LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABP) — An atheist-rights group and 10 Kentucky citizens are suing the commonwealth to remove a requirement that the state's Homeland Security office credit God for keeping residents safe from terrorism.

The religious language, largely unnoticed when inserted into homeland-security legislation in 2006, made news lately when its sponsor complained the department did not mention God in its mission statement, on its website or in its 2008 Homeland Security report.

Rep. Tom Riner, D-Louisville, inserted language into a floor amendment that called for "stressing the dependence on Almighty God as being vital to the security of the Commonwealth" and affirmed that security "cannot be achieved apart from reliance upon Almighty God."

Former Republican Gov. Ernie Fletcher, an ordained Baptist minister, obeyed the law, which includes posting a plaque with the 88-word statement at the entrance to the state Emergency Operations Center.

A 56-page report released Oct. 31 by the current Democratic governor, Steve Beshear, the son of a Primitive Baptist preacher, however, omitted the religious language.

"We certainly expect it to be there, of course," Riner told the Lexington Herald-Leader.

After learning the God requirement was there, American Atheists recruited 10 Kentuckians to sue to have it removed.

The lawsuit called it an unlawful attempt to "endorse belief over non-belief, set up a religious test, indoctrinate Kentucky citizens and state employees in theistic religious beliefs, and diminish the civil rights, privileges or capacities of Atheists and others who do not believe in a god, or who believe in a different god or gods than the presumed supernatural entity unconstitutionally endorsed by the legislation." 

It denounced the law as "grossly and outrageously at variance "with both the U.S. and Kentucky constitutions and "retrograde to the very purposes of protecting American freedoms for which the Kentucky Office of Homeland Security was established."

American Atheists President Ed Buckner called actions by the legislature "illegal and un-American" and "unconstitutional on their face." 

Paul Simmons, chairman of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, urged lawmakers to overturn the legislation. Simmons, a former professor at Southern Seminary, told the Louisville Courier-Journal the Office of Homeland Security "is not in the business of promoting religion" but instead "securing all citizens against harm from enemies."

AU's Rob Boston, described the God requirement as an example of "meaningless civil religion" similar to the prayer that opens every session of Congress usually delivered before a nearly empty chamber. "It has become by-rote ritual, a thing to be gotten through so we can get to work, a mere formality," said Boston, assistant director for communications. "I'd like Rep. Riner or one of his supporters to explain exactly how this helps religion."

In a telephone interview, Riner called the lawsuit "frivolous" and said the disputed language is no different than religious references in inaugural addresses or proclamations made by every U.S. president or in the constitutions of all 50 states.

An ordained minister and pastor of Christ is King Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., Riner attended Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in the 1960s but quit short of earning a divinity degree.

–Bob Allen is senior writer for Associated Baptist Press.

Here are some suggestions to reduce and reallocate Christmas spending habits.

• Draw names instead of giving to everyone.

• Let others help; tell them your intention to give less

and ask them not to buy an expensive gift.

• Give family gifts instead of individual gifts.

• Give gifts only to children.

• Don’t give children money to give you a gift.

• Design and make your own gifts.

• Set a spending limit with spouse and family.

• Don’t buy a gift that simply will be returned.

• Bake something.

• Go caroling.

• Create a homemade gift certificate for a favor or service.

• Give to mission and benevolent projects in someone’s honor.

• Give and wrap gifts in a way that cares for the environment.

• Give the gift of your time, talents and involvement—more presence, fewer presents!

• Teach someone a skill you possess.

• Make cards or postcards on your computer.

• Send electronic cards—often free.

• Write a story or poem, make a song or create art as a gift.

• Write a letter of love and/or appreciation.

• Adopt a family in the community. Names are available through churches and community

agencies.

• Support church missions around the world.

From www.simplechristmas.org, including suggestions from Unplug the Christmas Machine: A Complete Guide to Putting Love and Joy Back into the Season by Jo Robinson and Jean Coppock Staeheli.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (ABP)—Rather than cutting back on lavish Christmas programs this year due to the economy, some church leaders insist hard times make them more valuable than ever.

Billy Orton, minister of music and worship at First Baptist Church in Huntsville, Ala., said his church did not even consider cutting back its annual Living Christmas Tree performance, now in its 24th year.

“The message of hope, peace, joy and love is needed now more than ever,” Orton said.

While a major investment of resources, Orton said, the church views the Living Christmas Tree—with free admission and no offering taken—as a gift to the entire community.

“We are thinking there might be even larger crowds due to the fact that folks will hold back on purchasing tickets to other holiday concerts and presentations in the area and instead choose to attend one of our six performances,” he said.

Steve Poole, minister of music and worship at Oak Grove Baptist Church in Bel Air, Md.,—a congregation born during hard economic times in 1932—said he volunteered to trim his music budget along with other expenses being reduced in 2009, but so far many members have remained faithful to support missions and ministries of the church.

It costs Oak Grove about $15,000 each year to present 11 performances of the Living Christmas Tree, Poole said. The church collects a free-will offering, with any money received over expenses going to a benevolence ministry to help needy families in Harford County.

“If the tough financial times we are in now bring about a reduction in the free-will offerings, then we may need to cut back on some of our plans for the 2009 program,” he said.

The idea of lining up choir members on risers stacked cone-shape to resemble a Christmas tree has been around for decades.

The outdoor Singing Christmas Tree at Bellhaven College in Jackson, Miss., thought to be the oldest, has been a tradition since 1933.

The advent of the mega-church in the 1970s, however, introduced cavernous worship centers large enough to accommodate bringing such massive structures indoors.

While it’s unclear where the idea got started, one of the early pioneers was Bill Shadle, longtime music minister at First Baptist Church in Denton, who asked Millard Heath, a heating-and-air-conditioning contractor, about building a tree-shaped platform out of metal pipe for his 103-voice choir in 1972.

Figuring pipe would not handle the load, Heath instead designed a platform using structural steel.

He patented the design and started a company that since has since sold more than 200 trees for churches in 30 states and overseas.

M.H. Specialties in Bertram, northwest of Austin, now offers custom-built models ranging from 18 feet to 48 feet accommodating from 30 to 450 singers or more. Packages cost from $12,000 to nearly $100,000, but according to the company website some churches cover the initial cost with free-will offerings within two years.

Jeffrey Smith, who purchased the company in 2003, said he hasn’t seen any downturn in business due to the economy.

“Ninety percent of our trees this year are replacement trees,” Smith said.

Smith said he just finished putting a tree stage up in Knoxville, Tenn., in a church that has been performing a Living Christmas Tree for 35 years, but just now is upgrading from a wooden stage to steel.

A church in Bradenton, Fla., he said, had one tree taken down and replaced it with two. A church in Ormond Beach, Fla., is considering purchase of a 60-foot tree to go outdoors on the beach, possibly in 2009.

In addition to its impact on the community, Orton said the Living Christmas Tree also is important in the life of the church.

In addition to a chorus and orchestra more than 200 strong, he said, the program involves a wide cross-section of the congregation, from construction workers, technical people and decorators to car parkers. This year’s program also features the church’s children’s choirs.

“I am praying that the impact of the 2008 Living Christmas Tree is significant and eternal,” Orton said.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.—It’s time to “Unplug the Christmas machine,” states a book with the same title by Jo Robinson and Jean Coppock Staeheli. And members of First Baptist Church in Jefferson City, Mo., are challenged to do just that.

Simple Christmas, the church’s Advent theme, is a plan to “take back Christmas,” so it isn’t driven by consumerism, commercials or the material, Pastor Doyle Sager said.

“It’s to help place the focus on the spiritual meaning, to be set free. The things that mean the most don’t cost anything.”

The idea for the churchwide emphasis began last October at a Central Baptist Theological Seminary Advent planning workshop. Holly McKissick, senior pastor at St. Andrew Christian Church in Olathe, Kan., led a breakout session on simplifying Christmas.

Sager and his wife, Janet, had been leading their own extended families to simplify gift-giving, from adopting families in need to gifts to charitable organizations in honor of the recipient.

As he toyed with the ideas McKissick presented, Sager knew he wanted to bring it to the church. “I told the staff, ‘I already have the Advent ’08 theme,’” he said.

Why is a simple Christmas necessary? “It’s about focusing on the real meaning of Christmas,” said Laurel Dunwoody, the church’s administrator.

“So many are at the stage where they don’t really need anything,” Sager said.

Children admire a life-size Nativity Scene at First Baptist Church in Jefferson City, Mo.

“Instead of feeling guilty for buying things no one needs,” share a more relational holiday and give funds to people and organizations that can use them.

Plans started long before the economic downturn, he added.

“It made us look genius, but it is really the Lord at work,” he said.

The church featured a “Christmas Made Simple as ABC” event to give members an opportunity to make Christmas gifts and collect a recipe book of gift, gift-wrapping and food ideas. According to Dunwoody, more than 90 people attended, including 33 children.

Some of the thoughts garnered from Unplug the Christmas Machine emphasize thinking through favorite Christmas memories from years past, and finding ways to create similar memories for children.

Taking back Christmas for its orginal meaning involves creating new family traditions.

Very rarely are those memories material gifts, Sager said. Instead, it’s “the year we got snowed in” or “the time a homeless man intruded at church and didn’t have anywhere to go, so we invited him home.”

Sager recognizes simplifying the season and focusing on the meaning of Advent is counter-cultural.

“It is a challenge, and it is countering the culture if we do it right—rather than raging (over a so-called war on Christmas), do positive things,” he said. “People love rituals and simplicity. The church has an open door if it stops complaining and whining. We have a responsibility of stewardship to take back holy days, to redeem time.”

Sager will address simplicity from the pulpit during Advent, focusing on “simple justice,” “simple holiness” and “simple humility.”

The church also has created a website—simplechristmas.org—with resources on simplifying the season, including alternative Christmas gifts, a budget sheet and links to other helpful sites.

“The website is simple—and purposefully so,” Dunwoody said.

The church will continue to maintain the website with new resources, links and personal stories beyond Christmas.

And the church will continue the emphasis next year, Sager added.

WASHINGTON (RNS)—Analysis of exit polls dissecting Barack Obama’s historic presidential victory indicates the “God gap” dividing American politics remains in place, but Obama fashioned a victory by significantly narrowing it nearly everywhere—among those who worship frequently and those who don’t.

The so-called “God gap” is this: People who attend worship more frequently tend to vote Republican; less frequent attenders and non-attenders tend to vote Democratic.

That was vividly on display in 2004, when President Bush defeated Sen. John Kerry with huge support from churchgoing Catholics and evangelicals.

Now, that’s less true than before.

Overall, the one-quarter of the electorate who go to church weekly or more still preferred Republican John McCain 55 percent to 43 percent, according to exit polls cited by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public.

But that’s only a sliver of the population. And as in 2004, Democratic preference in 2008 grew as worship became less frequent.

For example, while McCain led among those worshipping weekly, the 15 percent who attend services a few times a month preferred Obama by a 7-point margin. That grew to 19 points among those worshipping “a few times a year” (about 28 percent of the electorate) and to 37 points among the 16 percent who said they never attend a house of worship, according to the Pew data.

But significantly, Obama did better than Kerry among all those groups—even among the weekly worshippers he didn’t win outright.

For example, while McCain enjoyed a 12-point lead among weekly worshippers, Bush’s lead was 17 points four years ago, according to the Pew data.

Analysts pointed out two major reasons for the shift:

• Most important, perhaps, voters said their decision-making was dominated by economics, not cultural issues with strong religious dimensions such as abortion and same-sex marriage that were so important in 2004.

• Moreover, Obama worked harder than Kerry in reaching out to faith groups; he also won some hearts in faith communities by speaking about faith in his own life more fluently than Kerry did.

Within religious affiliations, Obama won over Catholics and made inroads among Protestants compared with 2004. He even made a measurable dent among white evangelical Christians, the religious group least disposed to him overall.

Catholics, with a little more than a quarter of the vote, swung from favoring Bush by 5 percentage points in 2004 to favoring Obama by 9 percentage points in 2008, according to the Pew data.

This came in the face of scores of Catholic bishops’ outspoken opposition to Obama’s abortion-rights position.

Some bishops were memorably blunt, such as Bishop Joseph Martino, of Vice President-elect Joe Biden’s hometown of Scranton, Pa., who told his people: “Being ‘right’ on taxes, education, health care, immigration and the economy fails to make up for the error of disregarding the value of a human life.”

Catholic preference appeared to be driven by solidarity among African-American and Hispanic Catholics, who preferred Obama so strongly that they trumped white Catholics’ 5-percentage-point preference for McCain.

Moreover, while white Catholics stayed Republican, Obama peeled off a chunk. The 5-point win for McCain had been a 13-point win for Bush in ’04.

Meanwhile, Protestants of all stripes, who make up 54 percent of the electorate, favored McCain by a margin of 9 percentage points—but again, the Republican lead was much larger four years ago, at 19 points.

People who described themselves as born-again evangelicals, presumably energized by the vice-presidential candidacy of Sarah Palin, were firmly behind McCain by a huge margin of 47 percentage points.

But there again, evangelical support for Republicans was wider four years ago, at 58 points.

The Pew Forum’s John Green, one of the country’s most respected analysts of religious voting behavior, noted much of Obama’s improved performance among both Catholics and Protestants appeared to come from black and Hispanic voters, supplemented by white voters.

“This is a coalition that includes white Christians,” he said. “It’s just that white Christians aren’t the senior partners.”

WASHINGTON (RNS)—Washington National Cathedral has announced dramatic cuts to its budget, programs and staff as the faltering economy continues to hit religious institutions nationwide.

The landmark cathedral, which welcomes nearly 700,000 visitors a year and has hosted the state funerals of three presidents, will slash its budget by 40 percent next year, from $24 million to $14.4 million.

More than 40 staffers will be laid off, retail operations at the cathedral’s gift shop will be outsourced and the Cathedral College’s residential course offerings will cease at the end of next March, according to the cathedral officials.

“Like many other institutions around the world, Washington National Cathedral has been affected by the serious downturn in the financial market,” said Samuel Lloyd III, the cathedral’s dean.

Last spring, the cathedral’s endowment was valued at $66 million, but has since declined by about 25 percent, said Michael Hill, the cathedral’s executive director for external relations. In May, the cathedral cut $3.5 million from its budget by firing 33 employees and closing its greenhouse.

The cathedral, which celebrated its centenary this year, regularly hosts high-profile guests, concerts and events—such as the memorial service after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and the 2006 installation of Episcopal Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori.

However, the huge Gothic cathedral is not supported financially by the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, the national Episcopal Church or the federal government. The endowment, private donations and revenue from events fund its budget, Hill said.

“Serving as the nation’s church and as a place of prayer and spiritual renewal is a significant responsibility,” Lloyd said. “And we are committed to being conscientious stewards of this revered cathedral building.”

WASHINGTON (RNS)—People of faith from more than 40 states gathered in front of the Department of Treasury to pray for Secretary Henry Paulson and members of Congress to put an end to the home foreclosure crisis.

PICO, a national network of faith-based community organizations that helps provide affordable housing, is demanding that the Treasury require all banks receiving a chunk of the federal bailout package to adopt systematic loan modifications that could keep 2 million people from losing their homes, network leaders said.

“We want them to look at the bigger picture. Don’t just look at Wall Street; look at Main Street. Look at the man next door who is working hard and really paying taxes,” said Marvin Webb, assistant pastor of Peniel Full Gospel Baptist Church in El Sobrante, Calif. “We are asking the secretary and Congress to keep people in their homes.”

Representatives from cities hard-hit by the crisis held signs displaying the number of people facing foreclosures, while people who have lost their homes gave personal accounts. Webb prayed between each testimony.

“Remove the veil between the people of this nation and the people in authority. Pierce the veil of Secretary Paulson and Congress and move in their hearts today,” Webb prayed, while the crowd shouted, “Wake up! Wake up, Secretary Paulson!”

In the coming weeks, PICO will hold public negotiations with officials in cities where foreclosure numbers are high. They plan to meet with House Financial Services Committee Chairman Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass, and aides to President-elect Obama to ask for their help in keeping people in their homes.

Demonstrators delivered a letter signed by more than 500 clergy to Paulson, asking him to end the foreclosure crisis.

“We want them to see the faces of people who are distressed. We want them to take the power they have and adjust loans and mortgages so people can stay in their houses” Webb said.

AKRON, Ohio (RNS)—Casey Hennacy went to the House of the Lord Church in Akron, Ohio, last year looking for repentance.

But the mercy she sought was from the law, not the Lord. The 20-year-old woman, wanted on three felony drug and theft warrants, was five months pregnant and didn’t want to give birth behind bars only to have the baby taken away.

She cried as she made her way into the church, which had been turned into a makeshift courthouse by the Fugitive Safe Surrender program. Safe Surrender, launched in Cleveland in 2005 before spreading to other cities, provided Hennacy with a safe setting to right her wrongs.

“I wouldn’t have turned myself in if it wasn’t at a church,” Hennacy said from her home in Akron, where she lives with her 6-month-old son, Skylor Mikal McLaughlin.

A new study by Kent State University researchers sheds light on what led Hennacy and other former fugitives to stop running.

Of the thousands of people who participated in the program in cities across the country, roughly 80 percent said having the site at a church played an important role in their decisions to give up hiding.

The study, based partly on exit surveys with the fugitives in seven cities, supports what community leaders already have said: Fugitive Safe Surrender works.

The findings also disclose the troubles fugitives faced while running from the law.

Fugitives had difficulties finding jobs and seeking college degrees. Fifty-one percent didn’t work at a job with a paycheck. Fifty-three percent graduated from high school, but only 16 percent had anything more than that.

Some surrendered because they wanted to start over or wanted to get a driver’s license. Others needed treatment for drug or alcohol abuse, wanted to get a job, feared getting arrested or felt pressure from family. Some did it for their children or for religious reasons.

Almost half the fugitives, including Hennacy, didn’t know what would happen to them at the church. Some thought the program was a trick and feared they would be arrested without getting the help they sought.

“I turned around at the door quite a few times and cried a lot before I went in,” Hennacy said. “But once inside, I felt safe going through the process.”

Most non-violent 

Most of the fugitives were nonviolent offenders, but a few were wanted for murder, rape, robbery or attempted murder. They consulted with public defenders and had hearings before judges in the church.

At the sites, some were sent to jail, other had charges dropped, and some were given later court dates.

In court, a judge gave Hennacy a year of probation for her felony charges of aggravated possession of drugs, obstruction of official police business and theft of drugs. Her probation ended in August, and she attended six months of drug counseling.

Fugitive Safe Surrender was launched in August 2005 at Mount Sinai Baptist Church in Cleveland, where about 850 fugitives participated, including 324 felony suspects. A $16 million federal grant helped spread the program to eight other cities.

In June, a record 6,587 fugitives surrendered in Detroit’s four-day endeavor. Program directors had anticipated 1,500 people would attend.

In all, 16,000 cases have been resolved in nine cities.

Saves lives 

U.S. Marshall Pete Elliott of Cleveland helped conceive the program. Aside from the statistics, he said, the program’s success also should be evidenced by a concept impossible to quantify—the number of police officers’ lives saved.

“For every person who surrenders, that’s one less confrontation law enforcement has to have on the streets,” he said.

In 2000, Cleveland police officer Wayne Leon was shot to death while trying to arrest a man wanted for a parole violation. The incident inspired Elliott, minister Jay Matthews and former Assistant Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Douglas Weiner to create Fugitive Safe Surrender. They sought a way for people to turn themselves in without having a violent showdown with police.

“We’re taking the desperation out,” Elliott added. “And you can’t measure that.”

One of the main barometers for gauging the program’s effectiveness is the number of people who “actually appear on their scheduled return to court dates,” Kent State University professors Daniel Flannery and Eric Jefferis and projects director Jeffrey Kretschmar wrote in the study.

Between 82 percent and 98 percent of the fugitives given follow-up court dates showed up, depending on the city. And 63 percent brought relatives.

“It’s not always a fugitive that makes the decision to surrender,” said Elliott, who has been to all of the sites in the nine cities. “It’s the family members’ influence. I’ve seen people who have been wanted for days and people who have been wanted for 15 years, and it affects everybody around them, not just themselves.”

Hennacy brought her dad, Steven, with her. There was an arrest warrant out for him, too, for a contempt of court charge, and she said he was able to find a job and rebuild his life.

“I want everyone to know there’s another way,” said Hennacy. “They can start over and have their life back without having to worry about looking over their shoulder and getting caught.”

–Brian Anthony Hernandez writes for The Plain Dealer in Cleveland.

DECATUR, Ala. (RNS) —Pastor Doug Ripley looked at Decatur Baptist Church’s books and quickly realized the annual budget was totally out of whack.

But he knew exactly what to do next. He gave away $10,000.

“August and September were two of our biggest financial months,” said Ripley. “We were $13,000 over.”

So, he packaged $10,000 in envelopes of $5, $10, $20 and a few $100 bills and put the piles of envelopes into the offering baskets. He included directions: Use the money to bless someone else.

Richard and Dara Cobb took the money they received from Decatur Baptist Church and pooled it with others to fix a neighborhood boy’s bike. (RNS PHOTO/Kay Campbell/The Huntsville Times)

Recipients could not return it to the offering plate. And they had to report what happened. It was a lengthy offeratory.

“People felt so uncomfortable, reaching into the same basket they put money in,” Ripley said. “And you multiply that moment of hesitation by every person, and it took several minutes to pass out.”

Decatur Baptist is known for its mission work, both locally and around the world. Traveling to places of deep poverty in the world has changed the hearts of the members, church leaders stressed.

Handing members a visible representation of how dollar bills can become tools to help other people energized the church, Ripley said.

Some members knew exactly how they would use their money. Others prayed for a week or more. Some found a simple gesture, such as taking flowers to an elderly woman, put them into a situation of helping with their time and presence in other ways.

Many members pooled their money with family members to make one big gesture—helping someone with medical bills, buying baskets of groceries for the community food pantry, sending a gift directly to missionaries, helping a teacher buy workbooks or school supplies for a poor child.

And most recipients added dollars to the money they’d received in their envelopes. One teenager went house-to-house to begin a collection to help buy a cow for a girl in Africa whom she has been sponsoring with her own money.

The testimonies of the adventures of generosity fill page after page on the church’s website, www.DecaturBaptist.org.

“For most, the money in that envelope was a drop in the bucket,” Ripley said.

Richard and Dara Cobb are among the Decatur Baptist members who took their envelopes home to pray over. Home for the Cobbs is in one of the economically mixed areas of Decatur—a place they intentionally chose when they married a few years ago because they wanted to live near people who needed their help.

In the area where they lived previously, Mrs. Cobb said: “We didn’t have a chance to interact with people who really need anything. Here, there are some people struggling. There are drug dealers, prostitutes. This is a safe house.”

When the Cobbs opened their envelopes, they each found $5. And they each had the same idea: They would fix a bike for a neighborhood boy.

But if they fixed the boy’s bike, they realized they would need to fix his brother’s, too. Some friends heard about their plan and contributed their money so the boys could each have a safety helmet.

Still, even with the addition, the math didn’t add up. Reconditioning bikes and buying helmets came to much more than $40. But God doesn’t balance books the way humans do, Cobb said. “When you give, it comes back to you,” he said.

His wife added: “Brother Doug is always telling us, ‘God will give more through you than to you.’”

The joy she saw on the boy’s face when he examined his bicycle once it had new handgrips, a new tire, a kickstand, and other improvements was more than repayment for their investment.

“Why would your church do this for my brother and me?” he asked Mrs. Cobb. “I love your church.”

Spreading love is what Christians are supposed to do, Ripley said. Human beings are meant to be a channel, not a reservoir, of divine grace.

“When we give, it unleashes God to prove how great he is—that he will open the windows of heaven and pour out his blessings,” he said.

Money demands attention—particularly in challenging economic times. Rich or poor, people think about it daily, whether paying for a hamburger or praying for a job.

Lives can change quickly and drastically as a result of a few critical financial decisions. Many people live on the brink of poverty, even though some may not realize it. The loss of a job can instantly cripple a family already burdened with the high cost of living.

Dave Ramsey, creator of Financial Peace University, and Howard Dayton, cofounder of Crown Financial Ministries, both name the Bible as their primary resource for financial advice and base their money- management programs in Scripture.

Dayton insists more than 2,000 Scripture verses concern money. Using the Bible for instruction on financial management seems like a no-brainer to Ramsey.

“It works, if you bother,” Ramsey said. “It’s worth studying … to learn what God says about money and then start doing it, because it works.”

But which verses? The ones about wealth and prosperity as part of a life with God? What about Jesus’ instruction to the rich young man to sell all he owns? The message seems contradictory to some Christians.

These questions and others complicate decisions Christians make about how to manage resources in a way that honors God and the gospel of Christ. Most churches agree the Bible instructs believers to give a 10 percent tithe of their incomes.

Jim Denison, pastor of Park Cities Baptist Church in Dallas, said that’s a “basic biblical minimum” for learning how to give sacrificially.

“C.S. Lewis said in Mere Christianity, ‘We must give more than we can spare.’ Sacrifice is part of the Christian life. … It’s the only safe rule,” Denison said.

“For some people in our church, giving 10 percent to the church wouldn’t be anything close to a sacrifice. For others, it’s nearly impossible.”

Author and speaker Tony Campolo, founder of the Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education, also affirmed that giving biblically has to be more holistic than the traditional tithe requires. He quoted John Wesley, who said, “Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can.”

Although a 10 percent tithe gives Christians a baseline standard, many people struggle with handling the other 90 percent of their money, Dayton said. Managing resources—not just finances, but time, talents and assets—requires discernment and a surrendered heart.

More than 2,000 Scripture verses concern money.

interpretation of the passage. “The accumulation of wealth is permissible if you go into the Old Testament. In the New Testament, we have some real problems with the accumulation of wealth.

“Wealth can do things to people. … It alters the way you see the world. … I don’t think we realize the impact wealth has on us and on our spiritual lives. People who visit the poor … are amazed at the depths of their spirituality. Maybe the depth of their spirituality is because they are poor.”

Though Campolo explained he did not consider poverty or wealth conditions for salvation, he expressed skepticism about maintaining wealth in Christian life.

Ramsey disagreed.

“If you take (the story) as an indictment of the rich, then you’d have to say no rich people ever went to heaven,” he said.

“The idea that we’re not supposed to manage money—lots of it—is crazy. But God does also call people to poverty. You find people on all points of the spectrum who are walking with God.”

Denison noted that Jesus answers the basic question, “What must I do to be saved?” differently with Nicodemus. And the wealthy Joseph of Arimathea holds a prominent and positive role in the gospel story.

“The passage teaches us that if money is our god, it must be sacrificed,” Denison said.

Money, or lack thereof, won’t guarantee salvation, leaders said. Even though possessing money isn’t sinful, managing it takes caution.

Darin Petersen works with Shane Claiborne, author of Irresistible Revolution and founder of The Simple Way community, to experiment with ways Christians can share resources and support one another spiritually and financially.

“Wealth can give you a sense of independence and a sense of self-sufficiency to where you are no longer living in a community of interdependency,” Petersen said.

Petersen and Claiborne cofounded Relational Tithe, a community network that developed from conversations about responsibly handling resources. Relational Tithe is an economically diverse Christian community of 35 people who tithe 10 percent of their resources to a community fund and redistribute it among themselves according to need.

Relational Tithe also networks hundreds of similar groups to share experiences and new ideas, and they’re working to develop technological tools to “enhance the process of redistribution” and help groups in collaboration.

The community encourages “a healthy understanding of a theology of ‘enough,’” Petersen said.

“There are people who live in excess when there are so many who are living without. … Throughout the gospels (Jesus) is redefining what we mean by the word ‘our’ and the understanding of what is ‘ours.’”

Relationships are central to the community’s resource management process.

“There’s no more than one degree of separation between the recipient and the giver,” Petersen said. “It’s not that the rich and poor no longer care about one another; it’s that they don’t know one another. We’re trying to create a place where people can know one another.”

To honor God with resources, Christians must become creative and intentional. Josh Patterson, executive pastor at The Village Church in Highland Village, talks about managing resources with respect to how Christians reflect the image of God.

“When I think about giving, I think of it as an aspect of sanctification,” Patterson said.

“As I’m transformed into the image of Christ, my stuff becomes less and less important to me, and I recognize it as a tool. … Scripture says that the believer’s heart is to mirror that of the Father, who has a very generous heart. Giving is motivated by grace, not by guilt.”

One way Petersen challenges congregations to give creatively is to put a limit on how much money in offerings goes to the church itself. Money received above that limit is distributed to the poor. When churches have tried the method, the result is astounding, Petersen said.

“Giving goes through the roof, because people’s imaginations are sparked,” he observed. “It really starts to challenge people’s ideas of needs and wants.”

Christian musician Chris Tomlin agrees that seeing first-hand the results of giving to ministries that help poor people is incredible.

“When you see it with your eyes … you meet them and you touch them, and you realize your little $30 a month is going toward pills that keep them alive, and schooling and food. … It’s amazing,” Tomlin said.

Entering into conversation about finances takes courage; in most circumstances, and especially in the United States, people are loath to discuss financial success and struggles alike. In the church, however, opening dialogue about money can help solidify community through vulnerability and support, just as Christians are encouraged to do with their spiritual lives.

Sometimes, all it takes is a little humility and a step of faith. For Patterson, seeking financial advice provided the groundwork for new avenues of ministry.

“That was invaluable,” for his family, he said. “Now we have an understanding of our finances, so we’re able to more intentionally and purposefully give. … Now we have the opportunity to teach others” about financial management.

“It can be very daunting. … People shy away from talking about it, but it’s a part of the church. We’re called not to put up pretense, but to let our guards down and be vulnerable to change.”

Feds say hunger rose in 2007. Hunger in America continued to increase last year, and participation in the food-stamp program is approaching record highs, according to data released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In 2007, 11.1 percent of U.S. households reported food insecurity, up from 10.9 percent in 2006. About 4 percent of households were severely food insecure, meaning one or more adults had to adjust their eating habits because the household lacked resources for food. The food stamp program now has more than 30 million people enrolled, an increase of 9.5 percent from 2006, and half of all babies receive supplemental nutrition from the Women, Infants and Children program, according to the report. “Even before this year’s severe economic downturn, more households were struggling to put food on the table,” said David Beckmann, president of the anti-hunger group Bread for the World. “As the crisis continues, federal nutrition programs are working overtime to keep up with the need.”

Fort Worth diocese leaves Episcopal Church. The Diocese of Fort Worth became the fourth to secede from the Episcopal Church when delegates voted to align with a more conservative branch of the Anglican Communion. Nearly 80 percent of clergy and lay delegates from the North Texas diocese voted to join a conservative Argentina-based Anglican body. Since last December, the dioceses of San Joaquin, Calif., Pittsburgh, and Quincy, Ill., also have left the Episcopal Church to join the Argentine group. The Episcopal Church, which has about 2 million members, is the U.S. branch of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Fort Worth and Quincy are the only two of the Episcopal Church’s 110 dioceses that do not allow women to be ordained. Fort Worth also disagreed with the national church on the blessing of same-sex unions, as well as the 2003 consecration of an openly homosexual man as bishop of New Hampshire. Five of the Fort Worth diocese’s 56 congregations and an estimated 4,000 of its 19,000 members will remain with the church, according to church officials. A legal battle over ownership of church property is expected.

Focus on the Family cuts workforce. Focus on the Family will reduce its staff by about 200 positions, citing economic conditions. The staff reductions, which will decrease the number of employees from about 1,150 to about 950, include 149 people whose positions will be eliminated and 53 vacant positions that will be cut. The ministry founded by religious broadcaster James Dobson also will stop publishing four of its eight magazines. The Colorado Springs, Colo.-based ministry encountered a $5 million shortfall on its $151 million budget in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, Focus spokesman Gary Schneeberger said. Donations provide 95 percent of the ministry’s income. Earlier this fall, the ministry cut 46 other staff positions by outsourcing the department that filled orders and distributed books. All of the current changes are related to Focus on the Family, Schneeberger said, and not its political arm, Focus on the Family Action.

HAZEL GREEN, Ala. (RNS) —Randy Boehmer’s ministry is powered by mule, sun and the Son of God.

“I’m here for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. And I’m trying to convince people who do not read their Bibles to read them,” Boehmer said on a recent Saturday morning as he moved around his covered wagon rigs to feed his four Belgian draft mules. Signs painted onto the canvas cover of his wagons proclaim: “Jesus saves. Ask him.”

He lives on a tight schedule, he said, smiling underneath a ginger-and-white mustache.

“I have to be where it is warm in winter and cool in summertime,” he said.

Boehmer has been on the road full-time since April Fools’ Day this year. He stopped in Hazel Green, Ala., on his southward journey to give his mules a Sabbath rest and get a new inner tube for a wheel on the wagon that hauls his water barrels.

Most days, when he isn’t sitting on the bass boat swivel chair inside his wagon, driving his four mules at about 4 mph down the road, he answers questions of the many visitors who come up to his rig. Their questions give him a chance to testify for Jesus and ask them if they are saved.

“I’m planting seeds,” he said.

His own story is simple, Boehmer said. Until he hit the road, he lived in Arizona, where he spent long days working as a taxidermist. His parents died in 1991. His sister told him and his brother, when they went to clear out his parents’ home, to take what they wanted and haul the rest to the dump.

“I told (my brother) Vern, ‘I should travel the U.S. in a covered wagon and tell people about God, because there has got to be more to life than all these things that aren’t worth anything but dumping,’” Boehmer said.

When his wife died in 1998 of cancer, he found himself wondering more about eternal matters. But he wasn’t moved to open the door to Jesus until the winter of 1999, he said. He had snapped his Achilles’ tendon working on rope tricks, and his leg was in a cast to his thigh. To get wood for his stove, he would crawl to the woodpile. He remembers lying on the ground during subfreezing weather, exhausted and dirty.

“I cried out to God,” Boehmer said. “That was when I completely, 100 percent, submitted to God. I realized I couldn’t take care of myself anymore.”

God’s care is a daily fact in his life now, he said.

Solar panels on top of the wagon he built himself power a lamp for use inside. He has a tiny wood-burning stove and a gas grill for cooking. A car battery charges the electric-tape fence he stakes out to keep his mules in at night.

And although he has money from the small stipend his church in Arizona provides, people have a habit of showing up with just what he needs, just when he needs it, he said. They show up with food for him or his animals, or offer to fetch a part or supplies.

“A man brought me four bales of Timothy hay yesterday, and said God had laid it on his heart,” Boehmer said. “Somehow, God speaks to people.”