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Pastor Works to Turn Sideline Believers Into Motivated Voters

by Allie Martin
July 16, 2004

(AgapePress) - A Tennesee pastor says the recent unsuccessful effort to pass a Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA) is proof that Christians need to take more seriously their right and privilege to vote.

Kenyn Cureton is Pastor of First Baptist Church of Lebanon, Tennessee, near Nashville. He often takes the time to encourage his church members to register and says Christians need to be proactive when it comes to choosing candidates and voting. "Find out what your Christian values are on these major issues -- where you stand -- and then look for candidate's who endorse you. Don't endorse a candidate; find the ones who endorse you and your values," he says.

In an effort to equip Christians to do this, Cureton helped the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention develop a new initiative called "iVoteValues.com." The Tennessee pastor says the purposes of the Internet site is primarily to reach the people who are on the sidelines, perhaps saying, "I don't really know whether I want to get involved in the political scene and government -- it's kind of tainted."

These are the very voters Cureton hopes the site will successfully motivate. "We're trying to get people off the sidelines and into the game," he says, "to really exercise their Christian responsibility to be salt and light in every area of life -- not just the spiritual but in the world of art and music and education and, in this case, politics."

The "iVoteValues.com" Web site includes candidate profiles, their stances on a wide range of issues and tips on registering people to vote.

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