Posted: 7/25/03

SBC studies seminaries
but doesn't intend to close any

ARLINGTON–Rumors that the Southern Baptist Convention will close, merge or move its two smallest seminaries are false, according to the SBC leader who set up a task force to study seminary effectiveness.

But the convention is considering how to improve ministerial training in the areas served by Golden Gate and Midwestern Baptist theological seminaries, reported Gary Smith, chairman of the SBC Executive Committee.

Questions about the fate of Midwestern and Golden Gate seminaries resurfaced in mid-July, resurrecting a rumor that they would be shut down.

During the summer meeting of the Missouri Baptist Convention Executive Board, David Baker pleaded with fellow members to allocate funds to support Midwestern–located in Kansas City–because “powerful forces” in the SBC were plotting the school's demise.

Baker said he heard the SBC's seminary study committee had suggested selling Golden Gate and Midwestern seminaries' campuses and starting a new seminary in Colorado.

The schools are located on extremely valuable property. Golden Gate sits on a peninsula in Marin County, Calif., across the bay from San Francisco. Midwestern occupies a tree-covered campus just minutes from downtown Kansas City.

Baker told the Missouri Executive Board he had heard Golden Gate had been spared, but Midwestern still is on the chopping block.

The shut-down/merger/move story is an unfounded rumor, responded Smith, pastor of Fielder Road Baptist Church in Arlington.

“I'm shocked someone would repeat (the rumor) without at least making a phone call to find out if there was any validity to that,” Smith said. “I heard that several years ago, … but it's never been considered an option.”

In his role as the Executive Committee's leader, Smith created the seminary study committee in 2002.

“The Executive Committee was concerned about the fact that the seminaries' needs were not being met to the degree we wanted,” he explained.

Some SBC leaders had expressed concern with providing funding for seminary growth, as well as adequate salaries for faculty, he said.

The range of issues transcended the size-to-expense ratio of the small seminaries.

“We knew we needed to look at the whole big picture of seminary education,” he noted.

The study committee has been evaluating all six SBC-owned seminaries, Smith said. The other four are located in Fort Worth; Louisville, Ky.; New Orleans; and Wake Forest, N.C.

“There never was an intention to close Midwestern,” Smith said. He acknowledged, however, the possibility of changing Midwestern's form of educational delivery still is being explored.

The committee has studied the possibility of enabling Midwestern to continue granting degrees, but “without the need of a large campus,” he explained. “Out of that, these crazy rumors got started.”

The study committee also is looking at a “western strategy” for providing theological education across the vast area Golden Gate Seminary is expected to cover. That territory basically stretches from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean.

But as for selling Golden Gate Seminary's California campus, “that's their board's business, not our business,” Smith said.

“We have no plans of merging,” stressed Gary Groat, Golden Gate Seminary's chief financial officer. “I can assure you that Golden Gate Seminary is committed to California and the West.”

Smith also disposed of rumors that the SBC is considering a chancellor system for the seminaries, which would put all six schools under one administrative leader. The study committee has discussed many ideas, he said, but that is not one that has found support.

The study committee “has worked endless hours trying to give help,” he said. “I hope and pray we'll be done this year.”

Reported by Vicki Brown of Word & Way in Missouri, Robert Marus of Associated Baptist Press and Managing Editor Mark Wingfield

Posted: 7/25/03

Tent revival draws a crowd in Montague County

By Jo Gray

Special to the Standard

SAINT JO–A wooden sign posted near Hwy. 82 on the outskirts of this small town carried the words “Coming Soon.”

This sign, according to Tom Weger, was to get people's attention, to raise their curiosity.

Weger was behind organizing the first tent revival the community had seen in many years.

The former mayor of Saint Jo said he felt the need to get more people to church but didn't know just how to go about it until about six months ago. It was then his church, First Baptist of Saint Jo, was observing its 130th birthday.

“Old photographs were brought and displayed on a bulletin board,” Weger said. “There was one picture that showed a large white tent with people standing in front of it. I don't know if it was a tent revival or not, but that is what inspired me to promote one.”

Admitting to being a traditionalist, Weger said there is nothing more traditional than an old-fashioned tent revival.

Taking his idea to the church leaders, Weger gained support to make his vision a reality.

“We knew it had to be in the summer,” he said. “If it were in the fall, people would say they were busy with school activities. The spring, and they would be busy with graduation and the end-of-school functions.”

So during the cold of winter, the team made plans to host a tent revival during the hot days of July.

Weger said he had told city council members there was a great need for citizens to turn to God for guidance.

“I don't know if it was in the minutes or not,” he said of a particular statement he made during a City Council meeting. “If it wasn't, it should have been. I told them, 'If our church houses were filled every Sunday, 90 percent of our community problems would be solved.'”

Weger said many people won't worship in a traditional church facility because they are intimidated by what they perceive the church members will expect of them.

But people will walk into a tent, he said.

Relying on this informality to get people to attend a revival service outdoors, Weger began the task of gaining community support and, an even larger task, of gathering the people and materials to make it work.

“I wanted this to be something for Saint Jo,” Weger said. “I wanted all the churches to feel welcomed. While members of some congregations might not attend church services in another church building, they could come to a tent revival in the middle of a pasture and feel no pressure.”

Organizers rented a 40-by-60-foot tent with supporting poles high enough to accommodate flood lights. More than 200 folding chairs were placed in rows under the tent. A 25,000 kilowatt generator powered large fans and a sound system. And a row of Porta-Potties was set up a respectable distance from the tent.

On each side of the tent, in coolers packed with ice, bottles of cold water were available to combat the Texas heat.

Carpeted-covered platforms were placed at the front of the tent. The stage was set. Flyers went out. News releases were sent.

Weger asked that two rules be observed.

First, there would be no passing of the plate. “I didn't want people to feel obligated,” he explained. “Some people stay away from church because they think church is all about passing the collection plate. I didn't want anyone to have this excuse.”

Second, Weger wanted a service dedicated to the youth. With this in mind, he enlisted a young Christian band and a dramatic team to lead in worship.

The two-night tent revival drew people from surrounding communities as well.

“The repercussions of what has happened here will be felt for a long time,” Weger said.

Posted: 7/25/03

Texas Tidbits

UMHB raises the bar. The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor has raised the admissions requirements for first-time freshmen, effective fall 2004. Entering freshmen must rank in the top 50 percent of an accredited high school graduating class and score a minimum of 950 on the Scholastic Achievement Test. University officials said the change will help ensure that students who enroll at UMHB will have successful tenures there and will help control enrollment. The Belton school already has enrolled 469 freshmen for this fall, compared to 400 freshmen enrolled at the same time last year. Students who do not meet the new requirements may still be accepted on a provisional status.

Davis named special assistant to Sloan. Tommye Lou Davis, associate professor of classics and a master teacher at Baylor University, has been named special assistant to President Robert Sloan. She will assist the president with strategic, communication and organizational issues, project management and constituency relations. She has taught at Baylor since her graduation from the university in 1966. She has been a member of the Faculty Senate and has served on the board of the Baylor Alumni Association. She also chairs the committee seeking to lure the George W. Bush Presidential Library to Waco. She and her husband, Donald, are members of First Baptist Church of Waco.

San Antonio agency gets grant. The Meadows Foundation has awarded a $250,000 challenge grant to Baptist Child & Family Services of San Antonio. The grant relates to a $10 million capital campaign to develop a 110-acre campus for non-profit organizations. The Baptist General Convention of Texas agency also is working to meet a $1.2 million challenge grant from the Mabee Foundation by Dec. 31.

DBU opens more apartments. Dallas Baptist University will open phase two of its Colonial Village Apartment Complex Aug. 1. The 24-unit complex will house 96 students. The first phase of the new style of campus living opened last August. The apartments feature two-bedroom/two-bath units to accommodate two to four students. A 5,000-square-foot clubhouse features a large lap and recreation pool, spa, clubroom and reception area, study room and two multi-purpose rooms for university events, meetings and other student activities.

Wayland receives music accreditation. Wayland Baptist University's music department has earned accreditation from the National Association of Schools of Music. The West Texas university was accepted as an associate member for five years.

Hospitality House directors named. Freddy and Sherry Walters have been named directors of the Huntsville Hospitality House, continuing the ministry begun 17 years ago by Bob and Nelda Norris, who recently retired. Walters has served four Texas churches as pastor, and the couple previously served as missionaries in Brazil. The Hospitality House ministers to families of inmates at Huntsville-area prisions.

Borum recruiting for UMHB. John Borum of Kingwood has been named an admissions counselor for the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. He is a 2003 graduate with a bachelor of fine arts degree. He is a member of First Baptist Church of Belton.

Wichita Falls church aids HBTS. Adults and teenagers from Faith Baptist Church in Wichita Falls worked on the campus of Hispanic Baptist Theological School in San Antonio recently. They painted and did other odd jobs during the day, then conducted Vacation Bible School in the area each evening. Pastor Scott Willingham and Children's Minister Casey Osborne also presented the school a check for $550 raised by the church's own children during their VBS. "It was a blessing for us to know that the children's pennies, nickels and dimes brought as a missions offering each day would be for us like the widow's mite–the greatest of all gifts," said Arnie Adkison, vice president for advancement at HBTS.

Memorials Committee requests pictures. The Baptist General Convention of Texas Memorials Committee is seeking pictures of Texas Baptists who died in the past year for a remembrance video to be shown during the BGCT annual session Nov. 10-11. Pictures can be sent to Memorials Committee, Baptist General Convention of Texas, 333 North Washington Ave., Dallas 75246-1798. High-quality digital photos may be sent via e-mail to Debbie Moody at moody@bgct.org. For more information, contact Moody at (214) 828-5348.

Baylor service program steps into award. Steppin' Out, Baylor University's bi-annual day of community service, was recognized with the Ruthe Jackson Youth Leadership Award, presented at the 36th annual Keep Texas Beautiful conference. Steppin' Out, held in the fall and spring, earned first place in the university division for its work transforming homes in the Waco area through painting, cleaning and landscaping. In addition to beautifying nearly 100 job sites, volunteers visited local nursing homes and helped clean up the shores of Lake Waco. Since its inception in 1985, Steppin' Out has become one the largest university service programs in the nation, involving more than 100 student groups and 2,500 participants.

Correction: The article on Baylor University in the July 14 issue incorrectly identified the date of Herbert Reynolds' retirement as president and Robert Sloan's election as his successor. In 1992, Reynolds first informed the board of regents of his intention to retire at the end of the 1994-1995 academic year. The board appointed a search committee, and the search process continued into early 1995. Sloan was elected president Feb. 24, 1995, and took office June 1, 1995. The article also referenced the goal of Texas A&M University to achieve "tier one" status in 20 years. Texas A&M's goal is to become one of the top 10 public universities in the nation within 20 years.

Posted: 7/25/03

TOGETHER:
Partnership can change both groups

The National Baptist Convention of Mexico celebrated its 100th anniversary last week in Mexico City. I was invited to speak to them, sharing three essential elements to biblical revival–prayer, vision and cooperation.

Until Jesus comes again, Mexico and Texas are “joined at the hip.” We have signed a covenant agreement pledging that the Baptist General Convention of Texas will cooperate with the National Baptist Convention of Mexico to achieve our common objectives in prayer, evangelism, church planting, missions, benevolent ministries and leadership training. Staff representatives from both conventions are exploring ways that our churches, institutions and convention ministries can work together in achieving these objectives.

We already have seen significant cooperative efforts under way in meeting human needs through River Ministry, our Texas Baptist hospitals and Texas Partnerships working with the Baptist Hospital in Guadalajara, and countless ministries of individual churches. In the area of leadership training, exciting conversations are going on between our Texas Baptist institutions and the two Mexican Baptist seminaries.

In their goal to establish 10,000 churches in Mexico in the next 10 years, we have been able to provide the services of Otto Arrango, who has developed a tested training model of equipping pastors to train laity to become church planters. After seven months, we heard a report that already 2,450 students have been enrolled in this lay training in 115 churches, and they have set a goal to start 3,512 churches in the next few years.

I ask all Texas Baptists to pray for these efforts. There are 23 million Texans and 100 million Mexicans. Millions of them need to know the saving presence of Jesus Christ in their lives.

Miguel Bustamante drove us to the Mexico City airport, and he shared his testimony of God's touch on his life and the story of the church he now pastors. Two years ago, he went to this church, which had only one family remaining. Now it is thriving, with more than 200 members. He explained: “First, we began to have daily prayer meetings at the church. Then, I went to visit the inactive members, many who had been hurt in the past. I apologized for the hurt, even though I wasn't personally involved before. I preached the basic biblical doctrines of love, forgiveness, living for Jesus and salvation. The people began to come back, and they brought many others with them.”

When I arrived at DFW airport, a young man picked me up to take me to my car. The conversation got around to God's work in our lives. He said: “I got saved just a few weeks ago. I want to honor God in what I do with my life.”

“Did someone help you give your life to God?” I asked. “Yes,” he said. “I have prayed the sinner's prayer a lot of times, but I didn't really understand. This fellow who works with me took a Bible and showed me what it means, and when I prayed this time, I really understood and meant what I was saying. And my life is totally different now. It's great to be saved!”

That's just two of the millions in Mexico and Texas who need Jesus, but look at what God is doing through ordinary people who will use who they are and what God has given them to reach out.

We are loved.

Posted: 7/25/03

Wayland's virtual campus growing

By Jonathan Petty

Wayland Baptist University

PLAINVIEW–Four years ago, Wayland Baptist University had about 150 students studying online. Today, the West Texas-based university reaches out to 850 cyber students.

“When they began setting aside the budget for virtual campus, it included an item for promotion because there was some concern that people weren't going to sign up for this unless we advertised it somehow,” said David Howle, who took over as virtual campus coordinator June 1. “As far as I know, the promotion money has never been spent.”

The online classes began as a service to students on Wayland's external campuses, said Glenn Saul, academic vice president.

Then, “the workload grew much faster than the structure to contain it,” he said.

Today, Wayland uses its online classes to connect students and professors from its 13 campuses and aid in the overall educational experience. For example, some of the smaller campuses have a hard time bringing together enough students for particular classes, but when the course is offered online, it draws from every campus in the university system.

“This way we can pool our resources and maximize the potential we have to serve all our students,” Saul said.

Class size is limited to 25 students in undergraduate courses and 15 to 20 students in graduate-level courses. The classes typically fill quickly.

Wayland's online classes also help students in the military, who often move around the world.

Currently, Wayland offers online courses only to students already enrolled at one of its physical campuses. The university does not offer an online degree and doesn't plan to any time soon.

“That is not our policy or our purpose at this point,” Saul said. “We really want the online courses to supplement what we do at our other campuses and to be a resource for them and not to be in competition with them.”

Offering a degree completely online would move away from the personal education experience Wayland wants to promote, he said. “We have carefully limited classroom size and have focused our attention on the fact that our faculty is concerned about the students. Our moral obligation as a university is to provide a rich educational experience.”

However, Howle, who also teaches online courses, said the virtual campus does have its advantages.

“I would say you have a much greater chance of hearing every voice in an online class,” he said. “In a traditional classroom, there are some students who are simply intimidated by hearing the sound of their own voice in a crowd. When they are given a chance to not only reflect, but write out a comment and look at what they have said and edit it before they hit that submit button, then you are much more likely to allow every student to make a comment–and a much more thought-provoking comment than what you are going to pick up in class.

“I don't apologize at all for not seeing the students face-to-face because I find the interaction is at least as rich as traditional classes.”

While Wayland will not offer an online degree soon, the virtual campus will continue to grow and evolve.

“I get asked about whether online classes are as effective as traditional classes,” Howle said. “The most recent studies I have seen suggest that if you compare the results of a strictly online class, a strictly face-to-face/traditional class, and a hybrid–a traditional class that is enhanced by having lectures and discussion boards available online–the first two come out about the same. The one that does the best is the hybrid class, possibly because it gives students more opportunities.”

Posted: 7/25/03

William Jewell faces defunding in '04

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (ABP)–Leaders of the Missouri Baptist Convention voted July 15 to eliminate funding for William Jewell College because of the school's handling of homosexuality and other moral issues.

The convention's Executive Board deleted the school from next year's recommended budget after investigating the college's practices and policies. If approved by messengers to the fall Missouri Baptist Convention annual meeting, the move would effectively end the convention's 154-year relationship with the Baptist school.

David Sallee, William Jewell's president, said the board's decision reflected a desire to control the college. But Charles Burnett, chair of a committee investigating the school, said funding should be denied because the college failed to “fall in line with what we believe are God's teachings.”

The Missouri Baptist Convention has been in turmoil for more than two years, as a fundamentalist movement has gained control of most convention boards and committees. The transition led to the resignation of the convention's executive director and prompted five institutions to change their charters to create self-perpetuating boards. Those actions currently are being challenged in court by the state convention.

William Jewell was not among those five dissident entities and in fact was scheduled to receive additional funding redirected from the five. William Jewell's trustees historically have not been elected in the same manner as the Missouri convention's other schools.

William Jewell receives about $1.1 million a year from the convention, which accounts for 3 percent of the school's budget.

During the Executive Board's July session, Burnett said the interagency relations committee had met with college administrators to iron out differences, but the college's response to the committee's inquiry was “not sufficient” for continuing funding.

Among the concerns:

The college allowed student senators to consider a change in the Student Bill of Rights to add sexual orientation to its list of characteristics protected from discrimination. Students defeated the proposal Jan. 28.

A theater student was allowed to produce portions of the play “The Vagina Monologues” as the student's senior recital.

The committee asked the college for information about trustees and faculty, including their church membership and affiliations with organizations other than those related to the school.

The committee wanted college officials to outline the official teaching position on the Genesis account of creation.

The convention also sought the right to elect William Jewell's trustees, which was denied by the college.

Only four of the 48 Executive Board members voted against defunding the college.

After the vote, Sallee described the motion to defund as “an expression of the philosophy of the Executive Board that it will not fund anything it does not control.”

“This is about governance,” he added. “The sensitivities of our Missouri Baptist constituencies are considered in decisions made by the college. However, when this board or its representatives demand that the college change its policies or apologize for decisions, that is an attempt to interfere with the governance function of the board of trustees of the college.”

Sallee told Executive Board members college administrators “wrestled” over the decision to allow the theater student to perform the controversial play. It was “an agonizing discussion,” he said. “But we came down on the side of academic freedom.

“Since then, we have revised the process … so that we will not find ourselves in that position again,” he added.

Jay Scribner, chairman of the board's administrative committee, called the move to cut William Jewell's funding “a belabored, prayerful decision.”

“It is about holiness, righteousness and godliness,” he said.

Posted: 7/25/03

Enjoying the birthday party are Mary Humphries of Lindale, former president of Woman's Missionary Union of Texas, and Joy Fenner, former executive director-treasurer of Texas WMU.	Rebekah Naylor, surgeon and former administrator at the Bangalore Baptist Hospital, tells the Texas Leadership Conference about her experiences as a medical missionary in India.

Texas WMU Leadership Conference

participants told they have 'promises to keep'

By Ken Camp

Texas Baptist Communications

WACO–More than 1,000 women gathered at Baylor University for a birthday party–the 50th for Texas Leadership Conference, formerly known as Woman's Missionary Union House Party, and the 90th for the Girls in Action missions program.

With “Promises to Keep” as their theme, the women took a nostalgic look back at the past and a hope-filled look toward the future of missions at the July 17-19 conference.

As a part of the celebration, speakers challenged the Texas Baptist women to recognize the promises of God across the generations. Suzie Person, who serves with Wycliffe Bible Translators and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, and her husband, Kirk, described how God used the influence of parents, missionary speakers and authors, churches and mentors to call them into missions.

Korean Woman's Missionary Union of Texas officers elected in Waco are President Jung Suk Chung of Korean First Baptist Church in Coppell, Vice President In Sook Ahn of Seoul Baptist Church in Houston and Secretary Hyando Do Kwak of First Baptist Church of Arlington.

She was joined on the stage at Baylor's Ferrell Center by her parents, Justice and Mary Ann Anderson, veteran Southern Baptist missionaries to Argentina. Anderson went on to teach missions at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and he currently is chairman of the board of Texas Baptists' new missions network.

“What part has God chosen for you to play in his world? Whose destiny are you being called to impact?” Suzie Person asked.

God's character mandates that he will keep his promises, medical missionary Rebekah Naylor told the women. Naylor spoke from her 30 years of experience with the Southern Baptist Convention International Mission Board as a surgeon and former administrator at Bangalore Baptist Hospital in Karnataka, India.

“Remember, God's promise brings responsibility,” she said. “Let us go forth to the ends of the earth, standing on the promises of God.”

God promises presence and peace, direction for living and joy in service to those who follow him, Naylor said.

“God will answer prayer when we pray in his name according to his will,” she said. “For years, I was the only licensed American doctor allowed to practice in India, and that was an answer to prayer.”

Prayer is the invitation God extends to his children to abide in him every moment of every day, Cindy Gaskins of Hong Kong, former Texas Acteens consultant, told the women.

“The only way you and I can walk in confidence is when we have been on our knees,” said Gaskins, whose husband is pastor of International Baptist Church in Hong Kong.

She used the model prayer of Jesus as a guide for learning to pray according to God's will, rather than for personal advantage.

“Go to God on behalf of the other peoples of our world and pray they will have an encounter with God,” she said. “The kingdom of God is so much bigger than where we are. But it starts right where our knees hit the floor.”

Speakers at the Texas Leadership Conference challenged their audience to pray and support missionaries who are seeking to advance God's kingdom in dangerous and unconventional mission fields.

New officers of the Baptist Nursing Fellowship of Texas are President Linda Garner of Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas; Service Chair Rita Fuentes of First Baptist Church in Bartlett; and Secretary-Treasurer RaNon Caraway of First Baptist Church of Brady. Not pictured are First Vice President Amy Roberts of First Baptist Church of Arlington and Second Vice President Lupe Koch of Primera Iglesia Bautista in Fort Worth.

“Shari,” a young woman who serves among a historically unreached people group in a country closed to traditional missionaries, described life on the “last frontier” of missions. “We choose to call it Satan's playground,” she said.

Shari told the Texas women that many of the people with whom she works never had heard the name of Jesus, much less a presentation of the gospel, before she came to them. Even so, in this remote and isolated area, she told about being able to sit down at a café to enjoy a familiar American soft drink.

“Doesn't it break your heart to know that Coca-Cola has made it to places where the name of Jesus hasn't made it yet?” she asked.

Nancy Botkin, warden of the Gatesville Unit, and Suzanna Hinson, major at the Hilltop Unit, told the Texas Baptist women how they came to see working with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice as “mission work.”

Hinson particularly encouraged Texas Baptists to continue their efforts working with inmates and their families.

“Most of these people are not going to live their entire lives with me at Hilltop. They're going to come live with you in your communities. And the things that have molded their hearts inside (prison) are the things they will carry out with them,” she said.

Worship leader Cynthia Clawson followed their testimonies with her own experiences in prison ministry, particularly with death row inmate Karla Faye Tucker.

The Grammy and Dove Award-winning recording artist called on the Texas Baptist women to “mother” women in prison who may have been abused or abandoned by their own mothers.

“God bless the outcast, or nobody will,” she sang.

Conference Bible study leader Susan Pigott, professor of Old Testament at Hardin-Simmons University's Logsdon School of Theology in Abilene, cited three Old Testament women–Rahab, Abigail and Hagar–as examples of unexpected keepers of extraordinary promises.

“God delights in using the least likely people to perform the most significant tasks,” Pigott said.

Posted: 7/25/03

Church zoning law faces challenge

By Adelle Banks

Religion News Service

LOS ANGELES (RNS)–A California district judge has declared a portion of the law aimed at helping houses of worship overcome land-use disputes unconstitutional.

In a ruling filed this summer in the U.S. District Court of the Central District of California, Judge Stephen Wilson said Congress “redefined First Amendment rights” by passing the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000.

The Washington-based Becket Fund for Religious Liberty has filed a motion asking Wilson to reconsider and withdraw his decision.

The ruling–in which Wilson called the act “a blunderbuss of a remedy”–came when the Elsinore Christian Center sued the City of Lake Elsinore, Calif., after it was denied a conditional use permit to move into a former grocery store building.

The case marks the first time that this law–the basis for dozens of land-use suits currently in the courts across the nation–has been struck down by a federal judge, legal experts say.

Under RLUIPA, governments must apply the least restrictive measures against religious groups, or show that zoning laws or other regulations serve a compelling government interest. It was supported by an unusually wide range of religious groups, from evangelical Christians to Jews and Muslims. Both the Baptist Joint Committee and the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission were key players in the coalition.

“There are many RLUIPA cases around the country, and this is the first judge to have the courage to say it is unconstitutional, as beyond Congress' power, which it clearly is,” said Marci Hamilton, a public law professor at Yeshiva University in New York.

Hamilton successfully challenged the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in a case out of Boerne in 1997. RLUIPA is considered by many to be a replacement for the previous law.

Brad Dacus, president of the Pacific Justice Institute, said his Citrus Heights, Calif., organization plans to help the church appeal the case to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

“This is the most powerful, far-reaching federal civil rights statute impacting churches that has ever been enacted in history,” he said. “The No. 1 curtailment for church growth in the United States today, according to pastors, is not lack of members or lack of money. It's local governments saying, 'We don't want you.'”

At present, only churches in the court's Los Angeles area-jurisdiction are affected by the decision, but Dacus said it ultimately could affect houses of worship across the country. If a Los Angeles-area church is refused a permit by a city council or planning commission, it would not be able to use the federal statute for further recourse.

John McClendon, assistant city attorney for Lake Elsinore, was pleased with Wilson's ruling. He said the city denied the permit because a poor community would have lost its “last neighborhood grocery store” if it had been approved.

“I will not deny that there are cities out there that are very closed … against churches,” he said. “But Lake Elsinore is absolutely not one of those cities.”

McClendon agreed that if the issue continues in the courts, it could have a wide effect on the interactions between houses of worship and local governments.

“The impact for other churches and religious schools and things of that sort, I think, would be significant, obviously, because the Congress was elevating the siting of religious institutions to the level of a civil right,” he said.

“There's no question but that the issue will ultimately reach the Supreme Court.”

Posted 7/25/03
Article List for 7/28/03 issue