Posted: 7/21/06

Clergy, laity see windfall differently

By Preetom Bhattacharya

Religion News Service

WASHINGTON (RNS)—A survey of Protestant ministers and churchgoers shows significant differences in the ways the groups would spend an unexpected surge in income in their churches.

The top priority for ministers was to improve church facilities. About half as many laypeople agreed, but they also would want to retire church debt and help the needy.

The studies, conducted by Ellison Research, compared responses to companion surveys of 504 Protestant pastors and 1,184 congregants who attend church at least once per month.

The survey found 31 percent of pastors would spend a “sudden financial windfall” on buildings or facilities, compared to 17 percent of lay people.

Ron Sellers, president of Ellison Research, said the differing priorities reflect perspective, with “the typical layperson (having) very little idea of what it takes to run a ministry, and ministers sometimes (losing) sight of what’s important to people in the congregation.”

Published in the a recent edition of Facts & Trends, a magazine produced by the Southern Baptist Convention’s LifeWay Christian Resources, the study provided options for ministers and churchgoers to select their priorities for spending a sudden swell in the budget.

The choices included spending money on building/expanding /updating facilities, increasing evangelism activities, paying off debt, adding staff members and increasing social programs, such as for homeless outreach.

Eighteen percent of churchgoers and 12 percent of ministers chose paying off debts as a main concern. Laity and clergy from larger churches were more likely to stress this than those from small or medium-sized churches.

Spending on social programs was a priority for 18 percent of laity but just 6 percent of pastors.

Evangelism was identified as a primary concern for both groups, with 26 percent of clergy and 25 percent of laity saying money should go toward those efforts. However, pastors leaned toward focusing evangelism on the local community (16 percent) over international (7 percent) or domestic programs (3 percent). Laity were equally divided among the three, with 8 percent favoring community evangelism, 8 percent foreign and 9 percent domestic.

“Each group probably needs to understand the priorities of the other group more clearly,” Sellers said.

The survey also concluded only 1 percent of ministers would raise staff pay or benefits. Sellers noted “virtually all ministers are thinking first about their church, their community or the world at large before their own needs.”

The survey carried a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points for clergy and plus or minus 2.7 percentage points for laity.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/21/06

Susan Womack cares for the children of one-time children she has served during her 32-year tenure as minister of preschool education at Tallowood Baptist Church in Houston.

Another generation grows
in faith under Womack’s care

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

HOUSTON—Six-year-old Zoe couldn’t contain herself. She had made what she believed to be the most important decision of her life and had to tell someone.

When she saw “Mrs. Susan and Mr. Joe” down the street, she took off in a full sprint. Zoe told them how she prayed that Jesus would come in her life and how she knew Christ was her Savior.

The scene seemed familiar to her mother and to Susan Womack, minister of preschool education at Tallowood Baptist Church. Nearly 30 years ago, Zoe’s mother toddled under Womack’s watch.

The preschool education ministry at Tallowood Baptist Church in Houston focuses on creating a positive environment where children can learn about the Bible.

“She and her husband, Joe, have been very special friends to our family,” Zoe’s mother said. “They’ve taken a special interest in our children, especially because we are neighbors.”

Zoe is one of several second-generation children to whom Womack is ministering—offspring of one-time children she has served during her 32-year tenure at Tallowood Baptist Church. She continues to see the fruit of her ministry as she watches adults help their children grow into faith in Christ.

“I’m overwhelmed,” Womack said. “I’m humbled. God is so good, and to think, he would use me. I am just overwhelmed he would use me in such a wonderful way and for me to love and make a difference in so many people’s lives.

“It’s just such a privilege to see this next generation grow up and see God be faithful to what we are doing here.”

The church has grown, generations have changed and life became busier for most people, but Womack said her calling and how she carries it out have remained the same. She aims to lay a foundation for faith.

“Ministry itself has not changed that much,” she said. “We continue to provide good Bible teaching for the children. That’s our emphasis—providing a biblical foundation for the children’s lives.”

But the children’s ministry at Tallowood is more than teaching, Zoe’s mother said. Womack goes out of her way to make sure each feels like he or she is cared for at church. Zoe has severe allergies that restrict what she can eat. Womack changed the snacks in all the children’s rooms to accommodate her.

When Zoe told Womack and her husband, Joe, about her decision to follow Christ, the couple celebrated with her. Later, they gave her a cross to help her remember the choice she made.

This kind of individual attention to each child helps children understand God loves them, Zoe’s mother said. Young people learn about the Bible in nurturing surroundings.

“Loving those children and providing an environment where they can learn about Jesus is her life,” she said.

Womack also serves families. She is present shortly after many births. She is there for baby dedications. She talks with parents each week as they raise their children. Womack helps adults understand how churches can help parents develop their children spiritually.

“When you minister to the children, you minister to the family,” Zoe’s mother said. “When you meet the needs of the children, you meet the needs of parents.”

Because of Womack’s ministry, Tallowood is a special place for Zoe and her family, including her younger brother, Elijah.

“It’s home for my children,” her mother said. “They love Tallowood. It’s their second home.”

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Storylist for week of 7/24/06

TAKE ME TO: Top Story |  Texas |  Opinion |  Baptists |  Faith in Action |  Faith & Culture |  Book Reviews |  Classifieds  |  Departments  |  Bible Study




• Missionaries reported safe in Lebanon, as national Baptists take in refugees

• House passes bill to protect San Diego cross monument

• Ban on same-sex marriage fails in House

• 'Pledge Protection Bill' passes House

• Bush vetoes bill to expand embryonic stem-cell research



• To see the face of AIDS in Africa, take a look at Susan


• To see the face of AIDS in Africa, take a look at Susan

• African leaders look to Buckner as ally in war on AIDS

• Despite the danger, 'closed' countries lure Christians

• In crisis, churches unprepared for dealing with media

• Burgi home bubbles with boys after 1st BCFS adoption

• Churches must be 'irresistible influence' in community

• On your mark, get set: 'Run & tell'

• Another generation grows in faith under Womack's care

• Technician's speed spares Baptist Memorials resident

• Students' All-State music echoes through 3 decades

• Impact of Million More in '54 echoes across 5 decades

• VBS 'makeover' puts children to work

• Sweatsuits & socks could warm injured combat 'eagles'

• Texas Tidbits

• On the Move

• Around the State


• Baptist Briefs


• 'Fear of God enables him to fear no man'


• Is decency 'left behind' in video game?

• Americans back off values legislation

• Clergy, laity see windfall differently


• Book Reviews


• Around the State

• On the Move

• Texas Baptist Forum

• Classified Ads

• Cartoon


• EDITORIAL: 'Best person available' has character

• DOWN HOME: Centennial memory; Popo would be 100

• TOGETHER: Next generation deserves investment

• 2nd Opinion: Moderates, evangelicals together

• Right or Wrong? Hospitality to Strangers

• Texas Baptist Forum

• Cybercolumn By John Duncan: Dreams


• BaptistWay Bible Series for July 23: Living with single-minded purpose

• Family Bible Series for July 23: God's provision is bountiful and continuous

• Explore the Bible Series for July 23: Our understanding of God's ways is limited

• BaptistWay Bible Series for July 30: Paul provides Timothy with direction for living

• Family Bible Series for July 30: Pleasing God begins with desiring to obey him

• Explore the Bible Series for July 30: The meaning of life cannot be found in pursuits


Previously Posted
• If they can quit fighting, anyone can

• BWA shows Baptists' 'essential unity'

• Bell decides not to seek 2nd BGCT term

• African-American leader Evans elevates focus on church

• Russian siblings to be separated if families don't adopt

• My Father's House offers a safe home for a fresh start

• Flip-flops provide perfect fit for foreign AIDS orphans

• DeFoores long way from Abilene as 'Texas Envoys' to Afghanistan


• See complete list of articles from our 7/10/ 2006 issue here.

Posted: 7/21/06

CYBER COLUMN:
Dreams

By John Duncan

I’m sitting here under the old oak tree, pondering the dog days of summer. Recently, I heard of man who had a dog named Dreams. Family members uttered with a wry smile the dog’s name and how much the man loved his dog. After all, a dog is a man’s best friend, so it goes.

The whole thought of dreams left me wondering, was the man’s dog named for dreams, you know, “dreams,” the hopes, plans, visions and future wishes that with hard work or dumb luck or shear charisma might come true? Or was the man thinking of bleary-eyed video reels in the brain that awaken you in your sleep then cause you to smile or create restless, heart-pounding nights by scaring you out of your pajamas?

John Duncan

In the 21st century leaders on every corner talk about the concept of a dream. They will say glorious words about vision statements, mission statements and the importance of a clearly defined purpose or what it is you seek to accomplish or your stated goals for the company, the school, the church or even your life. The Lord knows we have heard the words “purpose-driven” until our eyes pop out of our heads like the annoying sound of a false fire alarm that rattles your brain, heightens your senses, but cannot be shut off. Purpose, I suppose, is necessary like a fire alarm, but like a fire alarm, at some point you have to move on, get out of the building, find out what really happened, put out the fire and actively and safely move on with life. A dream, vision and mission are only good when action results.

Since this is a cybercolumn for church leaders, I should add that every church needs a dream, a vision, a mission and purpose statements. Rick Warren was right. We need purpose-driven churches and a purpose-driven life. Long before Rick Warren, whom I respect, the wisdom writer of Proverbs spun his front-porch wisdom, “Where there is no vision, the people perish” (Proverbs 29:18). The Hebrew idea is that no vision leads to “no restraint,” chaos, pandemonium and stuff out of control, like destructive winds during a storm. Lord knows we understand chaos. Lord knows we have enough chaos in our churches. That is why dreams, vision, mission and purpose are good for churches.

Christian leaders, though, must realize that trying to define purpose all the time and not getting your feet moving in action kills a church. As a Christian, the Christ of Philippians 2:5-11 serves as a good model, as one to help you live in God’s purpose. Since Christ is our vision, or dream if you will, then most of the people I know, beginning with me, have a ways to go. You can name Matthew 28:19-20 as your church’s dream for reaching a lost world, but at some point, you have to go into the world to talk to them and engage them. That is action. Everybody needs a dream that spurs meaningful, spiritual action that touches the kingdom of God and other people.

Where there is vision, the people flourish. Live your dreams, as they say. Go for your dreams. So, the dog’s name was Dreams, the best friend a man could own, a prize dog on the journey of life, a dog fit for a king or at least one that made his owner feel like one. Who knows but what the man thought that dog was the dog of any man’s dreams, faithful to lick him when he came home from work, friendly when no one else would say one word to him, and always present at his feet in those down-and-out times, responsible like a bird dog is for hunter when it comes time to fetch the prey.

Then I thought, maybe the man who named his dog Dreams pondered his own dreams. I guess we do this sometimes. I do not dream often. But recently, I dreamed I was driving a car backwards and into a body of water. The dream did not scare me, because I made it to land on a sunny day before I woke up. If an interpreter showed up, he probably would say it was stress in my life or that I would soon be traveling to England over a large body of water where they drive cars on the wrong side of the road and things seem backwards. I know, the interpretation does not make sense, but humor me here. Life can get confusing.

Imagine how wonderful the Bible is in its divine word, imaginative spark and purpose-driven-God-talk truth that we all need. The Bible, of all books, speaks of dreams and the interpretation of dreams. Joseph, in prison mind you before he became second in command in the politics of Egypt, had a dream that his brothers would all bow down to him. Joseph also interpreted dreams for a butcher, a baker but no candle-stick maker. Actually, a butler, not a butcher, but the butler was restored to his former glory, while the baker was beheaded. Either way, all of Joseph’s dreams came true: His brothers bowed down to him, the butler smiled again while answering a knock on the door, and the baker was butchered, hanged, never to smile again. So much for dreams.

You can check this out in your Bible, Abimelech dreamed, Laban dreamed, Jacob did, too, of ladders, Joseph dreamed in shock before the birth of Jesus, and you could argue that Paul dreamed when he was caught up the third heaven. Young men, the Bible says, have visions, old men dream dreams. Maybe my dream means I am getting older.

I’ve said all this to say that a man named his dog, Dreams. May your life be blessed with purpose. Live your dreams. Put God in your dreams. Who knows—you might one day be second in command in a kingdom or be restored to previous honor or write a book about a life of purpose or sing on American Idol or ride a victorious bike down the streets of Paris or graduate from college or tour Europe. Dream big, but do not forget God in your dreams.

That goes for you, me, churches, businesses, the high school football team and the Lion’s Club. And beware: A day comes for all when dreams die and can no longer be lived, a day of reckoning, hopefully, unlike the butchered baker whose dream came true.

For such a time, make sure that you know God, because whether you drive backwards into a body of water or build a big business or church or live your dreams or all your dreams come true, you still have to deal with God in the end. I always figured it’s best to make sure it is his light lighting the way in your dreams. And if none of this works, just get you a dog. Dreams might not be a bad name! Sweet dreams!

John Duncan is pastor of Lakeside Baptist Church in Granbury, Texas, and the writer of numerous articles in various journals and magazines. You can respond to his column by e-mailing him at jduncan@lakesidebc.org.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/21/06

Missionaries reported safe in Lebanon,
as national Baptists take in refugees

By Robert Marus

Associated Baptist Press

BEIRUT (ABP)—As United States Marines began evacuating Americans in earnest from a besieged Beirut late this week and U.S. Baptist groups reported their missionaries in the region safe, a Lebanese Baptist leader said his people’s suffering would seem “quite saddening and depressing” if he weren’t upheld by the power of prayer.

Nabil Costa, executive director of the Lebanese Society for Educational and Social Development, said Baptist communities in Beirut were relying on prayer to sustain them.

In a letter to friends of the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary, Costa, who directs the group that owns the seminary, the affiliated Beirut Baptist School and Arab Baptist news publications, wrote:

“Eyes half closed from fiercely interrupted sleep (if any) at the sounds of air raids and deafening bombs, we listen to the early-morning news before heading to work. Needless to say, what we see and hear could be quite saddening and depressing had it not been for our daily energizing prayer meetings at the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary. One starts us off in the morning, and the next helps us settle down following the challenges of tending to so many needs.”

"Needless to say, what we see and hear could be quite saddening and depressing had it not been for our daily energizing prayer meetings at the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary." –Nabil Costa, executive director of the Lebanese Society for Educational and Social Development

The schools are housing and providing humanitarian assistance to displaced Shiite Muslim families from the nation’s southern region, which has been hit hard by air strikes from Israeli forces since hostilities erupted July 12. As of July 18, Costa reported, more than 760 such refugees were staying at Beirut Baptist School, located near the seminary.

Lebanon’s heavily Shiite southern and eastern regions are hotbeds of support for Hezbollah, the Shiite political-militia group that sparked the conflict with a cross-border raid on an Israeli military outpost. Since the conflict began, Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon have fired about 100 rockets a day into northern Israel, striking several cities. One Hezbollah rocket killed two Arab Israeli boys July 19 in the city of Nazareth, Jesus’ hometown.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan decried the Israeli operation as an “excessive use of force,” according to the New York Times.

Israeli officials have said they are only attempting to destroy Hezbollah’s military capacity in Southern Lebanon, which constantly menaces the northern part of Israel. A U.N. resolution requires the group to disarm, but it has not been enforced.

But Lebanese and international critics dispute that characterization of the attacks. According to multiple media reports, Israel’s Lebanese targets have included bridges and other infrastructure, fire stations, schools, homes and the Beirut International Airport.

For the first time, a July 19 attack targeted one of Beirut’s Christian enclaves. Nobody was killed or injured in the attack, which reportedly struck well-drilling equipment parked in a lot.

Costa said employees and visiting partners—including international missions volunteers—had assembled “200 hygiene and food packs for internally displaced families” housed at Beirut Baptist School and a nearby public school.

He asked Baptists around the world to continue to pray for those displaced, mourning and still endangered due to the attacks; “wisdom for the leaders;” and “that we be salt and light in our community (so) that (God) may be glorified in all that we do or say.”

Costa also asked for continued prayer for “safe arrival of our non-Arab friends in their respective countries.” As of July 20, missionary officials from the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, the American Baptist Churches USA and the Southern Baptist Convention reported that their personnel in the region were either safe or had left the area.

Lance Wallace, a CBF spokesman, said he had learned “that our field personnel in the Middle East arrived safely in the U.S. this morning.”

The SBC’s International Mission Board reported all its Middle East workers were “accounted for and safe.” A group of 10 people from First Baptist Church in Forney, had been detained for several days in Beirut as the missionaries tried to return to the United States.

ABC International Ministries reported July 19 that its three missionaries currently assigned to Arab Baptist Theological Seminary—two career missionaries and one volunteer—were safe. A press statement said the career missionaries—seminary professor Dan Chetti and his wife, seminary administrator Sarah Chetti—“have chosen to remain and minister with our partner in Lebanon.”

The British Baptist Times newspaper reported July 20 that British Baptist officials as well as the European Baptist Federation and the Baptist World Alliance have pledged to help deliver financial aid to Lebanon to help those displaced by the violence.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/21/06

House passes bill to protect
San Diego cross monument

By Robert Marus

Associated Baptist Press

WASHINGTON (ABP)—The House of Representatives has passed a little-noticed bill attempting to make it easier for a controversial cross to remain on public land in San Diego.

On a vote of 349-74, the chamber approved a bill designed to transfer the land the Mount Soledad cross stands on from the city to the federal government.

The effort is the latest bid to protect the 29-foot-high monument, located prominently at the crest of an 800-foot hill in a city-owned park. It has been at the center of a legal dispute for 17 years.

In May, U.S. District Judge Gordon Thompson issued the latest in a string of rulings against the cross, claiming it violates the California constitution’s ban on government endorsement of religion. He gave the city 90 days to remove the monument—or begin facing daily $5,000 fines.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will consider the case in October but had denied cross supporters’ request to delay enforcement of Thompson’s order until then.

In early July, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy issued an emergency opinion halting enforcement of Thompson’s ruling until the appeals court reviews the case. Kennedy ruled on the issue because he is the justice assigned to hear emergency requests from the 9th Circuit’s boundaries while the Supreme Court, which ended its 2005-2006 term June 29, is in recess.

In an opinion explaining his ruling—rare in such cases—Kennedy said the case’s circumstances “support preserving the status quo while the city’s appeal proceeds. Compared to the irreparable harm of altering the memorial and removing the cross, the harm in a brief delay pending the court of appeals’ expedited consideration of the case seems slight.”

Kennedy also noted that Congress’ then-apparent interest in protecting the monument would make it “substantially more likely” that the high court would eventually agree to consider the issues in the case. The justices have denied appeals to hear the litigation at previous stages.

The cross’s legal saga began in 1989, when a local atheist and Vietnam veteran, Phillip Paulson, sued the city for removal of the structure. He argued that the monument was clearly intended as a religious symbol and that its presence in so prominent a position in a city park suggests government preference for Christianity.

Attorneys for the city have argued the cross simply is a monument to veterans. Although some version of a cross has stood on the spot for the past century, the present version was dedicated as a Korean War memorial on Easter 1954. It gradually grew to include plaques and walls with the names of casualties from the Korean conflict and other wars.

Paulson’s attorneys have argued, however, that the private group that maintains the site did not add the commemorative elements until after the lawsuit was filed and that the cross continues to play a prominent role in Christian worship services.

Cross supporters have attempted to sell the property to a private group to solve the dispute, but state judges have said that also violates the California constitution. A lower state judge has ruled that the attempt to transfer the property to the federal government is also illegal, and an appeal regarding that matter is still pending in the state’s courts.

The case is Paulson v. City of San Diego. The bill transferring the cross to federal ownership was H.R. 5683.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/21/06

Ban on same-sex marriage fails in House

By Robert Marus

Associated Baptist Press

WASHINGTON (ABP)—As expected, the House of Representatives July 18 defeated a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage—for the second time in as many election years and after the Senate had defeated the same proposal.

The proposal, H.J.Res. 88, died after a vote of 236-187 in its favor. Although a simple majority voted for it, the measure failed to muster the two-thirds majority a proposed constitutional amendment needs to pass each house of Congress.

However, its support was slightly stronger than that received by a nearly identical amendment in 2004, which failed on a 227-186 vote.

The Senate rejected its version of the latest amendment earlier this year. In that chamber, it failed to receive even a simple majority on a procedural vote.

The Senate vote effectively killed any amendment’s chances of making it out of Congress for the rest of the year. But the House’s Republican leadership forced the amendment to the floor without sending it through the customary committee process, spurring amendment opponents to charge it was an election-year political ploy aimed at hurting incumbent Democrats in moderate or conservative districts.

“I regret that this House is being so demeaned by this debate. It saddens me,” said Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) in debate before voting on the measure. “We know this amendment is not going anywhere; we know this is merely a political exercise. Shame on this House for playing games with political bigotry.”

Meanwhile, amendment supporters said Congress should be addressing the issue legislatively because gay marriage remains a subject of litigation in state and federal courts. Several referred to a 2003 ruling by Massachusetts’ highest court that said the state’s constitution required officials to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples on an equal basis with heterosexual couples. That state remains the only jurisdiction in the United States that legally recognizes gay marriage.

“I would say to you that marriage is certainly one of the top-tier issues, that it is the right of the United States Congress to address,” said Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.). “Not one that we have chosen to have, but that has been brought upon us.”

The amendment’s chief House sponsor told her colleagues that, given polls showing the majority of Americans opposed to legalized gay marriage, the voters deserve to know where Congress stands on the issue.

“The people have a right to know that their elected representatives agree with them regarding the definition of traditional marriage,” said Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R-Colo.). “The American people want us to settle this issue now—they don’t want us to wait and see how much havoc the courts will wreak on the institution of marriage before we act to protect it.”

But opponents of the amendment have pointed to several recent setbacks that state and federal courts have dealt to gay-marriage supporters. On July 14, a federal panel reinstated a particularly restrictive Nebraska ban on gay marriage and domestic partnership rights, and the Tennessee Supreme Court said a gay-marriage ban could go on that state’s November ballot.

Those decisions came a week after the judges on New York’s highest court, choosing not to follow the lead of their colleagues in Massachusetts, said the New York constitution does not require the legalization of gay marriage.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/21/06

'Pledge Protection Bill' passes House

By Robert Marus

Associated Baptist Press

WASHINGTON (ABP)—Angering civil libertarians and supporters of church-state separation, the House of Representatives voted July 19 to strip the federal courts of the ability to decide cases involving the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools.

The so-called “Pledge Protection Act” passed on a vote of 260-167. It echoed a similar bill the House passed by a similar margin in 2004—the last national election year.

The measure is one of many “court-stripping” bills that House Republicans have pushed in recent years. The Senate did not consider the 2004 bill and is not expected to consider the latest version.

Religious Right groups have claimed the bill is necessary to keep the words “under God” from being removed from the pledge. Although they were not part of the original 1892 version of the oath, Congress added them in 1954 as an act of anti-communism.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals originally ordered the words removed from the pledge in 2002 and said their recitation in public schools violates the First Amendment’s guarantees for religious freedom. After a public backlash, the appeals later backtracked on the removal of the words but maintained their ruling that public-school teachers should not lead students in reciting the oath.

The Supreme Court overturned that decision.

But conservatives have said the pledge is still at risk from lawsuits like the one that inspired the 9th Circuit decision. The bill relies on a hotly debated section of the Constitution that supporters say allows Congress to remove federal courts’ jurisdiction over any matter it chooses.

Many legal experts have debated that conclusion, saying a removal of the federal courts’ power to adjudicate civil-rights cases would violate the Constitution’s equal-protection and due-process provisions.

Civil-liberties groups blasted the House for passing the bill, while conservative religious groups hailed the act. The head of Americans United for Separation of Church and State released a statement immediately after the vote, calling it “a disgraceful measure that jeopardizes the rights of religious minorities” and “election-year pandering at its worst.”

Meanwhile, the head of the conservative Family Research Council cited “nearly 90 percent of Americans” who support the pledge as it is currently written and said, “the threat from crusading atheists and activist judges will not cease until the Pledge Protection Act is signed into law.”

The bill is H.R. 2389.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/21/06

Bush vetoes bill to expand
embryonic stem-cell research

By Robert Marus

Associated Baptist Press

WASHINGTON (ABP)—Simultaneously pleasing his socially conservative base and overruling large majorities in Congress and the public, President Bush used the first veto of his political career July 19 to kill a bill that would have expanded embryonic stem-cell research.

Bush returned H.R. 810, the “Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2005,” to Congress without his signature just a day after the Senate voted 63-37 to approve it. In a statement explaining the veto, Bush said: “If this bill were to become law, American taxpayers for the first time in our history would be compelled to fund the deliberate destruction of human embryos. Crossing this line would be a grave mistake and would needlessly encourage a conflict between science and ethics that can only do damage to both and harm our nation as a whole.”

The bill would have greatly expanded the government’s ability to fund embryonic stem-cell research. Biologists prize the cells because they can replicate themselves and have the potential to grow into almost any kind of human tissue. Therefore, they may one day be used to replace cells destroyed by diseases—such as Parkinson’s—that are currently deadly.

Most conservative religious and anti-abortion groups oppose such research, because embryos are destroyed in the process of extracting their stem cells. In one of his first acts after he took office in 2001, Bush issued an executive order severely limiting federal funding for such research.

The bill he vetoed would have mostly undone that order. The House passed it more than a year ago on a 238-194 vote, which included 50 Republicans voting in its favor. Bush threatened then to veto the bill if the Senate passed it. That chamber did not consider the bill until after Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) announced that he supported the bill.

Many pro-life groups have said they prefer research on similar cells taken from adult tissue and prefer forms of stem-cell research that do not intentionally destroy embryos. But most scientists believe the embryonic cells hold more immediate promise for curing diseases that are currently terminal, because they have the ability to develop into far many more types of tissue than other stem cells.

Supporters of embryonic stem-cell research have also noted that the bill would have authorized research only on embryos that were slated to be destroyed anyway—the fate that annually meets thousands of frozen embryos created as the by-product of fertility treatments.

Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.), who was one of 19 Senate Republicans who voted for the bill, pleaded with Bush from the Senate floor July 18 to reconsider his promised veto. He noted that he has watched three relatives suffer from Parkinson’s.

“To watch people die of such a malady is to instill in one’s heart a desire to err on the side of health, hope and healing, to find a cure if a cure can be found,” Smith said.

But Bush announced the veto against the backdrop of 18 families with children who were “adopted” as the extra frozen embryos of other couples, implanted in a mother’s womb and carried to term. “Each of these children … has been blessed with a chance to grow—to grow up in a loving family,” he said. “These boys and girls are not spare parts.”

Families of such “snowflake babies”—so named because of the frozen embryos from which they came but also because each snowflake has a unique structure—made several appearances around Washington with opponents of the bill. But bill supporters pointed out that, of the estimated 400,000 surplus frozen embryos in the nation’s fertility clinics, only around 100 have become snowflake babies.

Bush’s veto sent the bill back to Congress, where House leaders brought it up for a veto override vote on the evening of July 19. Although the chamber voted 235-193 against the veto, the margin did not reach the two-thirds majority necessary for a veto override.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/21/06

In crisis, churches unprepared
for dealing with media

By Angela Best

Communication Intern

Dealing with difficult situations can be trying enough for a church. Handling pressure from media can make it even harder.

As First Baptist Church in Forney has focused on getting 10 members of a church mission team trapped in Lebanon back home, the congregation also has been faced with voluminous media requests from television stations, newspapers and national news networks.

Ben Dudley, community pastor at University Baptist Church in Waco, said the volume of the media interest can come as a surprise. The church experienced a media blitz last fall, when its pastor, Kyle Lake, was electrocuted during a baptism.

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“It was unexpected and overwhelming at first,” he said. “But once we realized that the media wasn’t going to just go away, we had to decide how to deal with them.”

Many churches find themselves unprepared for handling media during a crisis, so they decide to seek help. The Baptist General Convention of Texas can provide media assistance to churches dealing with the media during a crisis.

“We appointed a spokesperson for the church—a media liaison,” Dudley said. “That way, everything that was communicated came from one person, and that person knew all the details and latest information, so we were not sending mixed messages.”

Appointing one spokesperson also helps both the church and the media, since the media know exactly who to contact for information, he explained.

University Baptist Church also held a press conference to avoid multiple time-consuming interviews. Press releases proved useful, and each was posted on the church’s web site for easy viewing.

When dealing with the press, churches should anticipate questions reporters might ask, like “How many people are affected?” or “What services are you providing?” said Ferrell Foster, director of the BGCT communications team.

It is important to get the reporter’s name, media outlet name and phone number in case a spokesperson has to call back with additional or corrected information, Foster added.

Asking about the reporter’s deadline also is key, because usually it is within the same day of contact, Foster said. If the church doesn’t respond quickly, the media will go elsewhere for information.

Churches should provide telephone numbers of spokespersons whom reporters can contact to obtain more information, Dudley noted.

“The media has a job to do, and they will find a way to do it,” he said. “So, it is better to work alongside them so that the correct information goes to the public.”

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/21/06

Right or Wrong?
Hospitality to Strangers

The Old Testament speaks of extending hospitality to "aliens and sojourners." Does that scriptural mandate have any application to the current debate over immigration?

Certainly, gracious treatment of the “alien and sojourner” is a fundamental theme of Scripture. “Welcoming the stranger” resides at the heart of the gospel, and witness to that gospel reflects the hospitality of God. The Bible tells of many “aliens and sojourners” who are crucial to God’s work. Abraham (Genesis 23:4), Jacob (Exodus 6:4) and Moses (Exodus 2:22) each are identified as “alien.” Jesus’ famous ancestress Ruth admits to Boaz, “I am a foreigner” (Ruth 2:10). The people of Israel dwelt as “aliens in the land of Egypt” (Exodus 22:21). Yet all of these find gracious treatment and special calling at the hands of God.

Specifically because Israel, as “aliens in the land of Egypt,” received God’s provision and guidance, so Israel must show concern for any aliens who dwell in their midst (Exodus 22:21; 23:9), knowing God “shows his love for the alien by giving him food and clothing” (Deuteronomy 10:18-19). So, even at the price of economic loss, Israel is to provide for work and food for the alien in the land (Deuteronomy 24:19-22).

Talk of the “alien” also appears in the New Testament.

Jesus “has no place to lay his head” (Matthew 8:20) and identifies himself as the foreigner whom some welcome and others reject (Matthew 25:35, 43). The Apostle Paul reminds his readers in Ephesians they had been “aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise” (2:12); yet God has welcomed them so that they “are no longer strangers and aliens, but are fellow-citizens with the saints and of God’s household” (2:19). It should be no surprise that Paul encourages believers to demonstrate love for the stranger (Romans 12:13). Certainly, the parable of the Good Samaritan underscores that God’s concretely expressed mercy cannot be withheld, even if the signs of ethnic, national or racial belonging are absent (Luke 10:30-37).

At the same time, finding welcome among the people of God, a people not defined by nationality, ethnicity, social standing or language, but by faith in Christ (Galatians 3:28; Colossians 3:11; Revelation 5:9-10) creates a distance between believers and the surrounding cultures in which they find themselves—cultures that generally define themselves on such terms. So, believers are called “resident aliens” (1 Peter 1:1) and are likened to Jewish exiles living in Babylon (1 Peter 5:13). Thus, we affirm that “here we do not have a lasting city, but are seeking the city which is to come … the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God” (Hebrews 13:14; 11:10), and with Paul we confess “our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20).

Our outlook on issues of alien immigration largely will be determined by the degree to which Christians in the United States recognize our own status as “resident aliens.”

How local congregations respond to the issues surrounding the presence of immigrants in their communities requires local deliberation and discernment. But that discernment should take place with certain commitments firmly in place: God has a special concern for those who dwell as strangers in a strange land. God has created his own people out of those whom the world counts as strangers and aliens. And God calls his people to express the same measure of grace and costly love to the alien as God has to us.

Jeph Holloway, professor of religion

East Texas Baptist University

Marshall

Right or Wrong? is sponsored by the T.B. Maston Chair of Christian Ethics at Hardin-Simmons University’s Logsdon School of Theology. Send your questions about how to apply your faith to btillman@hsutx.edu.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/19/06

BaptistWay Bible Series for July 30

Paul provides Timothy with direction for living

• 2 Timothy 3:1-5, 10-17

By Joseph Matos

Dallas Baptist University, Dallas

I don’t think we can adequately appreciate the struggles Timothy encountered in Ephesus. We read the letter written so long ago, and perhaps we lose sight of the very real and acute opposition he faced. We are so quick in our attempts to “translate” Paul’s words to Timothy to our own circumstances that we tend to forget Timothy’s own experiences and the encouragement and strength he derived from Paul’s words.

2 Timothy 3:1-5

This especially is so in light of Paul’s mention of the “last days.” We see that phrase and immediately think of our own time, as if Paul could see 2,000 years into the future and give a portrait of our time. But how meaningless for Timothy would this portrayal be if Paul meant our time and had little or nothing to do with Timothy’s time. Rather, Paul gave a grim portrait to Timothy.

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How do we know this? Two imperatives bracket the description of the last days and its people. First, Paul told Timothy to “mark this” (literally, know this). Second, Paul told Timothy to “have nothing to do with them” (literally, avoid them).

Timothy was to know things would be “terrible” in the last days (v. 1). Why should he know this if it didn’t directly apply to him? The biblical definition of the “last days” is the interim between Christ’s ascension to the Father and his return at the end of the age. Sure, there was a tendency in the early church to believe Christ would return in their lifetime, but that does not mark them off as any different from the generations since. Timothy, and Christians of all generations, would experience the difficult times of the last days.

What would make the times so difficult for Timothy and for generations afterward is people (v. 2). Just read the adjectives Paul used to describe the people (vv. 3-5). Nearly 20 characteristics paint the picture. These are far from flattering. Some of the descriptions describe their distorted views of themselves (boastful, proud and conceited). Many relate their actions towards others (abusive, disobedient to parents, slanderous, brutal). Others reflect their self-destructive nature (without self-control, rash). Still, many characteristics reflect their disregard for relationships (ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, treacherous). Four of the descriptions incorporate some form of the word “love.” But even these reveal their misplaced affection (lovers of themselves, lovers of money, not lovers of good, lovers of pleasure, not lovers of God).

The most damaging of Paul’s descriptions is the last one, revealing their hypocrisy and self-deceit. People would have a form of godliness but deny its power. Despite all their vices, they would still view themselves as good and godly. The only problem is their “godliness” would have no real impact in their lives.

Timothy had to avoid such people. Whether Paul was further describing the false teachers or people in general, he enjoined Timothy to keep away from them. Association with them would be counterproductive to his growth in the faith and in his ministry.

2 Timothy 3:10-17

A proper diet is not just about the kinds of foods to avoid, but also about the proper foods to eat. In the same way, Paul does not stop with telling Timothy what kinds of people would be detrimental to his faith and ministry. He guides Timothy in what would build up his faith.

First, Paul reminded Timothy of the example that was laid by Paul himself (vv. 10-13). Paul provided Timothy with the proper teaching. In addition, Paul, though not perfect, was an example for Timothy in his life. Paul had the proper purpose and faith. He exemplified patience and love. He also practiced endurance in the face of persecution and sufferings. And Paul experienced plenty of those. Paul could thus testify to the faithfulness of the Lord who rescued him from them all.

Paul was honest with Timothy. The last days could be hard. Persecution follows those living a godly life, and evil people only get worse, deceiving and being deceived. He earlier exhorted Timothy to join him in those sufferings (1:8); now he assures Timothy of God’s faithfulness in the midst of them.

Second, Timothy was to build on the foundation already set for him. He was to continue in what he learned, being confident of those from whom he learned it (an allusion to his mother and grandmother from chapter 1).

Third, Paul directed Timothy to the Scriptures. At the time Paul wrote to Timothy, this was the Old Testament. They were full of benefits for Timothy. Knowledge of the Scriptures makes one “wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”

The Scriptures are the repository of faith. Reading the words of Scripture leads one to the word of God (John 1:1-3, 14). Paul commended the Scriptures to Timothy, as well, because of their origin. They are “God-breathed.” As a result, they are useful to fulfill a fourfold function—teach, rebuke, correct and train in righteousness. All this is with a view to making one “thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Conclusion

Imagine Timothy’s task in Ephesus. Envision the challenges he faced. Before we read Paul’s words (and Scripture in general) with ourselves in mind, try to see how meaningful they were for Timothy. Then, knowing our circumstances often parallel Timothy’s, we can appropriate Paul’s words for ourselves. We are equipped to face challenges when we draw on the life, teaching and experiences of godly mentors coupled with the wisdom of Scripture.

Discussion questions

• Why did Paul tell Timothy to avoid people like those he described in 2:3-5? How could he have influenced them for Christ if he avoided them? Similarly, how do we balance Paul’s command to avoid certain people with the commission to preach the gospel?

• Who do you emulate as you live the Christian life?

• How would you describe your Bible study habits? Would you say you are well equipped?

• When have you experienced the Bible’s rebuke or correction?

• When have you experienced its teaching and training in righteousness?

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.