Tuesday, January 17, 2006
The Shining Light of Christianity (#5)
In this roundup of people doing stupid things in the name of the Almighty, we have five entries.
First, two Ohio megachurches may have given illegal contributions to Republican candidates. Under current tax law, churches that enjoy tax-exempt status cannot give directly to any political candidate. The complaint against the megachurches, the same credited for delivering Ohio to President Bush in 2004, was filed by members of the clergy.
As reported by the New York Times, "leaders who supported the complaint said that the two churches had gone too far. 'I have become very concerned about how it could be that churches were becoming almost an extension of a political party,' said the Rev. F. Allan Debelak, the minister of a Lutheran church in the Columbus area and a signer of the complaint. 'They have been giving what seems to be an endorsement, even if they never used the word, an endorsement of [Ohio Secretary of State] Ken Blackwell.'"
Meanwhile, the effort to deny the value of science continues. A new book claims that a number of scientific theories widely accepted today are nothing more than a leftist political agenda. Naturally, Fox News is pimping the book. The book's author (a magazine editor with no scientific background) appeared on today's edition of "DaySide."
Our third item concerns another pastor with foam building at the corners of his mouth. As reported by the Associated Press in the San Jose Mercury News, the "pastor on Monday called for a national boycott of Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard and other companies that support a gay civil rights bill, saying the corporations have underestimated the power of religious consumers. The Rev. Ken Hutcherson, pastor of Antioch Bible Church in the Seattle suburb of Redmond, said he would formally issue the boycott Thursday on the conservative radio show Focus on the Family."
That pastor needs to be reminded of this passage from First Corinthians: "For what is it to me to also judge those who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But God judges those who are outside. Therefore put out from you the evil one."
Today's fourth item is actually a piece of good news. A school district in California is dropping its plan to teach "intelligent design" as science. I have no problem with the discussion of creationism in a theological class. In fact, I strongly encourage it. It does not belong, however, in the science classroom.
Finally, I want to publicly debunk a ridiculous hoax that landed in my e-mail inbox this week. Rather than rehash it all here, I'll instead let you get the truth from the ACLU directly.
First, two Ohio megachurches may have given illegal contributions to Republican candidates. Under current tax law, churches that enjoy tax-exempt status cannot give directly to any political candidate. The complaint against the megachurches, the same credited for delivering Ohio to President Bush in 2004, was filed by members of the clergy.
As reported by the New York Times, "leaders who supported the complaint said that the two churches had gone too far. 'I have become very concerned about how it could be that churches were becoming almost an extension of a political party,' said the Rev. F. Allan Debelak, the minister of a Lutheran church in the Columbus area and a signer of the complaint. 'They have been giving what seems to be an endorsement, even if they never used the word, an endorsement of [Ohio Secretary of State] Ken Blackwell.'"
Meanwhile, the effort to deny the value of science continues. A new book claims that a number of scientific theories widely accepted today are nothing more than a leftist political agenda. Naturally, Fox News is pimping the book. The book's author (a magazine editor with no scientific background) appeared on today's edition of "DaySide."
Our third item concerns another pastor with foam building at the corners of his mouth. As reported by the Associated Press in the San Jose Mercury News, the "pastor on Monday called for a national boycott of Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard and other companies that support a gay civil rights bill, saying the corporations have underestimated the power of religious consumers. The Rev. Ken Hutcherson, pastor of Antioch Bible Church in the Seattle suburb of Redmond, said he would formally issue the boycott Thursday on the conservative radio show Focus on the Family."
That pastor needs to be reminded of this passage from First Corinthians: "For what is it to me to also judge those who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But God judges those who are outside. Therefore put out from you the evil one."
Today's fourth item is actually a piece of good news. A school district in California is dropping its plan to teach "intelligent design" as science. I have no problem with the discussion of creationism in a theological class. In fact, I strongly encourage it. It does not belong, however, in the science classroom.
Finally, I want to publicly debunk a ridiculous hoax that landed in my e-mail inbox this week. Rather than rehash it all here, I'll instead let you get the truth from the ACLU directly.
