McCain seals nomination;
Friday, March 7th, 2008McCain seals nomination;
Huckabee drops out
By Staff
DALLAS (BP)–John McCain sealed the Republican nomination March 4 in
part by drawing evangelical votes from Mike Huckabee, while Democrat
Hillary Clinton gave her campaign a much-needed boost by winning three of
four primary states against rival Barack Obama.
McCain’s sweep of Ohio, Texas, Rhode Island and Vermont gave him the
required 1,191 delegates to clinch the nomination, forcing Huckabee out
of the race. The former Arkansas governor and Southern Baptist pastor
had promised to withdraw once McCain was the nominee.
During his victory speech, McCain called Huckabee a friend and
commended Huckabee’s supporters for their “passionate commitment.”
“Now, we begin the most important part of our campaign — to make a
respectful, determined and convincing case to the American people that our
campaign and my election as president, given the alternatives
presented by our friends in the other party, are in the best interests of the
country we love,” McCain said.
Huckabee won in Ohio and Texas among voters who profess to be
evangelical or born-again, but McCain wasn’t far behind. In Ohio, Huckabee won
among that constituency 48-45 percent, and in Texas, 49-42 percent.
Evangelicals made up 44 percent of GOP voters in Ohio and 60 percent of
such voters in Texas.
Huckabee did win a majority of votes among those who attend church more
than once a week. In Ohio he won that group 54-46 percent, and in
Texas, 60-33 percent. But that constituency is in the minority; it made up
18 percent of Ohio Republican voters and 28 percent of Texas GOP
voters. (Exit polls were not conducted among Republicans in Rhode Island and
Vermont.)
During his concession speech, Huckabee called McCain an “honorable man”
who had run an “honorable campaign.” Huckabee also said he was
committed to seeing the Republican Party united and to McCain winning the
White House.
“One of the things I’m proudest of is that the two campaigns that I
believe have been run in the most civil manner are the two in the
Republican Party that have lasted on their feet to the final,” Huckabee said
before turning his attention to his campaign. “… No one has ever gotten
this far with such limited resources. But the fact is what we’ve been
able to do was to ask of every one of our staff that they work as if
they were two or three people, and they worked as if they were four. And
I want to say thanks to them, every last one of them.”
Huckabee quoted from Scripture twice, including referencing the Apostle
Paul’s famous words to Timothy: “I fought the good fight. I’ve
finished the race. And I’ve kept the faith,” Huckabee said.
“We’d like to have finished it first, but we stayed in until the race
was over,” he said. “And that for me has been the most important goal of
all. I’d rather lose an election than lose the principles that got me
into politics in the first place. We started this effort with very
little recognition and virtually no resources. We ended with slightly more
recognition and very few resources.”
Huckabee told the story of several contributors, including one woman
who sold her wedding ring on eBay and gave the money to the campaign.
“I only pray to God that I’ve been able to give them a voice, a voice
for the unborn children of this country, a voice for life,” he said.
On the Democratic side, the winner among weekly churchgoers was the
winner in all four primaries. Clinton won among that group, 51-47 percent,
in both Ohio and Texas — two key states she carried — and 62-37
percent among weekly churchgoers in Rhode Island, which she also carried.
Obama won among that constituency, 60-40 percent, in Vermont, which he
carried. Weekly churchgoers made up 34 percent of Democratic voters in
Ohio, 42 percent in Texas, 36 percent in Rhode Island and 17 percent in
Vermont. (Unlike Republican exit polls, Democratic exit polls do not
include a question asking voters if they are professing evangelicals.)
Clinton still trails Obama in the delegate count, but her three
victories gave her the ability to stay in the race. Her husband had said she
had to win Ohio and Texas if she were to win the nomination.
Clinton had not won a primary or caucus since Super Tuesday, Feb. 5.
“You know what they say, as Ohio goes, so goes the nation,” she said
during her victory speech. “Well, this nation’s coming back, and so is
this campaign…. You know, they call Ohio a bellwether state. It’s a
battleground state. It’s a state that knows how to pick a president. And
no candidate in recent history, Democrat or Republican, has won the
White House without winning the Ohio primary.”
–30–
Compiled by Michael Foust, assistant editor of Baptist Press.
Study: 1 in 100
Americans are in prison
By Erin Roach
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–More than one in every 100 American adults are
in jail or prison, according to a recent study by the Pew Center for the
States, which also found that about half of released inmates return to
jail or prison within three years.
Mark Earley, president of Prison Fellowship Ministries, told Baptist
Press the Pew report signals a significant social and moral crisis in the
country that should be addressed in part by Christians heeding a
parable found in Matthew 25.
“Jesus said, ‘If you visit a prisoner, you visit Me,’” Earley said. “So
we have a mandate from our Lord to care for, to visit and to seek the
transformation of those who are in prison.”
John Robson, assistant professor of Christian ministry at New Orleans
Baptist Theological Seminary’s extension center at the Louisiana State
Penitentiary in Angola, said the prison problem can be attributed to an
amoral, postmodern society, and he said the solution lies in granting
inmates access to a faith-based education.
The Pew study, released Feb. 28, noted that at the start of 2008, more
than 2.3 million adults were behind bars, and in 2007 alone, the prison
population rose by more than 25,000. Also last year, states spent more
than $49 billion on corrections, compared to $11 billion 20 years ago,
the study said. Meanwhile, national recidivism rates remain unchanged
and many inmates are low-level offenders who have violated the terms of
their probation or parole.
Data from the U.S. Department of Justice indicated that one in 30 men
between the ages of 20 and 34 are in prison, and while men are roughly
13 times more likely to be incarcerated, the fastest-growing
subpopulation in America’s prisons is women, Pew found.
Bill Glass, a former NFL player and founder of the Champions for Life
prison ministry, told BP he believes the nation’s crime problem is
directly related to the breakdown of the American family.
“There’s very little childhood fatherly discipline or love or being
involved. As a result the child tends to feel disenfranchised, disjointed,
without a father to give him direction. That generally is the cause of
crime,” Glass said.
“When the father doesn’t take his rightful place in the home and make
the child feel blessed, it makes him angry,” said Glass, coauthor of
“Crime: Our Second Vietnam.”
During a recent visit to Mississippi’s death row, Glass went from cell
to cell and asked each of the 44 men there the same question: “How do
you and your dad get along?”
“Forty-four out of 44 hate their fathers,” Glass said. “That’s typical
among violent criminals.”
This tragedy, Earley said, provides an open door for the church to go
into prisons, show Christ-like love to the inmates, share the news of
salvation with them and “help those who come out of prison who have been
transformed by Christ to really be welcomed into the community and
welcomed into churches.”
Prison Fellowship, the ministry founded by Charles Colson in 1976, is
the world’s largest Christian ministry to prisoners and their families.
Earley said the reason the national recidivism rate has remained
unchanged is because there are no programs on a large scale to help people
change their lives.
“The programs that we do show a dramatic reduction in recidivism,”
Earley said. “One was studied by the University of Pennsylvania and showed
that after two years of being out of the program, only 8 percent were
returned to prison….
“The fact of the matter is, nationally what [the government is] doing
is merely warehousing people and not giving them the opportunity to
change their lives, and so they’re coming out really more antisocial than
when they went in,” he added.
Earley said at least one-third of those in prison are nonviolent
offenders, and they are being housed at an incredible cost to taxpayers. The
Pew study said the number of people behind bars doesn’t necessarily
correspond to an increase in crime but can be attributed to a trend in
policy choices that send more lawbreakers to prison through “three
strikes” measures and other sentencing laws.
“I think that’s where, from a policy standpoint, this problem [of
overcrowded prisons] can be attacked most successfully,” Earley said.
“We’ve talked for many years about being tough on crime, and that’s
important,” Earley, a former attorney general of Virginia, said. “But I
think it’s just as important to be smart on crime. Part of being tough on
crime and smart on crime means that we don’t put people in prison for
long periods of time that we’re angry at — we put people in prison for
long periods of time who are a threat to society.”
Robson, director of the Angola training program, said the results of
postmodernism’s toll on America are seen in the burgeoning prison
population.
“There are no more absolutes compared to maybe 50 years ago when the
absolutes were in place,” Robson told Baptist Press. “Postmodern thought
and philosophy permeates. There’s no anchor in our society, therefore
the drug culture can take over anytime it wishes.”
The answer, he said, is faith-based education in America’s prisons. Two
hundred inmates, he said, have graduated from the seminary’s program
at Angola with bachelor’s degrees in Christian ministry.
“You want to change the streets of this country? You put ministers of
the Gospel at the entry level into a prison system and change these men
from the inside out with faith-based education,” Robson said. “And you
will discover that cynicism will begin to melt away into nothing. The
streets of our nation will change.
“It has nothing to do with race. It has nothing to do with social
status. It has nothing to do with anything but spiritual issues inside of a
man’s heart. We know because we’ve seen this happen at Angola first and
now at nine other prisons in Louisiana,” he said.
Angola once was called the bloodiest prison in America, but Robson was
sitting in front of 95 inmates for a hermeneutics class at Angola when
he spoke with BP. Those men, he said, were learning to interpret the
Bible because the answer to their problems is found in God’s Word.
–30–
Erin Roach is a staff writer for Baptist Press.
RSS: A Missouri judge has ruled in favor of Windermere Baptist
Conference Center in its legal battle with the Missouri Baptist Convention over
who has the right to elect that organization’s trustees.
Mo. Baptists to appeal
Windermere ruling
By Staff
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (BP)–A Missouri judge has handed down a summary
judgment in favor of Windermere Baptist Conference Center in a legal
battle over who has the right to elect that organization’s trustees.
Missouri Baptist Convention officials immediately announced they would appeal
Circuit Court Judge Richard G. Callahan’s March 4 ruling, which
bypassed a planned jury trial, to the Missouri Court of Appeals in Kansas
City.
The case stems from a move by Windermere trustees in 2000 to amend the
conference center’s charter to allow them to elect their own
successors, rather than continue the historical pattern of trustees being elected
by messengers to the Missouri Baptist Convention annual meeting.
Four other Missouri Baptist Convention entities — the Baptist Home
retirement center, the Word & Way newsjournal, the Baptist Foundation and
Missouri Baptist College — also took control of their own trustee
elections at a time when a conservative movement in the state was about to
gain control of Missouri Baptist Convention entities.
The Missouri Baptist Convention’s attorney, Michael Whitehead, said MBC
leaders were disappointed that a jury did not have an opportunity to
hear testimony that former MBC Executive Director Jim Hill intentionally
withheld key information about Windermere’s charter from the
convention’s executive board.
“We are deeply disappointed that a jury did not get to hear the
evidence,” Whitehead said, “but we also are glad to be headed back to the
court of appeals, where we’ve successfully countered similar arguments
before. We’re confident in our case on appeal.”
Callahan’s 43-page decision held that a trial was unnecessary because
the motions “set forth uncontroverted facts sufficient to enter summary
judgment on enough legal issues to dispose of every claim between
plaintiffs and Windermere.”
In the first section of his opinion, Callahan held that Windermere’s
charter, giving the Missouri Baptist Convention the right to elect
trustees, did not make MBC a “statutory member” under the nonprofit code. As
a result, the Missouri convention was not entitled to protections
accorded to members, such as the right to approve charter changes.
Next, Callahan noted that the original Windermere charter could have
expressly provided “that Windermere’s articles could not be amended
without the consent of the MBC; however, MBC again failed to include any
such provision ….” The judge concluded: “In the absence of the above two
limitations which MBC chose not to include in Windermere’s articles at
the time of incorporation, the Windermere board of trustees had broad
authority to amend its articles…. For whatever reasons, MBC’s 2000
executive board and messengers did not avail themselves of those
protections in 2000. This court cannot re-write history.”
Missouri Baptist Convention lawyers had disputed the claim that the
convention “chose not to include” the convention approval clause.
Whitehead said the evidence was that former MBC Executive Director Jim Hill
admitted he intentionally left out the clause but did not point out the
omission to the executive board or the convention.
“Most MBC messengers in 2000 had no idea this clause was important, or
that it was being left out by Dr. Hill,” Whitehead said. “We wanted a
jury to hear Dr. Hill’s testimony and let them decide.
“Judge Callahan described Windermere’s breakaway as showing ‘a
seemingly ungrateful spirit,’” Whitehead observed, “but blamed the MBC
executive board, former executive director and messengers for not using
stronger language in 2000 in the Windermere charter.
“Admittedly, Hill watered down the charter language, but the MBC’s
actions were still legally sufficient to give Missouri Baptists recourse
from this flimflam,” he said.
In the fall of 2007, Callahan set the Windermere case for trial on Feb.
1, 2008. However, on Jan. 18, the judge informed attorneys he was
canceling the trial because he expected to dispose of the case on summary
judgment. The judge invited attorneys for both parties to submit
proposed judgments. Callahan’s March 4 decision essentially adopted the
Windermere draft language, rejecting the convention’s argument that the
Windermere charter was a legal contract and that the right to elect trustees
gave MBC certain rights.
While waiting for the ruling, Missouri Baptist Convention attorneys
conferred with members of the MBC’s legal task force to consider the
options available after Callahan’s order. Chairman Randy Comer, pastor of
Highview Baptist Church in Chillicothe, confirmed that the task force
agreed to appeal in case of an unfavorable judgment.
“We have assumed from the beginning that the technical legal arguments
raised by defendants in this case would be decided ultimately in the
appeals courts,” said David Tolliver, interim executive director of the
Missouri Baptist Convention. “No question, we would rather be defending
a favorable ruling on appeal than seeking reversal of an unfavorable
ruling. But there is also no question that this is the fastest, most
efficient way to get to the court of appeals for a final resolution.
“I wholeheartedly disagree with the judge’s verdict,” Tolliver added.
“Missouri Baptists purchased Windermere, funded Windermere and built
Windermere and now it has been taken from us. We are profoundly
disappointed in this decision.”
The ruling does not directly affect the other four corporations that
also broke away. MBC leaders expect further proceedings in those trials
to be stayed while the Windermere case is being appealed. A stay also
may be requested in a separate case in Camden County against Windermere
over the sale of 941 acres of undeveloped land to a developer who had a
business relationship with Jim Hill.
A timetable for the appeal is not yet known, but Whitehead said he
expected a notice of appeal to be filed soon, with a briefing schedule to
follow soon after.
–30–
Reported by The Pathway, newsjournal of the Missouri Baptist
Convention.
Iowa is missionaries’
‘field of dreams’
By Mickey Noah
EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the fourth of eight stories highlighting North
American Mission Board missionaries as part of the 2008 Week of Prayer,
March 2-9, and the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American
Missions, with a goal of $61 million to help support 5,000-plus North
American missionaries. 2008 Week of Prayer missionaries are Daniel and
Marta Caceres, Dewey and Kathie Aiken, Melanie Lawler, Jon and Mindy
Jamison, David and Shirley Proffitt, Jon and Linda Hodge, Brad Lartigue,
and Chris and Monica Woodall.
DES MOINES, Iowa (BP)–The mention of Iowa conjures up Midwestern
scenes of green cornfields, pig and dairy farming, small towns and the
fictional setting for movies like “The Music Man” and “Field of Dreams.”
The Hawkeye State certainly is all those things and more. But Des
Moines — Iowa’s capital and largest city, with 500,000 people — also is
plagued with the same neighborhood gangs, crime, violence, drugs and
poverty of other American cities. Just ask Jon and Mindy Jamison.
For nearly nine years, Jon and Mindy, both 33, have been co-directors
of the Friendship Baptist Center in inner-city Des Moines. They also are
the Baptist Convention of Iowa’s church and community ministries
directors.
The Jamisons are among 5,000-plus North American Mission Board
missionaries in the United States, Canada and their territories supported by
the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions and
Southern Baptist churches’ gifts through the Cooperative Program.
The theme for this year’s March 2-9 Week of Prayer for North American
Missions is “Live with Urgency: Seize Your Divine Moment.” The 2008
Annie Armstrong Easter Offering goal is $61 million.
The Friendship Baptist Center, a non-descript building, sits on the
corner of Meek Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway in Des Moines.
“The neighborhood surrounding the Friendship Baptist Center is a
poverty-impacted community,” Jon says. “Upwards of 30-35 percent of the
households are in poverty. Many of the people are victims of crime. There’s
a lot of violence, gang activity and drugs in the communities
surrounding the center. So we have a challenge just outside our doors.
“Many people struggle with having something to eat, having clothes to
wear, shelter, heat in the winter. For kids in the area, there’s no one
at home to take care of them. Kids must find a way to wake themselves
up in the morning. If there’s food in the house, they have to make their
own breakfast. They have to find a way to school, if they go. Many
kids are sort of their own parents. That may sound like fun, but it also
brings some struggles for the kids.”
Mindy echoes her husband.
“The kids get up and don’t take a bath because there’s no water. They
don’t have a toothbrush or shampoo. They probably forget to take their
books to school. They walk to school in the cold, and it gets very cold
in Des Moines,” she says. “They go hungry and without basic needs, much
less encouragement and nourishment.
“I think if that doesn’t break our heart, if that doesn’t concern us,
then our heart isn’t lined up with the heart of Christ. He was so
concerned for the least of these.”
Mindy, who grew up doing urban missions work in her native Fort Myers,
Fla., calls the neighborhood around the Friendship Center “great” and
“horrible” at the same time. The center serves primarily African
Americans and Hispanics and refugee families from Zaire, Sudan and Bosnia.
The Friendship Center is multi-faceted. “Kids Club” is an after-school
program in which children come in and get help with their homework,
play board games or sports. They also learn about life skills, nutrition
and even how to cook. And, of course, the Jamisons teach them about the
Bible.
“Once we get to know the kids better, we offer a Bible study and teach
them what God says about their lives and how God wants to be a part of
their lives,” Jon says. “Many times, we tell them Bible stories, and
it’s the first time they’ve ever heard Bible stories. It’s great to see
the lights come on when they realize that God loves them and can provide
for them.”
Telling the center’s kids Bible stories is different from teaching
children who’ve grown up in a Southern Baptist church, who can finish the
story just by giving them the story’s character or topic.
“Many of the neighborhood kids here are waiting on the edge of their
seats to find out how the Bible story ends,” Mindy says, “because they
haven’t heard it before.”
Mindy credits the center’s 15 Kid’s Club volunteers, who come and “pour
their lives into these kids every day.” In all, some 250 volunteers
support Jon and Mindy each year in their myriad of ministries.
“The kids get to meet volunteers from all over who may be Iowa State
students, people from local churches and others. The kids get to rub
shoulders with them and be mentored by them. Our kids get help with their
homework, hear the Gospel and get a snack. It’s so important … to get
them here, off the streets and into a positive place.”
Another key project for the center is teaching English as a Second
Language (ESL), conversational English and the ability to read.
“It’s a great way for us to connect to the community,” Jon says.
“Immigrants and refugees come to Des Moines and need to provide for their
families. They need a job. And often they can find better jobs if they
speak English. They may not have a hunger need or a clothing need, but
it’s easy for them to know that they have a need to speak English.”
The center also provides food to the hungry, clothes to the needy,
adult Bible studies, GED tutoring and summer camps.
“The Clothes Closet is an important ministry because it’s free, and
because it’s meeting such a basic need,” Mindy says. “A lot of our ladies
come to the Clothes Closet. They call it ‘The Mall.’ It’s fun for them
to come and get new clothes for themselves and for their children, as
well as free household items.”
The Clothes Closet offers the Jamisons a chance to build personal
relationships, share with the women “customers” and talk about spiritual
things.
“When they come in for clothes, we ask them about other needs in their
lives,” Mindy says. “We ask them if we can pray for them. We ask them
if they know about Christ. It’s an avenue for us to share the Gospel and
build relationships.”
“We have found that forming relationships is the way we’re going to
introduce Christ in Des Moines,” Jon says, “not only to the children but
to the adults. If we can connect with them on a level that is
non-threatening -– a level that says, ‘I’m fun and I want to have fun with you’
— then we can relax. Once we get to know them, the spiritual
conversations can take place. We can talk to them about the things that bother
and worry them, and share the love of Christ with them.”
One of the most challenging problems facing the Jamisons is ongoing
gang activity in the area — and trying to deter kids at the Friendship
Center from joining the gangs that roam inner-city Des Moines.
“Many of the kids join a gang because either they want power or
protection,” Jon says. “Some people will join a gang because they know they
can wield power. They can be a powerful person in the neighborhood. Or
they fear that without the gang they will be picked on. They feel like a
gang gives them a ready-made group of people who are willing to stand
up with them.
“A lot of times the gang becomes their family. The gang provides
immediate support, immediate family and immediate love.”
Gangs make it especially difficult for the children and youth who want
to do what’s right, who want to follow Christ, Jon notes.
“The kids still have to face the pressures of violence in the streets,”
he says. “They have to decide, ‘Am I willing to stand alone and be a
Christian and follow Christ and do what that means, or do I want to
surround myself with gang members and let them become my family?’”
Through the Friendship Baptist Center, the kids are taught that God
loves them and that God has a plan for them beyond violence and
destructiveness.
“Some people have not heard the name of Jesus. We share the Gospel and
often it’s the first time someone’s ever heard of Jesus,” Mindy says.
“This community also is, at times, devastated by violence,” Jon adds.
“Many people in the community have had violence affect them in some way.
Family members have been affected. We have many people from the
community who are in prison right now because of violence. Our goal is that
as these people come to know Christ, the crimes will stop and the
reliance on drugs will stop.”
The stakes are high in inner-city Des Moines, Jon says.
“While we know we’re attempting to reach this community for Christ,
there are gang leaders who are attempting to reach the community, too.
There are people of other faiths who are trying to reach this community,”
he says, referring to Muslims, Buddhists and Mormons who are aggressive
in spreading their religions locally.
The Jamisons say they are “blessed” they are able to serve together as
husband and wife and bring Maggie, their almost 2-year-old daughter, to
work with them every day.
“When Jon and I first met, we both knew that God had called us to do
inner-city missions work, and so we knew we would work together. We can
come to work together every day and can both be used of God,” Mindy
says.
Jon, a native of Elizabethton, Tenn., and Mindy both accepted Christ as
children, graduated from Carson-Newman College in Jefferson City,
Tenn., and from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. They fell in love
with missions through the mission trips they participated in during
their youth.
“We’re so thankful that we don’t have to stop our work and go and raise
funds somewhere,” Mindy says of the financial cooperation among
Southern Baptist. “[W]e can focus on the ministry without worrying about
where funds will come from or where our next paycheck will come from, or
how to find money to feed hungry people.
With the aid of the Cooperative Program and Annie Armstrong offering,
“we are able to offer … consistent, reliable ministry for those in
need all year-round. We also know Baptists are praying for us as they
give. It enables us to be here and the ministries to continue. It’s our
lifeline here in Iowa.”
–30–
Mickey Noah is a writer with the Southern Baptist North American
Mission Board.
Calif. high court hears
‘gay marriage’ case
By Staff
SACRAMENTO (BP)–The California Supreme Court heard oral arguments
March 4 in a case that could lead to “gay marriage” being legalized this
year and thrust the issue once more into a presidential election.
The seven justices heard arguments for a longer-than-usual three hours
and are expected to issue their ruling within 90 days.
The case began in 2004, when the city of San Francisco began issuing
marriage licenses to homosexual couples. The Supreme Court ruled then
that the licenses were being issued in violation of state law, although
the justices didn’t deal with the hot-button question of whether the
state’s ban on “gay marriage” violated the California Constitution. The
city filed suit after it lost that case, seeking to have the state law
changed.
At issue is Proposition 22, a law passed in 2000 to prohibit “gay
marriage” and protect the natural definition of marriage. Voters approved it
by a margin of 61-39 percent.
The justices peppered lawyers for both sides with tough questions.
“Over 60 percent of voters said they weren’t ready for that change,”
Justice Carol A. Corrigan told lawyers supportive of “gay marriage.” “…
Is it better for this court to decide or the people of California to
decide?”
But Chief Justice Ronald George asked attorneys for the other side how
the current law was any different than past laws prohibiting
interracial marriage. The current state law, he said, “defines marriage by whom
it excludes.”
According to the Los Angeles Times, three of the justices indicated
they would uphold the current law and one justice indicated that “gay
marriage” should be legalized. The other three justices, the Times said,
didn’t indicate a position.
A victory for homosexual activists in the case would be their biggest
yet, being it would be in the most populous state in the country.
“California’s a bellwether state. What happens here, blows east,” Larry
Bowler, a retired deputy sheriff from Sacramento, told Reuters. He
opposes “gay marriage.”
Attorneys for two pro-family groups — the Alliance Defense Fund and
Liberty Counsel — appeared before the court. ADF was representing the
Proposition 22 Legal Defense and Education Fund, Liberty Counsel
representing the Campaign for California Families.
“Marriage is more than a private relationship between two people who
love each other,” Mat Staver of Liberty Counsel said in a statement.
“While it is a private relationship, marriage serves a public purpose to
preserve society’s interest in procreation and to provide the optimal
environment for children. The state has an interest in protecting an
institution that predates government in order to encourage responsible
procreation among opposite-sex couples.
“Among opposite-sex couples, procreation is sometimes planned and
sometimes unplanned,” he said. “Children are thus the natural consequence of
opposite-sex relationships. Providing for the next generation is
essential to any society, but providing an environment that encourages
stable relationships for the well-being of children is critically important.
Marriage thus provides encouragement for opposite-sex couples to unite
for the sake of children. Same-sex couples do not need marriage to
encourage their unions, because such relationships never produce unplanned
children.”
Glen Lavy of the Alliance Defense Fund said, “The government should
promote and encourage strong families. In this case, marriage laws that
will do that are under attack by political special interests wishing to
further their agenda.
“The law California voters passed defines marriage as the union of one
man and one woman,” Lavy added. “Californians know this is the
foundation for strong families. But certain special interest groups are trying
to bypass the democratic process by asking the court to redefine
marriage.”
California already has a domestic partnerships law granting same-sex
couples the legal benefits of marriage.
Meanwhile, on the East Coast, the Connecticut Supreme Court is expected
to issue its own “gay marriage” decision any day, meaning that two
such decisions could be handed down this year, months before the general
election.
–30–
Compiled by Michael Foust, an assistant editor of Baptist Press
Cornmeal outreach
aids flooded Zambians
By Staff
LUSAKA, Zambia (BP)–About 100 families in an isolated area on Zambia’s
Lunsemfwa River will be receiving food assistance after heavy rains
and flooding wiped out their crops and some homes.
In early March, Kevin Rodgers, a Baptist Global Response field partner,
will be trucking 55-pound bags of cornmeal to a river landing, where
the bags will be loaded onto a rubber boat and taken 30 minutes up the
river.
“The boat can only hold about 500 pounds of cargo, so it will take 15
to 20 trips over two days to move the entire shipment,” said Mark
Hatfield, who leads Baptist Global Response work in sub-Saharan Africa. “The
Lunsemfwa River has lots of hippo and crocodile, so there’s plenty of
adventure in this small project.”
The only other access to the area requires several days of walking,
Hatfield said.
In mid-January, Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa declared a national
disaster in the country’s flooded districts.
“All our maize stocks have since been washed away,” Chief Sianjalika, a
traditional leader in one of the flooded areas, told a reporter. “We
have remained with completely nothing. My people are starving, even
their goats and chickens have all disappeared.”
Families in the area will be able to replant maize along the river once
the waters recede and should be able to see a harvest in a few months,
Rodgers said. A hunger crisis is emerging, however, because fields
that were supposed to be maturing right now are gone. The bags of cornmeal
should be enough to tide them over until residents can bring in a new
harvest.
In addition to providing destitute people with needed food relief, this
effort also will help improve future working relationships in a remote
area where outsiders, especially Westerners, are not trusted, Rodgers
added.
“This will be an opportunity to show love and support for their human
needs in a crisis situation, without developing dependency,” Rodgers
said. “It gives us an opportunity to minister to a large group of people
at one time and also the credibility to be allowed to start new projects
in the future.”
The project is being financed with $3,200 from the Southern Baptist
World Hunger Fund, one of the ways Southern Baptists who care reach out to
people in need, Hatfield said.
-–30–-
Compiled by Baptist Press assistant editor Mark Kelly. Baptist Global
Response is on the Web at www.gobgr.org.
College association
names new exec
By Mark Brown & Tim Fields
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–Board members of the International Association
of Baptist Colleges and Universities have elected Michael Arrington,
provost of Carson-Newman College, as executive director of the
association.
IABCU, with offices in Nashville, Tenn., is owned and operated by its
51-member Baptist-related higher education institutions.
Arrington, 62, succeeds Thomas Corts, who was named in September by
President Bush to coordinate all education initiatives for USAID (United
States Agency for International Development).
Arrington, who assumed the IABCU post March 1, will retire at the close
of the academic year at Carson-Newman, located in Jefferson City,
Tenn.
“The IABCU board of directors is delighted to have found someone as
capable and as passionate about Christian higher education as Mike
Arrington,” said Evans Whitaker, president of Anderson (S.C.) University and
chairman of the IABCU board. “Dr. Arrington brings to his new role a
wealth of teaching and administrative experience in Baptist institutions
that will serve our association well as we cooperate together to share
best practices and advance the distinctives of our institutions,”
Whitaker added.
A Nashville, Ark., native who earned the B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. from the
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arrington joined Carson-Newman as
provost and vice president for academic affairs in 2001. Previously,
he invested all but one year of his professional career at Ouachita
Baptist University in Arkadelphia, Ark., another IABCU member school. He
began his work in education as a sixth-grade social studies teacher in
Missouri.
Hired by Ouachita as a history professor in 1973, Arrington began what
he thought would be a classroom career there. Just one year into his
tenure, he was promoted to the academic affairs office as assistant to
the dean and director of the academic skills development office. For the
next 27 years, he served in several academic capacities, including
associate vice president, prior to being named the university’s chief
academic officer in 1986. In the course of his service he led Ouachita’s
strategic planning committee, chaired the North Central Accreditation
Steering Committee, served as dean of arts and sciences and oversaw a host
of committees, councils and task forces.
“In my life I have had one intentional career plan and that was to
teach,” Arrington said. “Everything after that has strictly been the
providence of God. And, while I still think that teaching at an academically
driven Christian institution is among the highest of callings, I am
grateful that the Lord found it purposeful that I could invest my
professional life in supporting the classroom experience. That is why I am
humbled and invigorated by the opportunity to serve institutions that seek
to sharpen students’ minds while shaping their hearts.”
Arrington said he joined Ouachita’s faculty with a certain skepticism,
thinking that Christian higher learning might not measure up to
public-funded education. His cynicism was quickly overridden by the commitment
to excellence he saw in his colleagues for teaching and for student
development.
“I learned that our work was to educate students while helping them see
why we chose to be Baptists and why we intentionally integrate faith
and learning,” he noted. “That’s something that I see as central to the
association’s work. I intend to use this opportunity to promote Baptist
higher education in general while finding new ways to keep our schools
connected to each other.”
Joe Bill Sloan, president of Carson-Newman and associate provost under
Arrington until he was named interim president last year, said his
colleague is “an ideal fit for the IABCU.”
“Mike’s support, advice and wise counsel have been invaluable as we
have moved through a period of transition,” Sloan said. “And, though the
IABCU appointment is a great recognition of his abilities and skills as
a Baptist educator, I think our member institutions will quickly find
him to be a visionary leader and proactive servant.”
Arrington will continue to make his home in east Tennessee with his
wife Pam, a Carson-Newman associate professor of education. They have a
married daughter and one grandchild.
–30–
Mark Brown is director of news and media relations for Carson-Newman
College and Tim Fields is director of communications for the
International Association of Baptist Colleges and Universities.
EDITORIAL: Obama lacks trust
in the whole Word of God
By Will Hall
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–”… I would just refer them to the Sermon on
the Mount, which I think is, in my mind, for my faith, more central than
an obscure passage in Romans….”
It’s only a partial statement given by Barack Obama as a pithy defense
of his support of civil unions for homosexual couples.
However, even if it’s only a short take from a Q&A during a campaign
event in Nelsonville, Ohio, this statement gives a fairly full view — at
least biblically — of how he could come to such wrong conclusions
about marriage (he supports civil unions, granting legal recognition of
homosexual couples without the name “marriage”) as well as abortion (he
opposed legislation protecting the lives of newborns delivered after an
unsuccessful abortion) and other spiritual issues.
Never mind the Sermon on the Mount does not contradict biblical
teaching about marriage. In fact, in this passage of Scripture, Jesus actually
strengthens His instructions regarding marriage as a union between a
man and a woman.
You see, the real problem with Obama’s statement is he shows he does
not believe every word of the Bible is true.
I’ve tried to look at it from a number of perspectives and it’s the
only conclusion to draw. If he truly reverences all Scripture as
God-breathed, how could he dismiss a single word as obscure?
It’s a common trap that snares many — to view the “red letters” with
more value than what’s printed in black.
For others, it’s an actual tactic used to try to justify emotions and
beliefs that run counter to clearly espoused instruction from God. It’s
how homosexuals and those who support a homosexual agenda make the
contorted claim that Jesus never condemned homosexuality.
The reality is Jesus spoke every word in the Bible from “In the
beginning” in Genesis 1:1 to “Amen” in Revelation 22:21 — and not a single
word is obscure.
His words include Romans 1:24-32 and 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 — each
condemns homosexuality, and the latter declares that change from
homosexuality is possible. His words also include John 3:16, 2 Peter 3:9 and 1
John 2:1-6 — which offer hope to anyone, regardless of the sin, who
repents and submits to the will of God.
Unfortunately, Obama’s troubling answer in Ohio is not an isolated
offense. He made a similar refrain in 2006 before a Washington, D.C.
gathering of liberals and moderates for the “Call to Renewal” conference
organized by Jim Wallis’ Sojourner organization: “Which passages of
Scripture should guide our public policy? Should we go with Leviticus, which
suggests slavery is OK and that eating shellfish is abomination? How
about Deuteronomy, which suggests stoning your child if he strays from the
faith? Or should we just stick to the Sermon on the Mount — a passage
that is so radical that it’s doubtful that our own Defense Department
would survive its application?”
It’s hard not to see a troubling pattern.
Like his statement in Ohio, his rhetorical questions about Leviticus
and Deuteronomy simply are strawman claims which misappropriate passages
of the Bible to create doubts about the sufficiency of Scripture.
Without doubt, the Old Testament is relevant today and teaches us moral
truths and principles God used to shape Israel to be His nation.
However, it is disingenuous at best for Obama to hint the dietary laws
God delivered specifically to Israel somehow are in play today; nor is
it right to imply there is serious discussion on any scale that such
laws apply to the New Testament church (see Acts 10:9-16 to put any such
concern to rest).
The same is true about his suggestions regarding the stoning of a child
and slavery. For the record:
– 1 Timothy 1:8-11 condemns slave traders, and the book of Philemon is
Paul’s passionate appeal to secure the freedom of the runaway slave,
Onesimus.
– The story of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32) gives insights about
the New Testament teaching about how to deal with children who stray
from the faith.
I imagine some upon just reading the headline for this column will cry
“politics” and follow with a wrongheaded “connecting of dots” to try to
make a case about political bias by me, Baptist Press and the Southern
Baptist Convention. Others will read my setting the record straight as
the “Bible thumping” of a “fundamentalist.” Neither of these
conclusions would be true.
For me, the issue simply is about setting the record straight.
For too long, and in too many venues, such concocted exegesis has
ruined the public’s understanding not about public policy and social issues
but about the authenticity of the Word of God. Political and religious
wonks throw out strawman sound bites like Obama’s knowing they can’t be
attacked without a thoughtful reply, something not fostered in debate
forums or the sound bite framework of most network and cable news.
In the end, it’s not about politics or economics or social policy, but
it is about the authority of the Word of God.
During his message at “Call to Renewal,” Obama counseled the crowd, “So
before we get carried away, let’s read our Bibles. Folks haven’t been
reading their Bibles.”
I accept his challenge, and offer one in return: Let’s read our Bibles
… and trust every word.
–30–
Will Hall is executive editor of Baptist Press.
FIRST-PERSON:
Actors find God’s grace
By Phil Boatwright
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (BP)–”I don’t read, I watch.” This is the credo of
many a film critic. Truth be told, movie reporters read a great deal.
And occasionally we discover a book that no film could match.
“Grace Is Enough” (B&H Books) by Willie and Maylo Aames is such a
discovery. I knew the actor Willie Aames from shows such as “Eight Is
Enough” and “Charles In Charge.” I knew he and his wife had moved to Kansas
City, where I now call home. And I knew they were Christians and
responsible for the “Bibleman” and “Missy Files” videos. I had no idea,
however, of the horrible existence they had made for themselves in their
early years through drug use, or the indescribable pain that had been
inflicted on them by family and others who had stolen their childhood.
The first three quarters of their book may be the most difficult
biography I have ever read. It grieves, it angers, it frustrates. Indeed,
several times I just wanted to put it down rather than read of the horrors
people can inflict on one another. But don’t let that description keep
you from examining their book. For I believe the remaining chapters
will enrich your spiritual walk.
In their time of deepest despair, while Willie was in the midst of
“Charles In Charge,” Christ was revealing Himself. Patiently, lovingly,
Christ started touching their hearts, letting the embattled couple know
who really was in charge.
Throughout their lives, both Willie and Maylo witnessed others who had
a deep-seated faith. At first the couple mocked these people, but
slowly they realized that there was something missing in their own lives.
And after hearing a message of hope on radio, they decided to give church
a try. Eventually, through the power of God and the guidance of a
pastor, they accepted Christ.
In “Grace is Enough,” Willie and Maylo speak of the child abuse, both
physical and sexual, that maimed their childhood. They realized they
needed to come to terms with those who had inflicted such wrongs on them.
They knew they had to do what Mark 11:25 instructs — forgive, that you
might be forgiven. Willie and Maylo’s words of encouragement reminded
this reader that sometimes forgiveness takes time, and that by seeking
and trusting Jesus, forgiveness can be achieved.
I was privileged to speak with Willie and Maylo recently. Following are
excerpts from our conversation:
BOATWRIGHT: In the book you mention how Scott Baio (the star of
“Charles in Charge”) prevented you from getting a substantial raise while
doing his show. How are you able to forgive those who have wronged you,
either financially or physically?
WILLIE: Well, I was very upset with the situation with Scott, because
Maylo and I were trying to buy a home. I couldn’t see where he had any
say over how much I got paid, and yeah, that really affected our
relationship. But after a while, you just have to drop it. It is what it is.
And I look at my life and I look at the things God has given me. He’s
always been faithful to give me what I need, when I need it. And most of
the time if I had had it earlier, the money would have been harmful to
me. So I look at that stuff and look at my own life and have to say
that I would not want to hold any of that in. It wouldn’t be any good for
me and it certainly isn’t any good for the relationship.
MAYLO: To forgive, let’s say, my mother, for the ultimate betrayal in
my life, it was a long process. I told God I’m blinded by my rage. In my
flesh I didn’t want to forgive her. But after a period of time I began
to realize that God did not create her for that kind of evil and that
His heart was broken over her. God calls me to forgive her. And the way
I do that is by putting Him in front of her and saying, “I’m going to
have to look at you through Christ.” I’ve gotten to the point where I
feel bad for her. “What went wrong with you? What happened to you that
you would do these things to others?” That was the beginning of
forgiveness.
BOATWRIGHT: You speak of mind-crippling depression in the book. Has
having to dredge up the past caused the depression to return?
WILLIE: The hardest part for me was letting my parents know what
happened to me as a kid. [Willie was sexually abused as a youngster by an
older acquaintance]. I hadn’t told anybody about that, not even Maylo,
until it was written in the book. For me, it hasn’t led to depression
because I’ve dealt with it so much over the years. But I had to write about
it. It was necessary for us to be brutally honest so we could relate
to those in need.
MAYLO: I have spoken so many times to women’s groups over the years
about these matters [Maylo suffered from both physical and sexual abuse],
so I was fine writing about it. I just wanted, like Willie said, to be
honest. I wanted to be honest for other women, so that they knew there
was hope for them.
BOATWRIGHT: Are you hearing stories of how the book is affecting
people?
MAYLO: Yeah, we do. We get e-mails all the time. Somebody in Mexico
just read the book and it had been a help to her.
Willie: It’s nice to know that the message has really gotten out — the
fact that there is always hope. I feel blessed.
BOATWRIGHT: How is your daughter dealing with the frankness of the
book?
MAYLO: She’s awesome. She’s a very upfront, honest person, with a great
sense of humor, and I’ll tell you that even in the small Christian
school that she goes to, these kids have already been through more than
most in the older generation. She is so aware that this house belongs to
Christ. She’s seen my mother and what seeking after the things of the
flesh can lead to.
WILLIE: The other thing is that her friends look at us as real. They’ll
talk to us when they won’t talk to anyone else.
MAYLO: I’ve had some of her friends’ parents say, “There are some
things that my daughter won’t tell me and I want you to know that you can
keep her confidence. You don’t have to tell me.” That speaks well of the
parents.
BOATWRIGHT: Does the addiction ever let go or do you still struggle
with the temptation of drug use?
MAYLO: You know, I never think about that. Now, I’m more addicted to
naps.
WILLIE: I just have one of those addictive personalities. I can get
addicted to anything. Right now, it’s oranges. I’ll eat seven oranges at a
time. It’s just my personality. I don’t think it ever goes away. I
think it’s a part of your makeup. And because of that, you have to be
vigilant. You have to be watching all the time, because when you’re not,
that’s when you’re gonna get nailed.
***************
Please lift Willie and Maylo up in prayer. With this book they are
ministering to a world in pain
NEW ON DVD: “Saving Sarah Cain,” based on the Beverly Lewis book “The
Redemption of Sarah Cain,” is out on DVD (FoxFaith). Rated PG (no
language), the movie tells the story of successful, self-absorbed Sarah Cain,
who travels to Amish country to attend her sister’s funeral but soon
discovers she is now the legal guardian to her five Amish nieces and
nephews. Faced not only with instant motherhood, but also with the culture
shock of a lifetime, she must decide whether to raise the children in
the city or return them to their Amish roots. I was moved by the kids’
performances, engrossed in the story and awed by the locales,
beautifully captured by director of photography Matthew Williams. It’s a film
I’ll watch again.
–30–
Phil Boatwright reviews films from a Christian perspective for
previewonline.org.
FIRST-PERSON: Careless
language versus anti-Semitism
By Richard Land
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)–It has come to my attention in the last 48 hours
that some people were offended by my reference to Senator Chuck
Schumer (D-NY) as a “schmuck” during the Criswell Lecture Series at Criswell
College, Jan. 29-31. In reviewing these criticisms I have learned some
consider the word crude, if not obscene. I apologize for my ignorance
of that fact. If I had known that, I would never have used the word. I
always attempt to avoid crude and offensive language as a matter of
conviction.
As Jeffrey Weiss of The Dallas Morning News has pointed out, the idiom
means “jerk,” which was my intended usage. I truly apologize to anyone
offended by my use of a word they perceived to be crude or obscene. I
used the word “schmuck” in my reference to Senator Schumer solely in an
attempt to employ a word that alliterated with Schumer’s name and
describe my perception of his behavior during the confirmation hearings for
Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito — nothing more!
However, I am deeply offended that anyone would interpret my remarks as
anti-Semitic. My entire Christian life I have been taught, and
believe, that the Jews are God’s chosen people. I have said on dozens of
occasions in public that anti-Semitism is the most irrational of prejudices
for a Christian, since Jesus our Savior was Himself a Jew. My entire
public ministry I have denounced anti-Semitism, and I have sought to
combat it wherever and whenever I have encountered it. Anyone who knows me
knows this to be true. Once again, as Jeffrey Weis commented,
“Elevating a relatively harmless insult into an accusation of anti-Semitism
devalues real attacks on Jews and Judaism.”
Anti-Semitism is far too dangerous and virulent in our world to
tolerate the luxury of such a trivialization going unchallenged.
–30–
Richard Land is president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious
Liberty Commission.
***********
