2004 Archives
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Sloan: Balance demands both_101804
Posted: 10/15/04
Sloan: Balance demands both
Thinking theologically, Baptists need to affirm both the priesthood of the believer and the priesthood of believers, Baylor President Robert Sloan said.
Citing the New Testament book of 1 Peter, he observed: “The church is a 'body of priests,' and that means that I, both as a member of a regenerate congregation and as an individual, need no other priest than Jesus Christ. The church does not need another mediator than Jesus Christ. There is no teaching authority beyond us that tells us how we must observe Scriptures.”
A proper understanding of the priesthood of the believer/believers involves balance, Sloan said.
See related articles:
• Baylor provost's speech sparks debate over Baptist freedom
• Baptist scholars point to tension between individualism and community life
• Sloan: Balance demands both
10/15/2004 - By John Rutledge
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EDITORIAL: Unlikely pair propose debate question_101804
Posted: 10/15/04
EDITORIAL:
Unlikely pair propose debate questionPolitics really does make strange bedfellows. The day after the third presidential debate, Welton Gaddy, president of the Interfaith Alliance, and Paul Weyrich, chairman of the Free Congress Foundation, wrote a joint letter, thanking debate moderator Bob Schieffer for asking George W. Bush and John Kerry “a central question on faith and policy.”
Few Christians could be further apart politically than Gaddy of the left and Weyrich of the right. But before the third debate, they teamed up to ask Schieffer to “raise questions in the presidential debates about the influence of the candidates' religion and personal faith in making public policy.”
Schieffer complied. His 18th question of the night was, “What part does your faith play on your policy decisions?”
Question for candidates: What role should and does your religious faith and values play in creating public policy? 10/15/2004 - By John Rutledge
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EDITORIAL: One option may be foregone, but votes count for something_101804
Posted: 10/15/04
EDITORIAL:
One option may be foregone,
but votes count for somethingFriends here in the Lone Star State–Democrats and Republicans alike–have joked and/or griped in recent weeks about the apparent futility of voting in the 2004 presidential election. “Everyone already knows where Texas' electoral college votes are going,” one declared. “Yeah, my vote doesn't really seem to matter,” another added.
To a degree, they're right. No individual trip to a Texas voting booth is likely to impact the race for the White House. President Bush will capture his home state's electoral votes. (On the other hand, we may be thankful we don't live in one of the 10 so-called swing states. Voters there reportedly have been inundated by some of the harshest campaign ads in history.)
Voting is a spiritual privilege and responsibility. But we deceive ourselves if we think our votes do not count, that voting does not matter.
10/15/2004 - By John Rutledge
