman authority behind it."

Cloudy ethics pervade X-Men 3. The line between what constitutes help and what constitutes unethical control is blurry - at times even causing the audience to question the motives of Professor Xavier regarding his intrusion into the mind of Jean Grey - the world's most powerful mutant. Can good intentions override lack of consent if the goal is to help someone gain self-control? Is Magneto, portrayed in the earlier two films as the head villain, wrong to want to protect himself, and the other rebel mutants, from being medically altered to suit the needs of the government?

The ambivalence felt by the audience during the film stems from this major premise: in a world that rejects any kind of transcendent morality as binding on its decision making, how do we determine right from wrong? Twist the circumstances enough and even appalling behavior can be made to look, if not right, at least understandable. But it was Nietzsche, not Einstein, who best understood how determinations of right and wrong are to be made in a culture that has killed God: through the will to power.

Can Do versus Should Do

The problems faced in the fantasy world of X-Men 3 are merely our own problems writ large. While Professor Xavier is wrestling with the philosophical and theological question of whether the mutants should do certain things, over at Worthington Laboratories scientists are simply determining whether or not they can do what they want - which is to genetically modify mutants to neutralize their special abilities. What begins as a voluntary offer to "cure" the mutants so that they will "fit in" with the rest of the culture, quickly escalates to a forceful, mandatory kind of ethnic cleansing.

Thomas De Zengotita, in his book, Mediated, argues that through genetic engineering we are in the process of "literal self-making." He sees this as the ultimate rejection of God as we make of ourselves what we want to be, rather than what Nature (or God) intended us to be. But remember Lewis - this power actually amounts to the power of the Conditioners to mold others into the kinds of humans desired by the Conditioners. So what De Zengotita enthusiastically praises as self-liberation is instead the worst type of tyranny.

Recognizing this drift, Peter Lawler, in Aliens in America, explains that we are already well on the way to this world that X-Men 3 describes as located "not too far in the future." By welcoming a pragmatic view of philosophy - one that views "the good" as "what works" - we are moving toward a culture in which the highest goal is comfort. Since the most uncomfortable ideas are that we will all someday die, and that we will be accountable to God for our actions, these ideas need to be eliminated from the human psyche. Lawler explains "The pragmatist hopes, for love or charity, to free human beings from any residual longings they may have for the truth about God and nature. The pragmatist will help them forget about eternity - and so any form of immortality - for their own good." Lawler notes that while philosophers may fail to produce the desired results, pharmacology may not. It won't be that medical technology will exterminate death; it will simply be used to render people incapable of caring about it. Once we no longer care about death or judgment, what will stop the Conditioners among us from finishing the job and altering or eliminating those "undesirables" who make these elites uncomfortable by their very existence?

Reasserting the Transcendent Vision of Humanity

While X-Men 3 struggles with these ideas, it is so committed to its evolutionary sense of destiny that it is unable to see that any happy ending it hopes to move toward is more of a happy accident than a result of a reinvigorated commitment to transcendent truth. In actuality, the apparent morality of the X-Men is nothing more than the result of winning a contested power struggle. It is the case of the winner writing history.

After cheering at the successes of the "good mutants" over the "bad mutants" - these lines are tough to draw when the good mutants are fighting to save the technological source of their own impending destruction - we need to pause. As they walk from the theater, filmgoers should hearken back to Professor Xavier's initial ethics discussion and the student's response. What kind of ethical world can we live in if we are unwilling or unable to recognize any superhuman authority? Christians should know the answer to that question. The human story is one of constant struggle against the rule of God - it is the story of sin. Christians can also explain the way out. No amount of technology or wishful thinking will eliminate the facts of death and judgment. The only true comfort humans can ever find is through acknowledging their status as creatures, accepting the redemption provided by their Creator, and renewing their proper relationship with Him so that they might be completely fulfilled as He intended.

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Modified Image on School Yearbook Cover Upsets Some Parents

by Jim Brown
May 30, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Parents in suburban Fort Worth, Texas, are expressing anger over an elementary school's decision to remove the phrase "In God We Trust" from its yearbook cover.

Officials at Liberty Elementary School in Colleyville deliberately omitted the words "In God We Trust" from a large image of the new "Liberty" nickel appearing on the cover of the school's inaugural yearbook. The coin features a portrait of Thomas Jefferson, the cursive "Liberty" inscription in Jefferson's own handwriting, and the national motto along the right edge -- except, that is, along the edge of the coin's image on this elementary school's yearbook.

Janet Travis, principal of Liberty Elementary School, explains that in making the determination, she wanted to avoid offending students of different religions. But for those who preferred, the yearbook came with a sticker that allowed students to put the phrase "In God We Trust" back on the Liberty nickel.

An attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union told the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram that the move by the school and the district was appropriate, sensitive, and constitutional. "Sometimes administrators and schools are really caught trying to make appropriate decisions with respect to people's views. Someone is always going to complain," said Dallas attorney Michael Linz. "I think that the school administrators were drawing the appropriate line by trying not to offend others."

But Debi Ackerman, whose ten-year-old daughter attends Liberty Elementary, says despite the school's intentions, it succeeded in offending "people who believe in our country and what it stands for."

Ackerman says she had a "huge problem" with the way it was handled. "Instead of printing 'In God We Trust' on the coin image, they didn't print it, and instead sent it home in sticker form in a concealed envelope," she says. The mom says it was explained to the young students that "there are some people who don't believe in God and that this might not be appropriate for some beliefs -- and when you get home, go ahead if you wish to and affix [the sticker] to the yearbook."

The decision to remove the motto from the coin's image, says Ackerman, is another example of political correctness run amok.

"For me it kind of stemmed from like, Christmas trees aren't being referred to as Christmas trees; they're being referred to as holiday trees," she says. "And instead of Christmas decorations, it's holiday decorations -- and Easter break isn't Easter break anymore, it's Spring break. Then this happened, and for me it was just like they seem to be worried about stepping on the wrong people's toes."

Interestingly, one of the parent leaders in the school turned the same phrase in an interview with Star-Telegram. "We are a public school," said Tom Gardner, Liberty PTA president. "We sure do not want to step on anybody's toes. I don't think any harm was intended."

In an effort to address and perhaps defuse the situation, the school district has issued what it calls an "apology letter" to parents. But Ackerman says it reads more like a "regret letter" than an apology.

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Ohio Group Plans Campaign to Combat Gambling Expansion

by Ed Thomas
May 30, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A spokesman for the Cincinnati-based pro-family group Citizens for Community Values (CCV) does not see much success ahead this year for new voting initiatives on gambling in Ohio, even if supporters manage to get any such measures on the November ballot.

David Miller, vice president of public policy for CCV, predicts that future votes will have results similar to the last two failed attempts to expand gambling in Ohio. However, he thinks developments in the ten years since the last attempt have only served to prove that the downfalls to society far outweigh the advantages of legalizing more forms of gambling.

"What actually happens when you bring casinos into local communities is that the crime statistics go up within five years after the business opens," Miller says. Meanwhile, he notes, the number of gambling addicts goes up as well, as do drug-related crimes, both of which are a drag on the economy.

Nevertheless, the activist group spokesman says Ohio gambling interests, despite failing at their last attempt a decade ago, are attempting to organize in time to put a gambling initiative on the ballot later this year. Their idea, he says, is "to get limited approval first for slot machines and then later to allow casinos, and those petition efforts are under way right now."

Miller says his group is hoping that the gambling interests "will first of all not succeed in gathering enough signatures." However, if their measure does go on the ballot, he adds, "we hope that it will fail once again.'

In any event, CCV is hedging its bets with a directed voter-education campaign. What the group hopes to do, the public policy spokesman says, is to be "educate the consumers throughout the state of Ohio about the negative impact beyond what the casinos believe the benefits will be."

The plan, Miller explains, is to raise citizens' awareness about the many serious drawbacks of gambling expansion before they go to the polls to weigh in on the issue. Once that is accomplished, CCV's hope is "that the voters will turn it down," he says.

The Ohio organization will be using a vigorous multi-media campaign to oppose both the gambling interests' signature-gathering efforts and any ballot measure, Miller notes. Among other things, he says CCV plans to publicize research from locales across the U.S. showing that a substantial rise in crime takes place after the arrival of casinos.

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GOP Presidential Hopeful Blamed for Massachusetts' Marriage Fiasco

by Jim Brown
May 30, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Some pro-family groups and the conservative media are being accused of covering up the fact that Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is "the founding father of homosexual marriage' -- or so says a parents coalition leader in that state.

The Massachusetts-based Parents' Rights Coalition (PRC) claims it was Governor Romney's "illegal" executive order that imposed homosexual "marriage" in the Bay State, not the controversial Goodridge court decision in November 2003. PRC's John Haskins contends the 2008 presidential hopeful committed an impeachable act by violating several articles of the Massachusetts Constitution.

According to Haskins, PRC and the Article 8 Alliance -- another Massachusetts-based pro-family group -- notified conservative media outlets such as The Weekly Standard, National Review, and the American Spectator that Romney was personally advised in advance that he was violating the state constitution.

"The real tragedy here is that many pro-family groups and the conservative media continue to cover up for Governor Romney and ignore the plain meaning of the Massachusetts constitution," asserts Haskins, "which says that neither the governor nor any court can strike down laws -- only the Legislature can do that."

Consequently, he adds, "homosexual marriage is still illegal here in Massachusetts -- and yet it's conservatives propping it up by pretending it's legal."

A one-man, one-woman marriage law remains on the books in Massachusetts, he says, and is binding under the state's constitution. But conservatives fail to pint that out, says Haskins.

"Here in Massachusetts there are several pro-family groups that are close to the governor and [that] include prominent people who are personal friends of the governor," he explains. "And it appears that there's absolutely no price that they're not willing to pay to remain close to Governor Romney. That means they're not going to put the word out, as we've been trying to, that what he's done is exactly the opposite of what he wants the country to think he's done."

Haskins says by their silence "socially and professionally ambitious conservatives ... are covering up a huge political lie that is destroying the culture and constitutional law."

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'Net Neutrality' a Must for Most Christian Broadcasters, Says NRB Leader

by Allie Martin and Jody Brown
May 30, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Christian broadcasters are concerned about legislation that could make it tougher for the public to access their websites. Recent action by a House committee would seem to allay some of those fears.

The U.S. House of Representatives is considering a bill that would allow broadband network operators to offer streamlined access to websites that pay them extra for a higher level of service. Frank Wright, president of the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB), says such an arrangement would put many nonprofit radio stations at a disadvantage.

"The telephone companies and cable companies that control access to the Internet are talking about creating kind of a better level of service for those who are willing to pay for it," Wright explains, "and everyone else sort of gets what's left over."

Broadband Internet providers such as Verizon and AT&T have been lobbying for a sort of "fast lane" on the web that would be reserved for video and other high-priority content. But last week, the House Judiciary Committee approved a bill [PDF] that would require such providers to abide by strict "Net neutrality" principles -- that is, operate their networks in a nondiscriminatory manner.

Wright obviously sees merit to such a move. "A system of Internet control that shows favoritism to one group over another would probably disadvantage non-profits like religious broadcasters," he says. "We don't have the revenue streams that would help us pay for a better level of Internet service that they're talking about."

Despite being opposed by several Republicans on the committee, the Internet Freedom and Nondiscrimination Act of 2006 (H.R. 5417) was passed out of committee on a 20-13 vote. Committee chairman F. James Sensenbrenner, a congressman from Wisconsin, said the measure "will provide an insurance policy for Internet users against being harmed by broadband network operators abusing their market power to discriminate against content and service providers."

The president of the Christian Coalition of America is asking Congress to preserve what supporters of what has come to be known as "net neutrality." Roberta Combs says Sensenbrenner and others on the committee have stood up for continued freedom on the Internet.

"We urge Congress to move aggressively to save the Internet -- and allow ideas rather than money to control what Americans can access on the Worldwide Web," she says. Congress, says the Christian Coalition, must make sure the Internet remains accessible to all Americans, rich or poor.

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Indiana Christians Stand Watch, Bear Witness in War on Local Porn Shop

by Allie Martin
May 30, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Concerned Christians in Jackson County, Indiana, are hoping to shut down a local porn shop by posting customers' photographs online. Meanwhile, some of these pro-family community activists are taking advantage of the chance to witness to the shop's clientele.

The Lion's Den is an adult bookstore that was opened in Uniontown, Indiana, just off Interstate 65 eight months ago. Ever since, protesters have been outside the store around the clock, taking pictures of customers and placing some of the photos on the Internet.

It's all part of an effort by a group called "War-Line," which runs the website. Rob Patterson, a member of the Christian activist group, says he and his fellow protesters have declared war on porn in their community.

"These people said, 'We're drawing the line. It's not going to happen here,'" the Indiana man says. And as a result, he adds, "Some of these Lion's Den's have already closed. I think there are about four or five that have closed in the past couple of years."

Meanwhile, Patterson points out that the demonstrations outside the porn store have created unexpected opportunities to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with the customers who come by. "When people come, sometimes they get mad at us," he admits. "But if they stop and talk to us, we're able to witness to them, and many of them come under some sort of conviction," he says. "And some get saved."

The Christian protesters feel they're presence and their witnessing have made a real impression on some of the store's customers. And at times, the War-Line spokesman notes, the protesters have been able to give the porn establishment visitors something worth taking away with them.

"We had a time [when] a church gave us about 90 Bibles," Patterson says, "and we give those Bibles to people who get saved. We've given out all of those Bibles, and wish we could have a couple hundred more."

Although many of the members of War-Line have been verbally assaulted, Patterson says they are committed to holding the line against porn shops in their community. Meanwhile, Jackson County's commissioners are working with the American Family Association Center for Law and Policy to craft ordinances that would ban such sexually-oriented businesses.

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Bible Club Battles Maryland School District in Discrimination Suit

by Jim Brown
May 30, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF) is continuing to pursue its lawsuit against the Montgomery County Public School System in Maryland. The legal action was filed after the school district refused to send students home with flyers promoting the Christian group's Good News Bible Clubs.

Two years ago, the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that barring the CEF flyer distribution violated the group's free speech rights. The Montgomery County school district then adopted a "revised" literature distribution policy. However, Christian Legal Society senior litigation counsel Kim Colby, who represents CEF, claims the new policy is also unconstitutional.

According to the school system's general literature distribution policy, a group that wants its flyers distributed can ask the school system, Colby says, or it can ask any government agency, any sports team, any PTA, or any on-campus daycare provider. However, she notes, officials at Montgomery County Public Schools "took the position that they wouldn't give CEF permission to distribute the flyer unless CEF first got approval from one of these other groups."

The Christian club should not have to get approval from another group first in order to get its flyers distributed by the school district, the attorney insists. She believes Montgomery County is implementing its newly revised policy unfairly, and by way of evidence she points to the fact that the County Recreation Department, the Baha'i community, and a Methodist church tutoring program -- as well as other area churches -- are allowed to send flyers home with students.

"It's really invidious discrimination to be told the reason we don't treat you the same as everyone else is you have a Christian evangelical perspective," Colby asserts. The Christian club is allowed to have its meetings after school, she says, "but it's tough if you can't get the word out as easily as other groups can to let parents know that this is an option."

Last week, a three-judge panel heard oral arguments in CEF's second appeal to the Fourth Circuit. Colby says CEF will continue to battle for its free speech and equal access rights, as well as to compel the Montgomery County public schools to stop discriminating against the evangelical Christian group.

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State Denies Judge's Accusations of 'Un-Americanizing' School Curriculum

by Jim Brown and Jody Brown
May 31, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Michigan judge is accusing the state's Department of Education of censoring the words "America" and "American" from public schools. But the Department is denying any such move is afoot.

Judge Michael Warren says the Michigan Department of Education has eliminated the words "America" and "American" from the state testing program and instructed those drafting curriculum content standards to remove the words as well. According to Warren, the department also issued a verbal directive to high-profile educators that they should instruct their teachers to stop using the words because they are "ethnocentric."

Warren, a former member of the state's Department of Education, says "well-intentioned but pernicious political correctness" is rolling around in that department. "I think we all agree that we're Americans in the United States and that we're the United States of America," he says. "There was the American Revolution, and the words 'America' and 'Americans' have a very special meaning for us as individuals and as a nation. The Department of Education didn't understand that."

In a May 24 press release, State Superintendent Michael Flanagan flatly denies Warren's allegations. Flanagan says no such edict has gone out to school teachers across Michigan, nor will one. In addition, if such a recommendation for curriculum change ever came across Flanagan's desk, it would "stopped in its tracks," says the department. He also told American Family Radio News that if the censorship has taken place, he will revise the current testing protocol to allow the words to be used.

Warren contends the Education Department is in a state of denial. He says Superintendent Flanagan is not aware of how much political correctness exists in "the bowels of the Department." The judge asserts that the Department has initiated a series of "different steps to eliminate the words America and American in the state level as well as in the local level."

"In other words," he says, "[there's a feeling] that Mexicans, because they're in the North American continent, are also Americans; and Canadians, because they're in the North American continent. And they also refer to South America, so apparently the Brazilians and the Belizeans are also Americans."

And while the Department acknowledges an "independent association of Social Studies educators has discussed the issue of official U.S. documents or titles," it says no recommendations for changes in curriculum have been submitted to Flanagan for his review.

"These are advisory groups," says the superintendent in the press statement. "The conversations and internal communications between members [of that independent association] have been misconstrued as Department of Education policy. This is not a [Department] policy, nor will it ever be our policy while I'm here. We are not seeking to do away with the terms 'America' or 'American' from classroom instruction. It's not going to happen."

Warren, however, says the alleged censorship was so "ludicrous and disgraceful" it needed to be exposed and stopped. And to counteract the alleged political correctness, the judge suggests the Department create an "American Freedom" curriculum to help educate K-12 children in understanding the principles of the nation's founding documents.

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Expert Thinks Evangelical Christianity Could End Chinese Communists' Rule

by Chad Groening
May 31, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An American anti-Communist activist says he is encouraged by a recent report that after years of atheism, the Chinese people are returning to religion. He believes that is going to be an increasing problem for the Chinese Communist Party.

D.J. McGuire is president of the China Support Network and the China E-Lobby. He says a recent article in the Chinese newspaper, the Epoch Times, points out that years of Communist rule has not brought the Chinese people satisfaction or spiritual transcendence, with the result that many are turning elsewhere to fill the void.

"The Chinese people are suffering a crisis of faith," McGuire contends. "As one would expect, Maoism has not brought them fulfillment of any kind. They're now relying on radical nationalism, the CCP is, in order to survive, and that's exactly the sort of thing that only works temporarily."

But while the Communist regime looks to nationalistic fervor for salvation, the activist says the Chinese people are returning to the very thing the government fears -- religion. "What we now see is a people, the Chinese people, crying out for faith, crying out for fulfillment," he explains. "And they're finding it, increasingly, in Christianity."

The more Christianity spreads, McGuire asserts, "and the farther and deeper that spreads, the more treacherous it is for the Chinese Communist Party." He says this is because there is something fundamentally different about the Christian church.

"What makes Christianity different," the head of the China Support Network notes, "in particular evangelical Christianity -- and I say this as someone who was born and raised Catholic -- [is that] evangelical Christianity is connected but it's decentralized, which makes it much harder for the communists to stamp out and remove."

Other religious communities, such as Falun Gong and Roman Catholicism, are more centralized, McGuire points out. "And that is why I think the rise of evangelical Christianity is one of the things that will lead to the end of the Chinese Communist regime."

Because of the structure of China's underground Christian church in cells or house church communities rather than a centralized "head" that can be easily cut off, McGuire says he believes evangelical Christianity will eventually lead to the end of Communist Party rule in China. He believes this is one reason why the Communist Chinese regime is so afraid of the church.

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Bishop Jackson: Marriage Amendment Presents Political Vote on a Biblical Issue

by Allie Martin and Jody Brown
June 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A prominent black Christian pastor is among minority religious leaders calling on the U.S. Senate to approve a proposed constitutional amendment defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

Black and Hispanic church leaders are urging senators to vote for the Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA), which would protect traditional marriage from being redefined. Those supporting the MPA say it is needed to stop judges from legalizing same-sex "marriage," despite the opposition of voters and their elected representatives. The Senate is to debate and vote on the proposed amendment next week.

The proposed amendment (S.J. Res. 1) reads as follows: "Marriage in the United States shall consist only of the union of a man and a woman. Neither this Constitution, nor the constitution of any State, shall be construed to require that marriage or the legal incidents thereof be conferred upon any union other than the union of a man and a woman."

Bishop Gerald Glen of the black Pentecostal Church of God in Christ says his denomination's five million members strongly oppose letting courts redefine marriage. And Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, who heads the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Coalition, believes legalizing homosexual marriage would undermine traditional marriage and family life.

Bishop Harry Jackson chairs the High Impact Leadership Coalition and pastors Hope Christian Church in Bowie, Maryland. In interviews with American Family Radio News and Associated Press, Bishop Jackson says while he believes strongly that same-sex marriage is unbiblical, the Senate vote on the amendment is more about politics.

"There are those among us who consider this marriage amendment as nothing more than a Republican scam, if you will; a matter of pandering to their base and kind of throwing a bone to conservative Christians," he offers. "I happen to be a registered Democrat, and I want to say that nothing could be further from the truth."

"Same-sex marriage is not directly addressed in any affirming way by the words of Christ," Jackson continues, "and it is simply spoken against in the Old Testament. And so we need to be true to the sacred scriptures that we hold as the guiding light for our faith."

The Bible, he notes, only blesses sex between a husband and wife. "It's a matter of whether you're a biblical conservative or a biblical liberal," the pastor explains. "By and large, biblical conservatives say that although we accept all people, there seems to be [a biblical] admonition against same-sex unions, especially the concept of [homosexual] marriage."

God Says It's Wrong -- But There's More
Biblical arguments aside, Jackson contends there are other reasons for opposing same-sex unions. "Gay" marriage, he says, would be immoral and unhealthy for society. "We've got, I think, both a biblical lens in which I'm viewing this problem, and a sociological lens," he says. "Something that devalues the institution [of marriage] would take us to an even further level."

In addition, the institution of marriage is already struggling in the black community, he says -- even without it being redefined. "The gay community is well on its way to getting many, many of [the] rights that they want," Jackson says. "I'm simply wanting to protect traditional marriage.

"I'm not against gay people; I'm not trying to bash them per se. I just think that we're in such a terrible situation in my community that I've got to protect the institution." According to Jackson, only 30 percent of blacks are in monogamous married relationships.

The pastor also takes issue with the "civil rights" argument that is put forth by advocates of same-sex marriage. The attempt to redefine marriage, he says, should be not be compared to the fight for black civil rights.

"Gay rights is not an extension of the civil rights movement simply because there's no choice involved in our blackness," Jackson asserts. "I think there is an amazingly militant group of gays who have made it their point to say, 'We're going to be out; we're going to be visible' -- that's their choice."

Bishop Jackson is among a diverse group of religious leaders who comprise the Religious Coalition for Marriage. In late May that Coalition released a statement signed by 50 leaders expressing their support for the proposed Marriage Protection Amendment. Such an amendment, states the letter, "is the only measure that will adequately protect marriage from those who would circumvent the legislative process and force a redefinition of it on the whole of our society."

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Compilation Offers 'Best of the Best' from Great Evangelist George Whitefield

by Randall Murphree
June 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Whitefield Gold, the second title in the Gold series by Bridge-Logos, is a succinct and stunning introduction to evangelist George Whitefield. The English preacher's name became a household word on the North American continent in the mid 1700s. He was arguably the most noted revivalist sparking the period's Great Awakening. Because of his booming voice that carried to thousands in the open air and because of his stellar leadership in the movement, Whitefield has been dubbed the "Trumpet of the Great Awakening."

A concise but thorough biography of Whitefield by Sue E. Tennant introduces the volume, and a few pages of photos add graphic appeal. The evangelist's life story tugs at the heart. Despite the fervent adulation of believers on two continents, Whitefield's life had its difficulties. He was run out of London by the Anglican Church in which he had been ordained, and he endured an unhappy marriage.

Even for the scholar who knows Whitefield's role in history, the 171-page volume is a noteworthy review of many pithy quotes from his vast body of sermons. Editor Ray Comfort shares the best of the best with those who would mine Whitefield's sermons for inspiration and wisdom.

Comfort categorizes rich, deep Whitefield wisdom into subject areas, and an index helps the reader find quotes related to various themes, e.g. Christian peace, compassion, conversion, hell, judgment, open-air preaching, prayer and pleasing God. For example:

Advice to Preachers: The best preparation for preaching on Sundays is to preach every day of the week.

Prayer: The spirit of grace is always accompanied with the spirit of supplication. It is the very breath of the new creature, the fan of the divine life, whereby the spark of holy fire, kindled in the soul by God, is not only kept in, but raised into a flame.

Pleasing God: I believe I was never more acceptable to my Master than when I was standing to teach those hearers in the open fields. Some may censure me; but if I thus pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.

One of the book's appendices gives excerpts from the opinions of others who saw Whitefield's impact. The fiery evangelist counted Benjamin Franklin among his close friends. Franklin was skeptical regarding newspaper estimates of the crowds flocking to hear Whitefield. However, after his own investigation, he wrote, "[George] had a loud and clear voice, and articulated his words and sentences so perfectly that he might be heard and understood at a great distance."

Franklin tested the crowd estimates by moving far away from Whitefield during an outdoor sermon and concluded that he could be reasonably heard by more than 30,000 people.

Leonard Ravenhill wrote, "What was the secret of Whitefield's success? I think three things: he preached a pure gospel, he preached a powerful gospel, he preached a passionate gospel."

John Newton observed, "It seemed as though he never preached in vain."

And John Wesley asked the question, "Have we read or heard of anyone who has been God's blessed instrument to bring so many sinners from darkness to light and from Satan unto God as Whitefield?"

Ray Comfort is himself a noted evangelist, pastor and author whose work challenges today's church to carry the Gospel into everyday relationships. With actor Kirk Cameron, Comfort co-hosts The Way of the Master, an award-winning television program with a strong emphasis on evangelism. With Whitefield Gold, Comfort offers a great gift to the Body of Christ, allowing readers to discover the impact of one of the world's great evangelists.

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Virginia Pastor Sues for Right to Pray Christianly at Council Meetings

by Allie Martin
May 31, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The director of the Christian Defense Coalition says one Virginia pastor should be commended for standing up for his free-speech rights after being told how to pray at public meetings of the local city council.

Hashmeal Turner, a pastor in Fredericksburg, Virginia, was on a rotating list of clergy who were called on to open the city council's meetings with prayer. Before he was scheduled to pray, however, officials told him he could not pray in the name of Jesus or mention the name of Christ during the invocation.

Turner has filed a federal lawsuit against the city, claiming that his First Amendment rights are being violated. Rev. Patrick Mahoney is director of the Christian Defense Coalition, a conservative, pro-family advocacy group that has been vocal in commending the minister and supporting his stance.

"Our position is this: no governmental body, no civil authority, should tell any American citizen how they are to pray," Mahoney asserts. "That should be left up to their own conscience, to the dictates of their faith tradition and the practices of their faith," he says.

The Fredericksburg officials who required Pastor Turner to restrict his prayers were overstepping their authority, as far as the Coalition spokesman is concerned. He says government entities have no business trying to dictate how people should pray.

"We would all be appalled and up in arms if a city council or a legislative body or a governmental body told American citizens [they] had to pray in the name of Allah," Mahoney contends. "Yet, by telling citizens to pray nonsectarian prayers, [these government officials] in essence are ordering and determining how people are to pray."

If Hashmeal Turner wins his case, Mahoney believes this will make it easier for Christians to express their faith in the public arena. The Christian Defense Coalition leader has organized rallies in the Fredericksburg area in support of the pastor and his fight for free speech and religious freedom.

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Catholic League: Homosexual High School Teacher Was Rightly Fired

by Jim Brown
May 31, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The Catholic League is defending a decision by a Nevada Catholic school to fire a homosexual teacher over his MySpace.com profile. Jeff Crouse, a 45-year-old former seminarian, has been fired from Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas after school officials learned he was trolling for same-sex dates on the Internet.

The Las Vegas Sun reports that Crouse, who teaches philosophy and film studies to high school seniors, posted information in his MySpace.com profile, describing himself as a homosexual seeking "straight-acting single men." This came to the attention of school administrators and, not long afterward, the teacher was terminated.

According to Crouse, he was called into the principal's office May 12 and told he was being fired, in accordance with the terms of his contract, for "maintaining, by word or action, a position contrary to the ordinary teaching of the Catholic Church."

Kiera McCaffrey, director of communications for the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, believes the schoolteacher's firing was justified because his behavior violated Roman Catholic instruction on sexual morality. "The church teaches that any sexual activity outside of marriage, which, of course, can only be heterosexual, is wrong," she points out, "so it would be the same if a straight person were posting [on the Internet], looking for -- not dates, because that would be fine -- but looking for sexual situations, that sort of thing."

McCaffrey emphasizes that Crouse's firing was not proper simply because he was online "looking for a homosexual date," but because his behavior fell outside of the boundaries of church teaching on the proper context for sexual expression. "A married person looking for an extramarital affair would be the same sort of situation," she contends.

Teachers have a responsibility, the Catholic League spokeswoman asserts, not only to impart knowledge about the subjects they teach but also to serve as role models for their students and "to reflect the teachings of the church in every in every matter." However, she notes, "this isn't saying that a teacher should be followed and made sure that every one of his actions on his off time adheres to church teaching. I don't think anybody would pass muster then."

While she admits that "everybody makes mistakes," McCaffrey insists that "there's a big difference between slipping up once in a while and putting a posting on the Internet looking for homosexual dates. I mean, this is something the students are going to see."

According to the Las Vegas Sun, Crouse would not discuss whether he regretted posting his personal profile on MySpace.com, or whether he plans to fight his termination. Las Vegas Diocese and school officials declined to comment on the case, citing personnel confidentiality.

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Author Gives Christians Pat on the Back Post-Da Vinci Code Release

by Allie Martin
June 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The co-author of a book that looks at the beliefs of author Dan Brown, who penned The Da Vinci Code, believes Christians overall have responded appropriately to the recent release of the movie adaptation of the best-selling novel.

John Alan Turner is co-author of The Gospel According to the Da Vinci Code, a book that examines the beliefs of novelist Dan Brown. Turner's book is one of many books, study guides, and DVDs released by Christian authors and ministries in the weeks leading up to the May 19 U.S. debut of the Ron Howard film starring Tom Hanks. Turner says Christians who have used the movie as an opportunity to proclaim the truth about Christ and the Bible were able to engage in an effective witness.

"What we're really saying when we ask what would a Christian response to this look like, what we're really asking is WWJDWDVC -- what would Jesus do with The Da Vinci Code," the author says. "And I think if you look at the way Jesus responded to people in His time, He built bridges of relationship and understanding and, in the context of grace, He introduced hard truth."

Turner says while he believes the Christian resources released to counter The Da Vinci Code were effective witnessing and teaching tools, he does not believe they had any impact on sales of either the book or the movie.

"If Christians had stayed away from the movie altogether and had not written all these books and everything, I'm not sure if that would have helped the Da Vinci Code or hurt the Da Vinci Code, he says. "[However] I do think it would have done damage to the people who read the book and bought it lock, stock, and barrel."

He contends that if Christians had not attempted to constructively engage non-believers about the premises of the movie, it would have "left a lot of people in a sea of confusion."

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Marriage Amendment -- Baptists on Sunday, Bush on Monday

by Allie Martin, Jody Brown, and Rusty Pugh
June 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Southern Baptist pastors are being encouraged this weekend to preach about the necessity of a constitutional amendment to protect traditional marriage. The legislative matter is scheduled to come before the U.S. Senate for debate and a vote next week.

The Marriage Protection Amendment (S.J. Res. 1) has 32 co-sponsors, all Republicans. The amendment states, in part, that marriage in the U.S. "shall consist only of the union of a man and a woman" and that neither the U.S. Constitution nor any state's constitution shall confer the legal incidents of marriage on any other type of union.

Because the measure deals with amending the U.S. Constitution, it must be approved by two-thirds of the Senate, and then two-thirds of the U.S. House, before going to individual states for consideration. Three-fourths of the states -- 38 of them -- would then have to ratify the measure.

Pro-family and faith-based groups across the country have been urging their supporters to contact their senators and encourage them to vote for the MPA. Among those groups is the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), which has dubbed June 4 as "Marriage Protection Sunday" throughout its churches in an effort to encourage Southern Baptists to learn more about the threat to biblical marriage posed by same-sex unions.

Kenyn Cureton is vice president for convention relations with the Executive Committee of the SBC. He says pastors have an obligation to educate their congregations about the necessity of protecting traditional marriage.

"They need to take the lead in equipping their churches to become what Jesus asks us to be," he explains. "That is, the salt that stings and then heals, and also the light that shines [as] the only way that's hope for America, and that's Jesus. And so if the pastors will take the lead in equipping the congregations, then I think the congregations will rise up and let their voices be heard on this matter."

It is vital for Christians to get involved with the issue, asserts Cureton. "All you need to do is look at Scandinavia to see what is going to happen in America if we allow the definition of marriage to be changed," the SBC official says, continuing to explain what has happened in that country.

"In Scandinavia for the last ten years or so, maybe fifteen, they've allowed de facto gay marriage. As a result, in some places in Norway upwards of 80 percent of the children are being born into homes without a legally married mom and dad, [who are] just cohabiting."

Massachusetts is the only U.S. state to have legalized same-sex marriage. But state supreme courts in New Jersey, New York, and Washington could legalize such unions before the end of the year. Six states -- Idaho, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin -- are considering state marriage amendments this fall.

It's Not All Rosy from the White House
Interestingly, at no point in the formal federal constitutional amendment process does the U.S. president play a role. The president can veto neither an amendment proposal nor a ratification. Yet the president's opinion on the matter can carry great influence -- and that is why a pro-family leader in Virginia is bothered by President Bush's apparent reluctance to use his bully pulpit to rally support for the MPA.

President Bush is scheduled to deliver a speech in the nation's capital on Monday, where he is expected to voice his support for the Marriage Protection Amendment. But Joe Glover, president of the Family Policy Network, says the fact that the president has waited until the day before the Senate votes to speak on the issue shows the president does not care. Bush, he says, "hasn't lifted a finger" to push the MPA.

"He hasn't twisted any arms, he hasn't made any deals, he hasn't been pushing senators to support defining marriage as between a man and a woman," Glover states. "And [yet] he thinks that he can hold one speech ... the day before the vote, which is a clear expression of weakness, and appease conservatives as if he's done something significant."

The pro-family activist notes that the president worked for months on issues such as Social Security and the Medicare prescription drug entitlement, "which conservatives didn't even like." Glover adds. "But for marriage he gives us one speech ... the day before and expects us all to be pleased with it."

In addition, Glover reports that the venue for Bush's speech on Monday -- originally to take place in the White House Rose Garden -- has been moved to a room in the Eisenhower Building. He suggests the change in location as another indication of the administration's lackluster support for the amendment. "They've moved it to the back of the bus," he says.

Glover feels that Bush's lack of concern for protecting traditional marriage is a slap in the face of conservative Christians who helped elect him. And it is ironic, he adds, that First Lady Laura Bush made the comment recently that protecting marriage should not be a campaign issue, when the issue was a key part of the Republican platform in 2004.

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Circuit Court Sends 'Textbook Sticker' Case Back to Lower Court

by Jim Brown
June 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A federal appeals court has refused to rule on a lower-court decision that forced a suburban Atlanta school district to remove disclaimers about evolution from its science textbooks.

A three-judge panel of the Eleventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the district court decision because of an insufficient factual record. However, the Eleventh Circuit did not rule on the constitutional merits of Judge Clarence Cooper's January 2005 decision, which ordered the Cobb County School District to remove from about 35,000 biology textbook stickers that read, in part: "Evolution is a theory, not a fact ...."

Byron Babione is a senior legal counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund, which filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case.

"The sticker should have been perfectly constitutional," Babione contends. "In other words, it had a secular purpose -- it didn't advance any one or particular religion, and it didn't entangle government excessively with religion." Instead, says the attorney, it "simply promoted critical analysis with respect to the theory of evolution, as critical analysis is promoted with respect to any scientific theory."

Babione says although Judge Cooper said the disclaimers were motivated by an improper religious purpose, his ruling relied in part on a parental letter received by the school district after it had already put the stickers in the textbooks. According to the ADF attorney, the participation of Christians in the political process should not determine whether a law is constitutional.

"Whether you're a Christian or not a Christian, or whatever the worldview is that you subscribe to, under the Constitution you're allowed to participate in the political process," Babione says. "And I don't think district courts should be in the business of saying, 'Well, who was it that was trying to influence their legislatures? Were they from this religious group or were they not from that religious group?' That shouldn't even matter."

The stickers read, in full: "This textbook contains material on evolution. Evolution is a theory, not a fact, regarding the origin of living things. This material should be approached with an open mind, studied carefully, and critically considered."

Parents who sued the school district over the stickers argue the disclaimers violate the so-called "separation of church and state." But ADF contends no school should be prevented from just stating facts. In fact, says Joel Oster, another ADF attorney, "that's what schools are supposed to do."

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Leftist Church Official Does Not Speak for UMC, Renewal Advocate Says

by Jim Brown
June 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Protestant renewal group is denouncing a United Methodist Church (UMC) official over his call for the impeachment of President George W. Bush.

Jim Winkler, head of the United Methodist Board of Church and Society, recently addressed the Ecumenical Advocacy Days for Global Peace and Justice, telling the gathering of liberal religious activists in Washington that President Bush should be impeached for mounting "an illegal war of aggression" against Iraq that was "sold on lies."

President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are both members of the UMC. Winker went on to fault the president and his administration for not being aggressive enough in supporting global warming theory and other liberal causes. The United Methodist official also referred to the war on terror as "a war of terror" and called American intelligence agencies "the secret police."

According to Mark Tooley, director of the United Methodist Committee at the Institute of Religion and Democracy (IRD), Winkler considers impeaching Bush to be a religious imperative. However, the church renewal advocate does not believe Winkler truly speaks for most of his denomination's members with regard to church or political matters.

"Those on the religious left who deny or at least diminish some of the key, core doctrines of Christianity tend to view politics instead of those core doctrines of Christianity as more essential," Tooley asserts. "So it's not surprising," he says, "that Winkler would call a particular political initiative like impeaching the President part of advancing his notion of the kingdom of God."

But despite Bush's low approval ratings, Tooley believes most of the UMC's eight million members would find the UM Board of Church and Society leader's call for the impeachment of the President out of line. In fact, the Protestant renewal advocate thinks many church members would have problems with the way the denomination's resources are being used by church officials in their efforts to advance several leftist political causes.

The IRD's United Methodist Committee spokesman says he is confident the vast majority of Methodists would take issue with "the fact that we have a fulltime lobby office in Washington, DC, on Capitol Hill that pushes for a whole range of liberal issues." He is also confident, he says, "that the vast majority of Methodists -- even many of those who are themselves liberal -- would find that inappropriate for the church."

Winkler would make a good spokesman for a left-wing political action organization like MoveOn.org, Tooley asserts. However, he says the liberal UMC official definitely "does not represent the mainstream opinion in the denomination for which he purports to speak."

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Plaintiffs Target Companies Marketing Junk Food to Kids

by Ed Thomas
June 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Two public-interest advocacy groups and two Boston-area parents have filed a notice of intent to sue Nickelodeon's parent company and Kellogg Foods in a Massachusetts court. Lawyers for the plaintiffs and defendants are still negotiating to try to avoid the filing of the lawsuit over the marketing of junk food during children's programming.

The notice of intent to file suit against Kellogg, the Nickelodeon network, and its owner Viacom was submitted in January following the release of a report from the Institute of Medicine connecting food product TV commercials and child health. The report showed a link between advertising aimed at kids and their unfortunate preferences for foods high in caloric content and low in nutrition.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest, the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, and Massachusetts parents Sherri Carlson and Andrew Long are the plaintiffs in the case. The two groups and the two individuals object to companies' constant marketing of food products during children's shows and want the court to put a stop to the onslaught.

The same cartoon show characters that kids are tuning in to watch are being used to sell empty them calorie food products during commercials, Long asserts. And what is being pushed to these growing youngsters, he says, is "basically junk food -- high fat, high sugar content, nutritionally poor food."

And Susan Linn of Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC) notes that the power of advertising over impressionable youngsters is tremendous -- wielding far more influence over them than over adults. In the Institute of Medicine's end-year 2005 study, she notes, researchers did a thorough review of all the literature on food marketing and childhood obesity, "and they came to the conclusion that food marketing affects children's food choices, their food preferences, their food requests and their diets."

Part of the reason for the powerful effect of food marketing on children, Linn points out, is that the younger viewers -- particularly those under the age of eight -- that are being targeted by food company's television ads are generally not capable of understanding that they have a choice. They do not know they can elect not to follow advertisers' suggestions, she says.

"Until the age of eight," the CCFC spokeswoman explains, "children can't understand persuasive intent; so the thought is that if they don't understand the fundamental basis of advertising, how can we expect them to defend against it?" That is why the lawsuit her group and the other plaintiffs are considering would specifically ask the court to prevent marketing through media venues aimed at children under age eight.

The plaintiffs want Kellogg, Nickelodeon, and Viacom enjoined from marketing to children under eight in certain media venues and with certain products. Dr. Linn says the companies are currently in negotiation with her group and the other parties to try to work out a compromise agreement.

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Boycott of Ford Impacting Automaker

by AFA Journal
June 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - As the boycott of the Ford Motor Company picks up steam, the automaker continues to help finance homosexual organizations pushing same-sex "marriage."

More than 20 pro-family groups are currently boycotting Ford, which also makes Jaguar, Volvo, Land Rover, Mazda, Lincoln and Mercury. The American Family Association, which initiated the boycott, has learned that Ford dealers recently met with corporate officials, and the boycott's effect on sales was the major topic of discussion.

In fact, while Ford's financial difficulties are not new, the company's woes appear to be accelerating. The automaker's sales dropped 5 percent in March and 7 percent in April, and Ford's stock has dropped more than 14 percent since the boycott began, reaching the lowest price in nearly 20 years.

"We've said all along that Ford should be concentrating on making better automobiles, rather than getting in the middle of the culture war," AFA chairman Don Wildmon says. "The latest round of bad economic news seems to bear this out."

Instead, Ford continues to risk alienating consumers by its enthusiastic support of the homosexual agenda. For example, the automaker is financially supporting the Motor City Pride event in Ferndale, Michigan, scheduled June 2-4. The homosexual celebration includes a same-sex "commitment ceremony," which the organizers admit is being held to "make a political statement."

The company also continues to fund homosexual political groups to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars. Ford has sponsored the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation; Human Rights Campaign; Gay, Lesbian Straight Education Network; and Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, among others. All of these organizations are vigorously promoting the legalization of same-sex marriage in the U.S.

At the same time all this has been happening, Ford seems more concerned about what homosexual activists are thinking than pro-family consumers. For example, in April the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) denied a request by Ford to keep a shareholder resolution pertaining to homosexual marriage off the agenda at their shareholders meeting May 11.

The resolution, which shareholders voted down, simply requested "that Ford Motor Company amend its written equal employment opportunity policy to exclude any reference to privacy issues related to sexual interests, activities or orientation."

One reason cited by Ford in their request to the SEC was that the company did not want to face a possible boycott by homosexual groups.

"I find Ford's logic in asking the SEC to omit the resolution interesting," says Wildmon. "Ford is saying that they are concerned that the resolution would anger homosexual groups who might then boycott the company, but they did not fear the boycott by the pro-family groups. I think consumers will show Ford just how wrong the company is."

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Study Shows Parents Giving Tots Too Much TV Time

by Mary Rettig
June 1, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A child and family psychologist for Focus on the Family says it is troubling that. According to one study, today's parents seem to believe the television and other media can be a good babysitter for very young children.

Focus on the Family's Dr. Bill Maier says a recent Kaiser Family Foundation study shows parents sometimes rely on media to occupy their infant and toddler children while the adults do other chores. However, he points out, child health experts have warned that parents of children within that age range against exposing them to TV this early.

"The American Academy of Pediatrics came out with a very strong recommendation about two years ago, telling American parents that children under two should not be exposed to any sort of television, Maier notes, "and yet, if you look at the Kaiser Foundation report, 61 percent of babies one year or younger watch TV, in a typical day, an average of an hour and 20 minutes."

And among slightly older children, the psychologist reveals, the numbers are even more alarming. "Ninety percent of 4- to 6-year-olds watch TV, in a given day, for an average of two hours," he says.

"Here we have the nation's largest child health organization telling us two years ago that kids under two shouldn't be watching television at all," Maier laments, "and yet this huge number of children are doing just that." But although he thinks allowing the TV to "baby-sit" while adults do other things is an immature and selfish trend, he emphasizes that he does not believe most parents are uncaring, only uninformed.

"I think a lot of it boils down to a lack of knowledge about child development," the child and family issues expert says. "And many parents are just so busy, they don't take the time to read articles and keep up with the news about what's good and bad for kids."

Many mothers and fathers believe exposure to television and DVDs can be helpful to their children's learning and development, Maier notes. However, he says these parents are forgetting that long hours spent sitting in front of a screen can contribute to childhood obesity and other health and developmental problems.

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ADF Appeals Liberal Judges' Ruling in Christian Student's Censorship Case

by Jim Brown
June 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A pro-family attorney says a San Diego school district violated the free-speech rights of a California high school student by prohibiting him from expressing his Christian viewpoint against homosexuality.

In 2004, the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) filed a lawsuit challenging the Poway School District's decision to suspend student Chase Harper for wearing a Christian T-shirt. Harper's shirt bore the phrases "Homosexuality is shameful" and "Our school embraced what God has condemned."

Recently, two judges with the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the U.S. Constitution does not permit Harper to wear the shirt. ADF, a pro-family legal defense organization, is appealing the ruling.

Harper's attorney, Tim Chandler, says the school district practices viewpoint discrimination against Christians who speak out on issues such as homosexuality and illegal immigration. He says this is accomplished through policies that the school has in place, which purportedly ban any speech that is negative or offensive.

Chandler feels Poway School District's officials are doing a disservice by creating an atmosphere of oppression and bias rather than academic freedom and open debate. "Basically what they're trying to do is create this perfect, politically correct campus," he says, "but in doing so, they've basically excluded any debate on campus, particularly on these important issues."

And unfortunately, the attorney points out, the Ninth Circuit that recently ruled on the case has a history of censoring conservative expression. "They've been incredibly hostile to Christians in a number of different rulings ranging from the Pledge of Allegiance to parents' rights and now to students' speech rights," he says.

However, Chandler is hopeful that the prior ruling by the two liberal Ninth Circuit judges can be overturned on appeal. He says in that decision the judges did not take into consideration that California state law gives students substantially more free-speech rights on campus than the First Amendment does. Now ADF is asking a 15-judge panel of the infamous court to reverse the earlier ruling prohibiting Harper from wearing his T-shirt and expressing his faith-based viewpoint opposing homosexuality.

Chandler says ADF is confident of a positive outcome in the appeal. The previous ruling in this free-speech case, he asserts, was "so outrageous and so unprecedented that we are confident that even the Ninth Circuit can get this one right."

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Mahoney Hails City's Vote to Appeal Mt. Soledad Cross Removal Order

by Allie Martin
June 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The San Diego City Council has agreed to appeal a federal judge's ruling ordering the removal of a cross from the top of a war memorial in La Jolla, California. The 5-3 vote directs the city attorney to file the appeal with the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The long legal battle over the Christian symbol's inclusion in the monument began 17 years ago when an atheist sued the City of San Diego, claiming that having the cross on city-owned property violated the U.S. Constitution.

Since then, judges have overruled efforts by the city to sell land surrounding the memorial to private groups. And last month, U.S. District Judge Gordon Thompson ordered city officials to remove the cross from its place atop Mount Soledad within 90 days or else face heavy fines.

Pat Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Coalition, has been a vocal advocate for those seeking to preserve the Mount Soledad cross. He says the courts that have been involved in the matter are misguided about the legality of the symbol.

"The Constitution guarantees freedom of religion, not freedom from religion," Mahoney contends. "It's important for us to stand and say, 'We have to resist this kind of tyranny.'"

Last July, 76 percent of San Diego voters approved Proposition A, a measure that would have allowed the city to transfer the Mount Soledad cross to the National Park Service so it could be designated a national war memorial. A judge, however, ruled that vote invalid. Mahoney believes such misguided rulings are creating bad precedent.

"People say you have to obey the rule of law and the law," he says. "My response to them is, 'What law has been broken?' This cross has been here for 54 years. Are we now to remove the crosses in Arlington cemetery or the crosses from military medals that have been given for years?"

Mahoney applauds the City of San Diego's decision to appeal Judge Thompson's removal order. The Mount Soledad cross is the centerpiece of a treasured war memorial and local landmark, Mahoney says, and he is pleased that the city will continue its legal battle to keep it in place.

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Legal Group Prefers Competition on the Field, Not in Courtroom

by Allie Martin
June 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Four public school districts in Virginia are reversing an earlier decision and now will schedule athletic events with a well-known private Christian school.

Earlier this year the athletic director for Liberty Christian Academy (LCA) was informed by representatives of eight public school districts that the private school was no longer welcome to take part in training camps, practice competitions, or any other regularly scheduled sporting events. Soon after LCA responded in writing to those districts threatening legal action, the school learned that district athletic directors and coaches had been instructed during a meeting by some of the boycott leaders not to schedule games with LCA -- and that if they did, they too would be boycotted.

Florida-based Liberty Counsel authored the letter sent to the districts. The legal group's chairman, Mat Staver, says four districts have now had a change of heart.

"It's one thing to not play another school," Staver says, "[but] it's another thing to participate in an intentional, illegal boycott targeting a particular school and essentially trying to shut down the athletic program. As a result, now four school districts have publicly distanced themselves and are backing away from the boycott, and we're very pleased with that."

The four districts that have agreed to schedule games with LCA are located in Pittsylvania, Appomattox, Bedford, and Campbell counties. The original eight also included Nelson, Prince Edward, and Amherst counties and the City of Lynchburg. Staver says Liberty Counsel is still waiting to hear from them.

"We're ... calling on the remaining four to stop their religious bigotry and to break away from this boycott or face the consequential actions that will happen in a civil courtroom," the attorney says. "We would much rather play them and compete against them on the playing field than in the courtroom."

Staver is hopeful the truth will come to light. "As one school district after another comes forward and is willing to schedule games, it becomes clear -- as we have always suspected -- where the boycott for originated," he says, adding his legal firm will continue to pursue the matter until every district decides to "play fair."

For decades, LCA -- which was founded by Dr. Jerry Falwell -- has participated in athletic competition, training camps, and other events with student athletic teams from high schools in the eight districts. Staver says lawsuits likely will be filed against any of the remaining public school districts that ban the Christian academy from competitions.

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Liberals Dominate Graduation Lecterns Again, Says Study

by Jim Brown
June 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Most of the country's top colleges and universities once again chose liberal figures to speak at their graduation ceremonies this year.

A study by the Virginia-based Young America's Foundation (YAF) reveals that commencement addresses at America's top schools this year were dominated by "Democratic Party officials, leftist activists, and members of the old media." According to the Foundation, for the thirteenth year in a row, "commencement organizers chose the Tom Brokaws over the Sean Hannitys, the Marian Wright Edelmans over the Thomas Sowells, and the Desmond Tutus over the Antonin Scalias."

Dr. Jerry Falwell is chancellor of Liberty University, an evangelical school that had Arizona Senator John McCain deliver its commencement address this year. He says liberal political bias and a lack of intellectual diversity are staples on university campuses.

"Communism is dead in the Soviet Union, but I think it's alive and well on most American campuses -- or at least an anti-American philosophy," says Falwell. "The Ward Churchills are everywhere," he adds, a reference to the controversial, liberal professor from the University of Colorado.

Falwell shares that Liberty University offers Christian students an alternative to universities pervaded by liberal thought. The school, he explains, is unique in that it is committed to an inerrant Bible, the deity of Christ, America, freedom, and the free enterprise system.

"Liberty is different," he states. "We don't allow alcohol, drugs, tobacco, no coed dorms, and we don't have one single liberal professor. We discriminate against that just as Harvard and company discriminate against conservative faculty -- and we acknowledge it, and they don't."

The YAF survey also found several schools held separate graduation ceremonies for homosexual and black students.

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California Assemblyman Refuses to Attend Speech by Mexico's President

by James L. Lambert
June 2, 2006

(AgapePress) - - One week ago Mexican President Vicente Fox addressed the California State Legislature. California State Assemblyman Ray Haynes, however, was not in attendance. The Republican from Temecula decided to personally boycott the event because of his deeply held beliefs on what he felt was really occurring that day.

Haynes, a long-time friend of conservatives, commented this week he felt that Fox "was there for the sole purpose of trying to change U.S. immigration policy." The California Assemblyman said that the Mexican president "came to California to promote amnesty for the Mexican nationals that have broken our laws." The Assemblyman added he found Fox's presence in Sacramento for that purpose to be "arrogant and offensive."

The California lawmaker further substantiated his reason for boycotting President Fox's speech.

"[President Fox] has continually complained about our [immigration] policy, openly questioned the legality of Bush putting the National Guard units on the border, and even complained when Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed the bill which would have given California driver's licenses to illegal aliens," stated Haynes.

The Assemblyman also contends that over the last several years, Fox has encouraged Mexican citizens to enter the U.S. illegally because, in many ways, it benefits his country.

"When his citizens come to California, our taxpayers pick up their medical bills, pay for their education, food, clothing and housing," Haynes said. "In return, these Mexican citizens usually take most of their earnings and send them back to Mexico."

Such a relationship, he added, is "all to Mexico's benefit -- and not much help to California."

Consequently, Haynes saw no reason why he should sanction a visit from the Mexican president and listen to what he described as "lies and propaganda."

"Why should I ... listen to the president of Mexico [asking] us to pay for his social problems?" he stated. "He should go back to Mexico, fix his economy, fix his corrupt government, and quit sending us his social problems."

Haynes' term in the State Assembly is set to expire at the end of this year. He is currently running for a seat on the State Board of Equalization. California's primary election is slated for June 6.

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As Senate Takes Up Marriage Debate, Religious Leaders Urge Support for MPA

by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
June 5, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The founder of the American Family Association (AFA) says U.S. Christians concerned about the influence of homosexual activists on their society need to contact their senators regarding the proposed federal marriage amendment.

Tomorrow (June 6) the U.S. Senate begins debate on the proposed constitutional amendment that would define marriage as valid only between a man and a woman. To become law, the amendment needs two-thirds support in the U.S. Senate and House and then would have to be ratified by 38 state legislatures. Senators are expected to vote on the proposal later this week.

Opponents of the marriage protection measure say a federal amendment is not needed because the definition of marriage is an issue of state's rights. Supporters of the amendment, however, say banning same-sex "marriage" is necessary not only to preserve the traditional understanding of marriage but also to protect children, families, and society as a whole.

In a radio address Saturday, President George W. Bush noted that "marriage cannot be cut off from its cultural, religious, and natural roots" without undermining its cultural benefits. "Ages of experience have taught us," the president remarked, "that the commitment of a husband and a wife to love and to serve one another promotes the welfare of children and the stability of society."

The chief executive also observed that activist judges and local officials have made what he called "an aggressive attempt to redefine marriage in recent years." However, he said state marriage protection laws and amendments across America have indicated "broad consensus in our country for protecting the institution of marriage" against such redefinition.

As Senate takes up the marriage issue, pro-family activist and AFA founder/chairman Don Wildmon is encouraging his fellow evangelicals to take action. "It's critical right now," he says, "for everyone who believes marriage should be between one man and one woman to call their two senators and say, 'I want you to vote for the Marriage Protection Amendment; and, if you vote against it, in essence you're voting for homosexual marriage.'"

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Dr. Don Wildmon
Wildmon is concerned that, without a federal Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA), judicial activists will be able to nullify marriage laws across America on a state-by-state basis. "Changing the Constitution is not an easy process," he says, "nor should it be; but at least we're going in the right direction. If we don't have this constitutional amendment, we're going to find one activist federal liberal judge who's going to strike down every marriage law in this country."

However, people must get involved before it is too late, the AFA spokesman warns. "It's extremely important that people call their senators and ask them to vote for the Marriage Protection Amendment," he says. "The MPA is the only way that the sacred institution of marriage will remain between one man and one woman."

Religious Objections to Gay Marriage Treated as Bigotry?
And Professor Robert George, a Princeton University constitutional scholar and co-founder of the Religious Coalition for Marriage, points to another danger to be avoided. In a recent Associated Press interview, he noted that if homosexual marriage is legalized, individuals who believe in traditional marriage could be treated as bigots and their religious views on homosexual marriage could be subject to attack -- and possibly even prosecution.

"Marriage is between a man and a woman, and only one of each," George contends. "If that is legally now defined as a prejudicial view -- a form of discrimination, a form of bigotry -- then it will be attacked by the law in the same way that racial bigotry is attacked in the law now," he says.

Also, the professor adds, "If we go down the route of same-sex marriage, that will be what is taught to children in schools against their parents' wishes." Schools will teach children to accept and support homosexual marriage, he explains, "even if their parents are strong believers in the traditional, conjugal conception, whether they are Protestants, Catholics, observant Jews."

A diverse community of traditional marriage supporters could be affected if the push to legalize same-sex marriage succeeds, George asserts. The Religious Coalition for Marriage alone includes members of the Southern Baptist Convention, the Roman Catholic Church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the Pentecostal Church of God in Christ, the Missouri Synod of the Lutheran Church, and the Orthodox Jewish community.

Americans who support traditional marriage, including countless people of faith like those represented by the Religious Coalition for Marriage, may be forced to accept homosexual marriage regardless of their religious beliefs, Professor George warns, unless the U.S. Constitution is amended to protect traditional marriage.

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Patrick Henry College's New Leader Laments Lost Faculty's Exit

by Jim Brown
June 5, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The new president of Patrick Henry College in Virginia is speaking out about the recent resignation of nearly a third of the evangelical school's full-time professors. The five instructors recently quit PHC, accusing Mike Farris of limiting their academic freedom and disparaging their Calvinist beliefs.

Replacing Farris as president next month is Dr. Graham Walker, Ph.D., former vice president for academic affairs and dean of Oklahoma Wesleyan University. The new president says he is troubled over some of the actions of the five professors that resigned and is, in particular, "a little grieved that some of the dissatisfactions felt by the departing faculty members were, with some students, pretty thoroughly aired and discussed."

Walker says he would have no objections to theological disputes, discussions, or debates taking place among members of the academic community. "The problem was that this was not primarily a theological issue," he says. "Ultimately it didn't pivot on that at all. It was a personnel issue."

The incoming PHC president insists that, despite what the departing professors may claim, Patrick Henry College is committed to being a complex fellowship of evangelical people with different theological points of view. He says he wishes the professors who resigned "had persisted in the dialogue that President Mike Farris sought to undertake with them."

Walker says the five professors published a few statements that "seemed, at least on the surface, to be a little bit at odds with the statement of faith of the college," and so President Farris "sought clarification and was looking for an exchange of views."

However, Walker contends, instead of responding to Farris the disgruntled professors quit. The college's new chief administrator says the five resigned before Farris could draw any conclusions and, in fact, resigned even "before he could take any actions whatsoever."

But in spite of what has occurred, Walker stresses that faculty members of all evangelical perspectives are welcome on Patrick Henry College's campus, whether they be Pentecostal, non-Pentecostal, Reformed, or non-Reformed in their theology. He says he was drawn to the school because it "exemplifies sacrifice and bringing your best to the Lord."

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Author: Despite NOW, Many Women Opting for Stay-at-Home Parenting

by Mary Rettig
June 5, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Author and stay-at-home mom Suzanne Venker says the leaders of the National Organization for Women, or NOW, are out of touch with real women of today.

Elizabeth Vargas, co-anchor of ABC's "World News Tonight," recently announced she is leaving the program because of her pregnancy and her desire to spend more time with her other child. However, NOW president Kim Gandy finds the situation suspicious and is positing the possibility of network discrimination against Vargas.

Gandy wrote an article on the NOW website decrying Vargas' departure and suggesting that the ABC anchorwoman was dumped, not unlike the ABC show "Commander in Chief," for presenting viewers with a strong female image.

The head of NOW says it seems unlikely that Vargas, "having survived and thrived through her first pregnancy ... would logically give up the top job in TV a few months out, anticipating she couldn't handle it." And since the newswoman's decision to leave her prime "World News Tonight" position to spend time with her children seems illogical to Gandy, the women's organization president says she smells a rat.

But Suzanne Venker, author of 7 Myths of Working Mothers (Spence Publishing, 2004), thinks that response has a rather suspicious odor all its own. She says NOW is an organization whose leaders are bent on playing the discrimination card even where none exists.

"And every time a woman today makes any choice that is not what they would want her to make," Venker adds, "that is, to stay in the workforce full time, regardless of your situation with your children -- then there must be a 'rat' defined, because, [as NOW sees it,] you couldn't possibly have chosen this."

Gandy and NOW seem to think every woman who wants a family can and should be a career-oriented mom who hands her children off to daycare, the author says. But today, she asserts, it is a growing trend that more women are realizing they cannot do it all, maintaining a fabulous career while managing a home and raising perfect children.

"If the world functioned differently, and if we had our system set up in such a way that allowed women to succeed at both of these pursuits, both motherhood and career simultaneously, then women wouldn't have to make these choices," Venker says.

"But, of course," the stay-at-home parent continues, "women are voluntarily making the 'choice' -- to use the term we use today -- to opt out in order to be with their children." And that fact is going to upset the feminists of NOW and groups like it, she adds, "because that defies their entire agenda."

Gandy and the National Organization for Women need to catch up with the times, Venker insists. She says more women are recognizing motherhood as the full-time job it is rather than something they can do on the side, and those who choose to be stay-at-home moms should be supported and commended for their decision.

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Attorney Suggests Gov't Regulation of Google a Possibility

by Allie Martin
June 5, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An attorney with a prominent conservative Christian group says he is troubled by the recent announcement that the popular Internet search engine Google' has dumped news sites criticizing radical Islam.

Last month Frank Salvato, owner of The New Media Journal, was informed by representatives of Google that his website's news page would be dropped as one of the search engine's news resources because of complaints regarding "hate speech." Google officials referenced three articles from the site that allegedly contained such speech directed at the Muslim religion. (See earlier article)

The chief counsel of the American Family Association Center for Law & Policy says Google's decision is troubling because of the company's influence on the Worldwide Web. Steve Crampton explains that the whole concept behind a search engine is that users are just looking for information -- and that the users will then take it from there.

"[Users are essentially saying] 'I'll do the decision-making -- the discriminating, if you will -- as to which articles I want to read and which ones I don't,'" says Crampton. "But when you retrieve only left-leaning articles or only articles that are favorable to the religion of Islam, you're not really providing news. You're providing a slanted view of the world."

And evidently Google provides its view to a major portion of American Internet users. According to the Nielsen/NetRatings report [PDF], half (50 percent) of all the Internet searches -- or approximately 2.65 billion searches -- conducted in the U.S. in April 2006 were carried out on Google. Yahoo! search and MSN search followed with 22 and 11 percent respectively. That makes Google, a private entity, one with vast influence -- and consequently, an argument might be made for government regulation, Crampton says.

"When you consider how large this entity has become, you start to get into a realm where an argument could be made that perhaps this entity now becomes sort of like a public utility to the extent that the people rely on Google and Google alone," the attorney states. "There may be an argument that the government can step in and regulate Google in a way that it couldn't otherwise regulate a private entity."

Still, Crampton encourages concerned Christians to contact Google and let them know of their outrage at the decision. Company officials did not respond to an interview request.

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Feds' Funding for Mexican Education Ticks Off Texas Pro-Family Group

by Jim Brown
June 5, 2006

(AgapePress) - - This fall, two south Texas school districts will be offering Spanish-speaking students access to Mexican curriculum, teachers, and diplomas. A pro-family group based in the Lone Star State is expressing outrage over the program.

An agreement reached between University of Texas president William Powers, Jr., and Mexican education officials paves the way for Texas students to use computers to study math and science courses in Spanish, while they learn English and social studies in their schools. The Donna and Edcouch-Elsa school districts have both received half-million-dollar federal grants to buy computers and pay for the online programs and train Mexican teachers.

Cathie Adams with Texas Eagle Forum says Texans should not be forced to pay for curriculum, teachers, and diplomas from Mexico.

"[N]othing could be more disappointing to taxpayers who are having to pick up the tab not only for the students that are their own children -- citizens -- but we also now are going to be picking up [the tab] and spending more money for those who are Mexican citizens," says Adams. The Bush administration, she contends, is "set on erasing our border with Mexico" with such programs.

And just because federal dollars are being used does not mean Texas taxpayers will not have to foot the bill, she says.

"Yes, we do have a president in the White House who is from our state," the Texas Eagle Forum spokesman notes. "But we are just as upset as [are] the people in Connecticut or the people in California about this [immigrant] invasion. Not only is it costing us as far as our education plan, but our healthcare is costing us -- and it is absolutely wrong for our federal government to not be securing our border."

Under the program, students who receive their diploma from Mexico would be eligible to attend a community college in Texas.

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Judge Rules Christian Prison Program Unconstitutional; Appeal Planned

by Jody Brown
June 5, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Evidently it matters not that a well-known and highly successful prison ministry believes one of its premier programs is constitutional and well within the guidelines of the First Amendment, or that statistics bear out the effectiveness of the program. A federal judge has ruled the program is unconstitutional -- and now the program that equips prisoners to successfully re-enter society is in jeopardy.

A federal judge has ruled that an Iowa prison program that involves inmates immersing themselves in evangelical Christianity is unconstitutional and must be shut down. Associated Press reports that Judge Robert Pratt, in a ruling expected to have national implications, said Prison Fellowship's InnerChange Freedom Initiative amounts to a government establishment of religion.

Pratt ruled that the Iowa Department of Corrections must close the program within 60 days and that $1.5 million in contract payments must be returned to state officials, but he suspended those orders while an appeal is pending.

Prison Fellowship, which sponsors similar programs in Texas, Minnesota, Kansas and Arkansas, argued that the Iowa program is voluntary and has secular benefits. The ministry claims the program has produced "dramatic results" in the lives of hardened criminals and has been effective in stopping what it describes as "the revolving door of crime."

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Mark Earley
If Judge Pratt's ruling is allowed to stand, says Prison Fellowship president Mark Earley, it will "enshrine" religious discrimination. The ruling, he states, "has attacked the right of people of faith to operate on a level playing field in the public arena and to provide services to those who volunteered to receive them."

In addition, observes Earley, the federal judge's decision fosters what the ministry leader describes as a "lock 'em up and throw away the key" approach to fighting crime.

"It assumes by warehousing criminals and providing no services to help them change, that society will be safer when they get out," he says. "Nothing could be further from the truth." Prison Fellowship says it plans to appeal the ruling to the Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and that it believes the case will eventually make its way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

It was more than three years ago -- February 2003 -- that the group Americans United for Separation of Church and State filed a lawsuit against the InnerChange Freedom Initiative in Iowa, alleging that it represented an excessive entanglement between state and religion.

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Watchdog Group: Conservatives' Rights Get Trampled on U.S. Campuses

by Jim Brown
June 5, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A campus watchdog group contends the academic freedom of conservative students and faculty at America's colleges and universities is under constant assault. One example is given of a University of Pittsburgh student Janice Everly, who recently informed her English literature professor that she planned to miss class to take part in a fundraiser for victims of Hurricane Katrina.

The professor responded in an e-mail by saying Everly would be given permission to miss class if she agreed to "rabble rouse" against President Bush at the fundraiser. According to the Pitt News, after receiving two more anti-Bush e-mail messages from the professor, Everly dropped the class.

Sara Dogan, national campus director of Students for Academic Freedom, says similar abuses take place on campuses across the United States. She believes one reason conservative individuals and their viewpoints are often discriminated against in academic settings is that the conservatives are simply outnumbered.

"If you look at the ratios of Democratic to Republican professors on campuses," Dogan points says, "Democrats outnumber Republicans by more than 10 to 1 in the humanities and by as much as 30 to 1 in certain fields." It is simply the case, she asserts, "that universities have a blacklist against conservatives."

In other words, the academic freedom advocate says, at many institutions of higher learning nationwide, a bias exists against hiring conservatives, and against offering conservative candidates tenure. "And so universities have basically become echo chambers for the left," she contends. "Conservative opinions aren't tolerated."

On the other hand, Dogan contends, rarely do college and university professors attempt to indoctrinate their students with conservative views. But even if that were the case, she says, the grievance process at most schools for students who feel their academic freedom rights have been violated is often long and cumbersome.

Often, the Students for Academic Freedom spokeswoman explains, students with a complaint must first consult the faculty member involved. If that is unsuccessful, they must then seek out the department chairman or dean and address a committee before a formal hearing is granted.

"If students feel that they've been harassed on the basis of their race, of their sex, or if they feel they have been sexually harassed, there's an office that they can go to," Dogan points out. However, she says while many universities have policies regarding professors' academic freedom rights, many schools offer no such protections for students.

"I don't see any reason why something like academic freedom, which is absolutely essential to the mission of a university, shouldn't have its own office or, at the very least, someone who the students can specifically can contact if there's a problem," Dogan says.

In an effort to advocate for students' intellectual freedom and students' rights and to "restore intellectual diversity" to America's college and university communities, Students for Academic Freedom has set up chapters on campuses across the United States. The organization has also established a national office and coordinator in Washington, DC, and has petitioned legislators to enact an Academic Bill of Rights insisting on intellectual diversity in the university curriculum.

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'Reality TV' Not So Real, Says Article

by AFA Journal
June 6, 2006

(AgapePress) - - It may be the fad that just won't die, and it may be highly popular among couch potatoes, but it seems that the one thing "Reality TV" isn't is, well, real.

An article in Time magazine revealed some of the tricks frequently employed on reality shows. For example, producers of ABC's "The Dating Experience" thought it would make for more interesting television if a female participant was perceived to like one of the male contestants, when in reality she did not.

How did the producers solve this problem? Time's James Poniewozik said: "So they sat her down for an interview. Who's your favorite celebrity? they asked. She replied that she really loved Adam Sandler. Later, in the editing room, they spliced out Sandler's name and dropped in audio of her saying the male contestant's name."

Apparently such tactics are a regular part of reality television. Poniewozik said the above example even has a name -- "Frankenbiting." The moniker comes from the fact that sound bites are "stitched together" to create a sentence that wasn't actually spoken by a participant.

Other tricks: fake settings are built, maybe an office or an apartment that gives the impression the contestants are at a real location; a "misleading montage," in which footage shot days apart is reassembled to create a more interesting story line; or even dubbing in sounds over a scene in which participants are off-screen, to suggest something that never really occurred -- like sex.

Of course, Poniewozik admits that most people who watch reality shows expect some shenanigans. "But even savvy viewers who realize that their favorite reality shows are cast, contrived, and edited to be dramatic," he said, "may have no idea how brazen the fudging can be."

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The New Faith of Branson

by Cindy Shorey
June 6, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The Branson story is not a new story to many: quaint historic town becomes a tourist mecca, seemingly overnight. That line could be true of several great travel destinations, including Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, and Myrtle Beach. But what sets Branson, Missouri, apart?

Branson has seen its share of successes and even a few failures. That is the normal ebb and flow of business in a tourist-driven economy. Beyond the economics, what has remained is the faith in the heart of Branson and, to many, a faith in a higher purpose for the area. On the surface a new face is evident -- but dig deeper and you will find a rich vein of faith in God, and faith in family. Branson is a town where God, flag, and country take center stage. Perhaps that was the heart of Branson all along.

Back in 1990, Branson saw the arrival of a cavalcade of stars including Mel Tillis, Charley Pride, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Wayne Newton, and comedian David Brenner. All big names to be sure! But the muscle of the bigger names didn't keep the smaller shows from surviving. They have survived and thrived ... and have proceeded to remain atop the list of "must-see family shows" in Branson. The shows you wouldn't be embarrassed to take your family to. And that is a common denominator that 99 percent of the shows share.

It's 2006 and families are expected to pour into Branson. What does the new Branson offer? It no longer caters solely to the stereotypical Branson tourist: the "country music loving, Larry the Cable Guy tourist." Branson has found a way to embrace sophisticated baby boomers. New attractions in 2006 include a $300 million waterfront development known as the "Landing," a new Titanic exhibit, and Silver Dollar City's new expansion, The Grand Exposition.

Some 16 years after the "boom years" of the 1990s, many of the theaters also cater to a new audience -- that of church member. Many theaters in Branson have also become home to several churches. It's not uncommon to find services every Sunday morning at your favorite theater.

Mel Tillis sold his 110,000-square-foot building in 2002 to the Assemblies of God, and it has become home to one of Branson's fastest growing churches and event centers. The center plans to host Christian events and conferences year round. This summer it will host its first children's show, "God Rocks!"

On the other side of town, Keith Moore pastors the popular Faith Christian Church, formerly known as the Tony Orlando Theater. Tourists flock to these and other churches each Sunday, in search of services away from home. Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church has expanded their facility thanks to benevolent tourists each year.

Branson has also become a popular destination for religious meeting planners, conferences, and ministries. Religious conferences are one of the fastest growing meeting sectors nationwide. Speakers such as David Jeremiah, Kenneth Copeland, John Hagee and James Dobson have all appeared at one time or another in Branson. Brannon Howse, director of Worldview Weekend conferences, has indeed been pleasantly surprised at the success of his ministry conference held each year in Branson. "Branson represents a destination that I could not have dreamed up: faith, family, flag," says Howse. His event for 2006, which celebrated the birth of our religious freedom, sold out.

It is safe to say one of the biggest successes of the past 15 years in Branson has not been the "star factor," but the ability of the community to withstand the knock of gambling at its door. The year 2005 saw a successful, and some say surprising, victory against a Rockaway Beach proposed gaming initiative.

When you visit Branson this year, expect to see some familiar sights, marvel at some new ones, and listen closely to the strength of the heartbeat of a new Branson.

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Moore Joins in PABA Case Before High Court

by Allie Martin
June 6, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A candidate in Alabama's gubernatorial race has filed a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court claiming there is no constitutional right to an abortion.

In October the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the case Gonzales v. Carhart. That case was picked up by the high court when the Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003. Now former Alabama chief justice Roy Moore, who is running in today's Republican primary for governor, has joined with the Foundation for Moral Law in filing a friend-of-the-court brief in the case.

Moore says the nation's highest court was wrong in 1973 when it ruled women have a right to abortions.

"We simply pointed out [in our brief] that the courts are bound by the explicit provisions and terms of the First Amendment and the Constitution in general, and that the judges are not going by the words, they're not going by the terms and definitions," Moore explains. "They're going by the way they feel and by precedent, which has really contradicted the Constitution."

According to the former chief justice, the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment gives Congress the authority to ban a certain type of abortion.

"There is no justification for taking a baby's life just because the head has not come out of the womb," he says, referring to the gruesome partial-birth abortion procedure. "Any decent, sensible person can understand that, and the court should too.

"There is no way to say that life begins when the head comes out. That baby is alive, and to say that partial-birth abortion prohibition is unconstitutional is simply to dispute logic and reason."

Moore is facing incumbent Governor Bob Riley in today's primary. Polls show consistently that Moore trails Riley by almost two-to-one.

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Religious Conservatives Hail Bush's Renewed Call for Marriage Amendment

by Jenni Parker
June 6, 2006

(AgapePress) - - As the U.S. Senate began debate on the federal Marriage Protection Amendment this week, President George W. Bush urged support for the measure, which many observers expect to fall short of the required two-thirds support needed for passage. With this latest call for a constitutional ban on homosexual "marriage," the chief executive reaffirmed his commitment to a cause close to the heart of religious conservative "values voters."

In a White House address on Monday, Bush told the politically diverse crowd of scholars, community advocates, and pro-family and religious leaders present that, although they came from many backgrounds and faith traditions, they shared a common belief. They were united, he said, in their understanding that marriage is "the most fundamental institution of civilization, and it should not be redefined by activist judges."

The president went on to say he is proud to stand with those who "strongly support a constitutional amendment that defines marriage as a union of a man and a woman" and is calling on Congress to pass the Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA) and send it to the states for ratification "so we can take this issue out of the hands of over-reaching judges and put it back where it belongs -- in the hands of the American people."

A marriage amendment to the U.S. Constitution is necessary, Bush contended, "because activist courts have left our nation with no other choice" by imposing their "arbitrary will" on the people. Such an amendment would not, as some opponents have argued, take the issue of how marriage is to be defined away from the states, he explained, but would take the issue away from the courts and put it directly before the nation's citizens.

"This national question requires a national solution," President Bush observed. "And on an issue of such profound importance, that solution should come not from the courts, but from the people of the United States."

Religious Conservatives Rally in Wake of Bush's Call for MPA
Several religious conservatives have responded enthusiastically to Bush's words in support of the MPA. Associated Press (AP) reports that Rev. Richard Richardson, a member of the Black Ministerial Alliance of Greater Boston and Alliance for Marriage, says he is confident a constitutional ban on homosexual marriage will eventually be passed.

"They never told us that the road would be easy," Richardson notes, "but we've come this far; with God on our side, we know we're going to make it. So I'm pleased to stand with Americans of every race, color, and creed in the Alliance for Marriage." He adds that he and other black ministers in Boston are steadfastly opposed to homosexual marriage, even though it is legal in Massachusetts.

And Elder Russell Nelson of the Mormon church's Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke at a news conference yesterday, saying his church joins others in supporting the federal MPA. "We share a duty to preserve marriage and family as established by God. The time has now come when the constitutional amendment is needed in this country," he said.

In response to Bush's Monday address, Dr. Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission remarked, "The President of the United States has once again illustrated ... that he understands what's at stake in the Marriage Protection Amendment debate."

And what is at stake, Land asserts, are "two absolutely critical elements of our society." The first, he says, is the definition of marriage, which he calls the "basic building block of human society," the redefinition of which will "have disastrous effects on marriage, on children, and on society."

The second critical issue that Bush understands, the Southern Baptist leader contends, is that "not only marriage but 'government of the people, by the people' and 'for the people' is at stake here." Judiciaries at the state and federal level are "trying to force upon the American people something they find abhorrent," he says, and he agrees with the president that it is time for a federal constitutional remedy.

"Our forefathers reserved for the American people, not American judges, the right to determine social policy for the nation," Land says. "And when judges get it wrong, our forefathers gave us a method to give the judges further instruction on how we would be governed. It's called a constitutional amendment."

Potential Fallout of Redefining Marriage
Some religious conservatives' calls for a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage have focused on the negative consequences of failing to protect marriage from redefinition. Rabbi Nathan Diament, public policy director for the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations, told Associated Press reporters that his community fears congregations with traditional beliefs will face legal reprisals if they voice opposition to homosexual marriage.

"We are very concerned," Diament said, "deeply concerned that any traditional synagogue or church or other community institution, should gay marriage be legalized, will be confronted with a spate of lawsuits which will effectively put them out of business."

But the Orthodox Jewish leader believes that would only be the beginning of the kind of legal pressure that would be placed on traditional religious groups if marriage were redefined. "It will follow from there to challenging the tax-exempt status of churches and synagogues and other congregations," he says.

"It will follow from there," Diament continues, "to things that we've seen overseas already, such as attacking the free-speech rights of clergy who voice traditional religious perspectives on gay issues." And, according to one Senate Republican, that concern is not unreasonable. U.S. Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas noted in floor debate yesterday that when courts declare a right to homosexual marriage, it becomes illegal to disagree.

Speaking on the Senate floor, Brownback pointed out redefining marriage could affect the ability of religious groups to carry out their missions while remaining true to their beliefs. "It's already happening," he said, "as we've seen in Massachusetts, where Boston's Catholic Charities is being forced out of the adoption business entirely rather than violating church teachings on marriage and family.

The senator went on to assert that worse is likely to come, perhaps to the extent of seeing criticism of homosexual marriage banned as hate speech or churches being barred from performing any weddings unless they marry homosexual couples.

"Where courts impose a same-sex marriage regime as a constitutionally guaranteed right," Brownback declared, "a multitude of new religious liberty conflicts will inevitably arise at every point where the law touches marriage and is applied to individuals, businesses, non-profits, and even churches and synagogues."

Also, the Kansas lawmaker suggested, legalizing homosexual marriage would effectively force its acceptance on those who believe it is wrong. Churches and other religious organizations and institutions could eventually lose the right to define marriage as they always had, he warned.

"Religiously affiliated schools, adoption agencies, psychological clinics, social workers, marital counselors, et cetera, will be forced to choose between violating their own deeply held beliefs and giving up government contracts, tax-exempt status, or even being denied the right to operate at all," Brownback said.

In Senator Brownback's view, a federal marriage amendment is needed not only to preserve the traditional definition of marriage but also to protect religious freedom. Nevertheless, Senate Democrats and moderate Republicans are expected to block a yes-or-no vote on the MPA this week, killing the measure for the year.

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SBC Committee Member Agrees With Call for Public School 'Exit Strategy'

by Jim Brown
June 6, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A second member of the Resolutions Committee for the upcoming Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina, says the denomination needs to consider developing a plan to remove its children from America's public schools.

The SBC Resolutions Committee will meet Thursday to begin poring over resolutions that have been submitted for consideration next week. Among them is a proposal authored by Dr. Bruce Shortt and Executive Committee member Roger Moran that calls on the denomination to develop an "exit strategy" from public schools.

While second-year committee member Ida South of Mathiston, Mississippi, would not comment on the resolution, she agrees with Dr. Albert Mohler's belief that such a strategy is needed. Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and host of a daily national radio program, has publicly stated that "now is the time for responsible Southern Baptists to develop an exit strategy from public schools."

South, a veteran educator who is now retired, says the situation in the public schools is "getting worse all across the country." She feels most schools now are teaching a completely secular worldview.

The retired teacher points to one issue in particular as being symptomatic. "The teaching of homosexuality as being perfectly normal is more or less a symbol of what's wrong with our schools," she says, "because all the other things kind of fit in with that."

And South believes it is just a matter of time before Christian views are entirely censored from the public school setting. She admits this is a concern that may slip up quietly on Christian families and educators in the heartland or the "Bible Belt" areas, but she insists that creeping secularism is a rapidly spreading threat.

"I think we who are in areas where there's very little problem are kind of shaken when we find that someone is about to sue because their child heard the word 'God' mentioned in school," the Southern Baptist committee member and former educator says. "So even those of us in areas that have very little problem are beginning to wake up to realize that we do have problems."

As awareness grows among denomination members about the current state of America's public schools, South hopes more Southern Baptists will respond. She says leaders in SBC churches need to get more serious about providing alternatives to public education, including Christian schools and home schooling.

Grassroots political activist Rick Scarborough and evangelist Voddie Baucham, Jr. are also among those Southern Baptist leaders who have endorsed a proposed resolution favoring Mohler's call for an exit strategy from U.S. public schools.

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Human Rights Group Urges Action on Behalf of Indonesia's Christians

by Allie Martin
June 6, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The director of a Christian human rights group says persecution of Christians is on the rise throughout Indonesia. Ann Buwalda, director of the Virginia-based Jubilee Campaign, says recent developments in that country have heightened concerns for her and her staff.

Jubilee Campaign, which monitors countries known for persecuting Christians, reports that rapid growth of Christianity across Indonesia has caused Muslims to claim that Christianity must be resisted with force. In recent years the government of Indonesia has closed more than 150 churches in the capital city of Jakarta and throughout the island of Java, the country's most populous island.

Indonesia has the world's largest Muslim population, and that nation's government has been cited in the U.S. State Department's report on international religious freedom as among those nations that have enacted discriminatory legislation or policies prejudicial to certain religions.

Buwalda says Jubilee Campaign is asking Christians in America "to write their congressmen and their senators and encourage efforts to protect the Christian minorities."

Believers in the free world need to put pressure on their own government's leaders, Buwalda suggests, asking them to advocate on behalf of Indonesia's persecuted believers. U.S. leaders could urge that Southeast Asian country's leaders to let Christians in Indonesia "have churches to worship in and permit them to have religious freedom in the country," she says.

"The Indonesian government has given a lot of lip service to their minorities, yet there has not been a lot done to actually protect them," the Jubilee Campaign spokeswoman says. "There's legislation that is now enacted in Indonesia that could shut down hundreds of churches across the country. We would ask people to pray and write their congressmen and senators to take an interest in what's happening there."

A bill proposed by lawmakers in the Province of Aceh would impose Sharia law on all non-Muslims, and Buwalda notes that other legislation recently passed by the Indonesian government could be restrictive to Christians. She says government officials in Indonesia have not stood behind the state's promises of greater freedom for its religious minorities.

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Utah AG, Education Dept. Asked to Investigate School's Alleged Violation of Laws

by Jim Brown
June 6, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Utah pro-family group claims a public high school in Highland broke state privacy and sex education laws by allowing its student newspaper to publish articles promoting sexual promiscuity.

The Salt Lake City-based Standard of Liberty Foundation has asked the Utah attorney general and the state Office of Education to investigate whether Lone Peak High School broke two Utah education laws. A state Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) law "forbids schools from allowing any activity which results in students revealing information concerning their sexual behavior, orientation, or attitudes." Also, Utah education law bars schools from advocating homosexuality and extra-marital sex.

Foundation president Steve Graham, whose daughter attends Lone Peak High School, says articles in The Crusader have advocated the formation of Gay Straight Alliance clubs and teenage sexual activity.

"These educators and administrators have this attitude like the parents are a bunch of nit-wits and don't deserve the respect that we actually do deserve," says Graham, "and so they just disregard the parents' desires." And in this case, he adds, "we're convinced they're disregarding the law."

Officials with the school and the state education office deny education laws were broken. But according to the Foundation spokesman, the school violated the state FERPA law by asking his daughter and another student to write opposing opinion pieces regarding a homosexual club on campus.

"And that law," he explains, "says the school is not allowed to ask the student questions in tests or school discussions or any school activity that would cause them to express their opinions or attitudes regarding a number of things, including sexuality."

Graham says the law exists to protect the health and well-being of minors while under the charge of the school and the school district. It is the obligation of the state, he says, to hold school officials responsible for allowing "illegal and harmful information to be published and distributed to thousands of impressionable and vulnerable young students."

According to a press release from Graham's group, the articles in the student newspaper contained information identical to that found on the websites of homosexual activist groups such as the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network (GLSEN) and Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG).

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Local Police Attempt to Block Collection of Pro-Marriage Petitions

by Fred Jackson and Jody Brown
June 7, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A pro-family group in Florida is outraged over the behavior of some police officers last weekend who tried to stop a petition drive aimed at protecting traditional marriage.

Last weekend members of the Florida Family Policy Council were at a Promise Keepers conference in Broward County where they were collecting petitions for the Florida4Marriage campaign, an effort to get onto the November 2008 ballot an amendment protecting traditional marriage. The pro-family group had paid a fee to have a booth at the PK event at which it was collecting the petitions in support of the campaign's goal of gathering 611,009 signatures by July 12, 2006.

Then in what the group calls a "stunning display of unprofessional conduct," several members of the City of Sunrise Police Department arrived at the scene and ordered Council vice president Nathan Dunn to stop collecting the petitions, and then removed the petitions from public view. A discussion ensued, during which John Stemberger -- president and general counsel for the Council -- was summoned to the scene. The group says Stemberger's request for an explanation of what law or ordinance was being violated was ignored by Police Sergeant Stephen Allen, who it says then began lecturing nearby volunteers on what Jesus taught about homosexuality, claiming that the petition effort was a waste of time and that he was the authority and they should obey him.

"It quickly became apparent that [Allen] was a supporter of gay marriage and personally disagreed with the marriage amendment effort," says the Council's press release, which includes a picture of Allen kissing another male officer on the cheek in what the family advocacy group describes as a "mocking" gesture.

Stemberger reportedly returned the petitions to the exhibit table after security and event officials informed the police the petitions were authorized to be distributed at the table. At the height of the confrontation, notes the press release, the police sergeant "continued to interrupt with abusive and irrelevant personal remarks" and even threatened Stemberger with arrest if the petitions were not immediately removed from the table.

"I stood in between the petitions and the officer and told Allen he had no legal authority," Stemberger said later, adding that he informed the sergeant he "had no legal authority, was in violation of the U.S. Constitution, and would have to arrest me because the petitions were going to stay on the table."

The incident finally ended when an official with the Bank Atlantic Center intervened to tell the officers that no laws or rules were being broken, and that the petitions could be distributed at the table. Allen and the other officers then left the scene.

Stemberger says he has never before seen such "unprofessional and bizarre" behavior from a law enforcement officer. Allen, he says, was "abusing" his authority and "trying to bully law-abiding citizens" just because he disagreed with them. "This is unacceptable and a disgrace to the thousands of good cops in Florida that put their lives on the line every day to protect our families and our liberties," the Council president says.

The pro-family group says the officers' "harassment and intimidation" should be a reminder to families of the culture war that is going on. "If we do not stand up to this type of abuse of power, then our constitutional rights will continue to be violated," says Stemberger.

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Amendment Supporters Vow to Continue Fight for One Man-One Woman Marriage

by Ed Thomas, Jody Brown, and Bill Fancher
June 8, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The founder of a Mississippi-based pro-family group says traditional marriage supporters who are in the fight for the long haul aren't discouraged by yesterday's results in the U.S. Senate. Don Wildmon says the defeat of a move for cloture to end debate on the Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA) and move it to the floor for a vote only helps voters identify senators who won't stand up for traditional marriage.

The attempt at cloture on the MPA on Wednesday morning fell short of the 60 votes needed due to 48 senators choosing not to advance it. Wildmon says while those four dozen senators stated various reasons, all related to a disbelief that traditional marriage was in danger. But he says senators were actually trying to avoid being put on the record so they could give their constituents a convenient answer.

"[They'll say] 'We didn't vote on the marriage amendment; we didn't have an opportunity. We couldn't get enough votes,'" the pro-family leader supposes. "It's an excuse. It's a political escape."

The final tally -- 49-48 -- fell roughly along party lines, with the sole Independent in the Senate and seven Republicans joining Democrats in rejecting a vote on the measure. Those crossover Republicans were Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, Judd Gregg and John Sununu of New Hampshire, Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, Maine's senators Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, and presidential hopeful John McCain of Arizona. Wildmon has no soft words for those leaders.

"They didn't vote [for cloture] because they were cowards," he states emphatically. "They didn't have enough intestinal fortitude to let the people they represent know where they really stood."

The AFA chairman summed up his feelings with this comment: "The bottom line is this: you had 48 United States senators who voted in favor of allowing homosexuals to be married."

For that reason, he says it is urgent that the American public not allow those same elected officials to be correct in their gamble that voters will forget about this outcome by the time of the next Senate election cycle.

Joining Republicans on the "Yea" side of the vote were two Democrats: Robert Byrd of West Virginia and Ben Nelson of Nebraska. One Republican was not present for the vote, and one religious leader says that senator's constituents should be annoyed by that.

"Chuck Hagel is a senator from a state [Nebraska] which had the values of 70 percent of its citizens negated by one federal judge when he threw out the Nebraska ban on same-sex marriage," notes Dr. Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention. "Hagel's absence should be particularly galling to Nebraskans." Seventy percent of that state's voters approved a marriage protection amendment to their constitution in 2000.

A Long -- and Worthwhile -- Endeavor
Still, Land -- like other pro-family leaders -- is not totally discouraged. As he puts it: "One doesn't eat an apple in one bite." The SBC leader notes that most amendment proposals fall short on their first or second introduction. But those who understand that a federal constitutional amendment is the only way to protect the institution of marriage from activist judges must "redouble" their efforts, he says.

Dr. James Dobson agrees. Conservatives across the country, he says, are committed to doing "what it takes, for as long as it takes" to protect traditional marriage from "renegade judges."

"The 48 judges who voted against the MPA ... have left the definition of marriage at the mercy of activist courts intent on forcing a politically correct agenda on our nation," says the Focus on the Family founder in a press release. "Judges already have struck down marriage-protection laws and amendments in Massachusetts, Nebraska, and Georgia. They will continue to do so unless checked."

Amendment supporter Gary Bauer of the Campaign for Working Families says he was prepared for the outcome of yesterday's vote. "First of all, we knew that virtually the entire liberal Democratic Party in the Senate would vote against it," he says, "so right there we had a cap on the number of votes we would get.

"And we had a half dozen or so Republicans jump ship, which is not surprising," he continues. "We've seen that over and over again on votes."

Bauer notes that the process for amending the Constitution can be a long and difficult one, requiring a two-thirds majority in both chambers of Congress and then ratification by at least 38 states. "Unfortunately," he says, "the courts of our country are continually amending the Constitution by judicial fiat."

Supporters of the Marriage Protection Amendment expect it will be coming up for another vote in the Senate before the end of this congressional session. In addition, House Majority Leader John Boehner is on record as saying that "significant numbers" of House members want a vote. That could come as early as next month, according to news reports.

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House May Raise Fines for Broadcast Indecency Standard Violators

by Jenni Parker and Allie Martin
June 7, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A vote scheduled for today in the U.S. House of Representatives could mean a tenfold increase in the amount the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) can levy in fines against broadcasters airing indecent material on the public airways. The Senate version of the legislation sponsored by Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas has already been approved, and if the House gives its nod, President Bush is expected to sign the measure, increasing maximum fines for indecency violations from $32,500 to $325,000.

The House vote on the bill comes at the end of a two-year drive by Congress to crack down on broadcast indecency, an effort that began after an incident of indecent exposure during the live CBS broadcast of the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show generated a firestorm of outrage and protest. According to FCC regulations and federal law, radio and television stations broadcasting over the public airwaves may not air indecent material between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., when children are likely to be watching, and may not air obscene material at any time.

Although the flash of partial nudity during the 2004 halftime performance by Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake was supposedly due to a "wardrobe malfunction," critics felt the network could have prevented the incident from airing. Since that broadcast, pro-family groups have pushed with renewed fervor, urging federal officials to crack down on broadcast indecency and advocating higher fines and stiffer penalties for violations. The FCC has responded with increasing vigor to the public's complaints about lewd material, with total fines shooting up from $440,000 in 2003 to nearly $8 million in 2004.

Meanwhile, industry officials and others opposed to stronger penalties for broadcast indecency have argued that government regulation is unnecessary and infringes on freedom of expression and that broadcasters should be allowed to police themselves when it comes to program content.

However, one Christian pro-family spokesman says these industry professionals are out of touch with mainstream America and are trying to abolish existing FCC standards.

Christians Petition Federal Regulators to Enforce Decency Laws
Dr. Gary Cass, executive director of the Center for Reclaiming America for Christ, is hoping an effort spearheaded by the Center will help encourage the FCC to listen not to these broadcast executives but to an American public that has long been calling on federal regulators to rid the public airwaves of indecency.

"This is taxpayer property," Cass insists. "The airwaves are to be used for the public good, and I don't know anybody who can make an argument that a more coarse culture is in the interests of our children or of the future."

The means the Center is using to drive this point home is a petition containing tens of thousands of signatures, scheduled to be delivered today to Federal Communications Commission chairman Kevin Martin. The petition asks the FCC to enforce U.S. anti-obscenity laws, and Cass is confident the federal agency's officials are going to listen.

"Maybe some people would like to disparage this, but politicians can count," the Center's spokesman says. "And they know if people will actually take the time to sign a petition, to make a phone call or send an e-mail, those are the people who are going to pay attention when it comes time to vote -- so don't let anybody ever tell you that these petitions don't matter."

It is time for a more consistent and forceful application of existing indecency standards, Cass asserts. That is why he is asking concerned Christians to call Senator Ted Stevens, who chairs the Senate Commerce Committee, and Congressman Joe Barton, who chairs the House Energy and Commerce Committee, to make sure they know where their constituents stand on this issue.

Pro-family citizens contacting these lawmakers should urge them to hold hearings examining the networks' legal campaign to legitimize profanity during TV's family hours, Cass suggests. He believes if enough pro-family citizens speak out against broadcast indecency, the FCC will continue to get tougher on broadcasters who air obscene or indecent material.

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Christian Filmmakers Score With Reissue of The Pistol

by Rusty Benson
June 7, 2006

(AgapePress) - - For Darrell Campbell and Rodney Stone, the legend of basketball great "Pistol" Pete Maravich is a story worth telling and retelling. And that's exactly what these two film producers have spent a good part of their careers doing.

Last year, Campbell and Stone, who co-produced the original 1991 film The Pistol ... The Birth of a Legend, purchased the worldwide rights to the movie. "Our desire was to somehow use the film to tell the rest of the story of Pistol Pete and to glorify God through it," Stone said.

The largely untold part of Maravich's life is the story of his radical conversion from a bitter, rebellious, alchoholic former pro athlete to a bold follower and witness of Jesus Christ.

The DVD "Inspirational Edition" contains bonus content that gives a moving account of Maravich's new life in Christ. In a segment originally filmed only weeks before his death and never before released to the public, Maravich gives his own Christian testimony.

In another powerful bonus feature, Dr. James Dobson, speaking to a group of young people, recounts the day in 1988 when at age 40 Maravich died in his arms after a pick-up basketball game.

Adam Guier as a young Pete Maravich

�
The Birth of the Film
Stone moved to Van Nuys, California, in the early 1980s to serve as youth minister at a church that included over 200 people who worked in the film industry. One of those was Darrell Campbell, a young screenwriter/producer. The pair of 20-somethings became fast friends.

Along the way, a church connection opened the door for Stone to join the promotion team on the film The Mission, staring Jeremy Irons and Robert DeNiro. Eventually Stone left his youth ministry post for a job with Warner Brothers.

Meanwhile, Campbell accepted an assignment to co-write the biography of his childhood hero, Pistol Pete Maravich. Campbell quickly recognized the potential in Maravich's story not only for a book, but also for an inspirational feature film. He asked Stone, also a Pistol Pete fan, to join him and Maravich in the venture.

From the beginning it was the intent of Maravich and the producers to make a movie of hope and inspiration. That's why the movie focuses on Maravich as a 14-year-old in 1959. "That was the year Pete became aware of his dream to be the greatest basketball player and to commit himself to the work necessary to reach that goal," Campbell said. "Pete wanted audiences to know that a dream can become a reality."

Over the years The Pistol has been distributed by several film companies and seen in over 60 countries.

In 2004 Campbell and Stone, still close friends, had not worked together in 13 years. Both were living in Georgia when they decided to renew their partnership to produce a new inspirational movie. But as the pair began work on a new project, God sent the opportunity to purchase the rights to The Pistol.

"We see the new DVD as a ministry tool, like a Gospel tract" Campbell said. "If you can get it into the hands of an unbeliever and get them to watch the bonus material, you have made a powerful inroad for the Gospel."

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Christian Filmmakers Score With Reissue of The Pistol

by Rusty Benson
June 7, 2006

(AgapePress) - - For Darrell Campbell and Rodney Stone, the legend of basketball great "Pistol" Pete Maravich is a story worth telling and retelling. And that's exactly what these two film producers have spent a good part of their careers doing.

Last year, Campbell and Stone, who co-produced the original 1991 film The Pistol ... The Birth of a Legend, purchased the worldwide rights to the movie. "Our desire was to somehow use the film to tell the rest of the story of Pistol Pete and to glorify God through it," Stone said.

The largely untold part of Maravich's life is the story of his radical conversion from a bitter, rebellious, alchoholic former pro athlete to a bold follower and witness of Jesus Christ.

The DVD "Inspirational Edition" contains bonus content that gives a moving account of Maravich's new life in Christ. In a segment originally filmed only weeks before his death and never before released to the public, Maravich gives his own Christian testimony.

In another powerful bonus feature, Dr. James Dobson, speaking to a group of young people, recounts the day in 1988 when at age 40 Maravich died in his arms after a pick-up basketball game.

Adam Guier as a young Pete Maravich

�
The Birth of the Film
Stone moved to Van Nuys, California, in the early 1980s to serve as youth minister at a church that included over 200 people who worked in the film industry. One of those was Darrell Campbell, a young screenwriter/producer. The pair of 20-somethings became fast friends.

Along the way, a church connection opened the door for Stone to join the promotion team on the film The Mission, staring Jeremy Irons and Robert DeNiro. Eventually Stone left his youth ministry post for a job with Warner Brothers.

Meanwhile, Campbell accepted an assignment to co-write the biography of his childhood hero, Pistol Pete Maravich. Campbell quickly recognized the potential in Maravich's story not only for a book, but also for an inspirational feature film. He asked Stone, also a Pistol Pete fan, to join him and Maravich in the venture.

From the beginning it was the intent of Maravich and the producers to make a movie of hope and inspiration. That's why the movie focuses on Maravich as a 14-year-old in 1959. "That was the year Pete became aware of his dream to be the greatest basketball player and to commit himself to the work necessary to reach that goal," Campbell said. "Pete wanted audiences to know that a dream can become a reality."

Over the years The Pistol has been distributed by several film companies and seen in over 60 countries.

In 2004 Campbell and Stone, still close friends, had not worked together in 13 years. Both were living in Georgia when they decided to renew their partnership to produce a new inspirational movie. But as the pair began work on a new project, God sent the opportunity to purchase the rights to The Pistol.

"We see the new DVD as a ministry tool, like a Gospel tract" Campbell said. "If you can get it into the hands of an unbeliever and get them to watch the bonus material, you have made a powerful inroad for the Gospel."

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Judge Scolds DePaul's 'PC' Actions, Lets Fired Prof's Suit Proceed

by Jim Brown
June 7, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A judge has allowed a former DePaul professor to proceed with his defamation lawsuit against the Catholic University that fired him two years ago after he engaged in a heated verbal exchange with Muslim students at a student fair on campus.

The two Palestinian students, offended by Professor Tom Klocek's Christian perspective on the Middle East, complained to the DePaul administration, which dismissed the professor. Then, according to his Klocek's attorney, the university began waging a publicity campaign against the professor, denigrating him as a racist and an Islamophobe.

Klocek sued, and DePaul's attorneys filed a motion, attempting to get the case thrown out. Last week, however, Judge Stuart Nudelman denied the university's motion to dismiss. However, the judge's decision in the pre-trial hearing was not what surprised the professor's lawyer, Andy Norman.

"The thing that was actually most shocking," Norman recalls, "to me and probably to everyone in the courtroom, including a small DePaul contingent that was there, was the judge's additional remarks, which had nothing to do with his ruling."

Nudelman "lambasted DePaul for their gross overreaction and their fear of student reaction on campus, which caused them to pillory Tom Klocek," the attorney says. Then, he notes, the judge went on to say that if such political correctness and fear of student response had existed when he was in school, he would have had a far more inferior educational experience.

Norman says he finds it ironic that DePaul University would be opposed to a professor airing his Christian views with students. However, the lawyer contends, the school is Catholic in name only, despite any claims made about its commitment to the Catholic ideals of its namesake, St. Vincent DePaul.

"The attribution of Vincentian values, which you find on their website and which they like to tout publicly, is really a fraud," Norman says. "There's no Christian values there as far as the administration goes. They are decidedly very, very liberal, and not liberal in the sense that there's a free exchange of ideas, but it's an elitist kind of liberalism that frowns upon anything that doesn't agree with them."

DePaul University is one of the ten largest private universities as well as the largest Catholic university in the United States. It is also the largest private university in the state of Illinois, and bills itself as having the foremost Islamic studies program in the nation.

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Pro-Family Groups Applaud McCain's Proposed Cable Choice Bill

by Jenni Parker and Natalie Harris
June 8, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Pro-family groups are hailing a cable choice bill introduced in the U.S. legislature yesterday by Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona. Known as the CHOICE Act, the bill would allow cable consumers to choose the channels to which they want to subscribe rather than be forced to pay for channel packages predetermined by the cable companies.

A number of Christian pro-family ministries and pro-family advocacy organizations, including the Parents Television Council (PTC), Concerned Women for America (CWA), and the Focus on the Family ministry, are applauding Senator McCain for introducing the legislation. These groups believe passage of the CHOICE Act will bring consumers one step closer to having real cable choice and lower their cable costs as well.

Putting Control Over What Families Watch Where It Belongs
Although some cable industry officials argue that offering their customers cable choice will end up raising consumer costs, PTC president L. Brent Bozell agrees with the conclusion of a recent Federal Communications Commission report that cable choice could actually save the consumers money. However, he feels that something else, apart from the issue of cost, has been at stake in the cable choice debate -- that is, control.

It is time, Bozell insists, for the "forced subsidy of graphic and explicit content on basic cable" to end. And the cable industry's current "solutions," such as creating family-oriented programming tiers "do nothing to give families choice and control over the content that comes into their homes," he asserts.

The PTC is pleased that Senator McCain "has introduced legislation that will help provide families with the ability to take and pay for only the cable channels they want," Bozell says. "We support any efforts to bring cable choice to consumers, whether it is brought by the industry, Congress, or by the FCC."

Concerned Women for America is also expressing praise and support for the proposed Senate measure. Lanier Swann, the organization's director of government relations, says the CHOICE Act will at last take control away from the "goliaths of greed" who run the cable companies and put that control where it belongs -- in the hands of cable consumers.

The cable companies make no effort to meet the needs and preferences of their paying customers, Swann contends. "They seem to care only about filling their deep pockets by charging money for programs [many of their customers] don't even watch," she says.

CWA supports the CHOICE Act, Swann explains, because it "gives families another way to protect their children without overbearing government regulation." Cable choice allows parents to monitor the content their children can view by cutting out channels that carry offensive programming, she says. Meanwhile, the cable choice saves customers money by letting them pick the channels they want to purchase "a la carte," instead of paying for the 100-channel line-up cable companies currently offer.

Swann says she and CWA believe families deserve cable choice. The group is urging concerned citizens to contact their legislative representatives, she adds, to tell them they must "take this issue seriously" and must pass this family-friendly and consumer-friendly legislation "as soon as possible."

Could Cable Choice Serve as a Form of Outreach?
Dr. James Dobson, founder and chairman of the ministry Focus on the Family, has also declared his support for cable choice and is calling on the cable industry to work with Congress to craft a viable cable choice plan. He says consumers, not cable executives, should be deciding what kinds of programs their families are able to watch. And Daniel Weiss, Focus on the Family's senior analyst for media and sexuality, says many families are fed up with the indecency on cable TV.

"Parents have been told simply to change the channels or maybe to try and get those channels blocked," Weiss notes. "But the point is, they're still paying for it -- not just losing money out of their own wallet for this material they don't want to watch, but they're also then being forced to subsidize that very material they don't want."

Weiss believes allowing families to pick and choose exactly what programming they want will appeal to many consumers who currently do not have cable. In fact, the media analyst says, catering to such families could very well have the potential to revitalize the cable industry.

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Publicity Making Ministry's Million-Dollar 'Bills' A-'tract'-ive

by Allie Martin
June 8, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A California-based ministry has sold more than half a million gospel tracts designed to look like a million-dollar bill after federal agents seized thousands of the tracts. The ministry where the tracts were seized is now saying it may be filing a federal lawsuit over the visit from Secret Service agents concerned about counterfeiting.

The "million-dollar" tract, published by Living Waters Ministry in Southern California, has been a successful evangelical tool for thousands of Christians and scores of ministries. But the Secret Service thought the gospel tracts being handed out by a Denton, Texas, ministry looked too much like real money, and recently seized 8,300 of the tracts. The federal agency took that step after someone in North Carolina reportedly tried to deposit one of the "bills" in a bank account. On that particular tract was the address for Great News Network.

Great News Network president Darrel Rundus takes exception to the Secret Service's premise. He points out that there is no such thing as a million-dollar bill, and something that does not exist cannot be counterfeited. And he has a theory about the supposed bank deposit. "Now all too often, Christians will make a deposit at a bank and will include a million-dollar bill [tract] -- not as a line item on their deposit, but just as a way to get the gospel tract in someone's hands," he explains to Associated Press.

The message on the back of the tract, says Rundus, may have offended someone. "They might be of a different persuasion or different faith; they might be an atheist -- and therefore they're offended at the fact that this Christian tried to 'push' the gospel on them, so to speak," he says.

Nevertheless, a Secret Service spokesman insists someone tried to deposit one of the tracts at a bank, and says close facsimiles of currency are illegal, although no charges were filed. Rundus, however, has a problem with the fact that three federal agents entered his ministry's office and demanded the tracts.

"They didn't have a warrant [and] they didn't have a court order to seize any property," he shares. "The Constitution says no one can be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process, not to mention the fact that we're simply expressing our First Amendment free-speech right to these gospel messages."

Consequently the ministry leader says he plans to file a federal lawsuit this week. "We're not looking for any monetary compensation, but we have enlisted legal counsel to file the proper paperwork with the federal judges to get the U.S. Secret Service off our trails, so to speak," he says.

Rundus figures the publicity from the incident will spread the gospel more than the seized tracts. "What the enemy may intend for evil, God will turn to the good -- and all things work to the good for those love Him and are called according to His purpose," he says. "So we felt like this was going to be a good thing, and $415 worth of gospel tracts would be worth the millions of dollars worth of publicity."

Publicity Sparks Demand
Indeed, the ministry that printed the tracts can attest to the increased popularity of the million-dollar tract. Ray Comfort, president of Living Waters Ministry, says demand for the tracts has soared. "The Secret Service have done us a great service," said during an interview this week. "Our staff were just about lying on the carpet, they've been so busy all day."

Comfort says a new supply of million-dollar tracts will be printed, but with a few modifications. "We need to get a reprint, but we don't want to go ahead and get the same thing again in case they do a cease and desist," he explains.

"So we're producing what we're calling the 'Secret Service' version, which is a million-dollar bill which is to the requirements of the Secret Service." That means it is one-and-a-half times the size of a normal currency bill. "We've got better graphics [on this version], it's bigger and better, and we're ordering 100,000. We should have them in a week or so," says the ministry head.

As to the alleged charge of counterfeiting, Comfort is curious why his ministry's tract has been singled out. "If you type in 'million-dollar bill' on Google, you'll get something like 38 million results," he says. "So there's a lot of people out there selling million-dollar bills, from Toys 'r' Us" to Walgreens -- all sorts."

Meantime, he says he will file a lawsuit against the government over the issue. "Our lawyers are suing the Secret Service, by the way -- not for monetary gain, but just out of principle -- because it is an infringement of First Amendment rights," he explains.

Comfort is represented by the American Family Association Center for Law & Policy. More than five million of the tracts have been sold since 2002.

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Minnesota School Agrees to Allow Students' Christian Song at Graduation

by Allie Martin
June 8, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Minnesota public high school that had banned two of its students from singing a religious song at this year's graduation ceremonies reversed course and allowed the selection, but only after Florida-based Liberty Counsel intervened with the threat of legal action.

LaPorte High School students Aaron Reimer and Victoria Raddatz had been invited by a student-led committee to sing a song at commencement, and they had chosen "Treasure of Jesus," a song by Steven Curtis Chapman, as their selection. However, administrators at the school informed the two teens that they could not sing their duet because of the so-called separation of church and state.

Liberty Counsel, a pro-family litigation, education, and policy organization, contacted LaPorte High School and threatened to sue if the school did not allow the students' musical selection to be sung at graduation. The legal group also offered school officials free legal assistance should the district be sued over allowing the Christian song to be performed.

Attorney Mat Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel, says young Reimer and Raddatz are to be commended. "It's important to stand up for your rights," he observes, "and in this case these students had a choice: either buckle because of the controversy and not sing the song, or stand up. And stand up they did."

[Photo compliments of Liberty Counsel]
Mat Staver
The good news, Staver adds, is that the two young people were able to sing their Christian song and freely express their faith in Christ at the graduation exercises. "We were able to stand with them, and the event went off as planned," he says.

Songs with religious themes may lawfully be sung at graduation ceremonies, the pro-family attorney points out, so long as the students have selected the songs without input from faculty or staff. Under these conditions, he says, Christian songs and other expressions of religious faith do not violate the Constitution of the United States.

However, Staver notes, many educators and school officials are unaware of what the law says regarding religious expressions at graduations and many are wary of legal attacks from secularists. For that reason, he says, "We have to be eternally vigilant. We have to educate and litigate where necessary to make sure that the gospel and religious messages are not censored from the public square."

The Liberty Counsel spokesman emphasizes that while school officials are sometimes intimidated into believing they must bar students from expressing their religious faith in speech or song at public school graduations to keep from violating the law, in fact, the opposite is true. If school districts are to stay on the right side of the law, he says students' lawful and constitutionally protected religious expressions must be permitted.

Silencing student-initiated musical performances or other free speech at graduations on the basis of its religious content is not only insensitive, Staver asserts, but it's also unconstitutional. When students elect a classmate to deliver a message or perform a selection of that individual's choice, school officials may not censor the student's religious viewpoint.

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Police Sergeant Accused of Bullying, Abusing Authority Against Ministry Volunteers

by Allie Martin and Jody Brown
June 8, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Florida-based ministry says it plans to file a grievance with a local police department after officers interfered with a petition drive to protect traditional marriage.

Last weekend representatives of the Florida Family Policy Council were collecting petitions for the Florida4Marriage campaign at a Promise Keepers event in Broward County. Witnesses say several members of the City of Sunrise Police Department showed up and ordered a halt to the petition drive, then removed the petitions from public view. The petitions were eventually returned to the Council's exhibit table -- but only after what a group spokesman describes as "unprofessional" and "unconstitutional" behavior by a member of the police force. (See earlier story)

John Stemberger, president and general counsel of the Council, says upon his arrival at the scene, he was refused an explanation of what law or ordinance had been violated -- but was instead subjected to "ranting" from the duty officer, Sergeant Stephen Allen, who insisted on "lecturing" him and Council volunteers on Christ's teaching on homosexuality.

"I told him I did not want to discuss theology but wanted to know the legal authority he was relying upon," Stemberger notes in a letter to Lt. Robert Dorn of the Sunrise Police Department. "Sgt. Allen refused to calmly discuss the supposed law that was being violated and then proclaimed that 'he was the authority' and 'the Bible says that Christians should obey the authorities.'"

The letter goes on to explain that Allen accused Stemberger of lying about his being a constitutional attorney, and referred to him as an "ambulance chaser" when provided with Stemberger's business card.

[Compliments of Florida Family Policy Council]
Sgt. Stephen Allen, with petitions in hand, kisses fellow officer on the cheek
According to Stemberger, Allen made no effort to hide his views on the subject of same-sex "marriage." He says "at one point the officer went and kissed another male officer, just to mock the volunteers. After they removed all petitions, he just kissed the officer. We actually have a photograph of that and some other photographs of these officers' behavior."

Stemberger describes his interaction with Sergeant Allen as "the most unprofessional ... odious interchange" he has ever had with a law enforcement officer.

"At all times during my encounter with Sgt. Allen he constantly interrupted me, refused to allow me to speak freely, consistently acted unreasonably [and] unprofessionally," writes the Council spokesman. In addition, says Stemberger, the police sergeant refused to allow him to explain why the officer's actions were unconstitutional and why Council volunteers had the legal right to distribute petitions at the event.

The 45-minute ordeal ended, says Stemberger, only after a civic center official instructed Sergeant Allen to "stand down."

In his letter to the Sunrise Police Department, Stemberger requests the department investigate the matter, and either dismiss Sergeant Allen from the local force or discipline him and others as warranted, perhaps requiring they undergo sensitivity training or other instruction on professionalism.

A spokesman with the Sunrise Police Department could not be reached for comment.

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$63M in 'Profit' Not Enough for Planned Parenthood; It Wants More from Feds

by Natalie Harris and Jody Brown
June 9, 2006

(AgapePress) - - One of the leading pro-life groups in America is wondering why the nation's largest abortion-provider, Planned Parenthood, continues to beg for government funds -- even though the non-profit is just coming off one of its best years ever in terms of income and "excess revenue."

Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) is reporting that in Fiscal Year 2004-2005, it generated $882 million in income, one-third of which ($272 million) comes from American taxpayers. During the same time period, PPFA showed an "excess revenue over expenses" -- known outside not-for-profit entities as "profit" -- of $63 million, the second highest ever for the abortion-provider in one year. Yet Planned Parenthood continues to clamor for more federal funds. Jim Sedlak of American Life League (ALL) calls that "absolutely incredible."

"This is [nearly] the highest operating profit that Planned Parenthood has ever made. So they make more money in profit, which means they put it in the bank, and they get more government money," Sedlak comments. "There is something wrong with that picture." He adds that he supposes officials with the abortion agency must assume elected officials cannot read a simple annual report; otherwise PPFA would note be asking for increased government funding.

Sedlak notes that since 1987, PPFA has received a total of $3.9 billion in taxpayers' money -- and has ended the lives of more than 3.8 million babies. "It is absolutely incredible that, in these days of natural disasters and homeland security threats, our federal, state, and local governments would fund this controversial organization to the tune of nearly $4 billion," he says. "Why is our government so quick to finance such ruthless attacks on our own innocent children?"

And it goes beyond abortions, according to Sedlak. He explains Planned Parenthood also uses tax dollars to downplay abstinence among America's youth. "Planned Parenthood is not only about killing babies in the womb," he says. "They have [conducted] specific attacks on our young people, and they are increasing those attacks as they put more and more money into their brand of sex education and vehemently fight against abstinence sex education."

Why? As Sedlak points out, Planned Parenthood only benefits financially from youth who are sexually active. He says the innocence of 24 million young people has been attacked through the group's contraceptive-based sex-education programs.

"Large numbers of Americans want this taxpayer funding to stop," Sedlak states in a press release. "We are confident this new financial report [from Planned Parenthood] will generate a grassroots groundswell for government to cut off the ever-increasing flow of our dollars."

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Pro-Family Activist Spurs Public Outcry Against Macy's 'Gay Pride' Display

by Mary Rettig
June 8, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A nationally known department store's Boston, Massachusetts, location has removed a homosexual pride display after a barrage of complaints from concerned citizens. Brian Camenker, president of the pro-family group Mass Resistance, happened on the disturbing exhibit in the window of a downtown Macy's store.

This week is "Gay Pride Week" in Boston, Camenker notes, and while the citywide celebration engendered some outlandish sights, he was unprepared for what he saw at Macy's that day. "In the picture window right next to the door," he says, "it had a huge display promoting Gay Pride Week with two mannequins, both of them men, standing right next to each other as if they were gay and, one of them, wearing a skirt."

In fact, the mannequin's skirt was a rainbow flag, the Massachusetts pro-family activist notes. "I'd never seen anything like this before," he says, "and then [there was] all of this advertising for the 'gay pride' events."

Camenker says his organization posted pictures of the offensive display on its website and gave people phone numbers to contact the Boston store. "The outpouring was so overwhelming that the manager of Macy's had to change her store phone number," he contends. And according to the Boston Herald newspaper, he adds, the phones in the local store could not even be used for several hours.

"We also called their national offices in New York," Camenker says, "and as a result, in a little over a day they removed the mannequins from the window." However, he laments, the job is not complete, since the Boston Macy's is still displaying a calendar of "Gay Pride Week" events in its store window.

The store claims it is supporting diversity, Camenker says. So, although a battle has been won, the community activist says there is still work to be done -- and he encourages pro-family citizens to keep calling Macy's and expressing their concern.

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Lesbian Batwoman's Publishers Should Be Ashamed, Pro-Family Critic Says

by Chad Groening
June 8, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Robert Knight, a pro-family activist and director of the Culture and Family Institute, is blasting a popular comic book company for deliberately exposing young children to the homosexual lifestyle.

Knight is outraged that DC Comics, the prominent U.S. comic book publisher that has brought fans such "heroic" characters as Superman, Wonder Woman, the Justice League, and Batman, has announced plans to introduce a lesbian Batwoman character next month. A company spokesman says DC wants more diversity in its comics.

However, Knight believes this move is obviously targeting the minds of children and has a mercenary motive as well. "This is a direct attempt to sell homosexuality to kids," he says, "It's also an attempt to revive the Batwoman brand by trying to do something shocking to get a little media. DC Comics ought to be ashamed of itself."

The pro-family advocate says a lesbian Batwoman character has the potential to do tremendous harm to impressionable young readers. "Most comics readers are boys, though some girls read comics, and I can't imagine this will be a good influence on girls," some of whom "might be sexually confused," or "not quiet sure who they are," he says.

Knight feels a homosexual superheroine could easily cause the minds of young girls to become perplexed. "If they have a heroine like Batwoman who's consorting with another woman, this is a very wrong message to send to them," he contends.

The Culture and Family Institute spokesman says DC has a long heritage of producing great comic books with great heroes like Superman and Batman. However, he notes, "I can recall a few years ago when a new executive took over DC Comics and said, 'We're going to be cutting edge now. We're going to use more profanity' -- in fact, they never had it before -- 'We're going to add profanity and sexual situations.' And I thought, 'Oh, great.'"

It now sounds as though DC's new policy is coming to fruition at DC, particularly with this new Batwoman "coming out of the closet," Knight says. However, he asserts, "This is an idea that ought to be shoved far, far back into the Batcave."

According to Associated Press reports, the new Batwoman character will be unveiled in July, but DC has already been bombarded by phone calls from media intrigued by the comic book character's lesbian reinvention. DC vice president and executive editor Dan Didio says the company expected its introduction of the character to attract some notice, but he says he is surprised at how much attention the news has garnered.

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Author Says Israeli Withdrawal Would Play Into Hamas' Hands

by Chad Groening
June 9, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An expert on Islam says President Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert continue to be misguided in thinking that the latest land giveaway plan is going to bring peace to Israel.

In devising a road map for peace in the Middle East, the demands on the Palestinians were clearly defined by the U.S., the European Union, Russia, and the United Nations: recognize Israel, renounce terror, undertake to abide by past agreements, and accept the overall road map for peace. Absent an agreement from the Hamas-led Palestinian government -- which has not been forthcoming -- Olmert has indicated Israel will unilaterally withdraw from parts of the West Bank and set what he calls "defensible" boundaries, hoping the U.S., the European Union, and perhaps even Egypt and Jordan will back the move.

Bush and the Israeli leader recently discussed Olmert's strategy. Robert Spencer, a critic of Islam and observer of the Middle East situation, does not agree with Israel's plan to withdraw from the West Bank and give it to the Palestinian government. Such a plan, says the director of the group Jihad Watch, defies logic.

"It's patently absurd to think that the Palestinians are going to join into this process in good faith when they've just elected Hamas and when Hamas has been on record consistently, both before and after the election, saying that they were dedicated to the destruction of Israel," he says.

Spencer, author of the book The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam and the Crusades, points out that giving away Czechoslovakia did not stop Adolph Hitler's territorial ambitions leading up to World War II -- and giving away the West Bank, he says, will not dissuade Hamas.

"More territorial concessions are not going to bring peace," the author says emphatically. "They're not going to satisfy Hamas or the Palestinians in general, and they're only going to make it easier for the Palestinians to achieve their ultimate goal of the destruction of Israel."

Spencer says Bush and Olmert are "in denial" about what he describes as "very clear statements" coming from Palestinian leaders. He claims Hamas will view Israel's withdrawal from various territories as only a step toward that ultimate goal.

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MD Calls Harvard-Children's Hospital Embryonic Research Plans 'a Shame'

by Mary Rettig and Jenni Parker
June 9, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The executive director of the Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA) says it is nothing short of a tragedy that Harvard is teaming up with a Boston hospital to clone human embryos.

On Tuesday, scientists at Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) and Children's Hospital Boston announced they will be working to clone human embryos to generate stem cell lines for disease treatment. The Harvard Gazette reports that after more than two years of intensive ethical and scientific review, HSCI and Children's Hospital have been cleared to begin experiments using somatic cell nuclear transfer to create disease-specific stem cell lines in the hope of developing treatments for a wide range of afflictions that are presently incurable.

Christian physician Dr. David Stevens, who heads the CMDA, says it is a shame that news of this announcement has escaped widespread media attention and has made barely a ripple in the headlines. Human lives are being extinguished, he points out; and moreover, this type of research is developing human embryos for the sole purpose of experimentation.

"There are attempts under way to clone human beings," Stevens explains, "not only using so-called leftover embryos from IVF clinics, but also to create embryos themselves that model disease states."

In other words, the CMDA spokesman says, scientists are attempting, for instance, to "clone somebody with diabetes, somebody with sickle cell disease, and then study that human being as it develops, trying to understand that process and -- of course -- killing it after so many days of development."

And once again, Stevens asserts, these scientists are trumpeting the potential cures that embryonic stem-cell research (ESCR) could provide. However, he notes, these researchers themselves admit that any sort of treatments that their embryonic stem-cell experimentation might yield are at least a decade away. Meanwhile, adult stem cells have already been used successfully in treating numerous patients, including some suffering from cardiac infarction (destruction of heart tissue), Crohn's disease (a chronic bowel infection), and thalassemia (a blood disease).

Then there is the basic issue of ethics, the Christian doctor observes. While adult stem cells can be found in bone marrow, in umbilical cord blood, and in various tissues of a growing human being, embryonic stem cells must be taken from a developing embryo at the blastocyst stage, thus destroying the embryo and ending a developing human life. Adult stem cells, on the other hand, can be extracted from umbilical cord blood or from adult tissues without harming the donor.

Also, in addition to overcoming the primary ethical problem, adult stem cells have the potential to avoid another obstacle posed by embryonic stem-cell research. Since adult stem cells can be taken from the patient's own body, they avoid the problem of the patient's possible rejection of any foreign cells used in treatment. Nevertheless, Stevens contends, proponents of embryonic stem-cell research continue pushing for funding and fewer government restrictions while ignoring a safer, more promising and ethically sound line of inquiry.

It is a shame, Stevens says. While ESCR advocates tout the importance of expanding exploration of the dubious hopes held out by embryonic stem cells in the distant future, he asserts, adult stem cells have repeatedly proven their promise in clinical settings, where their successful use in treating several diseases is already well documented.

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SBC's Crossover Event Hits North Carolina Cities' Streets This Weekend

by Allie Martin
June 9, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Southern Baptist churches throughout central North Carolina are taking the gospel to the streets through a variety of activities and events this weekend. Nearly 90 churches and more than 2,000 volunteers will take part in the evangelistic effort known as Crossover Triad.

The series of events will target Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and High Point -- areas known collectively as "the Triad" -- tomorrow and Sunday, the weekend before the Southern Baptist Convention's annual meeting in Greensboro. Marty Dupree, Crossover coordinator for North Carolina, calls this occasion "a great opportunity" with the potential to affect hundreds of thousands of lives.

"About 1.8 million people live in the Greensboro-Winston-Salem-High Point area," Dupree says, "and out of that 1.8 million, over 650,000 people are unchurched. So we really are trying to focus on and target those unchurched and unreached people with these different events and the different venues."

The spokesman for Crossover says this wide-scale evangelistic outreach is being sponsored by the North American Mission Board in cooperation with the Baptist state conventions and associations and local churches. "The different venues that we have," he notes, "are things like prayer walking and prayer journeys, sports evangelism, inner-city evangelism."

Other events include block parties, witnessing by college students on local campuses, and "kindness" projects, Dupree adds. The kindness events are "servanthood evangelism projects" where volunteers "meet a need or give away water bottles, that type of thing," he explains.

Crossover Triad 2006 is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, June 10-11, in the Triad metropolitan area. Organizers have been encouraging Baptists to get involved by committing to the outreach as a volunteer, a host church, or a prayer partner, and with thousands responding, the event series promises to be a major success.

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Ministry Founder Draws on Experience to Help Other Pastors' Wives

by Mary Rettig
June 9, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The wife of Dr. Tony Evans, pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship Church in Dallas, Texas, says pastors' wives have special needs that often do not get addressed. That is why she has been involved in ministry to women in this important role and in developing resources to help and encourage them.

Dr. Lois Evans says she never wanted to be a pastor's wife, but the Lord had other plans for her. And, she notes, it was the many struggles she encountered early in her husband's ministry that prompted her to found a "first lady" ministry -- that is, an outreach devoted solely to pastors' wives.

It is no surprise, Evans contends, that a large majority of pastors' wives feel unqualified and discouraged. "They run into issues of having to perform in a role that is not in link or tied in to their giftedness," she says, "and so several pastors' wives feel unappreciated by church members."

In addition to dealing with that challenge, Evans continues, many ministers' wives are also experiencing loneliness and issues of "accepting who they are in a church situation." And many, she adds, are also facing the often difficult task of asserting themselves in their area of strength and "communicating that to the laity, that this is where their giftedness is."

To help pastors' wives in confronting these and other challenges, Evans has organized an annual conference event especially for these women. This year's gathering, the 7th Annual First Lady Conference, is wrapping up in Dallas.

The First Lady Conference is a way for pastors' wives to be encouraged, the ministry founder explains. It also allows them to come together with women whose experiences are similar to their own and to be trained in their duties, responsibilities, and resources as a minister's helpmate.

The idea, Evans says, is to provide these women with "a way of escape, if I could use that term, by coming alongside them with a conference that supports them, gives them resources and gives them tools." Another benefit of the conference to these women, she points out, is that it "also builds a large network for them as they walk alongside their husbands, partnering in ministry."

As a pastor's wife herself, Evans says she knows that women in her position need special support and help to be effective in their role in the body of Christ. She says her Pastors' Wives Ministry is one way she has found to draw from the lessons she learned early in her husband's ministry to help other women in a similar situation.

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Compassion International's Indonesian Projects Affected By Earthquake

by Allie Martin
June 9, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Several children who received physical and spiritual support through Compassion International, a Colorado-based international child development ministry, were killed during the recent earthquake in Indonesia.

Through Compassion International's program, poor children in many nations around the world are sponsored through donors. For each child sponsored, donors contribute $32 monthly to help fund after-school programs that take place at churches or project sites in the child's village and to provide participating children with educational materials and supplemental nutrition.

The recent earthquake in Indonesia killed more than 5,800 people and injured more than 22,000. The names of the victims were withheld while Compassion officials contacted their sponsors.

David Dahlin is with the child development organization. He says whenever children are affected by natural disasters, this has a big impact on sponsors. Whenever children of sponsors die," he notes, "it can be a somewhat traumatic thing."

Compassion's one-to-one child sponsorship program is a very real relationship, Dahlin explains. "Our sponsors get to know their children personally," he says. "They pray for them, and they write back and forth and care about their lives. So at a time like this, the loss is real -- not just over in Indonesia, but it also becomes real in the lives of people who sponsor those children and care about those children."

This kind of involvement and interaction is encouraged, the ministry spokesman points out, and he believes it works to a sponsor's advantage. "You care about what happens in the lives of these kids and their families, and that's obviously a powerful tool in prayer," he says.

"In a part of a world that usually is inaccessible to most of us," Dahlin continues, "all of a sudden you have a very intimate view of life in that part of the world and can understand it a little bit better and can certainly pray for it better."

Eleven of Compassion International's projects were affected by the recent earthquake in Indonesia, with three project sites being severely affected. Dahlin says many of the ministry's workers and volunteers are helping in the aftermath of the disaster.

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Poison In Our Libraries

by Steve Crampton
June 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Laurie Taylor is the mother of two school age children. She lives in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Like most parents, she cares about her kids' education. So, when she discovered the school library had a sexually explicit book, It's Perfectly Normal, aimed at elementary age students, she did what any concerned parent would do: she went to the administration and asked that it be removed, along with two other books with similar themes.

At first, school system leaders seemed to agree with Taylor, and placed the books in a "parent library" section with other books geared more to parents than to children. But when Taylor found dozens more books with sexually explicit content, and asked that they not be made available to students without parental approval, the school reneged. It overturned its earlier decision and voted to leave all of the books on the shelves with unrestricted access by the students. (See earlier story)

Some of the books include graphic descriptions of incest, homosexuality, gotcha21, bestiality, and child molestation. For instance, Push is the story of a young girl who is pregnant with her father's child. The local newspaper, the Northwest Arkansas Times, which opposed the effort to limit access to the book, admitted that it contained "materials that are patently offensive."

Another book is advertised as being "the most controversial young adult novel ever," and describes an adolescent boy's love affair with a teacher, and two teens who become addicted to heroin. Oh, and by the way, the book won an award as "an outstanding book for children."

Yet another book proudly displayed on the Fayetteville library shelves was once featured in Playboy magazine. Its vile and sexually explicit content is interspersed with dialogue such as this: "Just keep asking yourself: 'What would Jesus not do?'"

Once other parents learned what these books contained, many joined with Taylor in asking the school to take action. The public outcry was great. A parents' rights group was formed, "Parents Protecting the Minds of Children," with dozens of parents joining the cause. The local paper wrote that this issue generated more letters to the editor than any issue in recent history. The story of the battle of the books became the paper's story of the year for 2005.

But Fayetteville is a college town, and liberals turned out in droves to cry "censorship" and shout down Laurie Taylor's courageous efforts to protect the children.

In truth, of course, Taylor never asked that the books be banned altogether, even though that might have been appropriate under the circumstances. All Taylor and the other parents asked for was that the books be placed in a restricted access section, thereby allowing parents to exercise their God-given (and constitutionally protected) rights to oversee the moral upbringing of their children.

Arkansas, like almost every state in America, has laws protecting against the distribution of material harmful to minors. However, also like many states, the Arkansas statutes define "harmful to minors" as material that, taken as a whole, "lacks serious literary, scientific, medical, artistic, or political value for minors." Some of the books to which the Fayetteville parents object have received awards, making it more difficult to demonstrate that they lack serious literary or artistic value.

Moreover, Arkansas Attorney General Mike Beebe has said that any determination as to whether these books violate the harmful to minors law must be left "for a court or properly instructed jury."

The Fayetteville librarians, in accordance with the principles of the American Library Association, testified that they believed in "intellectual freedom" for all students. This sounds very noble on the surface, but what it means in practice is that the librarians do everything possible to obscure the reading habits of students -- who are required by law to attend school -- from any attempt by parents to learn what their children are reading. This is done by virtue of a computerized system for tracking books in circulation that automatically erases all data concerning who checked out what books immediately upon the books being returned to the library. Unless a parent actually finds her child reading an objectionable book, that parent has no way of discovering what the child has been reading.

Not Only in Arkansas
Similar battles are erupting elsewhere in the U.S. In Maine, for example, Orono High School has reaffirmed its commitment to allow the use of the sexually explicit book, Girl Interrupted, as part of the ninth-grade English curriculum.

The novel, written by Susanna Kaysen, is not fit reading for high school students, argued many parents and local residents. "It's a book about an 18-year-old who ends up in a mental asylum and has a number of conversations with mentally disturbed people -- conversations of the most graphic sort, especially sexually," said Michael Heath, head of the Christian Civic League of Maine. "The f-word [appears] 30 times on one page, and this is being given to freshmen in high school as literature. It's absolutely horrifying."

In Overland Park, Kansas, parents are organizing to protest the Blue Valley School District's inclusion in its curriculum of numerous books containing explicit material, according to WorldNetDaily. One parent, Janet Harmon, objected to a book her freshman son was reading, which contained "references to oral sex and homosexuality," she said.

The AFA Center for Law & Policy has agreed to represent Taylor and other Fayetteville parents in a federal lawsuit seeking to protect their constitutional rights to oversee the education of their children.

But it won't be easy. A federal judge in Fayettteville has recently ruled in a similar case that restricting access of library books only to students who have obtained parental permission infringes upon the First Amendment rights of the students.

This adverse ruling means that in all likelihood, in order to prevail in this matter, the case will have to be taken all the way to the Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals -- and perhaps to the U.S. Supreme Court.

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Four Men and No 'Maybe' -- They're Rockin' for God

by Tracy Goodwin
June 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - For four men, the idea of sitting around and just playing music has taken on a whole new meaning in the last few years.

The story starts a few years ago when two men, Mike Beloud and Steve Rogers (who was being mentored by Jorge Ramirez), were taking a class at church. As they sat and talked about their pasts, they all learned they had more in common than their love for Christ.

"It turned out that the three of us were 80's rockers in bands that played around the L.A. club scene," said Beloud. "Former members Matt and Russell were also musicians in the 70's." So after finding this striking similarity between them, they began getting together for "fun and fellowship with no real thought of our music becoming any more than that."

Rogers then surprised them all by writing songs that had to be sung. The first CD, "Through the Son," which was released in 2002, contains the first 12 songs the group did together.

Matt and Russell left the band because they were at different places in their lives, according to Beloud. "They moved on to do other things early on in the recording process of 'Through the Son,' but still remain dear friends to us. God just called us to serve in different ways."

For some time, it was just Rogers, Beloud and Ramirez. It was not until their CD began taking off that the need for a new drummer became more pronounced. They had had to turn down several offers to perform because they did not have one.

"We prayed and searched for a long time and in 2003, out of the blue, God dropped Mike Partain into our mix," Beloud said. "We often comment on what an amazing job God did picking the perfect blend/balance of personalities to make this band work.

"When one or two of us is losing our minds, there is always at least one or two others to help us retrieve our sanity! We have become like brothers."

(http://www.agapepress.org/images/rise3.jpg)

Members of Rise (left to right): Mike Partain (drums), Mike Beloud
(guitar), Jorge Ramirez (bass), and Steve Rogers (vocal). In
Cologne, Germany, where they performed at World Youth Day
2005.

Unlike most bands that hope and dream for the big spotlight, Rise has a different focus. They have no plans of ever being signed to a record label or becoming huge rock stars.

According to Beloud, they are seeking another path. "We [want] the freedom to blaze our own trail and have a great time doing it. We went through all those rock star dreams in the 80's and for us that aspect is over. Now we want to be able to focus 100 percent on the ministry, not on selling a million CDs."

More than anything, this band is watching miracles when people learn the background of their faith, Catholicism. Beloud said it challenges people's preconceived notions of Catholics.

One of the notions that they battle are the ideas that all Catholic music is very traditional. There are actually not very many Catholic rock bands out there. "Things are changing -- it's fun to be on the grassroots of this genre of music," Beloud said.

"Rise is on an ecumenical mission to unite Christians, not divide," he said. "The devil laughs at us when Christians bicker and fight amongst ourselves, because while we are busy doing that, he is busy wreaking havoc around us.

"We want to be remembered for our positive Christian music, but more importantly for trying our very best to walk the walk and be a uniting force in God's service. Tough times are coming, and as Brothers and Sisters in Christ, we need to be ready."

When asked what their favorite scriptures were, they stated that it depends largely on where they are with their walk with God when they open the Bible.

"No matter how many times we open up the Bible, a different scriptural message will stand out depending on what God knows we need to hear at that moment in time," Beloud said.

Currently, the scripture that is standing out to them is Revelation 3:15-16: "I know your works: I know that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth."

Beloud said that the "one thing Rise never wants is to be accused of having a lukewarm faith!"

The stress of being in the spotlight and constantly busy can have its effect on anyone, and the members of Rise are no exception. But Rise occasionally gets a special "pick-me-up" that many bands do not get: constant encouragement from their fans.

"It never fails that just about the time we may be getting discouraged or tired, an e-mail or letter comes through, saying 'Your music changed/saved my life ...' or 'I listen to your CDs to put me in the right frame of mind for the day ...,'" Beloud said. He also added though that people need to remember that it is not their music, it is God's. But the encouragement they get from these messages gives them encouragement and strength when they continue to work for God through their music.

The majority of Rise's concerts are put on for free. Their belief is that they are performing for God and not themselves. It also does not matter where they perform. They are willing to travel and only request a small stipend for travel and accommodations to help offset their costs.

And there are no borders when it comes to Rise. They have already traveled to Germany, and in 2008 they will be traveling to Australia to perform.

When they perform, they basically desire one thing: that people will leave touched by God. Said Beloud: "We want people to leave saying, 'If God can take four average Joes like this, knuckleheads even, and change their hearts, change their lives, then He can work miracles in my life, too!'"

That is exactly what happened to a man in California one year ago. Hector Lopez went to hear their music at his church fiesta and was touched by their music in a way that changed his life forever.

"Their music changed my life in many ways, but the biggest way it changed my life is by getting involved in my church because of their music," said Lopez. "I started to teach a junior high program and I also joined the youth program at my church. Their music inspired me to go and teach to young people the important way of our Catholic faith."

Before the concert, however, his faith was not as strong as it should have been. "I now go to church every Sunday and I am involved in my church. But the biggest thing that has changed is that if it wasn't for their music, I would have lost my faith."

In the future, Rise wants to do something different. They want to encourage other young Christian artists by opening their own recording studio where they can mentor them.

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Michigan Activist Urges GOP to Be Fair, Condemn McCain's MPA Vote

by Jody Brown
June 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Michigan-based, pro-family political action committee (PAC) says if the state Republican Party is going to condemn the state's Democratic lawmakers in Washington for voting against the Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA) last week, it should be fair about it -- and also condemn the same action by the current frontrunner for the GOP's presidential nomination.

On Election Day in November 2004, almost 60 percent of Michigan voters approved a state constitutional amendment defining marriage as between one man and one woman. But among Democratic senators voting to discontinue debate on the MPA last week, thereby preventing it to be voted upon by the full Senate, was Michigan's Debbie Stabenow, whose current term in the U.S. Senate expires in 2007. For that action, the Michigan Republican Party is blasting Stabenow for what it calls "tak[ing] sides with the radical special interests and against Michigan families."

Saul Anuzis, chairman of the Michigan GOP, is taking the opportunity to point out to voters Stabenow's perceived allegiance to those special interests.

"Debbie Stabenow has turned her back on her constituents," Anuzis says in a press release. "We need someone who represents Michigan, not Democratic interests in Washington. It is time that Michigan has a senator who truly represents the will of the people, not a divisive political agenda."

That is all well and good, says Gary Glenn, chairman of the Campaign for Michigan Families and co-author of the state marriage amendment approved by voters in 2004. But the state GOP should not stop there, he says.

Glenn says Republican leaders in Michigan are right "to publicly condemn [Stabenow] for thumbing her nose at the vote of the people of Michigan -- but cannot in fairness fail to publicly condemn Republican Senator John McCain for voting the exact same way ...."

McCain, considered one of the frontrunners to lead the GOP presidential ticket in 2008, was in Grand Rapids late last week, stumping for Secretary of State Terri Land at an event hosted by high-profile Republicans in the state. Glenn says he wrote to each one of those GOP hosts, urging them not only to defend their party's platform, but also to "disavow McCain's vote." By remaining silent, he says, they would be giving the impression that they approve of it.

Stabenow, says Glenn, voted against the people of Michigan when she voted against the MPA. McCain, he says, voted not only against the people "but [also] against President Bush and his own party in opposing protection of marriage."

"Both should be equally condemned for standing instead with homosexual activist groups and left-wing judges who want to overturn the people's vote in order to radically redefine marriage," says the pro-family activist. He points out that is exactly what has happened in Nebraska, where an amendment protecting traditional marriage was approved by 70 percent of voters -- but later deemed unconstitutional by one federal judge.

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Events Leading Up to SBC's 2006 Meeting Stress Outreach, Soul-Winning

by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
June 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The theme for the Southern Baptist Convention's 2006 Pastor's Conference, scheduled for June 11-12, is "Reaching today's world for Jesus Christ." Organizers say this year's conference is unlike any other the SBC has hosted.

The Pastor's Conference is just one of the precursors to the 2006 annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, taking place this week in Greensboro, North Carolina. The two-day event for pastors was designed to reach a broad spectrum of church leaders from young to old, from traditional or contemporary, large or small churches, urban or rural.

Other events have helped set the stage for this year's SBC gathering. On Saturday evening, the Life Community Church in Jamestown, North Carolina, held a block party on its property, with games and activities for kids and food, music, and testimony from church members -- all part of Crossover Triad, an effort by Southern Baptist churches to take the gospel to the unchurched throughout the area. (See related article)

Jesse Wilson is discipleship pastor for Life Community Church. He says taking part in the Crossover Triad outreach has helped the church connect better with the area. "We have done these once or twice a year, and we have seen some great fruit from it," he notes.

Several people accepted Christ as a result of the weekend's Crossover effort, Wilson notes. Now, as the Southern Baptist Convention's annual gathering continues, he says his church will be busy following up the community outreach effort.

The 2006 Pastor's Conference -- Putting Substance Over Style
In his welcoming remarks, Pastors Conference president Bryant Wright said it is vital for Southern Baptists to change their mindset when it comes to worship and methodology. "The amazing thing about worship," he noted, "is worship is very subjective. There is no right or wrong way to worship God as long as it is centered on Jesus Christ and grounded in the Word of God."

Worship at the Pastor's Conference was designed to bear out these principles. While Sunday's session featured a blended musical style, the Monday afternoon session was planned with a contemporary theme, and the evening session has been planned to feature traditional worship.

Another Pastor's Conference speaker, Pastor Dick Lincoln of South Carolina, touched on style differences in his address as well. He encouraged pastors to review their strategies when it comes to evangelism, referring his listeners to the Apostle Paul's teaching about reaching people from different backgrounds.

Lincoln warned SBC church leaders against becoming so entrenched in a tradition or area of comfort that they cease to be relevant. "You can become so formal that people can't relate," he observed. "You can become so country that you are hokey; you can become so contemporary that you're just nothing except funky for Jesus, and you're not really counting for Him. Any of them can go over the edge in a bad direction."

Why is it, the South Carolina pastor mused, that Christians will go to all the trouble of translating the Bible into "every imaginable language" but then demand that those who hear worship in a particular way must adjust their ears to "our preferences" in worship. "Why would we do that?" he asked.

Church leaders more concerned about preserving their worship style as sacrosanct than about reaching a world that may not understand the gospel message "the way we speak it," ought to "go back and reexamine [their] genuine concerns," Lincoln asserted. He said Southern Baptists must stop placing their worship preferences on a pedestal and must not be afraid to try new methods.

While admitting he was not initially fond of contemporary worship styles, Pastor Lincoln noted that his church has reached more people by shifting its focus to the unchurched. He challenged his fellow Southern Baptist pastors to lead the way in stepping out of their comfort zones in order to reach lost people for Christ.

Pastors' Personal Witnessing and Purpose-Driven Priorities
A megachurch pastor from Georgia picked up the theme of soul winning when his turn came to speak. Pastor Johnny Hunt of First Baptist Church of Woodstock, Georgia, told the Greensboro audience the heads of churches must lead by example when it comes to personal evangelism. Basing his sermon on the 17th chapter of Acts, which documents Paul's preaching in Thessalonica, Hunt said churches in America need to regain their passion for soul winning.

The Georgia minister cited a recent study that showed 53 percent of U.S. pastors had gone six months or longer without witnessing to anyone. "And they were asked as to the reason," he notes. "The number-one reason was busyness. But I've got another word. If you're too busy as a gospel preacher to share the gospel, that's not busyness; that's disobedience. And the last time I checked, disobedience was sinfulness."

Hunt also warned pastors that they must never "water down" the gospel by trying to make it so "relevant" that it is stripped of all its authority and power. Rather, the pastor urged, Christian ministers must preach scriptural truth and leave the results up to God. "Just be right with God and love Jesus and get up and tell the truth," he said. "It's amazing what God will do when we preach the truth."

A similar message came from best-selling author and well-known pastor Rick Warren, who was scheduled to close out Sunday evening's session of the Pastor's Conference. The pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, had a last-minute family responsibility and prepared a videotaped address to be played in his absence. In that message, he told his fellow clergy that believers must start living like Jesus and trusting in God the way Jesus did in order to have a lasting impact on the world.

"The priority is to live for the kingdom of God," Warren said. "Only people who don't know God are always worrying. In other words, when I worry, I'm acting like an atheist." What the SBC needs most of all, he contended, is Christians who will live like Jesus every day.

Although Pastor Warren was not there in person, his prerecorded sermon was well received. As one conference attendee noted, "We may disagree with some of the things that he's done or is doing, in a sense, but you can't disagree with the heart that he has."

Disaster for New Orleans, Opportunity for the Gospel
The President of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, Chuck Kelley, also addressed the conference about the impact of a servant's personal witness. He said when Hurricane Katrina hit nearly 10 months ago, it flooded the seminary campus and challenged students and faculty to live out their faith in Christ in some very concrete ways. And, as a result, he added, the storm also changed people's attitudes toward Christians and their message.

"There has always been in New Orleans a deep-seated hostility towards the gospel," Kelley observed. "Evangelical Christians come to that city, and they immediately begin feeling intimidated and kind of oppressed by the spiritual darkness of that place," he said, "but Satan got floated out on the flood, and right now we are seeing an opportunity to share Jesus that we have never had before."

Katrina scattered New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary students throughout 29 states, and its faculty were displaced throughout nine states. But although the hurricane devastated the city of New Orleans, Kelley says it showcased God's greatness in the midst of life's storms.

A Moral Responsibility to Support Missions
A main theme that has emerged repeatedly during the 2006 Southern Baptist Convention Pastor's Conference is the call for a renewed emphasis on evangelism. Frank Page, pastor of First Baptist Church in Taylors, South Carolina, says that theme is one reason why he is running for president of the Southern Baptist Convention. He says he entered the race for SBC president because he believes it is important that SBC churches support the cooperative program, the denomination's main channel for sending state, national, and international missionaries.

Page notes that his church gives more than 12 percent to the cooperative program, along with funding a major missions program. "Personally, if I am going to call myself a Southern Baptist," he says, "then I feel a moral responsibility to support the work that we have voted to do."

For example, the candidate says, the SBC has more than 5,000 international missionaries and almost 5,000 North American missionaries in the seminaries and the other entities and agencies the church has. "I believe to not support that, for me, is to be morally irresponsible."

Page has pastored First Baptist Church (Taylors) for five and a half years. He will be nominated during the SBC's annual business meeting, which begins tomorrow in Greensboro.

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Christian MD: Legal System Has Turned Malpractice Suits Into Patient 'Lottery'

by Mary Rettig
June 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The executive director of the Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA) says the malpractice system is broken and needs to be fixed.

The comment came after a recent study from Harvard found that four out of every 10 medical malpractice cases were groundless. The researchers reported that many of the lawsuits they analyzed had no evidence that a medical error was committed or even that the patient had suffered any injury.

However, Dr. David Stevens of the CMDA says he thought the number of groundless cases would have been even higher. "When I went to medical school, we used to say bad doctors got sued," he notes. "By the time I was in practice, a lot of doctors got sued. Now everybody gets sued, no matter whether you're a good doctor, bad doctor, or whatever."

Unfortunately, Stevens observes, the medical malpractice system in America has "turned into the lottery." The potential for enormous payouts from these cases has many people filing despite having no evidence of any wrongdoing on the part of their doctors, he says.

Many people say, "Let's sue the doctor if there's even a bad outcome, because the chance of making a huge amount of money is there," the Christian physician explains. "The system that's in place, where malpractice lawyers are not paid a fixed fee for services or per hour but paid upon a contingency fee, encourages people to sue with no risk to themselves."

This system gives the lawyer every incentive, Stevens adds, "to get as much as he can and to stretch the truth, for want of a better word, because they will personally benefit." As a result, he says, skyrocketing malpractice insurance is forcing some doctors out of the profession.

What the country needs, the CMDA spokesman contends, is a system like that in place in the state of Indiana, which requires all malpractice cases to go before a review board to see if the facts merit a trial.

Implementing a system like Indiana's would cut down on gigantic jury awards, Stevens asserts. That, he says, would in turn lower medical malpractice insurance costs, which would benefit both doctors and patients.

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Senate Republicans Foil Attempt to Establish 'Native Hawaiian' Gov't

by Chad Groening
June 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A military analyst and former officials in the Reagan Defense Department says it's outrageous that the Senate even considered a bill that opponents contend would have allowed the island of Hawaii to create an autonomous, race-based government capable of pulling the state out of the union if it chose.

It is called the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act, and critics say it would allow Hawaii to establish a race-based government dominated by "native" Hawaiians -- if the Senate passed it, which it did not. Like the Marriage Protection Amendment last week, this measure failed to garner the 60 votes needed to keep it alive, falling four votes short (56-41) on Thursday (June 8). Only this time around, all those voting against the S.R. 147, sponsored by Democratic Senators Daniel Inouye and Daniel Akaka of Hawaii, were Republicans.

Frank Gaffney of the Center for Security Policy is among those critical of the legislation. He cites what he sees could have been detrimental impacts on the nation as a whole.

"The effect could be to enable this new race-based government to decide that it wants to opt out of the 50 states of this union, taking with it not only the wonderful tourist sites of Hawaii but also the strategically critical military facilities," says the Center president.

While intended to give indigenous Hawaiians some of the same powers of self-governance enjoyed by American Indians, Gaffney fears that the legislation instead could have encouraged other groups to push for the same kind of autonomy. "I think it's entirely possible you'd see people coming out of the woodwork, saying, 'You know that deal that the native Hawaiians got in S-147? We want that, too. We want to be able to govern ourselves in our own way. And if it involves leaving the Union, so be it,'" he suggests.

Among those groups pushing for similar powers, he says, would be "... people like the Reconquistas, who think they ought to take back part of the United States for Mexico, or Islamists who think they ought to have the right to run their community by a Taliban-style sharia religious code."

Such legislation, he says, also could accelerate the process of unraveling the United States as a nation. "You know, we fought a civil war to keep people from doing this sort of thing," says Gaffney, "and the United States' Senate [by considering S.R. 147] seems at the precipice of saying, 'Okay; you can take Hawaii and go.'"

Despite the backing of the entire Hawaiian delegation to Congress and Republican Governor Linda Lingle, the measure had only partial support of the state's population, according to reports. Supporters had argued that the legislation was needed to redress wrongs that have persisted since the U.S.-backed overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1893.

But opponents on Capitol Hill cited their concerns about introducing a race-based division of government control. "I cannot and will not support a bill whose very purpose is to divide Americans based upon race," said Senator John Cornyn of Texas. And through a letter, the White House stated its strong opposition because the bill would reverse the country's melting-pot tradition and "divide people by their race."

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Parents of Fallen Marine Ask Bush to Federalize Mt. Soledad Memorial Site

by James L. Lambert
June 12, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The parents of a Marine who died in Iraq last November say that they would like the National Park Service to take over the Mt. Soledad war memorial site in La Jolla, a suburb of San Diego, California.

Robert and Sybil Martino are requesting that two military veterans currently in Congress -- Senator John McCain and Representative Duncan Hunter -- approach President Bush on this matter. The war memorial site, constructed in 1954, includes a 29-foot cross which is the center of a 17-year legal dispute involving an atheist, his lawyer James McElory, and the City of San Diego.

The Martino's son, Captain Michael Martino, 32, was killed in action in Iraq when his Cobra helicopter was shot down by a Russian shoulder-mounted SA-16 surface-to-air missile. According to the Martinos, their "son's Camp Pendleton [Oceanside, California] unit, which recently returned from Iraq, dedicated a plaque at Mt. Soledad to honor [their] son ...." They both have expressed "the feelings of honor [they] felt at having their son memorialized for all time under the cross at Mt. Soledad" -- and add that "there is no better place on the West Coast to honor our fallen heroes than under that cross overlooking the country they fought and died to preserve ...."

Mr. Marino states that "this cross has been in existence [in one form or another] since 1913" and, in response to an atheist's lawyer who wants the cross removed, the elder Martino said that the Soledad cross "is no more an affront to personal beliefs than the thousands of crosses at Arlington [National Cemetery]."

Since his death, Captain Martino was posthumously awarded a Purple Heart and promoted to the rank of Marine Major. His mother says "Michael always had a fascination with flying," and his father characterizes his son "as a determined young man who was focused and always gave it his all." The young Martino graduated from the University of California, San Diego before enlisting in the Marine Corps.

According to Marine Major Thomas Dolan, Michael Martino "routinely demonstrated valor and poise despite the chaos of [war] .... He did a lot of dangerous work yet ... [Captain Martino] always played down what he did."

Colonel Weidley, Martino's commanding officer, said in a letter to his parents that their son "performed his duties above expectations .... He was always in the books, studying his aircraft, weapon systems and the enemy. [He was] one of the smartest pilots we have .... Sacrifice, selfless service, and uncommon valor are the staples of this generation of American service members, to which Mike was a part. We miss him terribly. He will never be forgotten."

On May 10, 300 of his comrades from Camp Pendleton commemorated Major Martino's legacy atop Mt. Soledad. Without media coverage, a plaque was dedicated to his memory. The Martinos see this site as a fitting tribute to their son. Yet they are disturbed that one atheist would be allowed by the courts to dismantle a cross that is a significant part of the historical San Diego war memorial.

In a letter to Senator John McCain, the Martinos asked: "Is it fair to the majority and to those who have served or have fallen in the service for our nation who wish to keep the cross to appease a few who look to strip all religion from our country under a false interpretation of the separation of church and state? Our son died with a strong belief that he was fighting to preserve the freedom of all Americans."

Robert and Sybil Martino are asking Congressman Hunter, Senator McCain, and newly elected Representative Brian Bilbray to help persuade the White House to federalize the site, thus making it a national war memorial. "Please let us have our freedom from activist judges and their personal interpretation of our Constitution," they plead in conclusion.

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Creeps Crash Online Hangouts

by Rebecca Grace
June 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - "GTG, QT ... PIR ... TLK-2-U-L-8-R!" If you're under the age of 30, this sentence makes perfect sense. If not, keep reading.

What it really says is: "Got to go, cutie ... parent in room ... talk to you later."

This new nonverbal lingo is basically a form of shorthand used to communicate in cyberspace via text messaging, instant messaging, blogging or any other means of wireless or online technology. Not only does it save time in a fast-paced world, it keeps parents in the dark when it comes to understanding their children's way of communicating in a technologically advanced world.

One aspect of this communication is social networking sites, more commonly know by their official website names of MySpace.com, Xanga.com, and Facebook, among others. A social networking site is "sort of a cyber combination of a yearbook, personal diary and social club," as defined by MSNBC.com.

"It's the way kids communicate today," said Al Kush, deputy director of WiredSafety.org. "[To them], it's just a nice, convenient, fun thing to do."

But that's not all. For some social networking site users, their frequent activity on the sites is becoming an invitation to crime and, in some cases, a death trap. Some are posting personal information such as their full names, school names, cell phone numbers and addresses, making themselves easy prey for sexual predators. In a sense, teens are baiting their own hooks, trolling for friends but attracting sharks.

The sharks are stalking MySpace.com, "the second largest website of any kind," according to Rebecca Hagelin, family advocate and author of Home Invasion. Today, MySpace has about 70 million registered users, the majority consisting of Gen Y-ers, those born between 1976 and 2001.

The Beginnings
MySpace was started by entrepreneurs Tom Anderson and Chris DeWolfe, who met while working for an online storage company. The techno-savvy pair created a social networking site that promoted bands and gave consumers a central location to audition and download music.

Visiting the site became a craze and spread by word-of-mouth, thus gaining the attention of the music industry. As of February 2006, more than one million music artists had pages on MySpace, including superstars like U2 and Madonna. But the website quickly evolved into more than a band site.

According to USA Today, MySpace is "a universe of hundreds of thousands of personal Web pages [some of which are laced with profanity, pornography and sexually explicit dialogue] created by its users ... to express their interests and display their personality."

Such interests are expressed through digital photos, music downloads, personality profiles, icons and banners among other features. Users are also able to post comments, send notes in the form of bulletins, instant message each other and display their personal thoughts and opinions in the form of blogs, which are much like online diaries. However, these diaries are not kept under lock and key but can be viewed by the entire world.

The Dangers

What social networking users, especially teens, don't realize is that MySpace is not "my space" at all. Some teens are oblivious to this and begin living in their own cyberspace bubble, thinking it's only their friends who are reading their MySpace pages. Too frequently these "friends" turn out to be predators in disguise.

According to the U.S. Justice Department, one in five children online is solicited sexually. While it's next to impossible to know how many pedophiles are online, there is more than enough evidence to know they are out there waiting for their next vulnerable target. After all, Connecticut Detective Frank Dannehey says a full name and a photo are the only essentials needed by any online predator.

"[M]ost of the time when kids get into trouble online, it's not because they went out looking for trouble, it's because trouble found them," Kush said. "A lot of them get embarrassed, and they feel they'll get in trouble, and they cut themselves off from the very help that they need, which is other family members, to help them get clear of it.

"[Predators] rely on the kid feeling embarrassed and feeling guilty, and they play on that in their own way to isolate the kids from their parents," he continued. "That's why a lot of parents have no idea this stuff is going on until it's too late, in many cases."

For example, MSNBC.com reported that within 60 seconds of logging onto an Internet Relay Chat channel, one is likely to be propositioned for sex. Online predators use these channels along with chat rooms and social networking sites to lure the children into a face-to-face meeting.

The Reality

The prevalence of this online luring tactic was most recently seen on four different broadcasts of "To Catch a Predator" on Dateline NBC. NBC Reporters and volunteers from Perverted Justice, a watchdog group that catches online predators by posing as children, held sting operations in various U.S. cities.

Cont'd next post

Perverted Justice volunteers set up computers at a designated house where volunteers took on their childlike personas and began chatting online. Within a short amount of time, men were showing up at the house ready to have sex with minors. Some brought beer, others brought sex novelties, and one even entered the house nude.

During the first sting operation, "Men from all over Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, DC, arrived at this house after chatting about sex, thinking they were meeting a 12-, 13-, or 14-year-old who is home alone," said Dateline's Chris Hansen. "Nineteen men in three days, from the down-and-out to pillars of the community [arrived at the house]" -- from school bus drivers to special education teachers to ministers.

In a recent WorldNetDaily column, Hagelin lists a sampling of similar cases. These deal specifically with MySpace:

* In February, a 14-year-old New Jersey girl was found dead in a dumpster after arranging a meeting with a stranger on MySpace.
* Hartford, Connecticut, officials are investigating eight sexual assault cases after teenage girls met men on MySpace.
* In Lafayette, Louisiana, four teen girls were sexually assaulted by a local pervert who found them on MySpace.
* In another Louisiana case, a predator lay in wait for a teen girl in the parking lot of her place of employment, which he had found on her profile page.

Even more recently, Fox News reported, "Five teenage boys accused of plotting a shooting rampage at their high school [in Riverton, Kansas] on the anniversary of the Columbine massacre were arrested ... after a message authorities said warned of a gun attack appeared on the website MySpace.com."

No Magic Bullet
The reports are endless, but the problems don't have to be. According to Hagelin and Kush, the answer lies in the hands of parents, although they are partially to blame for the initial problems.

"When you marry sloppy parenting, a technological revolution and pornography -- as pervasive as it is today -- that's a recipe for disaster for our children [and for] their physical safety and their moral and spiritual health," Hagelin explained. "It's the perfect storm, in other words, and our kids are the ones that are the victims caught up in it. [So], it's time for hands-on parenting."

Kush agrees, "[While] there's nothing you can do apart from unplugging the computer that will make them 100% safe ... parents have to become actively involved in their kids' online activities. There's just no way around it."

But at the same time, "there's no magic bullet," Kush explained. Therefore, it is going to take an extra effort on behalf of the parents to become familiar with the technological advances of the day.

"If they don't know the technology ... that doesn't excuse them from being parents," he said. "They are still the authority figure in the family," and they are going to have to monitor their children's online activity on a consistent basis.

Kush encourages parents to talk to their children about any accounts they may have on social networking sites, and treat the conversation as a learning experience. Let the child teach the parent about social networking sites, and if the parent finds anything questionable in the process, instruct the child to remove it using his password.

Not only does this give parents an insider's perspective on what their child is doing online, it also gives the child the opportunity to contribute his technical knowledge to the family.

"[So] unless parents can stand in the gap and protect their kids ..., then the world will be passing its values on to our children by default, rather than parents doing it actively," Hagelin concluded.

After all, a parent's inability to act could be a predator's ability to attack.

Strategies for Parents
One promising organization to help parents and kids be more savvy is www.webwisekids.org. Though not a Christian-based site, Web Wise Kids offers a number of resources. The site offers games that help kids-to-teens develop their critical skills. For example, Missing is the title of a game for 11- to 14-year-olds. Based on a true story, Missing is an interactive computer game that puts players in the role of detective. Players work to discover and interpret clues which can lead them to find the Internet predator who kidnapped a young boy named Zack. While solving the crime, players identify dangers of the Internet and learn safety concepts they can use in their time online.

In addition, Rebecca Hagelin suggests that parents should "trust but verify" their children's online activity. Here's how:

* Go to Google.com and type in your child's first and last name and his state of residence. If your child has a website or has been mentioned on a friend's website by his first and last name, it will appear.
* If you find such sites, visit them. Ask your children for passwords.
* Realize that although the Internet is worldwide, it is also local since all a sexual predator has to do is type in his own zip code on MySpace and all his potential victims within a designated radius pop up.

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Volunteers Deliver More Hope to Storm-Ravaged Mississippi Coast

by Randall Murphree
June 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - "Nothing ever happens in Waveland, Mississippi!" insisted Paul Jordan. And with that declaration, Paul and his wife Florence decided to stay in their home while Hurricane Katrina pummeled the Gulf Coast in August 2005.

"We had over seven feet of water in our home," Florence Jordan said later, "so we lost everything. The insurance didn't do much, so we had to rely on these wonderful people to come down and help us. We're thankful."

The "wonderful people" were the volunteers of 8 Days of Hope II, a massive Christian-based relief effort organized by lay people who wanted to help storm victims. The Jordans got walls rebuilt in their damaged home on their 35th wedding anniversary.

It all began last fall when Steve Tybor, Jr. and his son, Steve III, decided to recruit a few friends and go to the Gulf Coast for some hands-on ministry in the wake of Hurricane Katrina's August 29 devastation. They thought they could make a little difference for a few families whose homes had been severely damaged.

The project grew into 8 Days of Hope I, and the few friends grew to 650 volunteers from 34 states. They completed projects at 84 storm-damaged homes during the December 10-18, 2005, project. Volunteers slept in tents, vehicles, church basements and anywhere they could find to lay their heads.

Many returned this spring for 8 Days of Hope II to continue the re-building ministry. After the latest project, Tybor III talked about how members of the Body of Christ use their unique gifts. He cited one lady who returned to the project just to do laundry for the volunteers.

"In 1 Peter 4:10, he tells us to use the gifts God has given us to minister to one another," Tybor said. "Eight Days of Hope II used this verse as our call. Some people did this with a hammer and a paint brush while others did it with a smile and a listening ear."

Tybor used his gifts of organization and administration, but he is quick to say all the credit goes to God. He also praises the volunteers, plus corporate and church sponsors who made the work possible, donating money, food, and materials.

"TGI Fridays was kind enough to bring us lunch every day we were on the coast," he said. "They provided lunch for all 1,140 volunteers! They also donated $75,000. Without these monies we would only have accomplished half as much."

American Family Radio provided advance publicity, and Tybor credits the 180-station network as the way most participants learned about the project. Volunteers each committed a minimum of three days to the project. They completed 260 projects in 202 homes in Gulfport, Bay St. Louis, Waveland, Pass Christian and Pascagoula.

They invested 30,000 man hours and tabulated these impressive stats:

* 4,150 pieces of sheetrock/drywall were installed
* 700 squares of roofing shingles were installed
* 15 homes were completely rewired
* 25 additional homes had some type of electrical work done
* Hundreds of rolls of insulation were installed
* 80+ homes had extensive carpentry work done
* 17 homes were primed and painted.

Tybor III has lived in Tupelo, Mississippi, for six years and his father lives in Buffalo, New York. Their spring co-laborers came from Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Ohio and 32 more states.

"It took us 17 hours to get here," Julene Bryce said in an interview with American Family Radio (AFR). Bryce is from Bolivar, Ohio. She said, "There is nothing on television that gives you any concept of what you actually see. You don't see the people's hearts. It's absolutely amazing. Their hearts are still broken."

Ben Morris, member of the 8 Days of Hope leadership team, tells a story about having too many volunteers and not enough work. So he called Forest Heights Missionary Baptist Church in Gulfport looking for someone who needed help.

"The pastor was almost speechless," Morris said. "He said just seconds earlier, he'd gotten a call from an 80-something-year-old woman they all call Granny." Church friends had tried to get Granny to apply for help, but she always thought someone else needed it more. This time, however, she had called the pastor to tell him her floors were falling in and she could use just a little help.

"We assigned a crew to go over and do her floors," Morris said. "And Granny's got this wonderful, sweet spirit, and they were singing hymns and praying. And they couldn't leave. They couldn't just stop at what she wanted them to do. So they re-did her ceilings and painted them. They put a ramp outside where her steps were falling down. They just couldn't leave Granny."

Granny's story is among countless illustrations of blessing coming to both givers and receivers in 8 Days of Hope.

Jeff Scofield of Tullahoma, Tennessee, told AFR what a blessing Paul and Florence Jordan had been. Scofield came with a 14-member team from Christ Community Church. "We had a gentleman with us who got news while we were here that his son was going to lose his leg," he said. "As we were praying, Florence Jordan jumped right in and was praying with us and then began to sing praise songs to God. We were all in tears before it was over."

Tybor said he expects to announce dates for 8 Days of Hope III in July.

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California Pro-Family Forces Rally Against Homosexual Education Bills

by Bill Fancher
June 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Yesterday in Sacramento, California, more than 4,000 parents, grandparents and children rallied at the State Capitol against three bills that opponents see as sexual indoctrination legislation designed to promote homosexuality to school children.

Rally speakers thanked Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for promising to veto one of the bills, SB 1437, and urged him to pledge to do likewise with the remaining two pieces of legislation, AB 1056 and AB 606. One of the speakers, California activist Randy Thomasson of Campaign for Children and Families (CCF), told rally attendees that their government leaders need to hear the people's voices and that each citizen must stop being a spectator and "become a player in the battle for children's hearts, minds, and souls."

Parental rights do not end at the schoolhouse door, and California parents have to let their governor know how they feel about bills that "teach schoolchildren to see alternative sexual lifestyles as okay, as natural, and maybe even for them," Thomasson asserted. The pro-family activist went on to lead the crowd in loud chants that were "surely heard in the Capitol Building behind us," he says.

Immediately after the rally, the pro-family attendees entered the Capitol en masse to lobby the offices of Governor Schwarzenegger and key legislative officials. Thomasson says the massive crowd was made up of pro-family Californians, mostly Russian and Ukrainian immigrants, who "have the will power to do what's right" and who are willing to put feet to their faith.

Pro-family, Christian and conservative forces across the state and the nation remain hopeful that California's governor will keep his promise to veto SB 1437, which many believe is aimed at giving homosexuals more power in the state's education system. Opponents of the legislation hope Schwarzenegger will reject the remaining two bills as well, one of which would provide $250,000 to promote homosexuality in schools, and the other of which would withhold funding from districts that refuse to promote a homosexual agenda.

Pro-family analyst Bob Knight of the Culture and Family Institute (CFI) says homosexual indoctrination in California's schools would suffer a broken back if the governor follows through. Schwarzenegger "did a good thing when he vetoed the marriage bill, where the legislature tried to legalize same-sex 'marriage,'" Knight says, "and if he goes ahead and vetoes all three of these radical homosexual education bills, I think that will give a lot of people reason to look at him again."

Many conservatives had written Schwarzenegger off as a liberal Republican, which has cut deeply into his support, the CFI spokesman observes. He believes a veto of SB 1437 would go a long way toward mending fences and that the governor realizes it.

"This radical step by the California legislature to insist that textbooks be rewritten, even for kindergarteners, to promote homosexuality is a step too far, and I think the governor recognizes that," Knight asserts. "Parents don't want their children inundated with the idea that homosexuality is just like race or ethnicity and that famous figures in history were good because they happened to be gay or lesbian," he adds.

Knight credits parents across California with keeping up the pressure on Schwarzenegger and other state officials. The pro-family leader encourages these parents and other concerned citizens to keep up their push to combat homosexual indoctrination and prevent it from being mandated by liberal state legislators.

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Baptist Pastors Urged to Maintain Focus Amidst Controversy

by Allie Martin
June 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The day before their denomination's annual business meeting convened, pastors in the Southern Baptist Convention were encouraged to keep an eternal and unselfish perspective when sharing the good news of Christ, and to not allow disagreements in the denomination to distract believers from more important issues. On that note, the pastors heard a word of advice from the widow of one of the SBC's most beloved pastors, Dr. Adrian Rogers.

Speaking at the SBC Pastors' Conference on Monday (June 12), Dr. Tony Evans, pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, said too many Christians today are like survivors of the Titanic who would not turn back in their half-empty lifeboats to save the drowning. Evans called for a new emphasis on saving the lost, saying pastors and church members must be willing to take risks to win some for Christ. Christians, he said, must refocus their energy and efforts on eternity.

"When you number your days and understand that I am in the world of the dying, on my way to the world of the living, all of a sudden making your time matter for eternity [is important]," Evan stated. "All of a sudden that person at the bus stop, that person at the gas station, that person at the laundry, that person who teaches my kids at school is a candidate for glory that I don't want to miss because I'm running out of days."

Evans said every church should examine its programs and priorities to see if what they are doing makes a difference for eternity.

Other speakers on Monday encouraged pastors to step outside of tradition to reach the unchurched for Christ. Erwin McManus, pastor of Mosaic, a Los Angeles church known for its use of art and music, said the church in America needs to serve the world. McManus shared his take on the role of personal evangelism in achieving that objective.

"You know the number-one question I get from Christians when they come from other churches? 'Where do I go get discipled? Well, how many years does it take?'" he shared. The California pastor says for most Christians, that is the wrong attitude. "If you've been a Christian more than three weeks, you don't need to be discipled any more," he said. "It's time for you to start discipling."

While Mosiac meets in a nightclub on Sunday mornings, Fellowship of the Woodlands meets in a high school in an affluent Houston suburb. Kerry Shook, pastor of that church, says Southern Baptists must be trained in the language of the unchurched.

"One of my pet peeves is that Hollywood spends so much time and effort and energy and creativity and resources into getting their message out. And frankly, folks, they've got nothing to say," Shook offered. "But most [of us] spend very little time and effort and energy and creativity and resources into getting our message out, and we've got the greatest message of all -- the gospel of Jesus Christ."

More than 70 percent of those who join Fellowship of the Woodlands come to Christ and are baptized at the church.

Distractions Causing Loss of Focus
Pastor Ed Young, pastor of Second Baptist Church of Houston, Texas, delivered the closing sermon for SBC Pastors' Conference. Saying the SBC is in crisis, he alluded to current controversies involving the International Mission Board and a three-way presidential race that has many focused on the importance of churches and their support of the Cooperative Program, the mission-sending vehicle of the denomination.

Dr. Young said the denomination has gone down what he called "side streets" and has lost its focus. He referred to a sharp drop in young SBC members. "And the kids brought up in your church and my church, six out of every eight, when they're 19, have not been won to Christ," the Texas pastor shared. "And as far as we know and any studies we can give, they are gone to the kingdom of God."

But Young remains optimistic, saying the denomination can change course when churches reach out to children and teens and increase international missions giving through the Cooperative Program. In addition, he says a supernatural healing is needed because of the bitterness and backbiting caused by recent controversies within the denomination.

Young was referring to a recent move by the denomination's International Mission Board (IMB) to bar future missionaries who, while not publicly speaking in tongues, use a "private prayer language"; and to a revised IMB policy on baptism that has also caused discord among SBC members.

If Adrian Were Here ...
Finally, it was a poignant moment Monday evening as Southern Baptist pastors paid tribute to the late Adrian Rogers. On Monday night, his widow, Joyce, spoke briefly during the SBC Pastors' Conference, sharing about God's faithfulness during her husband's illness and death. She told the pastors that her husband would never have allowed certain issues -- a reference to those involving IMB policy -- to divide the denomination.

"Now he had other interpretations of doctrines that were important to him; like, he was an avid believer in the premillennial view of prophecy. But he never considered that that was a basis for fellowship," Mrs. Rogers said. "And I want you to listen to me carefully: Adrian Rogers would not have been a part of what is going on in some parts of our convention today, getting narrower and narrower about very highly interpretive issues."

Rogers said that while her husband stood for biblical inerrancy, he would not exclude people from missions if they disagreed with him on "controversial issues." She said, "I challenge you on his behalf to graciously work for unity in the body of Christ."

Dr. Adrian Rogers, a three-time president of the Southern Baptist Convention, died last November following a battle with cancer.

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Home Churches Growing Increasingly Popular as Worship Alternative

by Natalie Harris
June 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Church and culture analyst George Barna, founder of The Barna Group, says millions of Christians are leaving conventional churches to meet in homes. According to the researcher, about 50 million American adults meet in home churches at least once a month, and the numbers choosing this option are on the increase.

Barna says home churches are a growing trend among Christians who want to "be" the church, not just attend church. Many who join such groups do so, he explains, because they are seeking greater depth in relationships and more commitment to spirituality than they may have found in traditional church settings.

Home churches often do not have traditional settings and can vary, depending on what the members contribute from week to week or what they feel led to discuss and pray about at any given time. Barna himself started attending a home church a year ago, and he admits that this style of fellowship can have its weaknesses.

"There are some challenges, of course," the Christian researcher says. "You've got the possibilities of bad teaching and errant theology creeping into the process, but we already have that happening in churches today. So we're going to have a lot of the same challenges that we've always had -- it's just an issue of who's going to resolve them."

Barna predicts that the home-church movement will continue to grow. He also predicts this increasingly popular alternative to traditional churches will prompt many Christians to take their faith more seriously and to avoid depending on clergy for spiritual growth.

Leaders Who Left Traditional Churches: Why They Chose to Go 'Home'
South Carolina home-church leader Doug Shales vows he will never go back to traditional church, which he left more than a year ago to start meeting with about 20 other believers of a variety of ages and church backgrounds. Every Sunday evening, they meet in his home to eat, worship, pray, and teach one another from the Bible. There is no preacher and no structured format for the group's services.

Shales says he left the traditional church because he felt its structure was contrary to the model he found in scripture. "To me, I just could not reconcile it at all with anything biblical to just have three or four people ministering to three or four hundred, and having the spiritual life of those three or four hundred pretty much hanging on what those three or four people give them," he says.

"It's just not the way that I understand the Holy Spirit wants to work in our lives," the home-church leader says. So, instead, he and the other members of his small congregation seek understanding, mutual accountability, and spiritual growth together.

Shale says most problems faced by the home church are logistical. For instance, he notes, members have to consider issues such as how to give and how to grow new churches. But in many ways, he notes, the size of these congregations can contribute to a more intimate style of problem-solving that involves everyone.

Author and former pastor, Rev. Chip Brogden, a home-church leader in North Carolina, considers home churches a necessary part of the Christian community. He believes this style of Christian fellowship is filling some of the gaps left by traditional churches.

Brogden says home churches can be a place for those who have been hurt by the traditional church or for those who do not want to be distracted from Christ by a complex church structure. But he cautions Christians not to differentiate themselves from one another based on what kind of structure they choose for their worship and association with fellow believers.

"Whether they're in the church building or outside of the church building, we're all still brothers and sisters," the North Carolina minister says. "We're just going about the life of Christ and how we see the life of the body of Christ differently from the more traditional way of going about it."

Home churches allow Christians to see the body of Christ as more than just a local fellowship, Brogden says. Also, he adds, such churches give members the chance to gather with believers of different denominational backgrounds from their own.

Obviously, home churches serve a function that their members consider desirable and perhaps vital to their spiritual nourishment and well being. And if many believers who have chosen to leave traditional churches for what this alternative has to offer are any indication, the home-church trend has already begun to change the face of contemporary Christianity.

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ADF Celebrates Oregon High School Student's Free-Speech Victory

by Jim Brown
June 13, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A high school in Oregon has apologized to a student for censoring her Christian view on homosexuality.

Last April, an official at Springfield High School ordered several Christian students on campus to remove the T-shirts they were wearing on the "National Day of Truth," an event designed to counter the promotion of homosexuality in schools. The T-shirts contained the message "I am a Christian, and I am against homosexuality, abortion, pre-marital sex, and drugs."

After her shirt was banned, one sophomore contacted the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), a pro-family legal organization. ADF then sent a letter to school officials, arguing that the student's free-speech rights were being violated. Springfield High School later apologized to the teen girl, saying she and other students will be allowed to wear their Christian T-shirts in the future.

ADF litigation counsel Tim Chandler says he is pleased the issue has been resolved. However, the attorney notes, it is discouraging that many school officials are still unaware of students' free-speech rights. He says the school officials felt the Day of Truth T-shirt message was negative and felt they needed to suppress it.

"So often school officials are trying to create this perfect, politically correct campus," Chandler laments, "but in doing so they end up censoring students, and they squelch any kind of debate on these issues on campus." However, he contends that the law is clear on this issue.

"The Supreme Court has said schools have the right to censor student speech only if it's disruptive, only if it's vulgar, only if it's lewd -- those kinds of things," the ADF lawyer explains. "Those are the standards that schools need to be adhering to," he says. "They can't ban speech just because they don't agree with it or because it might be a little controversial."

Chandler notes that students celebrating the pro-homosexual "Day of Silence" event on Springfield High School's campus this year were not prohibited from expressing their support for the homosexual agenda. He says ADF applauds officials at the school who realized they cannot censor students based on their viewpoint, particularly when students promoting an opposing view are permitted to express their opinions freely.

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SBC Meeting Addresses Leadership, Mission, Money, Personal Morality

by Allie Martin
June 14, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Messengers at the Southern Baptist Convention's 2006 annual meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina, have hammered out some critical decisions about the denomination's leadership, mission, and witness. Among the actions undertaken during this June 13-14 gathering are the election of new officers and some controversial measures regarding outreach funding and alcohol use.

In perhaps its most important vote, the SBC has elected Rev. Frank Page, a South Carolina pastor who had said it would take a miracle for him to win, as the denomination's new president. According to an Associated Press report, Page was the choice of several pastors, many from a younger generation than the current leadership, who have complained that the denomination suppresses debate over worship styles and doctrinal details.

Hailing New Leader's Vision, Honoring Past Leader's Legacy
The SBC's new leader says his election is proof that rank-and-file Southern Baptists want a new style of leadership. Receiving 50.48 percent of the first ballot vote, he beat out two more prominent candidates: the Rev. Ronnie Floyd of Arkansas and Rev. Jerry Sutton of Nashville, Tennessee.

Page had strong support on Internet "blogs," personal web pages where a variety of opinions and topics are discussed and updated. He believes the bloggers made a big difference and says these individuals "watch and look and listen, and so obviously that impacts public opinion."

The SBC's newly elected leader says the Internet is "simply another venue for people to go to, to find out what people are saying and thinking." While this venue "may have an inordinate amount of influence beyond its number," he asserts, "it cannot be ignored anymore."

Page, the pastor of First Baptist Church in Taylors, South Carolina, will serve for one year with an option to run for a second term. He says he will work to attract new leaders to the SBC as well as those pastors who are strong supporters of the Cooperative Program, the main mission-sending program for the denomination.

But even as the messengers hailed their president-elect, they also paused to honor one of the Convention's outgoing leaders. The Southern Baptist North American Mission Board (NAMB) has been challenged by the recent resignation of its president, Rev. Robert Reccord, whose accomplishments and improvements at the NAMB during his nine-year presidency were noted and listed at the meeting by a Baptist delegate from Georgia.

An internal investigation was launched following a Baptist newspaper report alleging that Reccord had misspent funds, funneled contracts to a friend, and approved manipulation of a missionary count. Reccord resigned in April after the investigation cleared him of wrongdoing but criticized his management style.

At last night's annual meeting session, chairman Bill Curtis said he and the rest of the NAMB are grateful for Reccord's service to that organization as well as for his "difficult decision" to step down from his position as its leader.

A Call for Spirit-Empowered Evangelism
Another issue that has been taken up at the annual meeting is the SBC's progress toward outgoing president Bobby Welch's goal of baptizing one million new converts in the year that began last October 1. With less than four months remaining until the deadline, only a few thousand new baptisms have been reported, and many Southern Baptists feel a miracle might be required to put the benchmark within reach.

However, a fiery message delivered by Rev. Fred Luter reminded listeners of the evangelism-and-outreach-focused theme of this year's annual meeting: "Everyone Can and I'm It."

Luter is pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church in New Orleans, which was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina and now meets in three different churches in three different cities. While that tragedy caused his congregation to put its plans on hold, Luter says he is encouraged by the first chapter of Acts, which tells believers to wait for the Holy Spirit to empower them for the job of evangelizing the Earth.

In his rousing sermon, the New Orleans pastor told his fellow Southern Baptists that the SBC's evangelism goal can be met with the Holy Spirit's help. "The text says, 'But you shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost has come upon you, and you shall be witnesses unto me,'" he thundered.

"The Holy Spirit will give us new power," Luter continued, "power to walk right, power to talk right, power to preach right, power to sing right, power to serve right, power that enables us to share the gospel, power that enables us to witness, power that enables us evangelize, power that enables us to win the lost at any cost!"

Messengers Find No Percentage in Church Giving Guideline
Delegates to the Greensboro meeting took up the practical business of missions -- namely, how to fund them, when they addressed a report from an ad hoc committee that encouraged churches to give ten percent of undesignated receipts to the Cooperative Program.

The SBC and state Baptist conventions developed the Cooperative Program so churches could support Baptist mission work with one monthly gift. However, giving has dropped nearly four percent over the past 25 years. The ad hoc committee drafted the report suggesting the ten percent gift last February; however, the SBC Executive Committee removed all references to that guideline.

Mike Stone, pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Blackshear, Georgia, moved in the opening session of the 2006 business meeting that the original language be put back into the report, once again advising the ten percent gift and encouraging the SBC to elect leaders from churches that give at least that amount to the Cooperative Program.

In making his case for the re-insertion of the language, Stone urged fellow messengers to realize that the SBC is at a historic juncture. "In the life of the Southern Baptist Convention," he contended, "much as we needed strong, convicted leadership theologically in 1979, I believe we need that same level of challenging ourselves -- not so much theologically but now missiologically."

The messengers turned the motion down, however. The SBC delegates rejected the motion to reinsert the references to the ten percent in the report, voting it down by a two-to-one margin.

Delegates Approve Strong Language Opposing Strong Drink
Another controversial measure that came up before the Southern Baptist assembly sparked some debate, but passed nevertheless. The resolution dealing with alcohol use by SBC members not only expressed opposition to the drinking of alcohol but also stipulated that no one who does so may be elected to serve with any entity of the denomination.

A messenger from Florida spoke against the anti-alcohol resolution. "I do not think that we can be more holy than Jesus Christ," he said. "Christ turned water into wine. If indeed, as we have said, this is a matter of Christian liberty, then we cannot at the same time say that this is a matter of righteousness."

Another messenger, however, encouraged support of the measure from a personal perspective. "I spent two years and seven months in prison, and it all started with drinking beer when I was eight years old," the delegate said. "I think that we as Southern Baptists -- but, more importantly, we as Christians -- need to take a stand against something that's destroying our nation."

The resolution was approved, and the messengers proceeded to other items on their agenda. Other business included a resolution dealing with home schooling, which was scheduled for debated late on Wednesday, and approval of the transfer of responsibility for stewardship education in the SBC to the Executive Committee from LifeWay Christian Resources, thus consolidating stewardship with SBC Cooperative Program promotion.

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Illinois Church Sues, Gets Permit to Hold Marine's Memorial Service

by Jim Brown
June 14, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An Illinois town has had a change of heart and will now allow the family of a U.S. Marine killed in Iraq to hold a memorial service at a small evangelical church. Wadsworth village trustees originally told relatives of Staff Sergeant Edward Davis they could not hold their regular worship service or the memorial service it had planned for this Thursday at Cornerstone Community Church.

The reason the local officials gave for refusing the family of the fallen soldier was that landscaping had not been completed on the new church grounds. Cornerstone filed a lawsuit challenging the ban, after which Wadsworth issued the congregation a 30-day temporary permit allowing the memorial service to go forward as planned.

John Mauck, an attorney for the church, says the property may not meet the local officials' aesthetic requirements, but it does meet the necessary health and safety requirements. "They don't need to have the landscaping finished," he asserts.

Cornerstone has posted a $104,000 letter of credit and obviously cannot put in all the landscaping all at once, Mauck points out. "It's a 25-acre piece of land," he says. "We think the village is just taking an unreasonable position."

Mauck suspects Wadsworth of offering the temporary concession in response to the negative publicity and attention the matter was generating. "The city may have just backed down because of the public outcry and the focus, which was intense," he says.

When the trustees were saying they would not allow a veteran of the Iraq war to be honored and memorialized at Cornerstone, the congregation's attorney observes, "that got people of every political persuasion and every religious persuasion outraged." He believes the village issued the temporary permit in response to an outpouring of citizen indignation.

However, the Wadsworth officials continue to claim that Cornerstone's property does not meet health and safety standards. "So," Mauck insists, "until everything's settled, no lawsuit will be dropped."

According to a Suburban Chicago News report, Cornerstone started holding services in its newly built, partially completed sanctuary on April 2. Officials with the church say they were given verbal approval to resume occupancy, a claim Wadsworth officials dispute.

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Louisiana State Lawmakers Honor Black Home-Schooling Families

by Jim Brown
June 14, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Louisiana state lawmakers are honoring black Americans involved in the home-schooling movement. The Louisiana State Legislature recently passed a resolution commending a group called National Black Home Educators (NBHE) for introducing the benefits of home schooling to black families in the state.

Representative Cedric Richmond's resolution also praises NBHE for collecting and distributing school supplies to the home-schooling families and evacuees of New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Today at the opening of the House session, the resolution is scheduled to be presented to 17 black families who have created a home-schooling support group.

NBHE founder Joyce Burges is excited about the resolution and plans to ask black caucuses across the United States to commend black home-schooling families in their states. "One down, 49 to go," she says. "I'm thinking it's just the beginning of more and more African American people of influence seeing that this is good for our children, it's good for families, and it's good for the country."

Burges has also urged the Congressional Black Caucus on Capitol Hill to issue a proclamation commending black families who have chosen to home school. She says increasing numbers of parents in the black community have been exploring home schooling as an alternative for their children.

At one time, home education may have not have seemed a viable option for many black families. But now, the NBHE founder says, "I'm just seeing that they are considering it. They are looking into home schooling."

In fact, home schooling has become "so touchable or accessible now," Burges adds, "African American parents -- especially the ones who could not put their children in a school right away -- are saying, 'I can do this. I can home school my child."

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Christian Radio Network Sponsors Gulf Coast Storm Relief Project

by Wendy Christian and Randall Murphree
June 14, 2006

(AgapePress) - - As a sponsor of 8 Days of Hope II on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, American Family Radio (AFR) broadcast from the Hurricane Katrina-ravaged area during the May 28-June 3 project. More than 1,100 volunteers completed 260 projects in 202 homes in Waveland, Pascagoula, Bay St. Louis, Pass Christian, and Gulfport.

Volunteers rebuilt walls inside the home of Paul and Florence Jordan, where seven feet of water had gutted the structure. The blessing worked both ways. Jeff Scofield of Tullahoma, Tennessee, told AFR what a blessing the Jordans had been. "We had a gentleman with us who got news while we were here that his son was going to lose his leg," he said. "As we were praying, Florence Jordan jumped right in and was praying with us and then began to sing praise songs to God. We were all in tears before it was over."

Eight Days of Hope I occurred in December 2005. Coordinator Steve Tybor III of Tupelo, Mississippi, hopes to announce dates for 8 Days of Hope III next month.

AFR on-air personality Wendy Christian recorded the following conversation with Florence Jordan during this spring's 8 Days of Hope II.

AFR: I understand you have some people here from 8 Days of Hope.

Jordan: Yes, we do, and they are wonderful. I'm telling you, they are just fantastic. They gave me walls.

AFR: Tell us why you needed walls. What happened to you guys?

Jordan: Katrina came and destroyed our home. We had over seven feet of water in our home, so we lost everything. The insurance didn't do much, so we had to rely on wonderful people to come down and help us. And we're so blessed that this has happened, that people are so wonderful to stop what they're doing in their lives and come here and help us get back our lives that we had lost. We're thankful.

AFR: I understand that you didn't evacuate before Katrina hit.

Jordan: It was scary, especially because I had my grandbaby and I was worried about him. I felt we should have left like we were supposed to .... We have run from every hurricane. This time, my husband said, "You know what? Nothing ever happens in Waveland, Mississippi. We're going to stay." I said, "OK."

AFR: How did you learn about 8 Days of Hope?

Jordan: Someone else signed us up for 8 Days of Hope. My good ol' husband here, he's the type [who says], "Oh, I can do it myself. I don't need any help; they've got people that need it more than we do."

Some of my friends kept saying, "Florence, you need to sign up, you need to get some help." So 8 Days of Hope came and did our electrical [in December].

AFR: How did you feel when you knew 8 Days of Hope was coming back this spring?

Jordan: When we heard they were coming back to work on houses again, I was like, "Sheetrock! Yes! I can get some walls!"

I could feel like we were finally moving, because we had been waiting a long time to get things to happen. Because everybody needs everybody. It's hard to hire people because they're all tied up. They say, "Yes, we're coming." And you sit and wait and wait and nothing happens. But when 8 Days of Hope came, we knew it was going to happen.

AFR: I understand it was a special day when you got walls?

Jordan: It was our anniversary! Thirty-five years. When he called and said they were coming, we forgot about going out anywhere. We're going to stay here and get our house back. We know we're married!

AFR: Have you had a chance to get to know any of the people who came as volunteers?

Jordan: Oh, yes, we have. the people that are in here now -- Jeff and Jim and Karen and Laurie and Jordan and Aubrey. We have so many who have come in here and touched our lives. We will never forget them. We are so grateful. We praise the Lord.

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Political Correctness Takes a Hit in Kentucky Schools

by Jim Brown and Jody Brown
June 15, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A conservative advocacy group is praising the Kentucky state school board for refusing to add the secular terms "Common Era" and "Before the Common Era" to school curriculum. The board has voted 10-0 to continue using the designations "B.C." and "A.D." to mark historical dates in textbooks and tests.

The unanimous vote overturns an April decision in which the board proposed changing the acronyms to "C.E." and "B.C.E." Since that decision was made, however, six new members have been appointed to the 11-member board by Governor Ernie Fletcher. A spokeswoman for the governor, who is an ordained Baptist minister, says Fletcher did not tell them how to vote on the matter.

But Associated Press notes that the April decision had drawn criticism from some ministers and religious groups who complained that it was an attempt to sterilize a reference to Christ. Richard Nelson with the Family Foundation of Kentucky says the board was responding to that criticism.

"The average Kentuckian felt that this was just another attempt to impose political correctness on our school children here in Kentucky schools -- and so there was an outcry," says Nelson. A spokesperson with the state Department of Education, he shares, indicated that office had received about 900 pieces of written testimony on the proposal, "most of it which was against the proposed change," he adds.

Martin Cothran, senior policy analyst with the Foundation, describes the board's turnaround as perhaps the "shot heard 'round the world in the battle against political correctness" in schools. He says those same Kentuckians who wrote to the Department of Education expressing their views were demonstrating they are "tired of seeing schools give in to every politically correct trend that comes down the pike."

Nelson notes an irony in one aspect of the debate. He accuses those who favor a change in the dating system of conducting a "sham" because they still use the birth of Christ as a reference point.

"I think it's disingenuous for these politically correct folks who want to impose this upon us [to be] saying [they] want to be neutral," he states. "Well, they're still using that central dating point in history, which is 2,006 years ago is when we recognize Christ was born -- they still want to use that but change the terminology."

Respectively, the designations "B.C." and "A.D." stand for "before Christ" and "Anno Domini" -- Latin for "in the year of the Lord." The terms "Common Era" and "Before the Common Era" are still being used in some Kentucky colleges and universities and on college entrance exams.

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South Carolina Approves Guidelines Requiring Critical Analysis of Evolution

by Jim Brown
June 15, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A lawmaker in South Carolina is hailing the approval of new evolutionary biology standards for public high schools. The South Carolina Education Oversight Committee has approved these standards, which require students to "summarize ways that scientists use data from a variety of sources to investigate and critically analyze aspects of evolutionary theory."

State Senator Mike Fair, a member of the Education Oversight Committee, believes the update of the public schools' biology curriculum guidelines is a step in the right direction. "That, we think, is going to give a new freedom to teachers and a new freedom to the students in the science classrooms around South Carolina," he says.

With these standards in place, students will be less afraid to ask questions, Fair asserts. And likewise, these educational objectives will give teachers the freedom "to answer questions and to do what we think good science is all about, and that is to always be asking questions," he says.

Opponents of the new standards want to protect "philosophical materialism," the South Carolina senator contends. He describes this mindset as a "religion" that runs rampant on college campuses.

"Biology departments in the universities around our state are absolutely controlled by people who are afraid, for some reason or another, to look into and encourage students to look at all aspects of the question of evolution," Fair says. He believes the newly established biology standards will help change this situation.

According to the Seattle, Washington-based Discovery Institute, South Carolina is the fifth U.S. state to require students to learn about scientific criticisms of evolution. The state's new guidelines do not, however, require the teaching of alternative theories to Darwinian evolution.

Senator Fair believes the new biology standards for South Carolina high schools will help create an atmosphere where science education can flourish without materialist ideology. Also, he says it is his hope that these guidelines will be a precursor to allowing alternatives to the theory of evolution, such as intelligent design, to be taught in the state's schools.

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Doctors Who Euthanize Experience Negative Effects, Christian MD Warns

by Mary Rettig
June 15, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An Oregon cancer specialist says euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide have very real and devastating effects on the doctors performing these procedures. According to Dr. Kenneth Stevens of the Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA), anecdotal evidence suggests that healthcare professionals who "help" their patients die are often deeply affected.

Most media reports on physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia focus on the patient and how the patient and his or her family are feeling, Stevens notes. He says that is why he thought it important to examine and evaluate medical and public literature to learn more about the impact of "mercy killing" on the doctors involved.

Overwhelmingly, when doctors are honest about it, most admit experiencing a negative impact from intentionally ending a patient's life, Stevens observes. "What I found is that the emotional and the psychological effect on that participating physician can really be very substantial," he says.

Committing euthanasia "represents a shift away from the sentimental values of medicine to heal and promote human wholeness and moves to a position where the doctor is causing the death," the CMDA spokesman explains. "And doctors have described being profoundly adversely affected," he adds. "They're shocked by the sadness of the death."

A committee in the British Parliament turned up some similarly compelling testimony from doctors in the Netherlands, where euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide are legal, Stevens points out. He says one Baroness Finlay, a member of the House of Lords and a physician, asked several Dutch doctors the question, "The first time you performed euthanasia, how did you feel about it as a clinician?"

The Christian MD notes, "The response by one doctor was 'Awful.'" Meanwhile, he says, another Dutch doctor's reply was, "It is not a normal medical treatment. You never get used to it." Apparently, even in a country where doctor-assisted death has been legal for years and physicians have had much more experience with these practices, for many there is simply no getting used to the idea of causing a patient's death.

And according to news media accounts, Stevens points out, similar testimony has come from doctors in Oregon, where physician-assisted suicide is also legal. He says for these and other medical professionals who practice physician-assisted suicide or euthanasia, this shift away from the traditional role of healer has left them with feelings of shock, powerlessness, and isolation.

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Authors Offer Cogent Insights on Critical Issues

by Randall Murphree
June 15, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Three authors offer strong, solid insights on three topics of vital interest to families: fatherhood, education, and pornography.

FATHERHOOD: The Image of a Father by Bryan Davis
The foreword to The Image of a Father (AMG, 2004) cites the sobering fact that in recent decades, the critical role of the father in a family has been radically diminished by popular culture. This trend even extended to the Church, with many objecting to calling God a father.

Author Bryan Davis relates personal experiences in rearing his seven children, now ages 8 to 23. One anecdote recounts the time when a young daughter asked him, "What does God look like?" In their ensuing dialogue, Davis realized that it was up to him to show her what God is like.

Regarding sons, Davis admonishes men, "Show him how to be strong, openly display your passion for protecting your family, and above all, let him see how much you love your wife. In other words, show him biblical manliness, the masculine side of God our Father."

Davis, who also writes young adult fiction, is a master storyteller. That quality comes in handy as he infuses humor, practical application and occasional emotion into this very reader-friendly volume for dads. He lays out tried-and-true principles to help fathers do their job better. Through 12 chapters he deals with 12 roles of a father -- provider, teacher, comforter, guide, and peacemaker among them.

Because he's been there -- and is still there -- Davis' words bear the clear mark of authenticity.

EDUCATION: Public Education Against America by Marlin Maddoux
Public education began in early America as a Christian endeavor. Any observer of that institution today can verify that there's been a catastrophic change. In Public Education Against America (Whitaker House, 2006), the late Marlin Maddoux uncovers some shocking trends reflecting the fact that public education in the U.S. has taken a decided turn for the worse and is now firmly entrenched in the gutter of liberal political correctness.

Maddoux was host of "Point of View," a radio talk-show, and founder of the USA Radio Network. As a journalist and broadcaster, his voice became a trusted standard bearer for faith, freedom, and family.

This volume includes countless horror stories illustrating education's abandonment of Christian moral values. In his review of the book, Ted Baehr said: "Because my wife is on chemotherapy, we went from home schooling one of my children to sending her to public school for one year. In doing so, we discovered that the world history textbook had three chapters on Islam and no mention of Christianity."

Baehr's experience reflects precisely the kind of incident Maddoux documents over and over again. Fortunately, Maddoux not only sounds the alarm. He also includes a brief but meaty synopsis of the options for parents plus a number of invaluable resources to help them clarify the issues.

PORNOGRAPHY: Think Before You Look by Daniel Henderson
Think Before You Look (Living Ink, 2005) is a top-tier little handbook for the man who wants to find power over secret sexual temptations.

Author Daniel Henderson kicks off the172-page volume with a short introduction, "Considering the Consequences." He compares the ultimate (and hidden) consequences of sin to lung cancer in those who work a lifetime around asbestos; it may go undetected for years, but the consequences will come. He calls pornography "the devil's tool of choice for luring many to a life of destructive consequences."

Forty short chapters outline 40 reasons to avoid pornography. The first is, "I enjoy the pleasure of a love relationship with God." Others include: "I avoid a life pattern of deception," "I refuse the temptation of idolatry," and "I learn to live in reality rather than fantasy." Still others address principles such as achieving authentic intimacy, laying up eternal rewards, earning your wife's trust, and protecting your children.

Henderson urges men, "Think repentance. Think confession .... Trust God for grace to move onward and upward in your pursuit of purity." Finally, he caps off the book with "40 Practical Pointers for Avoiding Pornography."

It's a powerful guide for men, endorsed by Christian leaders such as pastor/author David Jeremiah, evangelist Luis Palau, and Seattle Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander. Henderson is pastor of Grace Church of Eden Prairie in the Minneapolis suburbs.

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Author Wants to Enlighten Christians About Yoga's Demonic Influence

by Natalie Harris
June 15, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Christian author Dave Hunt, co-founder of the Oregon-based ministry, The Berean Call, has written a new book called Yoga and the Body of Christ. In it, he contends that yoga is a spiritually dangerous practice designed to expose people to demonic influences.

While conducting research for the book, Hunt says he studied the roots of yoga and interviewed many people who have practiced it. As a result of his investigation, he says he has concluded that the techniques employed in yoga are not designed primarily to promote health but to put participants in a mental state similar to that of hypnosis.

And it is not those critical or skeptical of yoga who are confirming these conclusions, the author points out. "These are the yogis, now. These are the people who developed it," he insists. "These are the people who practiced it, and they warned [that] you must always have your guru present when you get into this state of consciousness, because you could be taken over by some evil entity."

The group of ancient Hindu spiritual practices collectively known as yoga originated in India and remains central to a number of Eastern religions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. Many practitioners view its techniques as a means of seeking higher states of consciousness, being and "enlightenment," while others see yoga primarily as a technique for improving fitness and flexibility or reducing stress.

The elements of yoga are sometimes adapted to meet the needs of non-religious practitioners and those of other faiths, including Christians. But Hunt insists there is no way to modify this inherently spiritual practice to make it acceptable for Christians.

"If you want to benefit yourself physically," the author says, "then do exercises that were designed for that. Do not get into things that were designed for self-realization and to 'realize that you are God.'" He also urges Christians, "If you want to do some exercises, please don't call it yoga, because as soon as you do, you've put a certain connotation on it."

Modified or not, Hunt says, yoga is a Hindu-based spiritual practice that he believes exposes those who participate in it to demonic influences. As such, he says, no form of the practice can rightly be termed "Christian yoga," as there is simply no such thing.

The North American studio alliance estimates that as many as 30 million people are practicing yoga in the United States alone.

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Episcopal Leaders to Honor Anti-Israel Theologian with 'Peace' Award

by Jim Brown and Jody Brown
June 16, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A mainline Protestant renewal group is objecting to a decision by the Episcopal Church USA (ECUSA) to honor a Palestinian Anglican priest who considers the state of Israel to be the source of all problems in the Middle East.

On Saturday (June 17), the Episcopal Peace Fellowship plans to present Naim Ateek with a "Peace and Justice" award at the denomination's General Convention in Columbus, Ohio. Ateek, founder and director of the Jerusalem-based Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center, once likened Israel's treatment of Palestinians to Jesus' crucifixion.

Although Ateek reportedly has since toned down his rhetoric, some Episcopal leaders are critical of his being given the award. One Episcopal priest from New York says giving Ateek the award "strikes me as making a mockery of the process." Another Episcopal official says Ateek's "ultimate goal includes the removal of the state of Israel, which is not a vision of peace at all but a matter of forcible elimination."

That same official is quoted as saying the Palestinian theologian has "spoken very warmly of the tactic of suicide bombing, explaining it as a logical outcome of the difficult situation in which many Palestinians live." In fact, in a 2002 essay, Ateek wrote that Palestinian homicide bombers were "the product of [Israel's] own making."

But Ateek's defenders in ECUSA claim he has worked for reconciliation with Jews, Muslims, and Christians in the Middle East and around the world, and praise him as "truly a man of non-violence."

Faith McDonnell is director of religious liberty programs with the Institute on Religion and Democracy (IRD) in Washington, DC. She says Ateek is not deserving of the award because he has repeatedly disparaged Israel to promote the Palestinian cause, using words she says "reveal a disturbing tendency to excuse violence in the name of justice."

"We're concerned because although the award is purported to be given to someone who is a champion of peace and justice, in reality Reverend Ateek's own words have shown that he is not really interested in peace and justice for the Jewish people, for the state of Israel, but only to advance the Palestinian cause at the expense of the state of Israel - and really at the expense of peace in the region," McDonnell explains.

According to IRD, the writings of Ateek and others attributed to the Sabeel Center are "remarkably one-sided." Ateek, McDonnell says, "believes that everything that has to be done to bring peace to the Middle East is up to Israel."

In a May magazine article, the Anglican priest stated that the newly elected Palestinian government, led by the terrorist group Hamas, must become non-violent in order to effectively govern the Palestinians. "People, however, need to remember that Hamas' violence was provoked by Israel's policies against the Palestinians as well as Israel's contempt of international law," he stated.

McDonnell says if Ateek and his organization are worthy of any award, it would be an award for "furthering the cause of a Palestinian State at the expense of the Israelis and the security of the region."

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Efforts to Block State Marriage Measures Could Keep MPA Alive

by Bill Fancher
June 16, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A pro-family leader says a tactic being used by opponents of the Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA) may actually force Congress to revisit the issue for a third vote. If passed, the federal measure would amend the U.S. Constitution to define marriage nationwide as only a union of one man and one woman and would also prohibit extension of marriage-like rights to homosexual couples and other unmarried people.

One reason many Democrats have given for blocking the passage of the MPA is their feeling that it is an individual state's right to define marriage. However, Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council is calling attention to the fact that some marriage amendment opponents have filed lawsuits against several U.S. states in efforts to block states' legislative efforts to do just that -- to define marriage for themselves.

[Photo compliments of Family Research Council]
Tony Perkins
Perkins says several states that have enacted marriage laws or constitutional amendments in an effort to protect the traditional definition of marriage have been targeted in lawsuits brought by homosexual "marriage" proponents. "There's a pending decision in Washington State," he points out, as well as "a pending decision in New Jersey."

Also, the pro-family leader notes, "there are seven states that actually have active court challenges to their state amendment, and two to the federal Defense of Marriage Act." If any of these decisions goes against the wishes of the vast majority of the voters in the state, he contends, it could force federal lawmakers to reconsider the MPA this year.

"There could be action by the United States Senate, when and if that occurs," Perkins says. A previous Senate weigh-in on the MPA fell short of the 60 votes required to invoke cloture on the debate, with 49 senators voting to put the measure to a vote and 48 voting against cloture.

Liberal Senator from Massachusetts Calls Support for MPA 'Bigotry'
Meanwhile, recent comments from Senator Edward Kennedy about the national debate over the definition of marriage have outraged many conservatives and landed the Massachusetts Democrat in hot water with several of his colleagues.

In an editorial that appeared in the June 5 Boston Herald, Kennedy declared that a vote for the MPA "is a vote for bigotry -- pure and simple." He also accused Republicans of using the controversy for political leverage and asserted that a vote for the marriage amendment represents "a vote against ... efforts by states to treat gays and lesbians fairly under the law" and in favor of a measure that would "impose discrimination on all 50 states."

In response to Kennedy's remarks, one conservative senator has remarked that a real disconnect exists between Democrats and the will of the people when it comes to the marriage issue, and the senator's comments are proof of that. But many of his fellow Democrats are distancing themselves from the liberal lawmaker's rant as well, and even some of his fellow senators have chastised him for statements they consider overly harsh.

[Photo compliments of American Values]
Gary Bauer
The senator's comments were shocking as well as insulting, according to conservative activist Gary Bauer of the Campaign for Working Families. "Politicians often put their feet in their mouth," he says, "but Senator Kennedy has set a new record, I think, in the number of people he managed to insult in about 15 words."

By denouncing support for the MPA as bigotry, Bauer says Kennedy -- who is a Catholic -- has now called the Pope and the Catholic bishops bigots, in effect, along with two thirds of the American people. He points out that the average approval rating in state marriage amendment votes has been 70 percent in favor of protecting the traditional definition of marriage.

With his recent comments on the national marriage debate, Senator Kennedy "has just smeared the overwhelming majority of the American people, the leadership of the church he is a member of, and the leadership of virtually every other religion on the face of the globe," the Campaign for Working Families spokesman says. "If that is the position the Democratic Party wants to defend in the years ahead," he adds, "I wish them luck."

Bauer says Kennedy and other Democrats who oppose a constitutional amendment to protect traditional marriage are "going to have a hard time convincing U.S. voters that all the laws on the books in our country that say that marriage is between a man and a woman are evidence of bigotry." That position, the conservative activist contends, is going to be a tough one to sell to America.

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Study Shows Dining With Family Reduces Teens' Risk of Addictions

by Ed Thomas
June 16, 2006

(AgapePress) - - According to one national organization's research, eating dinner together as a family is not only good for bonding between family members but also cuts down on teens' risks of alcohol and drug addiction.

The Columbia University-based National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse has made the link between eating dinner as a family and teens' alcohol and drug addiction risk through analysis of eight years of results from an annual survey of teens. Center president Joseph Califano says the questions on the yearly survey of 12- to 17-year-olds have pointed to a clear pattern since the initial year of the study.

"One of the things we've noticed in our surveys, beginning in 1996, was that the more often kids have dinner with their parents, the less likely those kids are to smoke, drink, or use drugs," Califano explains. Meanwhile, he notes, the survey has shown that "kids who have dinner with their parents less than three times a week are much likelier to smoke, to drink, or to use drugs than kids who have dinner with their parents five to seven times a week."

Those teens who ate with their families five to seven times a week received the maximum benefit, the Center spokesman points out. He says this group enjoyed relief from the primary risk factors of stress, boredom, and pressure from academic demands in school.

"And we find that the family dinner is on the wholesome side of every one of those pressures," Califano emphasizes. Eating together as a family, he asserts, "helps to reduce stress, it helps reduce boredom, and it certainly relates to a kid's academic performance."

Because of the these findings, members of a supermarket industry group called the Food Marketing Institute are helping to promote the Center's "Family Day" on September 25. This initiative will encourage parents across the nation to eat dinner with their children on that date and to be aware of the benefits of dining as a family on a regular basis.

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Dramatic Account of American Woman Surviving Stalin's Gulag
June 16, 2006

(AgapePress) - - One incredible American woman survived the Siberian death camps of Stalinist Russia. And apparently, according to the records available, she is the only American woman with that distinction. She has finally been memorialized by her son who chronicles her extraordinary experience in Dancing Under the Red Star. The biography from WaterBrook Press is scheduled for release June 20.

Karl Tobien gives a stirring account of Margaret Werner Tobien, who was born in 1921 near Detroit, Michigan, where her father worked for the Ford Motor Company. When Margaret was 10, she and her parents were moved by Ford to Russia where the automaker transferred some 450 employees from 1930 to 1932.

Carl Werner was convinced that the move would be good for his career as well as for his wife Elisabeth and young Margaret. Unfortunately, however, the Werners fell victim to a terrifying, descending spiral that devastated their quality of life quickly and severely. It would be three long decades before Margaret was able to return to kiss the ground of home.

When Margaret was 17, her father was imprisoned in Russia after being convicted on trumped-up charges of treason. She and her mother, left to survive in an oppressive Soviet regime, faced years of poverty, near-starvation and fear. Margaret herself, strong and defiant against the Soviet state, depended upon her American citizenship to shield her from many things.

But that didn't work either. In an exclusive interview, Tobien said Ford Motor "turned a blind eye to what was happening to their American workers in Russia during that time."

Margaret refused to denounce her father and was ultimately sentenced to 10 years of hard labor in Stalin's Gulag, where filth, malnutrition and despair were a daily routine.

After her release from prison, Margaret married Gunter Tobien, and their only child, Karl, was born in 1956 just outside a Soviet labor camp in Siberia. He was five years old when he, his mother and his grandmother finally were able to come home to America. Carl Werner had died in Russia, and Margaret and Gunter's marriage was a strained affair that eventually ended.

Karl Tobien's stirring biography paints a vivid picture of a woman of strength, courage and determination. Tobien's writing style makes the book even more intriguing -- he tells Margaret's story in first person. His sources included his mother's own notes as well as their interviews and the stories he had heard through the years. A first-person narrative just seemed to make sense.

"Certainly a lot of it is based on a lifetime of growing up and hearing stories and conversations with friends and relatives over the years about different incidents," Tobien said. "Then, also, in her later years -- I'd say in the early 1990s -- she began to write, not for the purpose of publishing a book, but just to leave something on paper for her family, a family legacy."

In an epilogue to the book, Tobien writes of his mother's conversion to the Christian faith: "Though Margaret had been on a personal quest for God nearly all of her life, throughout all of her trials and troubles in Russia -- seeing and realizing the hand of God in her life all along the way, it was in the fall of 1991 that she actually invited Christ into her life." She died in 1997.

This moving tribute allows the reader to meet two extraordinary persons -- Margaret Werner and her biographer/son Karl.

In his epilogue to Dancing Under the Red Star, Tobien intimates that he could write another book about his mother's charity work and servant's heart in the 35 years she lived in the U.S. as an adult. He tells of one particular unselfish act: "Before her death, my mother gave me another priceless legacy .... she made it possible for me to be reunited with my father."

Then of his father, he writes, "That is a remarkable story in itself, perhaps for another time." Let's hope "another time" comes soon and Karl Tobien will deliver on these hints of more gripping stories from his family's unique journey.

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'Tolerance' Advocates Post Fla. Marriage Amendment Supporters' Names Online

by Mary Rettig
June 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The chairman of a group that is gathering signatures to put a marriage amendment on Florida's ballot is accusing a pro-homosexual church of engaging in scare tactics to keep people from signing the petition in support of protecting traditional marriage.

The organization known as "Florida4Marriage.org" has been working hard to gather enough signatures to put the marriage amendment on a state ballot in 2008. Meanwhile, a Jacksonville congregation, Christ Church of Peace, has launched a website of its own, on which it is posting the names of the ballot signers in order to, as the site claims, encourage an "open conversation."

However, Florida4Marriage.org president John Stemberger says stimulating conversation is not Christ Church's real goal. He describes the launch of the church's website as a "sad act" from a so-called tolerance group.

"Imagine what would happen if a conservative, extreme group of Christians posted online the home address of every gay-identified activist in Florida," Stemberger posits. "I mean, that would be decried as a witch hunt and an un-Christian, hateful attempt to mark gays in the same way that we mark pedophiles here in Florida by putting their name and address on a website."

The Florida4Marriage.org spokesman, who also serves as general counsel for the pro-family group, says what Christ Church of Peace is doing is not technically illegal because the marriage amendment petitions are public. Still, he contends, the church's methods seem quite unethical and their motives, fairly transparent.

"Upwards of 70 to 80 percent believe that marriage is between one man and one woman," Stemberger asserts. "So what you're seeing is really an attempt to intimidate people, which is typical of those that oppose us on same-sex marriage," he says. "Their agenda, in part, has to do with trying to just silence people that disagree with you."

Such scare tactics, the pro-family activist notes, may be legal but are certainly ethically questionable as well. He says Florida4Marriage.org has let signers of the petitions know about their names being published online.

A number of people have been angered by this news, Stemberger observes. However, he says some petition signers have seen the posting of their names as a source of pride and say they are glad to let others know they support traditional marriage.

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Bay State Boy's Beating May Be Linked to Dad's Stand on Homosexuality

by Jim Brown
June 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The young son of a Massachusetts pro-family activist was physically assaulted by fellow elementary school students on the two-year anniversary of same-sex "marriage" in the state.

On May 17, first-grader Jacob Parker was beaten up by a group of eight to ten kids on the playground at Estabrook Elementary School in Lexington. Just weeks before the assault, his father and mother had filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the school.

Last year, David Parker was arrested and jailed for refusing to leave the school until officials agreed to grant him the right to opt his son out of classroom discussions on homosexuality. The Massachusetts father believes the assault was incited by parents who are upset with his opposition to homosexuality.

"What we're concerned about," Parker says, "is actually the environment being created in the schools, where children, maybe in the normal course of scuffling, will translate the aggression that they may be hearing from parents and administrators to other children."

The pro-family advocate suspects the physical attack on his son may have occurred because parents and school officials are angry over his stand for traditional marriage in Massachusetts and have allowed these feelings to influence kids who attend Estabrook Elementary. Also, he notes, back issues of the "biased" Lexington Minuteman newspaper were placed on a table in the school library for children to read the local coverage of the lawsuit.

Parker feels the Bay State's schools employ a large double standard when it comes to protecting students from bullying and discrimination. If the assault against his son had been perpetrated on a child of homosexual parents, "lessons teaching tolerance and diversity or homosexual behavior normalization would be forced upon the young children," he contends.

"What we have in Massachusetts," the activist points out, "is large sums of money being earmarked for children being bullied from gay households or gay children." However, such funding really "shouldn't be earmarked and directed on that basis," he insists. "It should be for all the children -- not earmarked to protect just one particular segment of society."

Parker says his case against the Lexington schools is fundamentally about freedom of choice for parents to raise their children in the interest of their well being, health, happiness, and development as productive members of society.

While that society allows its citizens the freedom to cross "the God-given and nature-dictated boundaries" of gender, the Massachusetts parent asserts, to do so is a treacherous path to follow and is not the path of freedom he and his wife choose to offer to their four- and six-year-old children.

"We all want what's best for our children," Parker says, "although differences exist in how parents accomplish this goal." The freedom to define what is best for their own families and how to achieve these goals should extend to all parents, he contends, regardless of color, culture, religion, or sexual orientation, and this "parental sovereignty" should not be undermined by school officials or other external authorities.

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Richard Land: Expect Marriage Legislation to Eventually Pass

by Allie Martin
June 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The president of the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention says amending the U.S. Constitution to protect traditional marriage will take time, but that such an amendment will eventually be approved on Capitol Hill.

Last year Dr. Richard Land, president of the SBC's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, was recognized by Time Magazine as among "The Twenty-Five Most Influential Evangelicals in America." In addition to his responsibilities with the largest Protestant denomination in the country, Dr. Land is also serving his third term as an appointee to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, which reports to the president, secretary of state, and Congress on the status of freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief abroad.

The high-profile Evangelical co-hosts a nationally syndicated radio talk-show and is author of several books, his latest being Imagine! A God-Blessed America (Broadman & Holman, 2005), in which he encourages readers to envision an America where more Christians are radical change agents who reflect Christ, not culture. One of the areas where Land feels believers can effect change is through the ballot box -- and he believes that Christians who vote their values will remove from office U.S. senators who recently voted not to allow the Marriage Protection Amendment (MPA) to be voted on by the full Senate.

The day before Senate debate began on the MPA, President Bush spoke in favor of the measure at a White House press conference, urging senators to protect marriage from activist judges. He was criticized by some pro-family leaders for limiting and effectively delaying his remarks, and many Christian voters were upset over Bush's relative silence on the issue. Still, Land says the president has stood strong for the biblical definition of families -- more so than any president in recent memory.

[Photo compliments of Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission]
Dr. Richard Land
"Has the president done as much as I would wish he has done? No. Has he done more than any other president would have done in my lifetime? Yes, he's done more," notes Land, adding that he believes President Ronald Reagan would have wanted to support the amendment, "but Nancy would have talked him out of it.

"You know, I don't want to make the perfect the enemy of the good. At least we have a president who supported the amendment, who said so publicly," the SBC leader points out.

He anticipates that Republican leaders will continue to push for a marriage amendment, which even after leaving Congress for ratification by the states would likely be a lengthy process.

"It normally takes several times before an amendment passes [out of the Senate], and we're moving in the right direction," he says. "We made progress, and we're going to continue to make progress. We have a president who supported the amendment, ... and we had a majority leader [Bill Frist] who was the first person to come out in favor of the amendment and ... who fought really hard for this amendment."

Many of the senators who voted against the MPA earlier this month stated their belief that the issue is one that should be decided at the state level, not by amending the U.S. Constitution. But speaking on the issue last week, Family Research Council Tony Perkins noted that pending lawsuits against states that have passed marriage legislation, if successful, could undermine that argument -- and perhaps force senators to reconsider the measure again this year.

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God's Grace Gives Motivation to 'Gospel Walker'

by Allie Martin
June 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A 72-year-old North Carolina evangelist has begun his fourth walk across the United States in an effort to challenge churches to do a better job of reaching out to people who are hurting.

For nearly 30 years, Ted Stone has shared his testimony of how Christ delivered him from a life of drug abuse and destruction. This past weekend, Stone began another of his walks, this one from Chicago to Florida. Along the way he plans to stop at churches, sharing his testimony and exhorting congregations to demonstrate Christ's grace to those with drug, alcohol, or other addictions.

Stone says legalism -- that is, a strict, insensitive conformity to religious doctrine -- is often a major threat when it comes to reaching people with the gospel of Jesus Christ. "I believe it's very difficult to reach out to broken people when you practice legalism because it closes doors -- it shackles people," he shares.

Instead, he suggests reaching out to the hurting include "a good measure of truth and grace" in dealing with broken people. "Truth originates from God," he says, "and legalism originates from man."

Himself a beneficiary of God's truth, Stone testifies to the life-transforming power of Christ. "Certainly in my own life I've found God's grace [to be] more than sufficient to cover up any past sins," he says. "I don't want us to be in the position to try to make second-class citizens out of people because of sins they've committed in the past. With God it's who we are today that counts, not who we used to be."

The evangelist cites the Apostle Paul as a classic example of someone who had a sinful past, but was used by God nonetheless.

Stone, whose current walk ends in nine weeks in Pensacola, Florida, expects to have several people joining him along the way. He was interviewed while attending the Southern Baptist Convention's Annual Meeting last week in Greensboro, North Carolina.

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Christian Charitable Organization Marks $1 Billion Milestone

by Allie Martin
June 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - An Atlanta, Georgia-based Christian foundation has reached a major financial milestone. The National Christian Foundation (NCF), which was formed in 1982 as a way for Christians to support various ministries, recently distributed -- along with its 22 affiliates nationwide -- the organization's one billionth grant dollar.

Steve Chapman, vice president of marketing with the NCF, says the Christian grant-making organization distributes 30 or 40 percent of its asset base annually. "We really exist to give money away as rapidly as we can, and we are really blessed to work with individuals and families who share that belief," he explains.

The NCF's high percentage of giving goes above and beyond what the federal government requires of charity groups, Chapman notes. "The IRS has a rule for private foundations that they must give away five percent of their assets every year, and most private foundations give right about that amount," he says.

And, the foundation spokesman points out, the Christian organization has been able to increase its fund distribution in recent years. "Roughly half of the one billion dollars that we have granted out since NCF's inception in 1982 has gone out over about the last three years," he says.

So, while it took the NCF some 22 or 23 years to give away its initial $500 million, Chapman explains, it has taken "just a few years" to give away the next $500 million. "And we anticipate a year very soon here," he adds, "where we'll [begin] giving away one billion dollars every single year."

The National Christian Foundation helps donors give to causes they support while providing tools and services to meet a donor's charitable goals, Chapman notes. As the fund continues to grow, he says, ministries and givers across the United States will continue to benefit from the work of the Atlanta-based organization.

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FIRE Blasts Johns Hopkins for Letting Conservative Paper Be Censored

by Jim Brown
June 19, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Johns Hopkins University (JHU) in Baltimore, Maryland, is being accused of condoning mob censorship. An academic freedom and individual rights watchdog group is decrying school officials' part in an apparent attempt to silence a conservative newspaper.

In May, the Carrolton Record published an issue critical of a group that brought a pornographic film director to the JHU campus. Afterward, hundreds of copies of the newspaper were stolen; however, according to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), the university administration "turned a blind eye to the theft."

According to the Record's editor, about half of the 600 copies that went missing were confiscated by university administrators. However, the editor of the conservative paper says a campus security officer and the Dean of Student Life both said the seized papers did not constitute theft.

Meanwhile, some members of JHU's Diverse Sexuality and Gender Alliance have filed harassment charges against the Record. The group leveled its complaint against the newspaper for publishing a front-page photo of Alliance members posing with the porno filmmaker.

If that act constitutes harassment, FIRE president Greg Lukianoff comments, at this rate harassment may come to be known as the exception that swallows the First Amendment. He claims the word "harassment" has become a catch-all for anything that makes students or other individuals in the university setting uncomfortable.

"I'm just sick of seeing this," Lukianoff says. "On campus, if you're offended, if you're angry, if there's something you're just uncomfortable with, if there's an opinion you dislike, or if an op-ed comes out that you disagree with, there's an all-too-common tendency to call that harassment," he asserts, "and it happens in case after case, after case."

In a similar example, the FIRE spokesman notes, JHU has a troubling policy that allows its resident assistants (RAs) to arbitrarily ban certain flyers and student publications. "Johns Hopkins has just done so many things wrong," he says, and he believes the school has many areas it needs to address to make amends.

"But the number-one thing that they must do is repudiate this harassment investigation against the newspaper," Lukianoff adds. "And the next thing they need to do is get rid of this policy that essentially gives infinite power to censor to RAs," he says.

Also, one of the most essential things that Johns Hopkins University's administrators must do, Lukianoff insists, is something "they should have done already." He says JHU must immediately condemn, in no uncertain terms, the theft of the Carrolton Record's newspapers.

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Experts Split Over 'Bizarre' Sexual Orientation Therapy Techniques

by Jim Brown
June 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Christian psychotherapist Richard Cohen, board president of the ex-homosexual education and outreach organization known as Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays (PFOX), is addressing criticism leveled against certain therapy techniques he uses on clients with homosexual desires.

Cohen, a former homosexual and the author of the book Coming Out Straight (Oakhill Press, 2005), insists that no one is born with homosexual desires. He claims his reparative therapy group, the International Healing Foundation (IHF), has helped many men and women with unwanted homosexual desires achieve their goal of changing their sexual orientation and becoming heterosexual.

It is not a choice to have homosexual desires, the IHF director contends, but it is a choice to act upon those desires. He says those unwanted homosexual feelings are the result of temperament, familial influence, and environmental or social conditioning, all of which can be addressed through specific therapeutic principles and practices.

Cohen's methods have raised some questions, however; and he has lately taken sharp criticism over a May 23 appearance on Cable News Network (CNN), in which he demonstrated a technique that involves cuddling a male client in his lap. Another of the unusual therapy techniques depicted involved a client hitting a pillow with a tennis racket while shouting the name of a parent or other individual who elicits painful childhood memories.

Cohen, who refers to himself as a reorientation therapist, explained the "holding therapy" exercise as a means of using "healthy touch" on clients, who very often were "touch deprived" as children. He says this technique is one of the most effective ways to help men and women leave homosexuality.

"They're hungering for that intimacy and that bonding that they didn't experience in primary relationships with parents and/or same-gender peers," the psychotherapist asserts. "So what we have to provide then, in the Christian community, is really mentoring these men and women," he says, "and a lot of them need healthy touch -- hugging, holding, just palling around, buddying around."

Cohen contends it was just such "healthy bonding" that helped to transform his own homosexuality into a healthy heterosexuality. However, a prominent mental health counselor who has acted as a spokesman for PFOX in the past is distancing himself from the group because of this and other therapy techniques of Cohen's demonstrated on the segment of CNN's "Paula Zahn Now" that aired last month.

Colleague Raises Doubts About Cohen's Change Therapy Techniques
Psychologist Dr. Warren Throckmorton, director of college counseling at Grove City College in Pennsylvania, maintains a blog on sexual identity change therapy and related information for interested individuals. He is not a reparative therapist, but he claims Cohen's techniques as demonstrated on CNN are bizarre and are not based on solid research.

Since viewing the "Paula Zahn Now" segment, Throckmorton has notified PFOX that, although he supports its mission and its belief that people are not born homosexual, he will not represent the group as long as Cohen remains its board president.

"Richard means well and has a good heart," Throckmorton acknowledges. "I think he is interested in helping people achieve the change that he himself has achieved. However, I also am concerned that the techniques and the portrayal of them left the wrong impression in the minds of many people in the public."

The impression the psychologist and Grove City College official is concerned about leaving with the public, he explains, is the false notion that all change-oriented therapists engage in the kind of techniques employed by Cohen. Not all reparative therapists use such techniques as Cohen's, the former PFOX spokesman says, nor is their use widespread or mainstream in change therapy circles.

In fact, Throckmorton points out, "It's hard to tell how many people do practice those techniques." But, he asserts, when CNN refers to Cohen -- an unlicensed therapist who uses strange methods like "holding therapy" and bioenergetics -- as a leader in the reparative therapy movement, that statement obscures the divergence of opinion among those who practice sexual orientation change therapy.

One problem with reparative or change therapy practices, Throckmorton explains, is that "there are very few guidelines for therapists working in this area." He says he hopes to address that issue with guidelines he has written recently in cooperation with Dr. Mark Yarhouse of Regent University.

Meanwhile, Cohen has asked Throckmorton to apologize for his "fallacious" remarks, calling him "a brilliant man and a great brother in Christ" who is helping in this area of ministry but who has handled his disagreement with a colleague in the wrong way. The PFOX board president says it is "very unfortunate that, instead of following Matthew 18 protocol for any conflict resolution" and "instead of addressing me directly," Throckmorton "went right to the blog and then posted his comments."

Cohen continues to stand by his reparative therapy techniques and says he has, over the last 16 years, helped hundreds of people change their sexual orientations. He recommends Focus on the Family's Love Won Out conferences, featuring Freudian therapist Joe Nicolosi, as "a wonderful venue for anyone to find out what homosexuality is and what the church can do about it."

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Evangelistic Radio Show Finds Eager Ears Among Saved, Unsaved Audiences

by Allie Martin
June 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A ministry that teaches Christians the art of biblical evangelism through a television show and a website is now finding an even larger audience through its latest extension -- a radio program launched earlier this year.

Each week "The Way of the Master" television program, a 30-minute show hosted by evangelist Ray Comfort and actor-evangelist Kirk Cameron, airs in more than 100 nations. The show's aim is to teach Christians to share their faith using scripture to help lost people recognize their sinfulness and their need for a Savior.

In January, "The Way of the Master" began airing on radio. Joel Anderson, producer of the radio program, says the audio incarnation of this Christian witnessing how-to program has already touched many lives.

"Every day we get over 100 e-mails from people who are listening, and from two segments," Anderson notes. One segment is comprised of people who were not saved when they initially tuned in, he says, but who have listened to the show, "they've heard the gospel soundly preached and taught, and they got saved."

The other group, the radio producer adds, is made up of believers who listen to the show. These Christians are convicted and "really convinced that they need to get out there and share their faith," he says, "and we equip them through the radio show."

"The Way of the Master" radio show is a live, two-hour broadcast, and Anderson says it is in many ways unique. "If anybody has ever seen the TV series," he notes, "it's really taking the TV to a daily radio show, where we get on the streets, share faith with Muslims, college students, your next-door neighbor, even pulling names out of a phone book and witnessing live over the phone."

The broadcast's spokesman says "The Way of the Master" radio show is dedicated to "equipping believers to biblically share their faith using ... moral law, the Ten Commandments, to work the conscience and to break through that pride that many people exhibit."

"Way of the Master Radio" is available on land-based stations, satellite radio, and also on podcast. The broadcast has already demonstrated a tremendous impact on saved and unsaved listeners alike, and Anderson believes its outreach will continue to expand as it helps more and more listeners discover how to share in and extend to others the love of Christ.

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Potter's Objectionable, Occultic Content Spurs Georgia Mom to Action

by Jim Brown
June 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian mom in Georgia is calling on the state board of education to remove Harry Potter books from her children's schools. It doesn't make sense, she says, to take the Bible out of schools, but allow the occult in.

The popular series of books by J.K. Rowling have sold more than 100 million copies worldwide and spawned four movies, with a fifth scheduled for release next year and a sixth in pre-production. But Laura Mallory of Loganville is looking past the worldwide attraction of the books, focusing on the local scene instead. The former missionary is appealing last month's decision by the Gwinnett County School Board to keep the popular children's books on school library shelves. Mallory says among other things, the books promote "evil themes, witchcraft, and demonic activity."

The occult-based storyline of the series has been a lightning rod of controversy among parents and educators since the books first hit the market. Mallory explains why she has strong reservations about Rowling's best-selling books -- and why she feels the books are not appropriate for youngsters.

"Some of the content includes evil characters: death-eaters, dementors, just demon-like creatures," she shares. "The violence and murder in the books -- there's even a five-year-old who's gruesomely murdered -- and the books expose and introduce occult practices to young readers, opening a door to their minds and hearts to this kind of stuff, the casting of spells."

Simply stated, Mallory asserts that "if they're going to take the Bible and prayer out of schools and let the occult in with total liberty, that is wrong -- and it's a violation of our rights."

A panel of community members, parents, and teachers at her children's elementary school voted down a complaint Mallory filed last year. After a public hearing, the county school board upheld the panel's decision. That is why she is petitioning the Georgia Board of Education.

"I'm hoping to find somebody who will really listen," Mallory explains. "The occult is dangerous to our children, and we need to get it out of our schools in all its forms."

Gwinnett School Board members argue that removing the Harry Potter books amounts to improper censorship of a harmless children's fantasy series.

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After Recent Ruling, Schlafly Questions Justice Roberts' Conservatism

by Chad Groening
June 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Pro-family activist Phyllis Schlafly of Eagle Forum believes United States Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts has been more interested in bipartisanship and consensus than in taking a strong conservative stand. One of his latest rulings, she notes, was particularly disappointing.

Phyllis Schlafly
Schlafly says she had hoped the appointments of Justices John Roberts and Samuel Alito would help put the Supreme Court back on a conservative course. However, she says Roberts did not take a strong stance on the Solomon Amendment, which forbids colleges and universities that receive federal funding to deny military recruiters access to their campuses.

Conservatives were hoping for a Thomas or a Scalia among Bush's recent appointments to the high court bench, Schlafly asserts, and she would have liked to see a strong pro-military stance here, issuing from an unequivocally conservative jurist. But clearly, she observes, "Justice Roberts is not that." And apparently, the pro-family activist adds, "in this case pertaining to the Solomon Amendment, he thought consensus and unanimity more important than staking out a strong message."

Schlafly believes Justice Roberts was too focused on bringing Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer on board. "The decision was sort of watered down to achieve consensus," the Eagle Forum founder asserts, "and I see no reason why we needed to get Ginsburg and Breyer to sign on to it. They are liberals; they don't like the military."

Justice Roberts' opinion contained "unfortunate language" reminding anti-war liberals that they could protest the presence of U.S. Armed Services recruiters on college campuses if they so desired, Schlafly contends. "Well, big news," she says. "The liberals don't need any reminding that they have free-speech rights. That isn't the point." The point, she insists, is that liberal protesters felt free to do more than protest.

Shortly after the decision, the conservative leader notes, radical students at the University of California - Santa Cruz physically chased military recruiters from the campus. "And the Bush administration has done nothing about it," she laments.

Schlafly believes that incident might never have happened if the Roberts Supreme Court had not watered down the Solomon Amendment's force with its ruling. She suggests that the American people may have been duped by the supposedly conservative justice's appointment to the high court bench.

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Border Security Advocate Predicts Final Immigration Bill Will Take Time

by Chad Groening
June 20, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The head of a grassroots citizens group says he believes it could take most of the summer for the U.S. Senate-House Conference Committee to come up with a final version of the immigration reform bill. And when that final bill is hammered out, he expects it will closely resemble what the House passed last year.

Colin Hanna is with the group WeNeedaFence.com, which works to promote border security, immigration reform, and enforcement of U.S. immigration laws. He says he believes the House and Senate immigration bills are just too far apart for anyone to expect a quick resolution, and he anticipates a long debate over finalizing the legislation.

"It'll probably take most of the summer, and there will be a whole lot of so-called 'to-ing and fro-ing' during that," Hanna observes. Meanwhile, he says, "Each of the houses will be going back to their respective constituents and talking about various options that are being offered to narrow the gap between those two bills."

But with the mid-term elections looming in the fall and the vast majority of Americans clamoring for better enforcement of existing immigration laws, the citizens' advocate believes the final immigration reform bill will be one that stresses enforcement over amnesty. And what it will not contain, Hanna contends, are "ridiculous" Senate provisions such as requiring the U.S. to consult with Mexico before building a fence on the American side of the border.

Hanna believes GOP senators will support a final bill similar to the House version, even though they voted previously for Senate legislation that pushed a guest worker amnesty plan and was light on enforcement.

"Given the fact that there are Republican majorities in both houses," the WeNeedaFence.com spokesman notes, "isn't it more likely that the Republican majorities from the Senate are looking for ways that they can come up with a bill that they can support?" That, according to his reckoning, is the more reasonable outcome.

"I think you're going to have a Conference Committee report that is closer to the House bill and that winds up getting majority Republican support," Hannah says. He is optimistic that the finalized version of the legislation will provide many of the border security provisions for which his group and other reform advocates have been calling.

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Bright/Cavanaugh Fiction Calls Holy Spirit to Courtroom Witness Stand

by Randall Murphree
June 21, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Calling the Holy Spirit as a witness in a New York courtroom? That's just one of the creative devices in Proof, first of four novels in "The Great Awakenings" series. Author Jack Cavanaugh is one of today's most gifted authors of historical fiction. This current quartet of titles is co-authored with Campus Crusade for Christ founder Bill Bright. It's impossible to imagine a better team for the task.

Cavanaugh is master of the genre, and the late Dr. Bright was a passionate advocate of revival. The first two titles, Proof (Howard, March 2005) and Fire (Howard, June 2005), are gripping accounts of two distinct periods of revival in the United States. Though qualifying as a series because of the revival theme, the novels are not sequential, so each is a stand-alone story.

In Proof, attorney J. K. Jarves calls the Holy Spirit to the stand as a witness to the spiritual revival sweeping the nation at the time. Jarves is a celebrated and powerful man in New York's legal and social circles in the 1857-58 setting. His courtroom opponent is Harrison Shaw, a young, aspiring attorney whom the arrogant Jarves is determined to discredit for two reasons.

First, Jarves selected the unlikely Shaw over brighter, socially-adept and well-connected Ivy Leaguers for a coveted internship at his prestigious firm. However, circumstances soon forced Shaw to reject the internship when assignments begin to conflict with his Christian faith.

Jarves doesn't take rejection well, and he is further chagrined to discover that Shaw is forging an uneasy romantic relationship with Jarves' beautiful, independent daughter. Proof is a captivating chronicle of the time, with characters of depth and appeal, and clever and suspenseful storylines.

Fire is no less gripping than the first title. It is set in Havenhill, Connecticut, in 1740-41, the period of revival when George Whitefield was known as the "Trumpet of the Great Awakening." Jonathan Edwards was another notable pulpiteer of the period. Both of the great preachers make fictional guest appearances in Cavanaugh and Bright's gripping narrative.

Twenty-six-year old Josiah Rush is the unlikely protagonist as he returns to pastor his home church in Havenhill. Unfortunately, the young pastor returns under the same dark cloud that followed him out of town seven years earlier. He had fled town as a teenager being blamed for a warehouse fire that took the lives of two children.

His return strains old friendships, awakens smoldering bitterness, and finds him implicated in new tragedies -- mysterious accidents, murder and more fires. With authentic, historical detail and spiritual depth reflecting the revival periods, Bright and Cavanaugh offer a readable, instructive and masterful overview of American revival.

Of his collaboration with the late Dr. Bright, Cavanaugh says, "When we started we knew that he would probably be in heaven before the books came out. We got together for a couple of intensive sessions, which resulted in four storylines set in four different historical periods. He signed off on them and left me to do the actual writing."

It is a partnership that works to great advantage for readers. As a minister, founder of Campus Crusade and prolific speaker and author, Bill Bright produced more than 100 books and booklets. The best known is probably the evangelistic booklet "Have You Heard of the Four Spiritual Laws?," which has topped 2.5 billion in print.

Author of 21 books, Jack Cavanaugh pastored Southern Baptist churches before he began writing fulltime in 1993. He has been recognized with the Silver Medallion Award from Evangelical Christian Publishers Association for The Puritans, first volume in the "American Family Portrait" series. His novels While Mortals Sleep and His Watchful Eye won Christy Awards for excellence in Christian fiction. Both are part of his "Songs in the Night" trilogy set in Hitler's Germany.

Storm, the third "Great Awakenings" title was released in Spring 2006. and Fury is scheduled this fall.

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Plan According to Your Goals -- Invest According to Your Plan

by Austin Pryor
June 21, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A cornerstone of the Sound Mind Investing philosophy is that your investing decisions should always be made on the basis of a personalized, long-term strategy. To emphasize its importance, I make the point repeatedly and in various ways. In my view, it's such a crucial concept that I covered it in the opening pages of my book:

"In order to find peace of mind in your investment decisions, you need to become an initiator rather than a responder. Initiators have a concrete game plan in mind. They have made the effort to develop a strategy that specifically takes into account both their long-term financial goals as well as their own personal investment temperament. It is shaped around what they hope to accomplish in the future, and it fits who they are 'inside.'

Make it your goal to become an initiator! Be like a shopper at the food market who buys only those ingredients needed to prepare a specific recipe. Before she goes to the supermarket, Lynn knows what she is looking for. When she is confronted with special promotions for products that aren't on her shopping list, she readily passes them by. Lynn won't need to spend any time at all considering whether to buy them because her shopping is purposeful. Similarly, before you begin to invest, put together a strategy that takes into account the risk of loss you can comfortably carry both financially and emotionally."

I want to state clearly what is only implied above: Your plan should be in writing. If your intentions are not down in black and white, with specifics spelled out, they need to be. For example, who would you say is more likely to realize his dream of taking the family (grown kids and spouses, all the grandkids, the whole clan!) to Bermuda for a two-week vacation? There's Jack, who says he has every intention of doing it someday; and there's Tom, who talks about doing it in 2008 and can show you the cost estimates he's collected and the written savings plan he's started which is going to pay for it all?

A written plan will also make sure you don't forget to undertake all the important steps along the way. I'll tell you one on myself and you can have a good laugh at my ineptitude. A few years ago, I deposited my annual SEP-IRA contribution at Vanguard in order to deploy it in our Just-the-Basics index-fund strategy. But the market seemed overvalued at the time, so my "plan" was to wait until the S&P 500 fell below its 52-week moving average and invest at that time. Meanwhile, it could earn interest in the money market.

I was serious. I was committed. But I didn't put my plan in writing. Why bother? Hey, I teach people how to do this stuff. I certainly knew the steps that were needed. But guess what -- when the event I had been waiting for finally happened, I was busy working on a variety of SMI projects and completely forgot about it. It just totally slipped my mind. The window of opportunity closed and the market rallied furiously up through year-end. When I later realized what had happened, the Vanguard funds I was going to buy had already gone up 15-25 percent. Ooops.

So, it's easy to procrastinate, and it's easy to forget. If it's not in writing, it's merely an idea, a good intention. So, develop your plan and write it down. Keep it visible. You'll be tempted to deviate from it -- like when your brother-in-law calls with a hot stock tip, or the new car models come out and you'd rather spend than save -- but don't do it. Hold yourself accountable for carrying it out as planned. Stay the course.

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Kansas Pastor Accuses New Age Group of Denying Its Religious Nature

by Natalie Harris
June 21, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Kansas pastor is raising concerns about a New Age group that he says refuses to acknowledge its religious ties. According to Evangelical Free Church pastor Greg Hubbard, the group attempting to build "peace palaces" in Smith Center, Kansas, is a Hindu missionary effort.

The Transcendental Meditation (TM) movement was founded by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, a man known to many as guru to the British band, the Beatles. Recently, according to an Associated Press report, a group of his followers announced plans to spend $15 million to build a dozen of its marble "peace palaces" in Smith County as part of an effort to disperse what it calls "waves of coherence" across as wide an area as possible. And, AP points out, in an apparent effort to maximize their area of influence, the TM practitioners have selected a spot just 10 miles west of the geographic center of the continental U.S.

Under the direction of the Maharishi, the TM group known as Global Country of World Peace intends to build a broadcast center, a teaching center, and a "coherence-creating center." The organization, which promotes yoga and meditation, says it has no religious affiliation and one can practice these techniques while belonging to any faith.

Pastor Hubbard seriously questions the group's claims, however. In April, he and other pastors sent a signed letter to the local newspaper stating that the TM group's members "are welcome" but must recognize that they and the church are at odds, "competing for the eternal souls of people." Neither freedom of religion nor property rights are at issue, he insists -- the blatant untruthfulness of the New Age group is.

This latest construction plan marks the second time the Global Country of World Peace has tried to build in Smith Center, Hubbard points out. The Kansas clergyman says the group attempted to move in ten years ago but failed, mainly because of a lack of receptivity among the townspeople. The New Agers offered to hold town meetings to address area residents' discomfort, but many local citizens were merely confused by the unfamiliar terminology the group used.

After the Global Country of World Peace vacated and sold the land they had previously purchased, Hubbard and others found a cornerstone. He says the brick was inscribed with a symbol indicative of the Hindu deity Shiva and contained eight fake jewels, which represent Hindu deities. Also, he notes, the TM group has had a Hindu priest chanting for it, he notes.

"Basically, our objection is that this is a religion and a sect of Hinduism," the Christian clergyman says, "and they're not being honest and up front about that with people. We see that as a spiritual danger."

While he does not hate these people, Hubbard says he and other townspeople are opposed to their teachings. "It could be any one of a number of divergent religious groups and we would still have the same problem," he explains. The Global Country of World Peace bought about 1,100 acres this spring for the purpose of building its "palaces" and growing organic produce, AP reports.

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New Survey Helps Identify Global Evangelism Obstacles, Opportunities

by Allie Martin
June 21, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A global research project conducted by a California-based aviation ministry is providing reconnaissance for other Christian organizations and mission agencies worldwide in an effort to provide information that will help them shape their evangelism and mission strategies.

Six years ago, Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) announced "Operation ACCESS!, an effort to identify and survey areas of the world where transportation, communications, and technology barriers complicate or prevent the spread of the gospel. This landmark study surveyed 364 isolated areas or sectors in 64 countries, focusing on pockets of people that have been long forgotten or who were previously unreachable.

The survey results will now be made available to evangelical ministries in an effort to overcome obstacles to reaching various people groups with the gospel as well as barriers to getting sustained resources needed for community development, healthcare, and education services. Operation ACCESS! surveyors made assessments as to the extent or degree of any ministry going on in an area and the nature and significance of any barriers to ministry and also advised how those barriers might be overcome.

Ghislaine Benney, director of the MAF study, says the project provides some key statistics on the various factors analyzed in the areas the survey covered. "We have digital maps on those locations," she says, as well as "an overview on every sector that we surveyed."

Operation ACCESS! has yielded information that will help MAF determine its future direction for the next 15 to 20 years, Benney asserts. Still, she acknowledges, the six-year project did face some challenges.

"We're finding that 66 percent of all the sectors we surveyed had little or no ministry in place, and 89 percent of the sectors we surveyed have significant communication barriers," the project leader notes. And in 56 percent of those sectors, she adds, those communications barriers are "almost insurmountable -- very difficult to communicate or to sustain anything in place."

Operation ACCESS! research -- found on the web at OperationAccessMAF.org -- is being made available to denominations, ministries, churches, and humanitarian agencies around the world. After being briefed on the study, many leaders have hailed it as groundbreaking data that will affect the focus of their ministry for years to come.

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New SBC Prez: Good Things OK -- 'Best Thing' Better

by Allie Martin
June 21, 2006

(AgapePress) - - The new president of the nation's largest evangelical denomination says he will encourage churches to seek God's forgiveness for what he says is a loss of focus.

Dr. Frank Page, pastor of First Baptist Church in Taylors, South Carolina, was elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention during that denomination's annual meeting in Greenboro, North Carolina, last week. Page, in a bit of a surprise, was elected by SBC "messengers" in a race against two other higher-profile Southern Baptist pastors. Time Magazine, in fact, describes Page's election as an "upset victory," and notes the unprecedented influence of Internet bloggers on the race.

� [Compliments of Baptist Press]
Dr. Frank Page
Described during his nomination as "just a soul-winner" and "not a high-flying preacher," Page assumes the SBC presidency at a time when the denomination reports a sharp drop in baptisms. He says that during his term he will visit churches throughout the denomination and encourage pastors to seek God's forgiveness and power.

"I'm going to ask churches to seek the Spirit of the Lord in forgiveness for where we have failed Him," he says, "for doing good things when we're supposed to be doing the best thing. So I'm going to tell churches to seek the forgiveness of God -- and then to seek the filling full of God's Holy Spirit."

Page believes the drop in baptisms throughout the denomination is an indication that many churches need to examine their priorities.

"The Bible says in Ephesians to be filled with the Spirit of God," the new SBC president shares, "and when you are, I believe we start wanting to witness to people and share. So I believe there's a heart problem -- and our hearts need to be woken up."

The SBC has 16 million members throughout 43,000 churches. Page won the SBC's top post on the first ballot when he defeated Ronnie Floyd, pastor of First Baptist Church in Springdale, Arkansas, and Jerry Sutton, pastor of Two Rivers Baptist Church in Nashville, Tennessee.

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Psychologist Grateful Female Sex Offenders Being Exposed

by Jim Brown
June 21, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A clinical psychologist is praising the news media for its recent coverage of the rash of cases involving female teachers who sexually assault their male students.

Back in March WorldNetDaily published an article on the epidemic of cases involving sexual activity between female teachers and the youngsters entrusted to them by the educational system. While focusing initially on the high-profile case of Florida teacher Debra LaFave, the article notes more than five dozen similar cases across the country -- some of them involving lesbian relationships.

Dr. Julia Hislop, author of the book Female Sex Offenders, says for the first time, the press has caught on to the widespread nature of cases teacher-student sex abuse cases. Hislop says while such cases do not constitute a new phenomenon, ten years ago there was little research regarding female sex offenders.

"On one hand it's great that it's getting some attention, because the victims have had a very, very difficult time coming forth when the perpetrator was a female," Hislop notes. "On the other hand, the cases that have been attended to in the media tend to be teenage boys."

But the public, she contends, still has not been given the full picture. "Of course there are also very young children [both male and female] who are being victimized by females ... and not just [by] teachers, but mothers, relatives, babysitters, and so on," she says. "And so I think a more accurate portrayal of these females would include investigating cases in which there have been much younger children involved."

According to Hislop, male adolescents who have been victimized by female teachers are more likely to have a distorted view of opposite-sex relationships and have trouble trusting adults later in life. She estimates that between two and three million people have been victimized by female sex offenders -- but that the vast majority of them go unreported because society finds it nearly impossible to believe that females, usually seen as nurturing, are capable of sexual abuse.

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Public Warned About NEA Measure Promoting 'Diversity' of Marriage Alternatives

by Jim Brown and Jenni Parker
June 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A conservative activist is concerned over a recent proposal to amend the National Education Association's so-called "diversity" policy. She feels the proposal advocates same-sex "marriage" and polygamy and promotes the idea that these and other non-traditional sexual unions should be regarded as equivalent to traditional, one-man, one-woman marriage.

The proposal submitted for the National Education Association (NEA) annual convention, which begins on June 29 in Orlando, Florida, would add language to the group's diversity policy, making changes many pro-family advocates find troubling. The suggested amendment states, among other things, that "legal rights and responsibilities with regard to medical decisions, taxes, inheritance, adoption, legal immigration, domestic partnerships, and civil unions and/or marriage belong to ... diverse people and individuals," regardless of their age, sexual orientation, or marital status.

Linda Harvey of the pro-family group Mission America believes this NEA proposal could radically change what U.S. school children are taught in classrooms across the country. "It's basically saying any kind of legalized form of anything you're going to call marriage is going to be okay with us," she asserts, "and [that] we will want to, of course, promote that to our students and our faculty."

Harvey calls the proposal "outrageous" and describes it as "simply one more radical move by the NEA to promote anything and everything out there that is immoral." Adding the proposed language, she warns, "definitely would open the door to teaching that polygamy, common-law marriages, marriages [at] all ages" are all equally acceptable.

The Mission America representative says the proposed "diversity" policy amendments advocate "virtually any kind of definition you want to put on marriage" and then suggest, in effect, "that all of these different 'diverse' forms of unions would have to be presented to kids in an equal relationship to one another." And with the NEA's longtime involvement in pro-homosexual activism, she contends, the proposal will likely be approved.

Harvey says Christian teachers who pay dues to this powerful union should reconsider their investment in its efforts. She insists that amending the NEA's diversity policy will only serve to further advance this powerful group's liberal political agenda.

AFA 'Outs' the NEA's Pro-Homosexual Diversity Resolution
The Tupelo, Mississippi-based American Family Association (AFA) notes that the NEA's disturbing resolution endorsing homosexual "marriage" and other non-traditional unions has recently been pulled from the union's website. Reportedly, that move followed in the wake of an alert issued by AFA to its supporters, announcing the resolution and its implications.

AFA chairman Donald Wildmon says the removal of the resolution from the NEA website has the educators union "catching the wrath" of homosexual activists. "The NEA was trying to sneak this resolution past teachers and administrators, as well as the general public," he contends, "but they got caught."

Wildmon says the NEA yanked the resolution from its Internet site within hours after the pro-family organization made the measure public. The teachers union did not return phone calls from AgapePress regarding the proposed amendment or its removal from the website after it was publicly exposed.

Dr. Don Wildmon
Nevertheless, the AFA spokesman says the liberal educators union is still expected to present the "diversity" proposal in favor of homosexual "marriage" and other alternative unions at its annual meeting next week. "The homosexual pressure groups are angry and will force NEA to present the resolution," he asserts, "and we expect it will pass overwhelmingly."

The NEA wants to promote homosexual marriage "in every avenue they have available, including textbooks, to all children at all age levels and without the permission or knowledge of parents," Wildmon says, "and their plans will include every public school in America."

For that reason, the pro-family leader adds, AFA encourages pro-family teachers and administrators to withdraw from NEA membership and join other educational associations more in tune with their beliefs.

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Jack Cavanaugh Talks About Revival, Christian Fiction, Family

by Randall Murphree
June 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Novelist Jack Cavanaugh is co-author with Dr. Bill Bright of "The Great Awakenings" series from Howard Publishing. Randall Murphree interviewed Cavanaugh for insights regarding that series and other subjects as well.

AgapePress: How did your path cross Bill Bright's path? Coincidence or providence?

Jack Cavanaugh: A desire for national revival brought Dr. Bright and me together. He was wanting to collaborate with a novelist on the topic of significant historical revivals in American history. Having already written an American history series, I had always wanted to write novels set during times of revival. When Dr. Bright and I met, it became apparent to us that God had brought us together in answer to both our prayers.

For two days we prayed side by side on our knees and talked about history and story plot ideas, all the while knowing that unless God intervened in dramatic fashion, Dr. Bright would not live long enough to see the release of the first book. This four-novel series, "The Great Awakenings," is God's answer to our prayers.

AP: What is the potential of fiction to encourage and challenge believers? To reach the lost?

JC: Stories have the ability to reach people on several levels: intellectual, visual, and emotional. This triple punch is a powerful method of teaching spiritual truth. A well-told story contains a lesson that helps us to see things clearly and motivates us to embody the truth in our own lives. I have witnessed the power of stories -- first as a preacher, now as a writer -- to teach that God's ways are always best.

People who would never step foot in a church to hear me preach will read my novels. As a novelist, my ministry has expanded geographically beyond the local pastorate to a ministry that spans the globe. And because it's the printed word, my ministry will continue beyond my lifetime.

AP: How well is Christian fiction doing as a means of spreading the Gospel?

JC: Novels are uniquely suited to spread the Gospel message. In real life, things happen that don't make sense. Not so in novels. In a story, everything has to make sense; a character's motivation has to be believable, a character's actions always have consequences. What a perfect fit for the Christian message that teaches we will all give an account for our actions.

One of the standard themes of fiction is good vs. evil. How many stories -- both secular and Christian -- have explored this theme? Again, we have a perfect fit for the Christian message. Isn't the belief that good will triumph over evil the core of our preaching? This standard theme in fiction mirrors what the Bible has been telling us for centuries.

AP: What are the problems you see with Christian fiction? How about encouraging signs?

JC: At present, the problem I see is in the area of quality of fiction. I include myself in this assessment. In times past, Christian writers were often among the greatest writers of their time -- Milton, for example. His epic poem Paradise Lost is a masterpiece.

We're in a rebirth of Christian fiction. When I first wanted to write fiction 25 years ago, Christian publishers told me flatly that it doesn't sell. Things have changed. Consequently, we're in the infancy of a re-emergence of Christian fiction. It's going to take time to grow quality Christian novelists. Think of it in terms of another art form -- music. A person doesn't become a violin virtuoso overnight. The same holds true with Christian fiction. There's some good Christian fiction being produced today, but there's plenty of room for improvement. In time, I think we're going to see some real masterpieces.

AP: From your own work, what are your favorite titles?

JC: That's like asking which of my three children is my favorite. I'm not sure I can give you favorite titles, but I can give you some memories attached to various titles. The Puritans will always have a special place in my heart because it was my first novel. Beyond the Sacred Page was my troubled child, born out of personal heath problems, but is one of my strongest stories. Postmarked Heaven is different from all the others, a fictional devotional book, not a novel. "Songs in the Night" series are my triplets, one story in three volumes. Death Watch is my first contemporary suspense. And "The Great Awakenings" series is special to me because I was privileged to co-author with a man who has had a tremendous impact on 20th-century Christianity.

AP: Who are some of your role models, mentors or favorite writers in Christian fiction?

JC: My mentors are largely historical. Some people learn by doing, others learn by listening, I learn by reading. My library is probably my most precious possession. Most recently I have been learning how to communicate spiritual truth through fiction by studying the works of Dante Alighieri (The Divine Comedy) and John Milton (Paradise Lost). I know that sounds like boring English Lit classes, but you have to remember that in their day, these works were bestsellers. These writers knew their audiences, worked their craft, and produced epic stories that were not only popular in their day, but have proven to be of value over hundreds of years. As a writer, that's my goal -- to produce popular fiction that stands the test of time.

AP: What are a few of your favorite Christian novels?

JC: I'm indebted to Brock and Bodie Thoene for blazing the historical fiction trail in the Christian market, and to Frank Peretti's This Present Darkness for expanding the market. Since I write historical fiction and am now branching out to the supernatural suspense genre, it makes sense that these authors are counted among my favorites.

AP: Tell us a little about your family.

JC: I met Marni at Azusa Pacific College where we fell in love. We were engaged for two years before we got married and then waited five years before we had children. I say this because I believe that those early years with just the two of us were formative in a relationship that is still happy 34 years later.

We have three children, all grown now. All of them are talented artistically. Elizabeth, 26, lives in Iowa and is a gifted writer; expect to see a novel from her within the next couple of years. Keri, 24, is a police dispatcher with a wonderful singing voice; she does musical theater here in San Diego. And Sam, 22, lives in Los Angeles, works at Disneyland as the Mad Hatter by day and performs in musical theater productions at night.

AP: What are some of your family's favorite activities together?

JC: Laughing. Both my immediate family and extended family spend a good deal of time laughing. We get together for holidays and birthdays. Brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, uncles, all of us get along famously. We play games, and there is always a lot of laughing.

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'A Head and Heart in Good Proportion'

by JoAnne Potter
June 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Some stories start slow, but not The Calling of Jujubee Forthright (Faithwalk Publishing, 2006), Scott Philip Stewart's new novel -- a modern-day rendering of the Parable of the Pharisee and the Sinner in a Georgia setting.

Stewart's delightfully improbable characters from Medlyn, Georgia, begin with the narrator, David (a.k.a. "Diogenes" or "Dewey") Hazelriggs, a depressed philosophy professor, self-proclaimed cynic, driver of a '62 Big Healy 3000, and author of his "hymn to misery" ironically named Honest to God. He meets his counterpoint in five-foot, 300-pound auctioneer Jimmy Jack B. ("Jujubee") Forthright who has a prosthetic leg and a fresh calling from Jesus Christ to auction off salvation to the lowest bidder. Mutual friend Franny Fuller introduces them when she shows Diogenes her most recent auction acquisition, a giant prophetic lawn gnome. If you don't believe it's prophetic, just peek at it under the shadow of Fanny's shawl. It's eyes glow; they really do -- and all that within the first 13 pages.

Jujubee is really a study in contrasts. There are two Medlyns: the sophisticated academia from which Diogenes/Dewey springs, and the down home Medlyn, home of the Monstravaganza Tractor Pull. There are also two colleges in town: high-toned Wentworth, where credentials are king, and the Bible School of the Fundamental First Church, where legalism reigns -- and as Stewart says, where the "fun" has disappeared from "fundamental," leaving only the "mental."

Stewart says this contrast, neatly set up early in the novel, represents two "very distinct impulses" in him.

"Diogenes captures the part of me that stands ready to dismiss it all as trivial, to be the first to say, 'What difference does it make?' 'Who cares?'" the author says. "But then there's Jesus with the response to the question. It all matters; ergo, everything can hurt me. Hence, the cross. And, what's more, it's the things that matter least that matter most in the end. It was Jesus' way of turning everything upside down -- the last shall be first, the master must be the servant, the Messiah must suffer."

Therefore Diogenes and Jujubee, in the company of fun and quirky folks like Banana Barney Fosters and Peanut Butterbean, go on the salvation trail together. Their way, however, is not smooth. First, Jujubee misreads his calling and tries to enroll in Medlyn's colleges. When that fails, he takes to the road.

"If we sit around waiting 'til everything's in order before we step out with ears to hear and hearts to feel, we'll probably wait too long and we'll miss the point," says Stewart, "the point being that it isn't about me at all. It's about Jesus."

As he steps out, Jujubee looks increasingly like Jesus, recognizing divine encounters even at the Stop-N-Hop, where he finds a fierce-looking former newspaper delivery man with a mullet and a three-day-old beard browsing the pornographic magazine rack. Here Stewart's skill shines. In minutes and without a trace of preaching, Jujubee empathetically invites him to "Follow me" -- and he does. In these fine moments, Stewart reveals his own heart.

"The great discovery of my life was that God's grace truly is sufficient," he shares. "I guess what I had to say in Jujubee is that the thing about grace and judgment is that none of us is in a position to judge -- not so much because of whom we are or are not, but because of what we know and know not."

In the end, of course, Jujubee, his calling, and his companions all come to their anticipated, happy, and eternally secure end. Stewart does it, however, with rare, inventive word play completely devoid of worn-out church phraseology. His characters, full of excitement and humor, aim higher. Stewart expresses it like this:

"The kingdom purpose in telling this story is to strike the middle way between an irrelevant academic version of the gospel and a legalistic one -- between the poles of liberalism and legalism lies the heart of Jesus' kingdom message, a church with a head and a heart in good proportion and the undying, unfailing love of God who is ever at work around us and in us to renovate, not whitewash, the tombs that are our fallen self."

In The Calling of Jujubee Forthright, Scott fulfills this purpose and makes the trip a delightful ride.

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Civics 101: Silence a Student's Speech, Face a Potential Lawsuit

by Jim Brown
June 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A civil liberties group says it plans to sue the Nevada high school that unplugged the microphone of a valedictorian because her commencement speech mentioned her faith in Jesus Christ.

The Rutherford Institute says it plans to file a lawsuit against Foothill High School in Henderson as early as next week over its censorship of senior Brittany McComb. Officials with the Clark County School District pulled the plug on McComb after she began reading a graduation speech that contained Bible verses and a reference to Jesus Christ.

Rutherford Institute president John Whitehead says the school engaged in religious viewpoint discrimination, something the Supreme Court has said is unconstitutional -- and something he believes some courts would view as "abhorrent" in this particular case.

"It's a little different than some of the cases where the courts have ruled that schools can control basically what students say," Whitehead explains. "Here they actually pulled the plug on her -- and I don't know if most people know about the news accounts, but there were like 400 people there [who] started booing and hissing when they cut off the mike on this girl."

Whitehead says the school was not endorsing religion or violating the so-called separation of church and state, but rather was doing everything it could to say it wanted nothing to do with what McComb was saying. McComb had deviated from a school-approved and edited version of her original address. But the Rutherford attorney says the case is not an Establishment Clause issue, but rather a First Amendment free-speech issue.

"If the schools are going to edit speeches ... then the principal or whoever [did the editing] should get up and give the speech, because it really isn't the kid that's giving the speech; it's the school speaking through a student," the attorney says.

"But it's not the fact that she agreed [to deliver the edited version of the speech]. The question is, does she have free speech? Can she give a speech and, at the end, say 'by the way, here's the most important thing in my life' -- before they pull the plug on her?"

McComb, he says, "worked hard to earn the right to address her classmates as valedictorian" and "has a constitutional right -- like other students -- to freely speak about the factors that contributed to her success, whether they be a supportive family, friends, or her faith in Jesus Christ." And school officials, by pulling the plug on the school's top graduate, have demonstrated "yet another example of a politically correct culture silencing Christians in order not to offend those of other beliefs," Whitehead adds.

Ironically, the school district may have violated its own guidelines by its actions. The Rutherford Institute notes that the official free-speech policy of the Clark County School Board states: "Where students or other private graduation speakers are selected on the basis of genuinely neutral, evenhanded criteria and retain primary control over the content of their expression...that expression is not attributable to the school and, therefore, may not be restricted because of its religious (or anti-religious) content."

According to Whitehead, school officials edited out almost half of McComb's original version. He says it is still unclear whether the American Civil Liberties Union had a role in editing the speech or advised the school board's lawyer to remove religious references, but he says regardless, the ACLU acted as a "government agent of suppression."

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GFA's 2006 'Renewing Your Passion' Event Promises Unique Experience

by Allie Martin
June 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Next weekend Gospel for Asia (GFA), a ministry that trains native Christians to plant churches in unreached areas, will host its second annual Renewing Your Passion Conference in Dallas, Texas.

Organizers of the upcoming conference say their aim is to bring the foreign mission field to the United States in a powerfully inspiring and informative way. GFA founder and president K.P. Yohannan says those attending will be challenged and encouraged by an event featuring native mission field leaders, who will share about the realities and challenges of taking the gospel to remote areas of India and other parts of Asia.

Yohannan says this year's conference will be a time of worship and "looking into God's Word, seeing Christ of the New Testament" and how scripture applies to the needs of a lost world. The proceedings will include "lots of interaction and a significant amount of question and answer time, where people can ask information and learn about what's going on," the ministry leader notes, as well as "lots of fantastic testimonies from the mission field as to what God is doing."

The 2006 Renewing Your Passion Conference promises to be a unique experience, Yohannan contends. He says it will give participants a chance to hear from those who work daily in the mission fields of Asia, and "not only will they hear information, but they will have an opportunity to do something as a family, as an individual, as children, to impact these nations for eternity."

This potential, to not only learn about what is happening in the mission field but also to become involved, is "the uniqueness about this meeting that people talk about," the GFA president asserts. "It's not just information," he says. "I would say this is a once-in-a-life opportunity."

Yohannan says those who attend the second annual Renewing Your Passion Conference will be getting a first-hand account of the struggles and successes faced daily by Christian missionaries in Asia. The conference will run June 30-July 2 in Dallas, Texas.

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New Orleans Pastor: Prayers, Saints' Presence Will Bring City Back

by Allie Martin and Jenni Parker
June 22, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Baptist pastor from New Orleans, Louisiana, says Christians throughout the United States must not forget to pray for his city as it continues to recover from last year's devastating hurricane season.

Fred Luter is pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church in New Orleans, which was heavily damaged as a result of Hurricane Katrina and subsequent flooding. He is currently overseeing a massive rebuilding project for the church and says there are many needs to be met, not only for his congregation but for the entire city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas.

It has been nearly ten months since Hurricane Katrina's swept through, wreaking havoc on homes, churches and other buildings and giving rise to the immense storm surge that caused several breaches in the New Orleans' levees and resulted in massive flooding. But recovery has barely begun for many of the area's citizens, Luter notes, including those who stayed and "rode out" the storm and its damage, those evacuees who remain displaced, and those residents who have since returned to face their losses.

Like many other cities and towns throughout the Gulf States region, New Orleans has been permanently marked by Hurricane Katrina. The Sunday before the storm hit, thousands of people filled Franklin Avenue Baptist Church; but one week later, the congregation's pastor could find only a small number of his church's members. He says many spiritual and physical needs remain for them and for all of New Orleans.

Now, as a new hurricane season gets under way, Luter says his city needs prayer -- and lots of it. "We need people to pray for our lodging, and for people to come back to the city. That's critical," he says. "And we need people to pray for the levees, that they'll hold when the hurricanes come."

Another major need, the Crescent City minister points out, is for skilled workers with willing hearts to come lend a hand in the recovery process. "We need people to pray that we'll be able to find enough people to help us to rebuild our churches and our homes," he says. "That's the critical need right now."

Asked whether it is truly feasible for flood-devastated New Orleans to rise from the ruins left in Katrina's wake, Luter says, "I believe we're coming back. We'll probably never again be the same city that we were; but I believe, with the presence of the saints of God, we can be on our way."

In fact, the pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church believes last year's disaster may have primed the Big Easy for revival. "I think after you go through what we've gone through, people are open for the gospel," he says.

Hurricane Katrina and its effects have left many people with "no protest about anything," Luter contends. That is because "after you go through what we've gone through, people's hearts and minds are open to the gospel like never before," he says. Therefore, he is urging Christians to pray and for all who would go even further to "come on down to N'awlins and help us out."

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Schools May Answer in Court for Censoring Students' Christian Messages

by Jim Brown
June 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian attorney says a Colorado high school was wrong to withhold a valedictorian's diploma because her commencement speech encouraged people to learn about Jesus Christ.

Erica Corder, an 18-year-old graduating senior at Lewis-Palmer High School in Monument, used her commencement speech to speak about the death and resurrection of Christ and to urge listeners to learn more about his sacrifice. After the valedictory address, however, school officials told Corder she would not receive her diploma until she wrote an e-mail to the school community's students and parents, apologizing for her comments.

Mat Staver, founder and chairman of Florida-based Liberty Counsel, believes the school acted inappropriately. "Frankly, schools have no right to withhold a diploma," he argues. "That diploma is earned. It's just like if you already worked at your job, and you get paid after the fact; what you do on vacation or off work does not have any bearing on whether you're going to get paid."

Corder's case has a number of "very disturbing components," Staver says, "because after she gave her speech, she was threatened that her diploma would be withheld unless she wrote an e-mail apologizing to the seniors in her class." But Corder had already "earned" her diploma, he insists, and as the valedictorian, "she was entitled to the diploma, and the school should not have forced her to give this apologizing e-mail."

The pro-family attorney feels this has been one of the most egregious incidences of abuse of power by school officials at graduation that he has ever encountered. Until this situation in Colorado, he notes, "I've never seen a case where a diploma is withheld because someone gave a religious message. I believe that was obviously illegal to do that."

In fact, Staver believes it was unconstitutional for the school to censor the Christian valedictorian's message. The Liberty Counsel spokesman has sent a letter to school district officials on Corder's behalf, informing them that, under the Constitution of the United States, she has the right to share her faith. He says even though Corder agreed to write parents and fellow graduates an apology letter, a lawsuit against the school is still warranted.

New Jersey Second Grader Barred From Singing "Awesome God"

Meanwhile, in another case of apparent school censorship, a judge will decide whether a New Jersey elementary school violated a student's free speech rights when it barred her from singing a Christian song at a school talent show. The Frenchtown School District described the lyrics of the second-grader's selected music -- the Rich Mullins anthem "Awesome God" -- as too violent and graphic for the elementary school presentation.

The Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) has filed a lawsuit on behalf of Olivia Turton. ADF attorney Demetrios Stratis says, contrary to the school's claims, allowing Olivia to sing the song would not have violated the First Amendment. In fact, he asserts, "It's preposterous. It really, really is, to think that an eight-year-old, a second grader, is singing songs or lyrics that are violent and that in some way violate the establishment clause."

Stratis feels the school's defense is particularly ludicrous in light of some of the acts the school did not choose to censor. He says far more questionable performances were allowed at the talent show. For instance, he notes, "Someone was dancing to Shakira, I think," referring to the Colombian Latin pop performer known as much for her provocative dance style as for her at times suggestive lyrics.

Also, someone in the talent show performed a song by the rock band Bon Jovi, and someone else acted out "a scene from MacBeth regarding witches," the ADF lawyer recalls. With all the things that were allowed in show, Stratis contends it is beyond the pale for the Frenchtown School District officials "to suggest that the song 'Awesome God' is violent" and, he adds, "it just goes to show you the 'logic' behind them refusing to let Olivia sing her song."

Both sides in the case have filed motions for summary judgment. Judge Stanley Chesler will receive the papers on July 3 and will then decide whether to issue a ruling or have the case go to trial.

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PJI Successfully Defends Youth Minister Arrested For Mall Evangelism

by Allie Martin
June 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - Charges have been dropped against a California evangelist who was arrested for witnessing at a local mall. Nevertheless, a pro-family attorney says the mall authorities may have to answer in court for this violation of the Christian man's clearly established rights.
The Sacramento-based youth pastor, who regularly leads a group of young adults to a shopping mall to hand out tracts and take part in one-on-one witnessing, was talking with someone at the mall when he was interrupted by a security guard and was ordered to leave. Although no one had complained, the guard demanded that the pastor vacate the premises because he had been "walking around and talking to people."

The evangelism-minded minister replied that he was not doing anything wrong and politely declined to leave. However, another security guard joined the first and the two informed the youth pastor he was being placed under citizen's arrest for trespassing.

At this point, he agreed to leave peacefully; but instead of being allowed to depart, he was allegedly grabbed and shoved against a storefront window, handcuffed tightly enough to draw blood, and later taken to a police station. There, he was reportedly booked for trespassing and an additional false charge of battery.

The senior pastor at the youth minister's church contacted Pacific Justice Institute (PJI), a pro-family legal defense organization, which enlisted affiliate attorneys Gregory Koonce and Timothy Smith to provide representation at the court hearing. However, the local District Attorney's Office decided to drop the case "in the interests of justice," and all charges against the Christian defendant were dismissed.

The president of PJI, Brad Dacus, believes the DA's Office probably realized the minister's arrest was illegal; but while all the charges in the incident have been dropped, the attorney asserts that the matter is by no means over. He says a civil suit is being considered against the mall for violating the youth pastor's clearly established constitutional rights.

"Generally speaking," Dacus observes, "if a shopping mall opens its doors for individuals to randomly come in and do different things, to express themselves, then they can't discriminate against someone just because they're Christian or their message happens to be Christian." In fact, he points out, "some states even treat private shopping malls as public places as far as free speech protection is concerned."

This incident has served as a valuable lesson for the young people who accompanied their youth minister to the mall, the PJI spokesman contends. They no doubt "went there thinking they were going to be challenged to share their faith," he says, "but in reality, at the end of the day, they learned that sharing their faith sometimes involves a struggle -- a struggle that's worth enduring."

While celebrating the youth pastor's victory, Dacus remains concerned. He says since the dismissal of charges was not precedent-setting, there is no guarantee that this will be the last time a shopping mall tries to shut down a Christian's attempts to witness or share their faith. For that reason, he urges evangelists who encounter similar hostility to contact PJI immediately.

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Christian FamilyNet Casts In With Sirius, Catching Broader Radio Audience

by Allie Martin
June 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A secular satellite radio network, well known for its association with notorious "shock jock" Howard Stern, is now attracting a large audience because of its addition of a Christian channel.

It was several years ago that Sirius Satellite Radio was launched nationwide in the United States; however, it was last year that the company sent out a listener survey, asking customers what other types of formats they would like made available. That survey revealed to company officials that many of their listeners wanted a Christian format offered on satellite radio.

With that end Sirius officials contacted FamilyNet, the broadcast ministry of the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. Scott Miller, program director for FamilyNet Radio, says the Christian channel, which features a variety of Christian talk, news, preaching, and children's programs, has already made a big impact with Sirius customers.
"It goes back to what scripture says: what the enemy intended for evil, God has used for good," Miller observes. "Sirius Satellite has been advertised as the Howard Stern radio network, and there have been people who have been buying Sirius Satellite radios to get Howard Stern that have stumbled across Channel 159 and have accepted Christ."

The FamilyNet spokesman says satellite radio provides an expansive platform for Christian ministry, even though some have questioned its use by evangelical broadcasters. "It is a growing medium," he says. "It's another option."

And, while some people have questioned why the Christian radio channel is on the same network as Howard Stern, Miller compares that to asking why have FamilyNet Television on cable where HBO's offered. "You've got to have the gospel presented," he insists, "and it's just been a tremendous outreach for us."

There are more than four million subscribers to Sirius Satellite Radio. That number is expected to reach six million by the end of 2006.

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Prescription Drug Abuse Growing Among Teens, Christian M.D. Warns

by Mary Rettig
June 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A Christian psychiatrist from Pennsylvania says parents need to be concerned about the rapid growth of prescription drug abuse among teenagers.

According to Dr. Karl Benzio, what used to be barely a blip on the illicit drug radar for teens is now the second-most widely used method to get high, topped only by marijuana in prevalence. In a survey conducted last year by the Parnership for a Drug Free America, nearly 20 percent of teens admitted to taking some sort of prescription drug to get high.

Benzio believes several possible reasons may account for the growth in the popularity of prescription drug abuse among teens. "Prescription meds are legal," he notes, "and they're in their cabinets, and so [many young people] take them from their parents' cabinets. It's not like they have to go out and take a risk of buying them and getting arrested."

For that reason, Benzio says, at least in the minds of these teens, prescription drug use may seem like a "legal adventure" for them. And another thing, he notes, is that many kids believe if drugs have been prescribed, they must be relatively safe.

"Now, some kids understand that these medications are dangerous," the psychiatrist acknowledges. "But a lot of them believe that, since they're prescribed and the FDA has approved them, then they must be safe medications," He says.

Another major factor, Benzio contends, is the easy availability of prescription drugs, and young people's relatively sophisticated understanding of these medications' intended effects. "Kids can go in, and they can see all kinds of different things in the cabinet," he explains. "They're understanding and their education about pharmacology is much more advanced than [mine] as a teenager."

The Christian medical professional believes having a rudimentary understanding of the potential of various prescription medications may make many youth more likely to try these drugs. "So, he says, "knowing -- sort of -- what's in the cabinet and what that might be able to do for them, at least from their vantage point, makes a lot more impression."

Benzio says parents need to watch their medicine cabinets closely, taking especial note of drugs that were prescribed after surgeries or other illnesses. Many commonly prescribed painkillers are among the most popularly abused drugs, he notes. And, the doctor emphasizes, while use of illegal drugs like marijuana, heroin, and cocaine appears to be going down or at least leveling off, prescription drug abuse is increasing at an alarming rate.

Many teens have the idea that because certain drugs can be obtained by prescription, those drugs are clean and do not carry the same stigma as cocaine or heroin, Benzio observes. Unfortunately, he warns, prescription drug abuse can still lead young people down the same trail of self-destruction as those illicit drugs.

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Former Buddhist, So. Vietnamese Officer Tells of Amazing Conversion to Christianity

by James L. Lambert
June 23, 2006

(AgapePress) - - In his recently released book The Making of a Believer, author Thoi Nguyen recounts his dramatic life story during the Vietnam War and the many instances where God intervened on his behalf.

Nguyen depicts his childhood in a Buddhist home, as well as his life experiences with a war that was so much a part of the Vietnamese history spanning back to both the Japanese and French occupations of that country.

In the book, Thoi describes his parent's difficulty in feeding their family even after their move from the province to the city of Saigon. He tells of his fight to save the life of his future wife, Thuy, during the infamous Tet Offensive. The author also speaks of his conversion and his service in the South Vietnamese Army. He later became the manager of agricultural research for the Ministry of Agriculture of the South Vietnamese government.

Nguyen's story is evidence of a God who is there and who intervenes in the lives of His followers. He recounts the details of his dramatic escape from Vietnam soon after its fall in 1975, as well as his capture by communist North Vietnamese and his miraculous escape.

The author says he wrote his life story to "help others find peace with themselves and with God." Nguyen believes that his book will provide fresh insight and personal perspective into a time that so deeply divided the United States.

The book allows the author to expound on his thankfulness to the Christian people in Minnesota who sponsored him and his family in the United States.

Since arriving in the north central U.S., members of Nguyen's family have become strong, contributing partners in that region. His son, Thy, is assistant director of career services at Northwestern University. His other son, Thi, is a police officer. His daughter, a student at the University of Minnesota, is studying to become a dentist. And the author, who now lives in Iowa and is following the agricultural career path he began so many years ago in Vietnam, is currently a district sales manager for AgVenture of Iowa.

The Making of a Believer: From the Rice Paddies of Viet Nam to the Cornfields of Iowa can be ordered through PublishAmerica.com. Nguyen is hoping that as people read his book, they will see that through the power of faith, hope, and love, they can face the difficult challenges of life.

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Secularized E.U. Ups Its Ante on ESCR

by Jody Brown and Natalie Harris
June 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A renowned family researcher says he can't figure out why the European Union has decided to devote more funding to embryonic stem-cell research -- unless it's to prop up the pro-abortion argument.

Earlier this month, members of the European Parliament (MEPs) -- by a vote of 284-249 -- decided to commit more EU funds to embryonic stem-cell research than in the past. The bulk of such funding in previous EU budgets had gone to adult stem-cell research. The Vatican has come out in opposition to the recent vote, calling it an expression of a "narrow-minded secularism" that "violate(s) the dignity of man."

Dr. Allan Carlson is founder of The Howard Center for Family, Religion & Society and organizer of the World Congress of Families, which next convenes in May 2007 in Poland. Carlson notes that years of research using stem cells taken from aborted babies have yet to produce a single treatment for a disease. But such is not the case with research involving stem cells taken from adults.

"[R]esearch on adult stem cells has produced a veritable cornucopia of treatments for many diseases -- over 100 to be exact," says Carlson. "Adult stem cells have been used for everything from corneal regeneration to treating juvenile arthritis."

The author and pro-family expert offers his explanation as to why some in the scientific community continue to turn a blind eye toward real results in favor of research that requires the extermination of unborn infants.

"It's a matter of ideology, not science," he says. "Because backers of embryonic stem-cell research promise miracle cures -- someday -- proponents hope the public will come to see abortion not as a necessary evil, but as a benefit to mankind."

And Carlson confesses that history seems to have been forgotten in Europe. "On a continent that saw such wanton destruction of human life in the past century -- and which spawned ideologies that viewed people as raw material for the state," he observes, "you would think the European Union would show more sensitivity for the most vulnerable among us: unborn children."

Scientific Motivations
Meanwhile, a new breakthrough in stem-cell research claims to offer all of the promised benefits of embryonic stem cells -- and none of the problems. Francisco Silva, vice president of research and development for PrimeCell Therapeutics, a research center in Irvine, California, explains the therapeutic development using adult stem cells.

Silva says his research team can now make some adult stem cells "pluripotent," just like embryonic stem cells. That is, the newly developed adult stem cells are capable of transforming into any cell type found in the body. At the same time, this therapeutic development avoids ethical controversy, the need for cloning, and bodily rejection.

"Our goal is not to destroy embryonic stem cells or continue doing research or build a name for ourselves," states Silva. "Our goal is to promise an application to the tens of thousands of patients out there who are needing a therapy. Everybody in the world knows somebody that stem cells can help."

To date, says a press release from parent company PrimeGen, human germ cells -- using therapeutic reprogramming technology -- have been successfully transformed into human heart, brain, bone, and cartilage cells. The findings are undergoing peer review at this time, and have been presented at several global conferences on stem-cell research. But Silva shares that his research team has faced disapproval from fellow researchers, particularly those involved in embryonic stem-cell research.

"It's really easy to take responsibility or to think that one is responsible for the properties of a cell and say, 'I discovered this and I did this and I've published hundreds of papers, and I'm the chair of this department,'" he says. "But really, it's the cell that's doing it. So, when there's a technology that can potentially threaten that [opportunity to make such claims], then obviously, the human nature comes out."

PrimeGen says it has spun off the research under the PrimeCell entity to allow the technology to move quickly to therapeutic application. PrimeGen chairman and CEO Thomas Yuen calls the germ line stem cell development "the most promising methodology yet for regenerative medicine."

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Parents' Persistent Protest Pays Off; Clubs' Flags Removed

by Jim Brown
June 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A pro-family group is hailing the removal of a "homosexual pride" flag from the wall of a Michigan high school.

For almost two years, conservatives have been protesting the presence of a rainbow flag displayed by the Diversity Club at Howell High School. Students even formed a Traditional Values Club in response to the school's allowance of homosexual activism on campus. Last Thursday (June 22) officials at the school took down the rainbow flag, the Christian flag displayed by the Traditional Values Club, and those of all other campus clubs.

Gary Glenn, president of the American Family Association of Michigan, says public outcry forced school officials to reverse what he describes as "one of the most outrageous examples of political correctness ever seen in Michigan."

"This rainbow flag, which is [a] universally recognized [gay pride symbol] ... had been flying at Howell High since the day after the 2004 election, specifically to protest voter approval of a marriage protection amendment to our state constitution," Glenn explains. "And when parents and students protested to the school board, the school board reacted by having a formal flag dedication ceremony for the so-called 'gay pride' flag."

Now, says the AFA-Michigan spokesman, mounting public outcry has forced the school's hand in what he describes as "a sad state of affairs."

"I honestly think it got to the point where their sacred gay pride flag had to be sacrificed if that was the only way they could remove the Christian flag from Howell High," says Glenn. "But the parent group that organized 18 months ago for the purpose of pressuring school officials to remove the gay pride flag from their school finally made their point, and finally succeeded."

Under a revised policy, student clubs will be permitted to display their flags only at the time and place of their meetings. During the 18-month ordeal, the American Family Association's Center for Law & Policy provided legal assistance to the Traditional Values Club.

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Unions Often Ignore Religious Objectors' Right to Divert Dues, Watchdog Warns

by Jim Brown
June 27, 2006

(AgapePress) - - A union watchdog group says many times powerful teachers unions like the National Education Association (NEA) stonewall religious objectors who want their membership dues diverted to a charitable organization.

The Washington Education Association recently denied a Christian teacher's request to have her dues diverted to a charity that opposes sex trafficking. The teacher objected to funding the WEA's support for abortion and same-sex "marriage" with her dues.

Justin Hakes, director of legal information for the National Right to Work Foundation (NRTW), says such cases are unfortunately all too common. "In fact," he notes, "they're so common that our organization has established a special project to provide free legal aid to employees in these sorts of situations, where they find their conscience at odds with many of the activities that union officials are engaged in politically."

That National Right to Work Foundation effort is called the "Freedom of Conscience Project," Hakes explains, and its purpose is to protect employees of faith from having their religious freedoms violated by the injustices of compulsory unionism. He says Title VII of the 1964 Federal Civil Rights Act allows employees with sincerely held religious beliefs to divert their union dues to charity.

However, Hakes notes, often when employees try to exercise this right, union officials ignore their request or create illegal hurdles before granting the worker's "religious objector" status. Also, he points out, under different Supreme Court rulings and the law, the charity to which funds are to be diverted has to be "mutually agreeable" between the union and the religious objector.

"In this case, where this woman was trying to divert her dues to a charity that battles sex trafficking and so forth," the NRTW spokesman says, "sometimes where union officials feel there may be a different agenda at work that they don't agree with, per se, at the root of the organization, and they may try to discourage employees from diverting their dues to such organizations."

Religious objectors who decide to join a liberal union are taking a gamble, Hakes asserts. He says many times union officials will throw up roadblocks to discourage workers and infringe upon this basic right; and when that happens, the Foundation's Freedom of Conscience Project stands ready to offer free legal assistance to victimized employees.

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Ministry Says Misinformation Poses Health Risk for Teens, Young Adults

by Steve Cable
June 28, 2006

(AgapePress) - - If terrorists were caught attempting to manipulate the environment at America's colleges and universities so that 85 percent of all coeds would graduate infected with a life-threatening virus, they would be vilified and prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Many media reports on a recent study about the effectiveness of condom use in deterring the spread of HPV have the potential to produce the same result. Irresponsible and/or ignorant journalism producing a false sense of security may be able to accomplish what the most sophisticated terrorist operation would be unable to pull off.

The Study
Human papilloma virus (HPV) -- which can cause cervical cancer, genital warts and gotcha11l, vulvar, anal and penile cancers -- is the most common sexually transmitted disease (STD), infecting about 80 percent of young women within five years of becoming sexually active. One of the arguments for abstinence prior to marriage is that condoms have not been shown to be effective in protecting against HPV and other STDs. A new study report, published in the June 22 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine, is entitled "Condom Use and the Risk of Genital Human Papillomavirus Infection in Young Women." This study was structured to provide better information on the impact of male condom use on the likelihood of women contracting HPV.

What new insights are gained from this study on the relationship of condom use and HPV? The most important result is that sexually active college women whose male partners used condoms 100 percent of the time (both with the woman in the study and with other sexual partners) have roughly a 38 percent chance of contracting HPV within the first year of becoming sexually active. If she has at least one different partner per year for four years, the probability that she will leave college with an HPV infection is greater than 85 percent. The obvious conclusion of the study is that condom use is not an effective means of preventing HPV.

The study did find that sexually active college women whose male partners used condoms less than 100 percent of the time had a probability of contracting HPV within the first year of becoming sexually active ranging from 62 percent to virtually 100 percent, depending upon the regularity of condom use by their male partners. Although the study does show that male condom use did reduce the probability of sexually active women contracting HPV, it did not reduce it to a level that any thinking person would consider safe. Based on the study results, it is reasonable to conclude that any woman who is sexually active with multiple partners during their college years will almost certainly contract HPV whether they ensure their partners use condoms or not.

The Misinformation
One would expect the headlines for the media reports on this topic to read, "Condoms Shown to be Ineffective Against HPV." The body of the article would point out that these results vindicate the proponents of abstinence emphasis in preventing the spread of STDs. However, the exact opposite is being purported by the media. Here are some samples from the headlines:

* "Condoms Reduce HPV Risk After All, Without Increasing Likelihood of Sex" (American Council on Science and Health)
* "Condoms Proven to Protect Against Virus" (Associated Press, Yuma Sun)
* "Condoms Reduce Risk of Cervical Cancer, Survey Says" (Dallas Morning News, June 22, 2006)

These headlines take a half truth and present it in a way that is designed to further a political agenda while endangering the health of America's youth and young adults. Even more dangerous is the first line of the Associated Press report: "For the first time, scientists have proof that condoms offer women impressive protection against the virus that causes cervical cancer." I do not consider an 85 percent chance of catching the virus in four years "impressive" -- I would consider it dismal! The AP report then adds insult to injury by including this quote from an obscure expert:

"That's pretty awesome. There aren't too many times when you can have an intervention that would offer so much protection," said Dr. Patricia Kloser, an infectious-disease specialist at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey who was not a part of the study.

The use of the words "impressive protection" and "so much protection" in conjunction with the results of this study borders on criminal. We need to hold our journalists to task for such biased (or, in the best case, shoddy) reporting. Even more important, we need to get out the real conclusion supported by the study: Abstinence or a completely monogamous relationship is the only effective protection against STDs. As Christians, we would point to marriage as the only valid venue for a monogamous relationship, but that is outside the scope of the study.

To determine the number of coeds at risk, we need to consider how many are sexually active. In order to participate in this study, the college coeds had to have refrained from gotcha11l intercourse prior to the two weeks preceding the start of the study. In other words, the participants were virgins at the beginning of the study. Over the three-year study period, 45 percent of those originally enrolled remained virgins. According to a report from the U.S. Center for Disease Control, in 2002, 70 percent of never-married teens under the age of 18 had not engaged in sex. Taking the 55 percent from the study who started sexual activity in college with the 30 percent who were already sexually active, one would predict that 68.5 percent of college coeds would be sexually active.

This tracks well with the CDC data that 68 percent of never-married females have engaged in sex before they were 20. Thus, if coed sexual activity remains at the same level and 100 percent condom use is practiced, we can expect approximately 60 percent of college coeds to graduate with an HPV versus 68 percent with 50 percent condom usage.

In contrast, if we could cut the number of sexually active coeds in half, the HPV infection rate among graduates could drop to 33 percent or less regardless of condom usage.

http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion04674.shtml

Additional information on ChristiansUnite.com is available on the Internet at http://www.christiansunite.com/

'Real Men' Urged to Stand Between Children and Sex Industry

by Bill Fancher and Jody Brown
June 26, 2006

(AgapePress) - - American men are being challenged through a new campaign to help fight child pornography and its harmful impact, and to come to the defense of the nation's youth against an industry that seeks to exploit them.

Pornography is a multi-billion-dollar industry that exploits both women and children, from infants to teens, and preys on people's prurient interests, typically those of men. Statistics indicate that every month, 32 million individuals visit an Internet porn site -- and among all porn sites, one out of every five pornographic images is of a child. Add to that the fact that, according to the Center for Crimes Research, 20 percent of youth who use the Internet regularly have been sexually solicited or approached. Simply put, the business of commercial sexual exploitation is an aspect of a modern, technology-driven society that leaves no one untouched.

That is why an organization calling itself "The Defenders" is targeting men, urging them to lead the way and commit to defending women and children from the lucrative porn and sex trafficking industries. Chaplain Henry Rogers, who is involved in the effort, explains that the group is taking a two-pronged approach, attacking both the "sex-slave trade" and the pornography industry, an aspect with which he says "a lot of guys and teenage boys wrestle."

Rogers says The Defenders recently kicked off an advertising campaign -- consisting of both radio and TV spots -- aimed at its target audience: men.

"The Defenders campaign was kicked off on Father's Day .... It was introduced to bring this program to men in this country and to help them recognize that pornography is an issue in this country that we've got to make a decision about and to make a commitment to refuse to be involved in this industry," the group spokesman says.

According to The Defenders' website, the technology base available to children today -- such Internet chat rooms and social networking websites -- permit creation of "treasure mines" of youth profiles for sexual predators. Other factors aiding the explosion of commercial sexual exploitation of children include toleration of sex-oriented businesses in advertising and the breakup of the nuclear family.

The campaign asks men, through a series of announcements, to commit to refuse to use porn, to speak out against it, and to educate and protect women and children from the harmful effects of the commercial sexual exploitation industry. The NBC television network refused to run the spots, claiming pornography is legal in the U.S. The Defenders offered to alter the announcements to focus specifically on child pornography, but NBC did not respond.

The Defenders offers an online pledge for what it calls "real men" who vow not to tolerate the sexual exploitation of children, not to purchase pornography in any form, and not to buy sexual services.

http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion04662.shtml

Additional information on ChristiansUnite.com is available on the Internet at http://www.christiansunite.com/

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Theology => Prophecy - Current Events => Topic started by: Shammu on April 08, 2006, 01:29:47 AM