April, 2007

Says FRC. Center for Moral Clarity: “would penalize people for expressing their faith-based beliefs about homosexuality.” (… through violent acts?) More from Christian Coalition, AFA, Harry Jackson.

An “abominable affirmation” of Roe and Casey decisions.

Although the stated intent to ban abortion is one of the Religious Right’s litmus tests for presidential candidates, the leading Republicans have each been accused of apostasy: Mitt Romney touted his pro-choice convictions as recently as his 2002 campaign, Giuliani’s position continues to come under fire from the Right, and while McCain recently switched his position on Roe v. Wade, he’s still in hot water from anti-abortion groups over campaign finance reform. Even Sam Brownback has had to face reports that he was a Johnny-come-lately to the anti-abortion cause.

Former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore has been struggling to establish himself as a viable candidate, and his strategy has been to repeatedly claim that he is the only “committed conservative” in the race. So it won’t help that some blogs and LifeNews.com are referring to him as a “pro-abortion” candidate. LifeNews.com’s coverage of Gilmore’s official announcement emphasized that “he backs legalized abortion up to eight weeks into pregnancy”:

Former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore officially tossed his hat in the ring on Friday, saying he is a full-fledged candidate for the GOP nomination for president in 2008. Gilmore, who trails most of the candidates in the polls, says he's entering the race because it needs an authentic conservative, but he takes a pro-abortion position.

Some PBS stations are reportedly set to air a three-part BBC series entitled “A Brief History of Disbelief” which seeks to “uncover[] the hidden story of atheism.” 

Not surprisingly, the Right doesn’t like it at all:

Janice Crouse, director of the Beverly LaHaye Institute for the conservative group Concerned Women for America, told Cybercast News Service that "airing the program gives credibility and cohesiveness to individuals who seek to undermine the beliefs and values on which democracy and the American dream are founded."

"One has to wonder why it is so important to them for everyone to understand their 'disbelief,'" she said. "The program is not a dispassionate, positive voice - as they claim. Instead, it is clearly demagogic and propagandistic."

Perhaps Crouse is not the best judge of what is or is not “dispassionate” considering that Beverly LaHaye, the namesake of the institute which Crouse heads, believes that “Christian values should dominate our government. The test of those values is the Bible. Politicians who do not use the Bible to guide their public and private lives do not belong in office.” And when it comes to demagogic, it’s hard to top this:  “In recent times, Western Civilization has willingly chosen to exchange the faith and logic of a Biblical worldview for an irrational secularism based on an unthinking and cruel relativism. This foolish exchange is at the root of the glaring injustices of modern American public policy.”

But CWA is not alone in opposing this program:

By airing "Disbelief," [Peter] Sprigg [of the Family Research Council] added, PBS is "revealing their bias against Christianity, against traditional faith."

…

"If they really want to be objective, they need to have a three-part series documenting the evidence in favor of Christianity," he added.

Indeed.  PBS hardly ever runs anything about Christianity.  

It appears as if D. James Kennedy’s Center for Reclaiming America is undergoing a bit of “streamlining”:

The Center for Reclaiming America has closed, halting its conservative activism and throwing the future of its signature annual conference in doubt.

An undisclosed number of employees were laid off on Thursday at the center's headquarters in Fort Lauderdale and its congressional chaplaincy office in Washington, D.C., in what its parent organization, Coral Ridge Ministries, called a "streamlining."

The closures put a stop to day-to-day actions such as e-mail and petition drives against abortion, pornography and same-sex marriage.

"We're getting back to our core competency, the production of media," said Brian Fisher, executive vice president at Coral Ridge Ministries, founded by the Rev. D. James Kennedy. "Our heart and soul is the teaching of Dr. Kennedy, and getting it to more people than those who come to church."

Fisher wouldn't divulge how many workers were laid off but said Coral Ridge Ministries still has more than 120 employees. The organization produces TV and radio programs and publishes books by Kennedy, pastor at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church. It reported a budget of more than $37 million in 2005, according to spokesman John Aman.

Hopefully, Coral Ridge’s decision to focus on “production of media” means we can expect more videos from them like the one explaining how Charles Darwin was directly responsible for the Nazi Holocaust.  

Two months ago, Sen. John McCain’s campaign released this announcement:

U.S. Senator John McCain's presidential exploratory committee today announced that Marlene D. Elwell will serve as the Deputy Director of Coalitions, as well as the National Director of the Americans of Faith coalition for the Arizona Senator's exploratory committee.

…

Elwell was also friend and advisor to the Christian Coalition from its inception through the 1990's, lending her years of expertise to the building of the grassroots movement. She has continued working to build coalitions within the faith community. In 2004, she led the effort in Michigan to pass the state's amendment to define marriage as the union between one man and one woman.

"Senator McCain has a proven track record of supporting conservative causes, and is the principled voice our party and nation needs," said Elwell. "It will be my privilege to serve the Senator and communicate his message of common sense conservatism nationwide."

McCain stated that he was grateful to have the support of Elwell and looked forward to working with her. "Marlene is a highly respected conservative leader and is an important addition to my team. Her advice, counsel, and networking abilities will be instrumental in communicating my strong record of social and fiscal conservatism."

On Friday, The Washington Post reported:

In the midst of the Sen. John McCain's presidential announcement tour comes news that Marlene Elwell -- one of the Arizona Senator's leading social conservative advocates -- has parted ways with the campaign.

Elwell, who was one of McCain's chief liaisons to the faith community, confirmed her departure in a brief telephone interview this evening. She did not offer any further explanation on the decision.

Elwell, who is based in Michigan, rose to prominence in social conservatives as a leading member of Pat Robertson's campaign. She was also a prime mover in the Michigan effort to define marriage between a man and a woman that passed in 2004.

This news came just two days after the Post reported that McCain’s various past efforts to appeal to the Right were, at best, half-hearted:

[McCain's advisers] argue that it was never McCain's hope to become the darling of social and religious conservatives -- only to get enough votes among those Republicans to win the nomination. "McCain's goal wasn't to become their candidate," a campaign official said.

Elwell’s role on the McCain campaign was to “convince fellow Christian right activists that the senator is not the social moderate they think he is.”

Now she is gone.  So has McCain finally decided to stop trying to ingratiate himself with the Right, or has Elwell finally realized that McCain’s previous efforts to do so were pure political pandering?  

By pushing Alito, Roberts. “[T]here may be as many as three vacancies” next term. Christian Defense Coalition: “impossible” for Dems decrying ruling to be seen as “people of faith.”

Matt Barber.

Mark your calendars, because on May 5, former child star Kirk Cameron and “best-selling author Ray Comfort” are going to “prove God's existence, absolutely, scientifically, without mentioning the Bible or faith.” Cameron has, like others on the Right, blamed school shootings on the teaching of evolution:

ABC … will host a debate in New York City on May 5, 2007. Moderated by Martin Bashir, the debate will be streamed LIVE on their website and will also be filmed for "Nightline."

Cameron ("Growing Pains" sitcom and Left Behind movies) will speak on what he believes is a major catalyst for atheism: Darwinian evolution. The popular actor stated, "Evolution is unscientific. In reality, it is a blind faith that's preached with religious zeal as the gospel truth. I'm embarrassed to admit that I was once a naïve believer in the theory. The issue of intelligent design is extremely relevant at the moment. Atheism has become very popular in universities--where it's taught that we evolved from animals and that there are no moral absolutes. So we shouldn't be surprised when there are school shootings.”….

"Most people equate atheism with intellectualism," Comfort added, "but it's actually an intellectual embarrassment. I am amazed at how many people think that God's existence is a matter of faith. It's not, and I will prove it at the debate - once and for all. This is not a joke. I will present undeniable scientific proof that God exists.

If Cameron and Comfort think that evolution – the basis of much modern science – is unscientific, what kinds of “scientific” arguments are we likely to hear from them?  Maybe something like this, which just happens to be the second most viewed clip on GodTube:

Says Christians “marginalized by the culture.” (Maybe he missed Lutheran pastor, governor quoting Jesus, Bush, etc.?)

Scarborough. ADF lawyer: “criminalize[s] thought or emotion or even speech.”

To come from way, way behind. Meanwhile: He reverses support for immigration bill.

And his alliance with virulently anti-gay activists.

“The vision is to see America restored to her original purpose - the propagation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ worldwide!” More.

“Marriage Protection Caucus (TM)” formed to ratify federal anti-gay marriage amendment.

"If Christians don't vote conscience and conviction … then they really disenfranchise themselves.” But it’s not working in Iowa.

According to American Spectator.

Claims hate-crimes protections “about special treatment.” TVC: Bill provides “framework to investigate, prosecute and persecute pastors.”

“"What are they trying to prove? There's no level of discrimination,” says Sheldon of effort to protect gays in the workplace:

Reports from Houston Chronicle, Washington Post, Mother Jones, and New Yorker.