McCain receives unenthusiastic endorsement from conservative Christian evangelical leaders  

Over the course of the past few months, Senator John McCain, the Republican Party's presumptive presidential nominee, accepted and then rejected the endorsements of the controversial pastors Rod Parsley and John Hagee, after media reports about Parsley's vitriol toward Islam and Hagee's views that the Holocaust was part of God's biblical plan for the Jews to move to Israel.

He also met with the venerated Reverend Billy Graham and his son Franklin at the family's North Carolina retreat, courted conservative Catholic leaders, and got together with a bunch of religious right leaders in Ohio.

In early July, McCain -- who eight years ago had called the Rev. Jerry Falwell and the Rev. Pat Robertson "agents of intolerance" -- finally received the endorsement of a batch of national conservative religious leaders.

And the endorsement of Focus on the Family's Dr. James Dobson may be coming down the pike.

In the final months of his presidency, Bush resurrects talk of his faith-based initiative and `compassionate conservatism'

Before 9/11, before the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, before the suspension of habeas corpus, before the administration's tardy and shameful response to Hurricane Katrina, before cronies and Republican congressional leaders were dropping like flies, before former administration operatives were writing unflattering tell-all books, before Dick Cheney said "So?" in response to a question about public opinion being firmly against the administration, before the Valerie Plame affair, before gas prices were nearly five dollars a gallon, before housing foreclosures hit record numbers, and before his approval rating dipped to all-time lows, there was President George W. Bush's faith-based initiative.

'Battling for America's Soul' in California

They've been around for more than 30 years; trace their roots to a Brazilian anti-communist dissident Catholic; wear colorful outfits during their protests on college campuses; and apparently have enough spare change to fund three 4,000+ word simultaneously-placed advertisements in three national dailies.

Of all the conservative organizations that will be getting involved in the same-sex marriage showdown in California, one of the least known is a Catholic outfit called the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP). TPF isn't a fly-by-night letter-head-only group that suddenly formed to get in on what promises to be one heck of a battle.

On June 5, in response to the California Supreme Court's ruling in support of same-sex marriage, TPF issued a press release announcing the publication of two-page advertisements critical of the decision, appearing "simultaneously" in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the Washington Times, costing the group perhaps as much as three-quarters of a million dollars.
The ads, which explicitly called for civil disobedience, were titled "Battling for America's Soul: How Homosexual 'Marriage' Threatens Our Nation and Faith -- the TFP Urges Lawful and Conscientious Resistance."

CUFI Conference Causes Major League Dust-Up in Jewish Community

The battle-lines over Pastor John Hagee have been drawn, redrawn, and are no doubt being drawn again as this is being written. The San Antonio, Texas-based mega-preacher with the multi million dollar empire, has always been controversial, but these days, the pastor is a lightning rod for critics.  And, as the days pass leading up to Hagee's annual Washington, D.C. Christians United for Israel (CUFI) conference next month, new revelations of his anti-Semitism have come to light.

At last year's CUFI conference, Senator Joseph Lieberman called Hagee "an Ish Elochim," and he added that he was "a man of God, and, like Moses, he is the leader of a mighty multitude."

When it was first revealed that Hagee had made a series of anti-Catholic remarks, critics, including Bill Donohue of the conservative Catholic League, went ballistic; Hagee apologized. When Hagee blamed gays for causing Hurricane Katrina, many were offended; Hagee offered up a Falwell-like (half-hearted) apology and quickly moved on.

However, when Hagee's remarks about Hitler being sent by God to force the Jews to pack their bags for Israel became a You Tube sensation -- and then garnered the attention of the mainstream media - even longtime allies in the Jewish community began to question what Hagee was up to.

A couple of weeks ago the ex-Roman Catholic Archishop Emmanuel Milingo performed his first mass in Zambia since his excommunication. Catholic clergy advised their faithful to steer clear of the event: Milingo has accepted Rev Moon as "the Messiah sent by God", and the mass was part of Moon's strategy to control a breakaway Catholic church for priests who reject priestly celibacy. A report in the Lusaka Times, however, suggests that Milingo enjoys support from some other Christian leaders:

Christians from different churches sung songs of praise as the Archibishop conducted his healing session.

...Every Nation Church Bishop, John Jere thanked Archibishop MILINGO for bringing transformation in the church.

"Every Nation" is the controversial neo-Pentecostal grouping which I wrote about on Talk to Action here, while Jere has been at the forefront of bringing Christian Reconstructionist ideas into Zambia.

The Real News Network, a new, international news service, has a video report on the issue of religious indoctrination and intolerance in the U.S. military. The segment titled Holy warriors in the US Armed Forces: Separation of church and state being dissolved within the military can be viewed at the RNN web site.

In it is a case example of how important points can be undermined by ill-considered uses of language.

John McCain's perfect storm?

Still not fully embraced by the religious right, Sen. John McCain, the Republican Party's presumptive presidential nominee, has been handed an opportunity to prove his loyalty to the party's most influential and powerful grassroots forces.

Before Thursday, May 15, the day the California Supreme Court overturned the state's ban on same-sex marriage and affirmed the right of gay couples to marry -- making it the second state in the nation (Massachusetts was the first) to do so -- it appeared that the issue that played a major role in the 2004 presidential election -- would not be front and center in Election 2008.  

In 2004, 13 states passed ballot measures banning same-sex marriage, including Ohio, where the initiative brought out record numbers of conservative Christian voters.

All three major candidates, Democratic Party Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton and the GOP's McCain have been in basic agreement on the issue: all of them oppose same-sex marriage and all oppose a federal constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.

The 4-3 decision by the California State Supreme Court - six of whom were appointed by Republican governors - gives the Arizona Senator an opportunity to rethink the issue and restate his position.

When Scott Bloch became head of the Office of Special Counsel he declared war on equal protection for gays in federal workplaces

In early October 2004, five Democratic members of Congress called on President Bush to "take the necessary action" in regards to Scott Bloch, the head of the Office of Special Counsel.

Bloch had refused "to enforce anti-discrimination protections for federal workers contradict[ing] Bush Administration policy to uphold former President Clinton's executive order banning discrimination based on sexual orientation," the Washington Blade had reported.

The letter to the president was signed by gay House members Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), along with Eliot L. Engel (D-N.Y.), Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.) and George Miller (D-Calif.).

On Tuesday, May 6, McClathchy Newspapers reported that "FBI agents ... searched the office and [Virginia] home of ... Bloch ... as part of an investigation into whether he obstructed an inquiry into allegations of his own misconduct."

Since his appointment the relatively unknown Bloch has been wielding a heavy hand and been the source of a series of controversies.

Who is Scott Bloch and how did he wind up as head of the Office of Special Counsel?

A group of evangelical scholars has issued "An Evangelical Manifesto" in an attempt to redefine and restore a good name to the evangelical movement within Christianity.

There is much to commend in their statement.  Most of it would have been of much more value had it been said years ago -- no, decades ago.  It is much too little and way too late.

House resolution congratulates the Ten Commandments Commission and its supporters for their `key role in promoting and ensuring recognition of the Ten Commandments as the cornerstone of Western law'

Most of us pay little attention to congressional resolutions. All sorts of resolutions are proposed; some pass, others are tabled, and still others are withdrawn.

Did you know that for the past two years, Congress has designated the first weekend in May as "Ten Commandments Weekend?"

These days, two resolutions relating to the Ten Commandments are being considered by Congress; one will again designate the first weekend in May as "Ten Commandments Weekend," while the other aims to celebrate the Ten Commandments Commission (TCC), an organization led by a former veteran of the Israeli Armed Forces, and made up of a host longtime conservative evangelical Christian leaders.

For months, Chris Rodda, a Senior Research Director for the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) and a regular contributor to Talk2Action,  has been following developments surrounding the two Ten Commandments resolutions -- Senate Resolution 483 and House Resolution 598.

In 2005, Pastor Rick Warren announced that Rwanda would become the world's first "Purpose Driven Nation", following the principles of his book The Purpose Driven Life and his "P.E.A.C.E." plan for Africa. Originally, "P.E.A.C.E." stood for "Plant churches, Equip servant leaders, Assist the poor, Care for the sick and Educate the next generation", although the "P" has now become "Promote reconciliation".

His latest tour of East Africa - during which he spoke against gay rights in Uganda - has concluded with high-profile meetings in Kenya, and a message of opposition to political protest. A news release from A. Larry Ross Communications reports:

"We must never let politics or anything else divide us," Dr. Warren challenged. "Our message is, 'Overcome evil with good.' You don't overcome evil by protesting, marching or demonstrating."

Of course the context here is the recent violence in Kenya, and doubtless Warren believes that God's will and prayer are ultimately what bring about change, but this appears to be a blanket dismissal of political protest.

[note: I've reposted this article because the problem described needs far greater prominence than it's received so far. These abuses remain largely unchecked and pose a threat to American pluralist Democracy - Bruce Wilson] As detailed in recent reports from the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), a 501c(3) nonprofit organization which fights for freedom of religious and philosophical belief in the US military, fundamentalist Christian ministries promoting what can be described as a "theology of war" have increasingly been invited onto US military basic training facilities such as Fort Jackson in South Carolina, and Fort Sam Houston and Lackland Air Force Base (both based in Texas), with the apparent endorsement of commanders at those bases.