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ACTIVISM
Backlash greets efforts to scrap Christmas traditions
Across the nation during the holidays, efforts to strip away some
of the traditions associated with Christmas met with determined
resistance. The issue promises to be a hot spot in the culture war
this year.
In one of the most dramatic demonstrations of citizen indignation,
voters in Mustang, Oklahoma, voted against bond measures that had
asked citizens to pony up almost $11 million for new education projects.
The reason for the vote results? The superintendent had decided
that a nativity scene did not belong in the elementary school’s
Christmas program.
According to the Associated Press (AP), closing Christmas plays
with the nativity and the singing of "Silent Night" has
long been a tradition in Mustang.
But Superintendent Karl Springer, concerned that the nativity might
be in violation of the so-called constitutional separation of church
and state, was advised by the school district’s attorney to
drop the scene. However, symbols of Hanukkah and Kwanzaa were included
in the play, as were a Christmas tree and a Santa Claus, AP said.
Springer took the attorney’s advice, and paid the price at
the ballot box. The bond issues were defeated, marking the first
time in more than 10 years that the school district was denied the
money it had asked the voters to provide.
Tim Pope, a former seven-term member of the Oklahoma state legislature,
led the effort to defeat the bond measures. "You have to send
a signal and tell them you’re not going to stand for it,"
he said. "You’ve got to tell them you’re not going
to sit by and let them take away your rights."
The next step may be a lawsuit against the school district to ensure
that Christianity is treated fairly, said Shelly Marino, one of
the parents who complained about Springer’s actions. "We
are all educated people, we could work this out and not have it
split the community," she said. "We don’t want a
lawsuit, but we’re not going to go away. The fight has been
started and we’re going to see it through to the end."
Similar fights sprang up in other communities across the country.
In Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, citizens demanded that "Merry
Christmas" simply be added to the "Season’s Greetings"
sign that adorned the main government building, according to AP.
Attempts to extirpate Christmas also produced brouhahas in Kansas,
Massachusetts, Colorado and elsewhere. In Plano, Texas, parents
had to go to federal district court in order to preserve the right
of school children to hand out items with religious messages at
"winter break parties."
In the private sector, some Christians alleged that more and more
businesses were replacing signs and personal greetings of "Merry
Christmas" with "Happy Holidays" or "Season’s
Greetings."
In California, for example, the Committee to Save Merry Christmas
was organized to sponsor a boycott of Federated Department Stores,
which owns such names as Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s. The
group’s Web site (www.savemerrychristmas.org) claimed
that Federated "deliberately and intentionately removed from
their decorations and advertising" the traditional greeting
in favor of the more politically
No bell ringers at Target
Retailer Target finds itself the object of a boycott over its
decision during the holidays to give The Salvation Army the boot
from in front of its stores, a move that cost the nonprofit Christian
organization roughly $9 million in donations.
That’s the amount The Salvation Army had been collecting
at the entrance to Target stores each year.
Target explained the decision as simply upholding its long-standing
policy of prohibiting all nonprofit solicitors from activities
on store property. "We receive an increasing number of solicitation
inquiries from nonprofit organizations and groups each year and
determined that if we continue to allow The Salvation Army to
solicit, then it opens the door to any other groups that wish
to solicit our guests," said the company on its Web site.
The National Clergy Council (NCC) called for a boycott of all
Target stores until the company rescinds its policy. The NCC represents
5,000 Catholic, Orthodox, mainline Protestant and evangelical
clergy members and 30,000 lay delegates across the U.S.
Contact: Chairman and CEO Robert J. Ulrich, 1000 Nicollet
Mall, Minneapolis, MN 55403, phone: 612-304-6073.
Wildmon impacts advertisers, magazine
says
Advertising Age, one of the leading trade magazines for the marketing
industry, has listed AFA chairman Don Wildmon as one of the top
10 people who made a mark on marketing in 2004.
In the December issue, Wildmon was listed alongside other high-profile
figures such as Karl Rove, President Bush’s chief campaign
strategist; Mel Gibson, well-known actor and director of The
Passion of the Christ; Lance Armstrong, five-time winner of
the Tour de France; and Mark Burnett, Emmy Award-winning executive
producer of NBC’s smash hit reality show, The Apprentice.
The magazine highlighted Wildmon’s recent successes in convincing
advertisers to pull from ABC’s controversial new program Desperate
Housewives. The drama follows the explicit sexual escapades
of married suburban women. Tyson, Lowe’s, Leapfrog and other
companies all pulled ads from the show due to complaints generated
by AFA’s OneMillionMoms and OneMillionDads e-mail networks.
Wildmon’s organization also succeeded in encouraging advertisers
to pull from ABC’s lewd show about teenagers, Life As We
Know It, and TBS’s He’s a Lady, in which men
competed for a prize by cross-dressing.
This year AFA efforts led the Federal Communications Commission
to issue its largest broadcast indecency fine in history, levied
against the CBS network for singer Janet Jackson’s nudity during
the 2004 Super Bowl half-time show.
"Like him or hate him, this family-values crusader is having
a big impact on marketing," Advertising Age said.
Advertising Age serves as a widely recognized source for
the latest information to over 198,000 advertising, marketing and
media professionals.
New media director joins AFA
AFA welcomes Kathryn Hooks as director of media and public relations.
She is a native of Starkville, Mississippi, and a graduate of Mississippi
State University (MSU) where she received her B.A. in communication/public
relations. Her college honors include Miss MSU 2002-2003, MSU Outstanding
Greek Woman of the Year, MSU Hall of Fame and MSU Society of Scholars.
After graduation, Hooks interned with Concerned Women for America
in Washington, D.C., and with Focus on the Family in Colorado Springs,
Colorado, in the office of Dr. James Dobson.
Hooks has been published in The Washington Times, National Review
Online, Touchstone Weblog and numerous other Web sites.
For media inquiries, Hooks can be contacted at 662-844-5036 ext.
227 or at khooks@afa.net.
CULTURE
STDs drive contagious infections in U.S.
The sexual revolution was supposed to provide Americans plenty of
free sex at no personal cost, but evidence continues to pour in
that, while there may be plenty of sex, it’s not without cost.
In fact, the personal cost is staggering. According to USA Today,
recent data released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) reveals that sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)
account for four of the five most commonly reported infectious diseases.
In 2002, chlamydia (834,555 cases), gonorrhea (351,852), AIDS (42,745)
and non-congenital syphilis (32,459) held four of the top spots,
with salmonellosis (44,264), a bacterial infection which is often
transmitted from food, sandwiched in the middle.
The CDC noted that the report on STDs was limited in scope, because
the data was obtained only from the federally-funded control programs
for chlamydia, gonorrhea, AIDS and syphilis. "These data represent
only a small proportion of the overall toll of STDs," the report
said.
Many STDs, including common viral infections such as human papillomavirus
(HPV) and herpes, were not included in the data. Other CDC documents
show that the prevalence of HPV (20 million current cases) and herpes
(45 million) dwarf the four STDs in its report.
According to the CDC Web site, "Sexually transmitted diseases
continue to be a major health threat in the United States. CDC estimates
that 19 million STD infections occur annually, almost half of them
among youth ages 15 to 24. In addition to potentially severe health
consequences, STDs pose a tremendous economic burden, with direct
medical costs as high as $15.5 billion in a single year."
www.cdc.gov/std/stats, 1/3/05; USA Today, 12/9/04
Branson hosts WVW ‘Family Reunion’
The Branson Worldview Weekend Reunion will include some of America’s
best worldview and Bible teachers, quality praise and worship music,
gospel classics and some of the funniest comedians, sketches and
variety acts you have ever seen. It will be held April 29, 30 and
May 1, 2005.
Last year nearly 2,000 attended this conference and this year AFA,
which helps sponsor Worldview Weekend conferences around the country,
anticipates an even larger gathering. Keynote speakers will include:
• Erwin Lutzer, senior pastor of the historic Moody
Church in Chicago, Illinois, who will speak on "Countering
the modern day lies about Jesus Christ and God."
• Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron, who together
host the national television program The Way of the Master, will
speak on the need for the American church to preach a biblically-based
salvation message. Cameron will speak on the topic "Soundly-
Saved," and Comfort will speak on "How the cross should
shape our worldview."
• Michael Youssef, an Atlanta pastor and host of
the radio program Leading the Way, will speak on " Understanding
the hard sayings of Jesus."
• Bob Lepine, co-host of the radio program Family Life
Today with Dennis Rainey, will speak on "How to keep the secular
humanist worldview from harming your family."
Also speaking will be Steve Saint, who was just five years
old when his father, Nate Saint, and four other missionaries –
Jim Elliot, Pete Fleming, Ed McCully and Roger Youdarian –
were killed in 1956 by the Aucas, a primitive tribe of Amazon warriors.
In addition, AFA president Tim Wildmon and several AFA and
American Family Radio staff will be on hand for the event. For more
information visit www.wvwfamilyreunion.com,
or call 1-888-FAMILIES for a free brochure.
EDUCATION
Seminar offered to pastors,
educators
Practical application of a Biblical worldview in the classroom will
be explored and explained in Educating for Liberty: The Principle
Approach, a March 4-5 seminar at StoneBridge School in Chesapeake,
Virginia.
The Chesapeake StoneBridge School was founded by Dr. Carole G. Adams
in 1980 and is now the national demonstration school for the Principle
Approach. Dr. Adams will be the keynote speaker at the March event.
Citing the loss of liberties in American culture, seminar organizers
say the seminar can be a life-changing experience for Christians,
home-schoolers, educators and pastors. Workshop topics during the
two days include "The Principle Approach to character development,"
"How to teach the Biblical wordview in the local church,"
"Cornerstones of the market system" and application of
the Principle Approach to various subject areas in the classroom.
AFA President Tim Wildmon said, "It is critical that the Christian
community become more pro-active in restoring and preserving a Biblical
worldview in our nation. We commend StoneBridge School for its role
in doing this."
For more details and registration information visit www.stonebridgeschool.com
or telephone 757-465-7397, ext.102.
FAMILY
Stats link marriage to good health
Marriage and health are directly linked according to a report released
by the National Center for Health Statistics, an arm of the U.S.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In general, the report reveals married people, when compared with
other adults, are healthier. However, the report does not specify
reasons for its claims.
Charlotte Schoenborn, a health statistician, examined the data and
proposed two major theories: 1) marriage as a health protective,
and 2) marital selection.
The first theory is explained through the recognition of married
couples as having the advantages of "economic resources, social
and psychological support and encouragement of healthy lifestyles."
The second theory of marital selection is "the theory that
healthy people get married and stay married, whereas less healthy
people either do not marry or are more likely to become separated,
divorced or widowed."
Schoenborn concluded, "In general, married adults were the
least likely to experience health problems and the least likely
to engage in risky health behaviors, with the notable exception
of being overweight."
In addition to a cleaner bill of health, the study found that married
people also have less lower back pain, headaches and psychological
stress, are more physically active, and less likely to drink and
smoke.
www.usatoday.com, 12/15/04
GOVERNMENT
Waxman Report yields inaccuracies about abstinence
education
U. S. Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), in collaboration with the House
Committee on Government Reform, recently released an anti-abstinence
education document known as the Waxman Report.
According to CNN.com, the report claimed "11 of the 13 most
widely used [authentic abstinence] programs underestimate the effectiveness
of condoms in preventing pregnancy and the spread of disease, exaggerate
the prevalence of emotional and physical distress following abortion,
blur science and religion or get fundamental scientific facts wrong."
Waxman believes the health education provided to America’s
young people must be scientifically and medically accurate. Yet,
Waxman himself is the one being criticized for inaccuracies.
Alma Golden, deputy assistant Health and Human Services Secretary
for population affairs, said the report took statements out of context
in an attempt to present abstinence education in the worst way possible.
In fact, the same issues have already been raised and discredited.
In addition, The Heritage Foundation counterattacks all of Waxman’s
arguments with validated statistics in an article by Melissa Pardue.
The Foundation also notes Waxman’s continual opposition to
funding abstinence education and views the report as another attempt
by Waxman to avert government allocations.
"One thing is very clear for our children, abstaining from
sex is the most effective means of preventing the sexual transmission
of HIV, STDs and preventing pregnancy," Golden said.
Such reveals the need for the work of people like Mike Long, abstinence
educator and youth speaker of 20 years. Long desires for young people
to have a sound Biblical understanding of sexual intercourse. Therefore,
he has spent years training over 50,000 educators in 46 states how
to teach abstinence effectively.
Long said he’s seen "so many public schools begin teaching
the standard of sexual abstinence until marriage to teens….
It overwhelms me at the enthusiasm these teachers have to teach
abstinence after they’ve been trained."
He encourages communities to provide training in the form of one-day
seminars for area pastors, youth pastors and parents on how to effectively
teach the Biblical standard of sexual purity to teens and adults.
Long has recently updated his five-part videotape series titled
Everyone Is NOT Doing It. For more information, visit www.mikelong.com
or call 919-562-4080.
HOMOSEXUALITY
AIDS rate among homosexuals up
Data in a recent report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) reveals that "gay" men continue to
get AIDS at a rate far exceeding that of the general population.
Homosexual men make up roughly 2% of the general population, but
the CDC reported that they are responsible for 44% of all new AIDS
cases. In a separate report, the CDC also noted that the rate of
infection for "gay" men continues to climb: the number
of new cases was up nearly 11% over the four-year period ending
in 2003.
Tim Wilkins, a former homosexual who now ministers to the "gay"
community through his Cross Ministry outreach, said the statistics
demonstrate the unnaturalness of that lifestyle. "If homosexuality
was normal and natural, you would not have a disease that spreads
as ravenously as this does" within the "gay" community,
Wilkins told Baptist Press.
Wilkins stressed that such statistics must not deter the church
from reaching out to homosexuals. "We can’t allow sin
in any form to repulse us from reaching out to people who are hurting,"
he said. "As horrible as AIDS is, it can be … an opportunity
for the church to reach people who are broken."
www.cdc.gov, 12/1/04; www.bpnews.net, 12/2/04
Seminar helps church reach homosexuals
More Than Words (MTW) is a one-day event that helps attendees understand
homosexuality so that they can better minister to others who struggle
with that lifestyle. It is a program of Cross Ministry.
According to ministry founder Tim Wilkins, upcoming MTW sites include
Pittsburgh April 9, and Raleigh May 7. The ministry is also hosting
a two-day seminar at Southeastern Seminary at Wake Forest February
4-5. Cross Ministry conducted five MTW conferences in 2004. Tentative
sites this year include New York, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Texas and
Illinois.
"MTW conferences grab people’s attention and help them
get a handle on the issue," said Wilkins. The event covers
topics such as "Debunking the gay gene," "Loving
and reaching the gay community" and "How tolerant was
Jesus?"
A former homosexual himself, Wilkins is a graduate of Southwestern
Seminary, and a member of the Conference of Southern Baptist Evangelists.
He has also spoken at international Christian events sponsored by
the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.
"We have known and appreciated Tim Wilkins’ work for several
years," said AFA Chairman Don Wildmon. "He provides a
valuable resource to the church."
Wilkins’ approach to ministry is to build bridges. At an Arizona
MTW conference last year, 250 homosexual activists showed up to
protest the event. "We took bottled water out to them,"
said Wilkins, "chatted with them, and invited them to come
in to the conference."
For more information, visit www.crossministry.org
or telephone 919-569-0375.
Pro-‘gay’ study authored by lesbian
Raising questions about a conflict of interests, a pro-family leader
claims that the co-author of a recent study of the children of homosexual
couples is not a researcher but a propagandist.
Joe Glover, president of the Family Policy Network in Virginia,
said that he was puzzled by the work of University of Virginia professor
Charlotte J. Patterson, who co-authored a study which claimed that
children of lesbian couples are as happy and well-adjusted as children
living in traditional homes.
However, Glover did some research of his own, and discovered that
Patterson is a lesbian in a relationship with a female partner,
and the couple has three children between them. The pro-family advocate
said Patterson has an obvious agenda and is using her title as a
psychologist to put forth one-sided propaganda.
"She actually writes books on how lesbians can manipulate the
law in order to have double adoption processes so they can create
these lesbian so-called families," he said. Patterson is a
radical homosexual activist "who has a clear agenda to redefine
what a family is or should be."
In addition, according to an article in The Daily Progress (Charlottesville,
Virginia), Patterson admitted that the study did not deal with one
of the most controverial issues – whether or not kids raised
in same-sex households were more likely to become homosexual themselves.
Those in favor of legitimizing same-sex families frequently gloss
over or completely ignore this area of debate. For example, in a
panel discussion at Tufts University, Dr. Ellen Perrin, professor
of pediatrics at the Tufts-New England Medical Center, said the
matter wasn’t even a valid question.
"One of those questions that always gets asked is, ‘What
are these kids [raised in same-sex families] going to be?’
I’m bothered by that question," she said, adding that
"it’s a homophobic question, because it doesn’t matter"
if a child turns out to be homosexual.
Perrin was instrumental in getting the American Academy of Pediatrics
to change its policy to favor same-sex families.
AgapePress, 12/1/04; www.dailyprogress.com, 11/18/04;
www.tuftsdaily.com, 11/23/04
MEDIA
Reporters not trusted by most, poll says
A new survey suggests widespread skepticism among Americans regarding
the trustworthiness of the news media.
A poll conducted by the Gallup Organization found that TV reporters
and newspaper reporters ranked 15th and 16th, respectively, among
those whom Americans said they consider highly honest and ethical.
In answering the question, "Please tell me how you would rate
the honesty and ethical standards of people in these different fields,"
only 23% ranked TV reporters "very high/high," and only
21% ranked newspaper reporters in that category.
Down the list below such journalists were ranked business executives,
Congressmen, lawyers and advertising practitioners, in that order.
The proverbial "car salesmen" category came in dead last.
Clergy fared better as a field, coming in 7th. Some 56% of respondents
said they considered them "very high/high" in terms of
honesty and ethics.
Nurses were at the top of the list in terms of ethics and honesty,
followed by grade school teachers, pharmacists, military officers,
medical doctors and policemen.
www.gallup.com, 12/7/04
PORNOGRAPHY
Psychiatrist labels porn nation’s
most addictive substance
University of Pennsylvania psychiatrist Dr. Mary Anne Layden told
a Senate committee that pornography should be classified as an addictive
drug due to its destructive nature.
"It [pornography] is more toxic the more you consume, the harder
the variety you consume, and the younger and more vulnerable the
consumer," Layden said.
She explained how pornography damages a person’s beliefs and
behavior. Belief damage includes the adverse effect of normal "attitudes
about what constitutes healthy sexual and emotional relationships."
As far as behavioral damage, pornography can cause tendencies toward
psychologically unhealthy actions, socially inappropriate actions
and even illegal actions.
In addition, research reveals "that 40% of sex addicts will
lose their spouses, 58% will suffer severe financial losses, and
27% to 40% will lose their jobs or their professions."
Layden considers pornography the most dangerous addictive substance
available in America and is urging Congress to investigate the harm
it causes.
AgapePress, 12/1/04
PRO-LIFE
Dutch doctors make their own decision to euthanize
newborns
Groningen Academic Hospital in the Netherlands recently admitted
to eutha-nizing terminally ill newborns following the proposal of
new guidelines to ease the sanctions on these "mercy killings."
News of what has been going on at the Dutch hospital comes only
a few months after doctors in that country urged the nation’s
Health Ministry to expand euthanasia procedures to terminally ill
people who are incapable of deciding for themselves whether or not
they want to end their lives. The expansion of the procedures includes
terminal infants, young children and the severely mentally retarded.
In addition, the proposal also involves a request to lower the age
limit from 16 to 12 when it comes to euthanizing terminally ill
minors at their own request accompanied by parental approval.
Instead of waiting on a decision from the Dutch Parliament, the
hospital has pushed ahead to create and implement guidelines for
its doctors to euthanize even newborn babies if they determine them
to be in pain associated with incurable diseases or serious physical
deformities.
The guidelines, coined as the Groningen Protocol, allow for an infant
to be euthanized when the baby’s medical team and independent
doctors determine there are no means of improvement. For example,
brain-damaged and extremely premature babies can be put to death
under the new protocol.
Pro-lifer Lori Kehoe, monitor of bio-ethical issues for the National
Right to Life Committee, said it is hard to hear of such atrocities,
but she is not surprised, according to LifeNews.com.
"When you draw an arbitrary line on whose life is worth protecting
and whose isn’t … it is easy to move that line and hard
to rationalize an outcry against it," Kehoe said.
AgapePress, 12/1/04; Washington Update, 12/1/04
Abortion linked to increased anxiety
According to a new study published in the Journal of Anxiety
Disorders, women who abort their pre-born babies are 30% more
likely to suffer from anxiety.
"Women who aborted unintended pregnancies were more likely
to experience subsequent anxiety than women who carried to term,"
according to Jesse Cougle. Cougle is a professor at the University
of Texas and co-author of the study.
Cougle and co-author Priscilla Coleman based their study on data
from the National Survey of Family Growth provided by the U.S. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The CDC’s data was collected from 11,000 women between ages
15 and 34 who had experienced an unintended pregnancy but showed
no previous signs of anxiety.
According to Cougle, the CDC’s information was incomplete due
to a gap in the research, thus warranting the need for closer examination.
The duo claims their study provides better information.
"We had a racially diverse sample, so that was another improvement
over prior work – a lot of studies had very small samples confined
to one geographical locale," Coleman said.
Family News in Focus, 11/24/04
RELIGION
United Methodists defrock lesbian
pastor
A divided jury of United Methodist Church (UMC) clergy voted to
defrock an openly lesbian minister, after they had earlier convicted
her of violating church law.
The jury voted 12-1 in early December to convict Rev. Irene Elizabeth
Stroud of Philadelphia of breaking a church law which bars from
ministry "self-avowed, practicing homosexuals." Stroud
was found guilty of engaging in "practices that are incompatible
with Christian teachings," a violation of the denom-ination’s
Book of Discipline. It was the first time in 17 years that the UMC
convicted an openly homosexual member of its clergy.
However, six of the clergy jurors felt that, despite the conviction,
Stroud should not lose her job as a pastor. The final vote of 7-6
was the bare majority necessary in the penalty phase of the trial.
Having been stripped of her ministerial credentials, the Pennsylvania
pastor will not be able to celebrate baptism or communion –
but she says she plans to remain on staff at her Germantown church
as a lay employee, an arrangement the church had earlier agreed
upon.
"Of course, I’m disappointed with the verdict, but I do
have a very deep sense of peace," Stroud told The New York
Times. "God is still going to call qualified gay and lesbian
people into ministry at our church and other denominations."
In late December Stroud said that she plans to challenge the verdict
in the UMC’s appellate court.
The last time the United Methodist Church convicted an openly homosexual
cleric was in 1987, when a New Hampshire church court defrocked
Rev. Rose Mary Denman. Last March, a Methodist court in Washington
state acquitted the Rev. Karen Dammann, citing an ambiguity in church
law that the UMC’s supreme court has since eliminated.
According to Stroud, after the verdict was announced, retired UMC
bishop Rev. Joseph Yeakel, who oversaw the trial, told her, "
The day will come when the church apologizes for this decision."
But the president of the National Clergy Council, Rev. Rob Schenck,
said the jury made the proper decision. "We are all sinners
saved by God’s grace," he said in a press release. "But
that does not mean that we can misappropriate that concept so that
we suggest God approves of our sin."
www.nytimes.com, 12/3/04; AgapePress, 12/3/04
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