Baptist Press Stories for Mar. 30 2012 --------------------------------------- In Cuba, leaders encouraged by Baptists' perseverance, vibrance http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37507 IRS allows churches to endorse
marriage initiatives, attorney says http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37508 Why not legalize gay 'marriage'? (part 2) http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37509 Despite the butterflies, he shares his faith http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37510 Q&A: 'October Baby' actress Shari Rigby on her film role & her own post-abortive experience http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37511 USCIRF religious freedom panel adds members http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37512 CULTURE DIGEST: Academic freedom bill passes Tenn. legislature http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37513 FIRST-PERSON: A 'Reason Rally' full of attacks http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37514 FIRST-PERSON: Necesitamos al Espíritu Santo http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37506 --------------------------------------- In Cuba, leaders encouraged by Baptists' perseverance, vibrance By Barbara Denman Mar. 30 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37507 HAVANA, Cuba (BP) -- Walking through the Western Cuba Baptist Convention Seminary's corridors in Havana, Kevin Ezell heard how home missionaries Herbert Caudill and David Fite were escorted from those halls in 1965 and sent to Fidel Castro's notorious prison. The two, along with 53 Cuban pastors and lay leaders, were accused of being CIA operatives, yet their only crime was sharing the Gospel. "Their sacrifices were incredible," said Ezell, president of the North American Mission Board (formerly the Home Mission Board) as he reflected upon the missionaries' ordeal in the years following the Castro-led revolution. The two men remained in prison until their release in 1969. [IMG=32309@right@250] Ezell's March 21-23 visit -- on the eve of Pope Benedict's official stopover on the Caribbean island nation -- marked the first time an HMB/NAMB president had visited Cuba since William Tanner traveled there in 1978, more than three decades ago. Ezell was in Cuba as a guest of the Florida Baptist Convention to attend the Western Cuba Baptist Convention's annual meeting at historic Calvary Baptist Church in downtown Havana. The building -- located around the block from the country's capital building -- originally was purchased through Annie Armstrong Mission Offering funds. Traveling with Ezell were John Sullivan, Florida's executive director-treasurer, who preached during the WCBC annual meeting; Carlos Ferrer, NAMB vice president and chief financial officer; and Florida convention staff members Craig Culbreth and Dennis Wilbanks. The Florida Baptist Convention has partnered with the Western Cuba Baptist Convention since 1996 and funds 51 percent of its annual operating budget, earmarking more than $1.8 million for the past 15 years to underwrite pastoral salary assistance, theological education and leader training. For Ezell and Ferrer, the trip was the opportunity to see the foundation established by Southern Baptists' Home Mission Board when it first sent missionaries to the country in 1886. The WCBC, organized in 1905, flourished under the HMB support. Through a letter-writing campaign by home missionary Annie Armstrong, the board purchased the Calvary church property in 1888 as well as the seminary and a retirement home for senior adults to advance Cuban Baptists' mission. Then in 1959 after the Castro-led revolution, WCBC churches were persecuted as Cuba was declared an atheistic country until 1992 when it was formally changed to "secularist." The Communist Party's initial crackdown on the spread of Christianity drew the Cuban Baptists together as they sought to survive in a hostile regime. Despite such adversity, in recent years the work of the WCBC grew as leaders functioned under the government's regulations and restrictions by focusing on evangelism and church planting. While much freer to worship, the government will not allow Baptists to purchase new buildings for churches or ministries. So it was the foresight of the HMB and Cuban Baptists in purchasing buildings before the 1960s that enabled the WCBC to prosper today. Ezell said it was "inspiring to see the passion and the vision of Annie Armstrong and others to purchase such property." "They did then what they cannot do now," he said. Southern Baptists' gifts to the Annie Armstrong offering a century ago "gave them credibility and a sense of permanence that exists today." The HMB continued to support the ministry in Western Cuba until 1987 when Southern Baptist work in Cuba was reassigned to the International Mission Board. Former WCBC President Victor Gonzales, a layperson and respected oncologist at University Hospital in Havana, believes the past two years have been filled with advancements for the Gospel. "The work is doing better and better. We are still living in a revival," said Gonzales, who has mobilized the convention for the past five years by emphasizing prayer and church planting. In the past two years, WCBC churches reportedly baptized 4,706 people and planted 60 new churches, bringing total membership to 23,000. The convention has 347 affiliated churches (churches officially recognized by the Communist Party) and at least 1,000 additional missions, house churches, houses of prayer and cell churches. The Holy Spirit is at work in Cuba today, Gonzales told the group. A 50-day prayer emphasis held annually from Easter to Pentecost is "bringing more people to Jesus every day and revival to Cuba." The Eastern Cuba Baptist Convention, which until recently had been served by the American Baptist Convention, now relates to the International Mission Board. IMB missionary Kurt Urbanek said the two Cuba conventions consist of nearly 7,000 churches -- 672 affiliated churches, 1,346 missions and 4,901 house churches, houses of prayer and cell churches. The cooperation of the two conventions will be necessary to reach the 11 million Cubans for Christ, Gonzales said. With recent approval by the government to hold public rallies, even more focus will be given to church planting in the big cities, he said. While in Cuba, Ezell and Sullivan visited Rebirth Church, a house church that meets in the three-bedroom apartment of pastor Humberto Leal. The Alamar apartments where Leal lives originally were built by the government as a model communistic community. About 1,000 Cuban families reside in the multi-storied apartment buildings located about eight miles from downtown Havana. The church was planted when one family residing in the massive apartment complex became Christians. At the family's request, a pastor from Havana rode his bicycle 10 miles each Sunday to lead worship in their home. The congregation grew as neighbors were reached and even lent chairs for church members to use during worship and Bible study. When the congregation grew to over 200, the government forced the church to downsize and disperse into several other apartments. Now five constituted churches are located in the apartment buildings, evangelizing and ministering to families throughout the community. Leal's church serves as the official church and the umbrella for the other congregations. Each Sunday as many as 80 people attend Rebirth Church, holding Sunday School and new member classes in the bedrooms and small den, while worshipping in the home's covered patio. David Gonzales, WCBC liaison with the Florida convention, said this type of church multiplication is an example of what is taking place throughout Cuba, noting, "We are able to saturate and penetrate communities with the Gospel through this kind of hybrid church planting strategy." The model is especially crucial today as the government will not allow new churches to be built or purchase property, Gonzales said. Even renovations of existing buildings must receive approval from the authorities, a long and tedious process. The group also visited Getsemani Church in Guanabo, a seaside community east of Havana where 70 believers meet weekly in the backyard of a renovated carpenter's shop. With the words "Solo Cristo Salva" -- only Christ saves -- emblazoned across the front door, the church has started three house churches in the community, pastor Moisés Redondo said. The three-day trip was unforgettable for Ferrer, the NAMB vice president, who was born in Cuba and left at age 10 when his family's property was seized after the revolution. The exiled family eventually settled in California where home missionaries led them to Christ. "I came here with a spirit of wanting to help the Cuban people," Ferrer said. "But I leave humbled about what their plans are for the future -- and their accomplishments in the past." --30-- Barbara Denman is director of communications for the Florida Baptist Convention. -- End of story -- IRS allows churches to endorse
marriage initiatives, attorney says By Michael Foust Mar. 30 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37508 RALEIGH, N.C. (BP) -- Conventional wisdom might hold that churches can never legally get involved in politics, but when it comes to issues -- and specifically for 2012, ballot initiatives dealing with the definition of marriage -- churches actually have wide latitude, says an attorney well-versed in IRS law. [IMG=32313@right@150]Voters in up to five states this year will vote on the definition of marriage -- North Carolina's vote on May 8 is the first -- and many churches already are involved, urging their members to stand up for the biblical definition of marriage as being between one man, one woman. Still, many churches are hesitant to speak up, fearful that doing so is a violation of IRS law and could endanger their tax-exempt status. Erik Stanley, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, says that pastors and congregations have nothing to fear. Under IRS law, churches cannot endorse candidates but they can lobby for specific legislation -- here, ballot initiatives -- provided that the time and money spent doing so is less than 5 percent of their overall operation and budget, Stanley said. "I cannot foresee any situation where a church would come anywhere close to violating that prohibition," Stanley told Baptist Press of the 5 percent limit. "Essentially, a church would have to devote itself almost wholeheartedly to lobbying efforts in order to be at risk." Stanley went one step further, saying that churches not only are allowed to take public stands on ballot initiatives, but they should do so. The Alliance Defense Fund (800-TELL-ADF) is a Christian legal group. "Without the voice of the church, marriage as it stands between one man and one woman is going to be lost in these five states and others," Stanley said. "This is just simply an area where churches don't need to be afraid of the IRS. The IRS allows them to be involved" After North Carolina votes in May, Maine and Minnesota will follow in November. Maryland and Washington state likely will be added to that November list when signature drives -- expected to be successful -- conclude. The North Carolina and Minnesota amendments seek to define in the state constitutions marriage as between a man and a woman. Maine's vote is being promoted by gay groups and could legalize gay "marriage." In Maryland and Washington, church groups and others are gathering signatures to try to reverse recently enacted laws that legalized gay "marriage." Those laws have yet to take effect. Pastors and churches, Stanley said, can legally: -- gather signatures for petitions, even within the church building itself. -- urge members to support or oppose an initiative. -- hand out literature for or against an initiative. -- hold meetings geared specifically toward the initiative. -- preach sermons on the issue, urging members to vote a certain way. Thirty-one states have voted on the definition of marriage, and congregations in each state have been involved. But each time a new state considers the issue, Stanley said, confusion about church involvement reigns. Churches are categorized as 501(c)(3) organizations under IRS code, and as such are restricted in what they can do politically. They are absolutely prohibited from endorsing candidates, Stanley said, but are allowed to do an "insubstantial" amount of lobbying for issues. Although "insubstantial" is not defined, one court defined it as 5 percent, another as 15 percent. To be safe, Stanley said, churches should stay within the 5 percent range. "People think that a church is prohibited from doing anything that's considered lobbying, and that's just not true," Stanley said. "Churches can do a lot of things to support marriage amendments and other issues. They're not absolutely prohibited from doing that. "Essentially, they can do anything, and the only restriction is that it remain an insubstantial amount of what the church does overall," Stanley said. "Consider everything that a church does, in terms of meeting time -- just counting all the hours that a church meets every year, and then take 5 to 15 percent of that to devote to legislative and lobbying activities. No church is going to come anywhere close to that." --30-- Michael Foust is associate editor of Baptist Press. Learn more about the Alliance Defense Fund at TellADF.org -- End of story -- Why not legalize gay 'marriage'? (part 2) By Glenn T. Stanton Mar. 30 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37509 EDITOR'S NOTE: This column is the second part in a two-part series on why gay "marriage" should not be legalized. The first part ran Thursday and can be read at [URL=http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37494]http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37494[/URL] [IMG=32295@left@120]COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (BP) -- Same-sex "marriage" proponents have made remarkable strides in getting a hearing for their radical marriage counterfeit. No society at any time has ever raised a generation of children in same-sex families, and two short decades ago, the idea of men marrying men and women walking down the aisle with women was unheard-of. Times have changed. Gay activists have conducted their focus groups and message-testing and realized there is one message that works better than all others. In fact, the gay magazine OUT explained in the mid-1990s that the phrases "marriage equality" and "freedom to marry" were "actually something that activists began using on the advices of a Los Angeles PR firm, based on how well they believed it would play in the heterosexual mainstream." The genius is that while the average American might not personally like the idea of same-sex "marriage," they are hard-pressed to offer meaningful reasons for why it shouldn't be adopted in society. Compound this with the very deliberate and widespread accusation that opposition to same-sex "marriage" and parenting is tantamount to hate-filled bigotry at its worst and back-woods ignorance at its best. With that gambit, this movement has really accomplished something. Show of hands: Who wants to be seen as hateful or ignorant? But here is the truth. Same-sex "marriage" advocates have largely gained their ground through deception, emotional manipulation and diverting the public's attention away from the thousands of scientific studies that tell us healthy child-development requires the two different models of human parents: mothers and fathers. They have manipulated us by high-jacking civil rights language for their own narrow purposes. And as a result, millions of boys and girls will be subjected to intentionally motherless and fatherless families for no other reason than to fulfill the desires of adults who want such radical homes. [IMGONLY=32246@right@120]So what do we make of the bigot/ignorant accusation? I have been debating this issue on secular and liberal Christian college campuses for nearly a decade. It is the rare event -- if there has even been one -- where this charge is not leveled at least once. Well, there are number of ways to expose the fallacy here. First is the fact that same-sex activists have made little ground in convincing black Americans that their very long and real struggle for civil rights is just like the gay community's. But African-Americans are buying it less than the religious folks, as polls reveal that same-sex advocates have more difficulty convincing black Americans of their case then religious folks. The New York Times recently addressed this truth, quoting a civil rights leader in the black community who explained that phrases like "gay is the new black" can be "deeply offensive" to black Americans who know sexual preference is nothing like race. Blacks have boldly refused to fall for this false and deceptive comparison. Who believes that being hand-cuffed and arrested for trying to eat at a neighborhood lunch counter or use a public bathroom -- not to mention being attacked by Bull Connor's police dogs and fire hoses -- is in any way similar to not being able to redefine the universal institution of marriage? It's nothing short of perverse to compare the two. President Obama has clearly said on numerous occasions he opposes same-sex "marriage." If you take him at his word, are we to assume he's bigoted or unenlightened? Perhaps the majority of African-Americans -- who largely possess a deeply held Christian faith -- see this not as an issue of equality, but morality. And these are not just conservatives who resist the comparison. The Rev. Walter Fauntroy, friend of Martin Luther King, former Congressman and coordinator of the historic 1963 March on Washington, warned, "Don't confuse my people who have been the victims of deliberate family destruction by giving them another definition of marriage." This is a very real issue for black leaders, Fauntroy said, because their children and communities have been profoundly wounded by the lie that families don't need fathers. It is just as wrong to say mom's lesbian lover can replace a father. Neither can teach a little boy how to grow to be a man and neither can make sure a little girl receives healthy, appropriate love and affirmation from a caring man. While a loving and compassionate society comes to the aid of motherless or fatherless families, there is no "civil right" to intentionally create fatherlessness or motherless homes in order to fulfill adult desires. Race and gender are clearly a fundamental part of who a person is. It is evident at birth and even before. But for all the effort to do so, science has not been able to establish that one is born gay, lesbian or bisexual. Race and sexual preference have no similarities. And those who equate them reveal a total lack of understanding of both. --30-- Glenn T. Stanton is the director of family formation studies at Focus on the Family in Colorado Springs, Colo., and is the author of "The Ring Makes All the Difference: The Hidden Consequences of Cohabitation and the Strong Benefits of Marriage" (Moody, 2011), and "Secure Daughters Confident Sons, How Parents Guide Their Children into Authentic Masculinity and Femininity" (Waterbrook, 2011). Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -- End of story -- Despite the butterflies, he shares his faith By Benjamin Hawkins Mar. 30 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37510 FORT WORTH, Texas (BP) -- Geoff Simmons still feels butterflies in his stomach when he approaches people to speak about Christ, even though he's been sharing his faith consistently for about three years and is a seminary student. Greater than any anxiety in proclaiming the Gospel, however, is his fear of remaining silent. [IMG=32312@right@250]"For 16 years, I was a Christian, and I never told one person about Christ," said Simmons, who placed his faith in Christ as a teenager. With no one to disciple him, he "drifted away from Christ" for many years. In 2009, however, God opened his eyes to people's need for the Gospel. "I was very much chasing the American way of life," Simmons said, until he began to realize "I did not want to meet my Maker one day and say, 'You know, God, I sure did make a lot of money.'" Simmons had no idea how to tell others about Christ, so he enrolled in a "Share Jesus Without Fear" class at church. He bought a "Share Jesus Without Fear" New Testament and has carried it in his pocket ever since. The following day, May 20, 2009, Simmons led one of his best friends to the Lord. Since then, God has used him to lead numerous others to faith. He records their names in the back of a Bible that he uses during his personal devotions and study, so that he will pray for and encourage those who have made decisions to follow Christ. He said about 90 people have prayed to receive Christ in the past couple of years, but one name constantly reminds him of the urgency of sharing the Gospel and of the fearful consequences of remaining silent. "Ed Freeman, right here, was a salesman that I worked with who had cancer. He was a good friend of mine," Simmons said in recounting how he shared the Gospel with Ed. "Ed was in hospice at that time, and he became coherent long enough for me to share and for him to pray to receive Christ, and a few minutes later he went home. "It is a good story. It is great, but it bothers me, too, because Ed was that close. ... I had almost talked myself out of it. ... I had talked to some of the guys that went to go visit him, and he didn't even know who they were because of the morphine. ... But I was able to talk with him, and he became completely lucid long enough, and after he prayed, he went out again." This experience compels Simmons to share the Gospel wholeheartedly despite the busyness of his studies at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. After moving to Fort Worth to begin classes last fall, he immediately found opportunities to proclaim the Gospel. Brandon Kiesling, a fellow student, asked him to help lead students in Southwestern's effort to reach those who live within a one-mile radius of the campus. Three times a week, Simmons visits the nearby Times Square Apartments to share the Gospel and has established Bible studies at the complex for new believers who desire to grow in their faith. "God has given me the gift of evangelism, but I do not do well when it comes to discipleship," Simmons said, adding that his seminary studies have begun to lay the groundwork for how to make disciples. "So God really convicted me of that, and that is why I started setting up these different Bible studies." Simmons' weekly visits to the Times Square Apartments also allow him to lead his family to follow the Great Commission. He takes one of his three daughters on each visit "so they can learn how to share the Gospel. ... We have the others praying for us at home." On one occasion, Simmons' oldest daughter, Victoria, asked if she could share with the kids in the apartment complex, having seen the witness of her father and other seminary students. "She was bold in it," Simmons said, noting that Victoria led three girls her age to place their faith in Christ that day. "You can share the Gospel, but if you can train people to share the Gospel, it is just that much better," he said. "I want [my daughters] growing up thinking, 'This is what we do, and it is strange not to share the Gospel.' I want them thinking, 'This is exactly what we're supposed to do.'" --30-- Benjamin Hawkins is a writer for Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, on the Web at www.swbts.edu. -- End of story -- Q&A: 'October Baby' actress Shari Rigby on her film role & her own post-abortive experience By Megan Basham Mar. 30 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37511 BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (BP) -- When producer/directors Jon and Andrew Erwin asked Shari Rigby to consider a small but crucial role in their film "October Baby," none of them realized how closely the script about a young woman who discovers she survived an abortion attempt paralleled Rigby's own life. [IMGONLY=32311@right@220]Rigby, who turns in an emotionally wrenching performance as the young woman's biological mother, recently spoke about the experiences she brought to the part and what she hopes audiences will take away from October Baby, which is entering its second weekend in theaters. QUESTION: What was your reaction when you first read the script and realized how much of it resonated with your own life? RIGBY: When Jon called me and said please read the script, the first thing I saw on the front cover was Rachel Hendrix [the main character]. And my husband said to me, 'Wow she really looks like you -- she could be your daughter,' which made it even more intriguing. Then halfway through the script I realized it paralleled my life 20 years ago. [The character I play] was in the profession I worked in -- I was a paralegal. I, too, had had an abortion. Then when the character goes and speaks with her husband and shares with him what she'd done -- that same exact thing happened in my life when my husband and I were probably in the sixth or seventh year of our marriage. So it was really intense to read something so close to my life that not that many people knew about. Certainly the Erwins had no idea that this was part of my past. QUESTION: You could have taken the part, turned in a wonderful performance, and never mentioned the personal pain that allowed you to bring so much authenticity to the role. Instead you told the Erwins about your own experience with abortion and decided to talk about it while promoting October Baby. Why? RIGBY: The Erwins asked me if I would be interested in sharing my testimony and they were so great about it, telling me to pray about it and assuring me that they didn't want to push me into anything. But I kept feeling this urging that this wasn't about me, that this was God's film. I'm a woman who's post-abortive, and if I could do anything with this film it would be to love on other women and be an encouragement to them to say I know you've gone through a lot emotionally, physically and spiritually, but there's healing for it. And I think that's why God gave me this part. QUESTION: Obviously putting yourself out there in such a vulnerable way must impact your husband as well. How has he felt about your willingness to share your story while promoting the film? RIGBY: My husband is an amazing, godly man, and one of the hardest things for me was when I had to tell him that I had had an abortion because I really didn't know what that conversation would sound like. But much like in the movie, he put his arms around me and held me and told me he loves me. And in all of this, he's been my biggest fan and supported me. He's held me when I've cried and constantly tells me that I'm brave and courageous. QUESTION: What do you think people should know about the personal experiences behind abortion statistics? RIGBY: We're such a health-conscious society -- we preach constantly about what we're putting in our mouths and what we're doing to our bodies so that we'll be healthy. And yet, most people that you talk to really don't know anything about abortion. They don't know what goes on or what the physical or mental or emotional ramifications are. So I think they need to be better educated on that. One out of three Christian women say they have had an abortion and many of them say they have had more than one. We've got to do a better job of talking to the next generation and helping them cope with the emotional and physical pain that comes when this has been a part of their life. QUESTION: That's one of the things I so enjoyed about October Baby -- it wasn't just about the young woman who survived the abortion, it was also about the woman who tried to end her life. It wasn't political, it didn't cast one of them as the good guy and one of them as the bad guy, but it follows the pain both of them go through. RIGBY: Yes, I really love that you can go into October Baby and put your political talking points aside. You're going to go on a journey with a young couple and experience their personal story. Jon Erwin said it so well when he said, "We didn't create October Baby to draw lines in the sand. We created it to draw circles." They're trying to get people talking about [abortion] and look at it from different perspectives. --30-- Megan Basham writes for World News Service, where this story first appeared. Read the Baptist Press preview story on October Baby at [URL=http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37326]www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37326[/URL] -- End of story -- USCIRF religious freedom panel adds members By Staff Mar. 30 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37512 WASHINGTON (BP) -- The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) gained three new commissioners the week after losing five of its nine members. [IMGONLY=32266@right@180]The commission, a congressionally approved watchdog on global religious liberty, announced the following appointees, the first two March 26 and the other March 28: -- Robert George, jurisprudence professor at Princeton University and a former member of both the President's Council on Bioethics and the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights; -- Zuhdi Jasser, a physician and president of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy, which advocates for liberty rather than the establishment of an Islamic state. -- Katrina Lantos Swett, president of the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights, which carries on the legacy of her father, the late California Rep. Tom Lantos. Speaker of the House John Boehner appointed George to the commission. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell named Jasser. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid selected Swett. USCIRF is a bipartisan panel chosen by the president and congressional leaders that advises the White House, State Department and Congress on the condition of religious freedom overseas. Among its responsibilities is to recommend to the State Department governments that it believes should qualify as "countries of particular concern" (CPCs), a designation reserved for the world's worst violators of religious liberty. Five USCIRF members were required to go off the panel March 22 under a new law. The commission's congressional reauthorization, enacted in December, mandates term limits for commissioners. Among those whose service ended was Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. Land began his service in 2001 but was off nearly a year before being reappointed to the commission in 2005. The other commissioners whose service ended were Nina Shea, Felice Gaer, Elizabeth Prodromou and Don Argue. Shea had served on the commission since its establishment in 1999, while Gaer, Prodromou and Argue had been on the panel since 2001, 2004 and 2007, respectively. USCIRF Chairman Leonard Leo welcomed the new commissioners and expressed gratitude to the commissioners who left the panel the previous week. Speaking for the current USCIRF members, Leo said in a written release that they "commend our departing colleagues ... for their years of committed service as [commissioners]. We are grateful for their powerful advocacy of religious freedom as humanity's first freedom, and for their dedicated work in advancing USCIRF's mission." The other commissioners still on the panel are Azizah al Hibri, William Shaw and Ted Van Der Meid. Leo's service will be terminated May 14, however, under the new law. The 1998 law that created USCIRF calls for the president to select three members of the panel and congressional leaders to name the other six. USCIRF -- the first commission of its kind in the world -- has played a major role in bringing attention to the persecution of Christians and other religious practitioners. The commission issued its annual report March 20 and called on the State Department for the first time to designate Turkey and Tajikistan as "countries of particular concern." USCIRF also recommended 14 other countries for CPC designation: Burma, China, Egypt, Eritrea, Iraq, Iran, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam. --30-- -- End of story -- CULTURE DIGEST: Academic freedom bill passes Tenn. legislature By Staff Mar. 30 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37513 NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) -- Tennessee's legislature has sent to the governor a bill that would protect teachers who allow students to criticize controversial issues such as evolution, climate change and human cloning. "This bill promotes good science education by protecting the academic freedom of science teachers to fully and objectively discuss controversial scientific topics, like evolution," Casey Luskin, a policy analyst at the Discovery Institute, said. [QUOTE@left@180='This bill promotes good science education by protecting the academic freedom of science teachers.' -- Casey Luskin]"Critics who claim the bill promotes religion instead of science either haven't read the bill or are putting up a smokescreen to divert attention from their goal to censor dissenting scientific views," Luskin said. The bill says it "shall not be construed to promote any religious or non-religious doctrine," but critics fear the legislation, if approved by the governor, will send the state back to 1925, the year of the landmark Scopes trial. Two science professors from Vanderbilt University in Nashville and a faculty member at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis wrote in an opinion piece in The Tennessean newspaper that the bill is "misleading, unnecessary, likely to provoke unnecessary and divisive legal proceedings, and likely to have adverse economic consequences for the state." "It is misleading to describe these topics as scientifically controversial," the three wrote. "What is taught about evolution, the origin of life, and climate change in the public school science curriculum is -- as with all scientific topics -- based on the settled consensus of the scientific community. While there is no doubt social controversy about these topics, the actual science is solid." The Tennessee State Senate passed the bill with overwhelming bipartisan support 24-8, and the House voted 72-23 in favor of it. GAME SHOW WILL TEST BIBLE KNOWLEDGE -- Add to the list of television viewing options a new game show that will test participants' knowledge of the Bible. Hosted by comedian Jeff Foxworthy, "The American Bible Challenge" is set to debut on GSN, formerly the Game Show Network, with a pilot being filmed in late March. Questions for the studio-based show will be designed to acknowledge and celebrate the Bible's continuing importance in contemporary life and culture, according to a GSN news release. Contestants will share their life stories, and each team will compete for a faith-based organization. "I am excited to be hosting a show about the bestselling book of all time," Foxworthy, widely known for his redneck jokes, said. "It will be interesting to find out what people really know, and an opportunity to present the Bible in a fun and entertaining way." MORE THAN 550 BABIES SAVED SO FAR IN 40 DAYS -- At least 555 unborn children have been saved from abortion so far in the latest 40 Days for Life campaign, the organization reported March 28. The campaign -- which focuses on peaceful pro-life prayer vigils outside abortion clinics -- will conclude April 1. The latest 40-day effort is the largest spring campaign in 40 Days for Life's history, with outreaches in 258 cities in the United States, plus sites in Canada, Australia, England, Ireland and Spain. Shawn Carney, 40 Days campaign director, reported the following recent developments among unnamed abortion clinic workers: -- Five employees at abortion clinics have left their jobs during this 40 Days campaign. -- Two clinic staffers in different locations recommended women choose not to have abortions after they saw their ultrasounds -- which revealed they both were carrying twins. -- An abortion clinic worker showed an ultrasound to a pregnant client, an act such facilities typically do not permit. When the mother saw the image, she left, saying, "Abortion? No way!" The ultrasound showed quadruplets. The semiannual 40 Days campaigns consist of 40 days of prayer and fasting to end abortion, as well as community outreach and the prayer vigils outside clinics. The effort, which began in Texas in 2004 and went national in 2007, has received reports of more than 5,000 unborn lives saved from abortion as a result of its campaigns. 1 IN 5 BRITISH ABORTION CLINICS BREAKING LAW -- As many as 20 percent of Britain's abortion clinics may be guilty of violating the law, according to a government investigation reported on by The Daily Telegraph. The unannounced raids found more than 50 of 250 private and National Health Service clinics were in violation of the law. Physicians commonly were falsifying consent forms, and the clinics were failing to provide appropriate counseling in many clinics, according to the report. The investigation found the primary abuse was the signing of consent forms by doctors before actually assessing a woman and her situation, the newspaper reported March 22. "I was appalled," said Health Secretary Andrew Lansley, according to The Daily Telegraph. "Because if it happens, it is pretty much people engaging in a culture of both ignoring the law and trying to give themselves the right to say that although Parliament may have said this, we believe in abortion on demand." The government raids followed a hidden-camera investigation by The Daily Telegraph that showed physicians indicating their willingness to abort unborn children based on their sex and to provide false information on written forms to hide the reason for the abortions. ASSISTED SUICIDE PROMOTER TAKES OWN LIFE -- The first Oregon doctor to campaign publicly for physician-assisted suicide took his life by that means recently. Peter Goodwin died March 11 in the presence of his four children and their spouses after taking a lethal dose of a drug he had been prescribed, The Oregonian reported. Goodwin spoke in support of legalizing assisted suicide beginning in the late 1980s. Oregon became the first state with legalized assisted suicide when the Death with Dignity Act went into effect in 1997. The law permits terminally ill citizens of Oregon to take their own lives by using lethal drug doses prescribed by doctors. Oregon has recorded 596 assisted-suicide deaths since then, including a record of 71 in 2011. --30-- Compiled by Baptist Press assistant editor Erin Roach and Washington bureau chief Tom Strode. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -- End of story -- FIRST-PERSON: A 'Reason Rally' full of attacks By Kelly Boggs Mar. 30 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37514 ALEXANDRIA, La. (BP) -- The non-religious from across America gathered in Washington D.C. March 24 for what was dubbed the "Reason Rally." Self-identified atheists, agnostics and secular humanists came to a meeting that had been promoted for months as "the largest secular event in world history." While the event was touted as emphasizing reason, it seemed that some participating in the rally believed ridicule and bullying were the preferred ways for combating religious belief and spreading the joys of atheism. One lady attending the rally held a sign that read: "So many Christians, so few lions," according to The Washington Post. The sign was an obvious reference to Christian persecution by the Roman Empire. Another sign read, "Obama isn't trying to destroy religion ... I AM!" A photo of a woman holding this sign appeared in USA Today. It is plain to see where those brandishing the signs stand on the issue of reason and open debate. One might argue that they were not representative of the majority of those gathered. After all, any large gathering, regardless of its ideology, has its share of crazies in attendance. Yet Richard Dawkins, one of the rally's best-known speakers, advocated for an aggressive in-the-face-of-faith approach to attacking religious belief, particularly Christianity. Dawkins, the author of several books critical of religion, especially Christianity, called on attendees to "show contempt" for the beliefs of people of faith. "Mock them, ridicule them! In public!" he exhorted the crowd, according to Catholic News Agency. There is an adage in debate that if you are losing an argument badly, change the subject. Use sarcasm, question motives, mock positions, resort to ad hominem attacks. Do anything but press your argument. I do not know why Dawkins and those who gathered for the rally in D.C. seem to be abandoning reason for a more militant, emotionally disheveled approach at pushing atheism, but could it be their arguments are not being very persuasive? The crowd was estimated by the Religion News Service to be between 8,000 to 10,000. USA Today indicated the number of those gathered was closer to 20,000. If this was "the largest secular event in world history," the movement, it would seem, has some work to do. As a result, atheists are now willing to resort to ridiculing people of faith in an effort to proselytize them. If I were an atheist, I would be disappointed in the Reason Rally. Rather than encourage intellectual engagement and offer arguments for taking on people of faith in debate, the gathering focused on little more than childish name calling. Admittedly, there are Christians who have not done much more than mock when responding to atheists. However, as a strategy for persuading someone seriously to consider your beliefs, it's not very effective to ridicule, mock and show contempt. Dialogue, discussion and respectful debate are more likely to have a positive effect. In engaging an atheist like Dawkins, I would point out that it requires presuppositional belief to accept evolution as a viable truth. Even though he would contend there is much evidence for the theory, it still requires a measure of faith. During the Reason Rally, Dawkins reportedly praised the "truth" and "beauty" of Darwinian evolution. He said it was an "incredible process" that produced life with the "illusion of design." In order to apply the scientific method to any phenomena, it must be testable, repeatable, measureable and observable. These elements cannot be applied to evolution. Thus, as much as one wishes to believe in the science of evolution, it still takes faith to accept it as truth. "How is it conceivable that the laws of physics should conspire together -- without guidance, without direction, without any intelligence -- to bring us in to the world," Dawkins told the crowd. "... It's almost too good to be true." How is it conceivable? To many rational and thoughtful people, it isn't. It is, in the words of Dawkins, "too good to be true." Dawkins once said, "Let us try to teach generosity and altruism, because we are born selfish." But why are we born in such a state? Is it a drive to survive or is it an inborn sin nature? Dawkins and I can observe the phenomena of innate selfishness, and I am willing to debate him as to the cause of its presence. However, according to his address at the rally, he is only willing to ridicule, mock and show contempt. Real open-minded, isn't it? The Reason Rally seemed to have an abundance of "rally" but was somewhat bereft of reason. --30-- Kelly Boggs is a weekly columnist for Baptist Press, director of the Louisiana Baptist Convention's office of public affairs, and editor of the Baptist Message www.baptistmessage.com, newsjournal of the Louisiana Baptist Convention. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -- End of story -- FIRST-PERSON: Necesitamos al Espíritu Santo By Octavio J. Esqueda Mar. 30 2012 http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=37506 LA MIRADA, Calif. (BP) -- El Espíritu Santo es esencial para la vida y enseñanza cristiana. De hecho, no creo exagerar al afirmar que sin la ayuda y poder del Espíritu Santo todos nuestros esfuerzos tanto para agradar a Dios como para enseñar a otros a hacerlo carecen de sentido y, por lo tanto, los resultados son insignificantes. Desgraciadamente, en muchas ocasiones el Espíritu Santo es olvidado, minimizado o incluso relevado a solamente una teoría teológica que creemos porque se encuentra en la Biblia, pero que no tiene ninguna relevancia en nuestra vida diaria. De hecho, llegué a escuchar a un profesor de un seminario afirmar que muchos cristianos de forma práctica creen que la santa trinidad está compuesta por el Padre, el Hijo y las Santas Escrituras. De esta manera, la presencia del Espíritu Santo es totalmente olvidada. Sin embargo, el Espíritu Santo es la persona indispensable para todo lo que concierne a nuestra relación con Dios y con su servicio. El Espíritu Santo hace posible la salvación de los creyentes ya que él convence de pecado (Juan 16:8) y regenera a los pecadores para que la relación con Dios rota por el pecado sea restablecida (Tito 3:5). El Espíritu Santo incorpora a los creyentes en el cuerpo de Cristo, en lo que se denomina como el bautismo del Espíritu Santo (1 Cor. 12:13). También es el Espíritu Santo el que produce en nosotros el tipo de vida que agrada a Dios cuando le dejamos el control total de nuestras decisiones en lo que la Biblia denomina como "ser lleno del Espíritu Santo" (Ef. 5:18). Cuando dejamos que sea el Espíritu Santo el que dirija nuestra vidas, entonces nuestra conducta reflejará las siguientes características: amor, gozo, paz, paciencia, amabilidad, bondad, fidelidad, humildad y dominio propio (Gal. 5:22-23). Por lo tanto, es imposible agradar a Dios sin la ayuda y dirección del Espíritu Santo. Respecto al proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje, el Espíritu Santo también es central e indispensable en la educación cristiana ya que se relaciona directamente en todos los elementos involucrados. El Espíritu Santo guía y usa al maestro para que pueda enseñar las verdades de Dios. Es increíble que el Dios del universo decida cooperar con nosotros para proclamar su mensaje de redención al mundo. Dios no nos necesita realmente, pero decide usarnos por su gracia. ¡Qué gran privilegio! El contenido de nuestra enseñanza debe estar basado en la revelación escrita de Dios, la Biblia. El Espíritu Santo inspiró a los autores bíblicos por lo que el Espíritu Santo también está involucrado directamente en el contenido de nuestra enseñanza. El Espíritu Santo ilumina y motiva a nuestros alumnos para que entiendan y reciban las enseñanzas divinas. La Biblia es el único libro que existe en el que todos los cristianos tienen acceso directo a su autor (el Espíritu Santo) y además su deseo es ayudarnos a entenderlo y aplicarlo a nuestra vidas. Finalmente, el propósito final de la enseñanza bíblica es nuestra transformación a la imagen de Jesucristo. La Biblia no se escribió para nuestra información solamente sino para nuestra transformación. Este cambio solamente es posible por el Espíritu Santo. De hecho, él es el único que puede cambiar nuestras vidas. Así que, el Espíritu Santo es vital en el maestro, contenido, alumno y la meta de la educación cristiana. A la luz de todas estas realidades, debemos preguntarnos ¿dependemos completamente en el poder y guía del Espíritu Santo? Si no es así, ¿por qué no lo hacemos? Estoy convencido que muchas veces los líderes cristianos se la pasan infructuosamente buscando un método nuevo que haga que su ministerio sea exitoso, pero nunca lo hallarán porque se olvidan del Espíritu Santo. ¿Será que no creemos realmente lo que dice la Escritura acerca del Espíritu Santo? Quizá muchos de nosotros vivimos frustrados o de una manera mediocre porque intentamos vivir y enseñar en nuestras fuerzas y no bajo la guía del Espíritu Santo. Las buenas noticias son que el poder de Dios está a nuestro alcance. Quizá lo más importante que podemos hacer es reconocer que sin la ayuda de Dios no podemos logar absolutamente nada. ¡Gracias a Dios que nos ha dejado a su Espíritu! --30-- Octavio Javier Esqueda es profesor en los programas doctorales en educación en Talbot School of Theology de la Universidad Biola en La Mirada, California. Es miembro de la iglesia bautista Green Hills en La Habra, California y ha tenido la oportunidad de enseñar en diferentes países, instituciones y niveles académicos. -- End of story -- Copyright (c) 2013 Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Press 901 Commerce Street Nashville, TN 37203 Tel: 615.244.2355 Fax: 615.782.8736 email: bpress@sbc.net