San Diego Cross Will Stay

San Diego Cross Will Stay

CBN News
December 1, 2006


CBNNews.com -- The California State Appeals Court has given a legal victory to supporters of the San Diego cross.



The 29-foot cross monument sits on public land atop Mount Soledad near the city of San Diego.

The cross has been the subject of controversy, because some say it is an unconstitutional endorsement of religion.

With legal challenges mounting, President Bush has signed legislation that transferred the property to the Federal government.

Voters approved a separate but similar measure. However, a judge ruled against it.
On Thursday, the appelliate court overturned the judge's decision, ruling the transfer of land is constitutional.

The Christian Broadcasting Network, Inc. © 2006

‘Nativity Story’ actress should not be shunned, leaders say

‘Nativity Story’ actress should not be shunned, leaders say

Nov 30, 2006
By Erin Roach
Baptist Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Amid reports that the teenage actress who plays Mary in the new movie “The Nativity Story” is pregnant out of wedlock, some Christians are wondering how to respond to a lead character’s personal life in a movie they have enthusiastically embraced.

The 16-year-old actress, Keisha Castle-Hughes, plays the role of the Virgin Mary in the Hollywood rendition of the story surrounding Jesus’ birth, which opens in theaters Dec. 1. In October, the agency that represents her confirmed she is expecting a baby in the spring and the father is her boyfriend of three years.

Knowing that Christians might have a problem with the news, Phil Boatwright, editor and film reviewer for previewonline.org, asked the movie’s producers, Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey, about the situation.

“They made no judgment call but were proud that this young girl thought more of the baby within than her own career,” Boatwright told Baptist Press. “I thought of that too. There are a lot of 16-year-old girls who get pregnant. But this girl is not only young, she’s an up-and-coming actress, yet she felt this life was more important than herself.”

The Australian-born Castle-Hughes was nominated for an Academy Award for her role in “Whale Rider,” and she played the Queen of Naboo in last year’s “Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith.”

Boatwright said he hopes that although Christians don’t want to condone sex outside marriage they also don’t want to be too judgmental.

“This young woman played Mary, the mother of Jesus,” Boatwright said. “I’m praying that if she doesn’t already have a relationship with our Savior that she soon will. And I’m praying that little unborn child will someday proclaim Jesus as Messiah.”

Richard Ross, co-founder of the national abstinence movement True Love Waits, took a similar approach, advising Christians not to react to Castle-Hughes the way the world expects them to react.

“In the early moments of True Love Waits, I was invited to appear on the ‘Jerry Springer Show.’ They already had enlisted three teenage girls pregnant before marriage to appear as well,” Ross recounted to BP. “One of the producers called to say, ‘Rev. Ross, I am sure you’re infuriated by these girls that have been so immoral. I’m guessing you will want to call them sluts and other things on the broadcast.’

“I answered, ‘No, I would never say such things. I love those young ladies even now. I will want to be gentle with them and tell them that God loves them and is ready to walk with them through what they are facing,’” Ross said.

“The mood of the producer quickly changed and he mumbled something about having to drop me from the show,” Ross added. “The secular world expects Christians to be mean to Keisha Castle-Hughes and all the young [people] who make grave mistakes with their lives. But to do so is to ignore the model Christ set for His followers. With gentleness and grace we are to point those who stumble toward redemption, forgiveness and a God of second chances.”

William Donohue, president of the Catholic League, said the secular media was deprived of the juicy story they were betting on when the Vatican and Catholic and Protestant groups throughout the world did not withdraw their support of The Nativity Story based on the lead character’s personal choices.

“On Nov. 24, UPI wrote that ‘Some Christian groups in the United States and Canada reportedly have been questioning Castle-Hughes’s ‘suitability’ to play the role of Mary,’” Donahue said in a Nov. 29 news release. “On the same day, the Times of London implied that the pope had subsequently refused to see the film (this was picked up by some U.S. media sources). On Nov. 26, the Detroit Free Press said that ‘Vatican officials’ were allegedly ‘not thrilled to have the issue cloud their enjoyment of the movie. So Castle-Hughes was dropped from the invitation list for the Vatican’s world premiere of the movie today.’

“As it turns out, none of this is true, as both USA Today and The New York Times accurately reported: The pope was embarking on his trip to Turkey and the girl was in Australia doing a movie,” Donahue said. “Despite what some think, Christians do not turn their backs on unwed mothers; they provide services for them.”

Jimmy Hester, who founded True Love Waits with Ross, voiced concern that Christians will miss an opportunity to explain to teenagers why Castle-Hughes’ situation is not ideal.

“This is just another illustration that our society does not truly value the biblical plan for sexuality,” Hester told BP. “Platforming this actress in this movie only serves as justification for sexually active teenagers and others who support such behavior, and makes it more difficult for young believers to hold up God's plan for sexual abstinence until marriage.”

An additional controversy surrounding the film is news that the city of Chicago has opted to ban advertisements for The Nativity Story at Christkindlmarket, a Christmas festival held in Daley Plaza for more than 10 years.

Officials are allowing a nativity display along with an Islamic crescent and a Jewish menorah, but they decided that clips from the film were too commercial and didn’t appeal to all faiths, according to the Chicago Tribune.

“This particular incident is about a movie studio aggressively marketing a movie and trying to sell tickets to that movie,” Veronica Resa, a spokeswoman for the mayor's office of special events, said.

But Ted Baehr, chairman of the Christian Film & Television Commission, said the decision amounted to a declaration of war on Christianity.

“This is an outrageous, despicable decision,” Baehr said in a Nov. 28 news release. “I’m absolutely shocked that at a Christmas festival they would not allow commercials people could see tonight on TV. It is just more hypocritical, leftwing political correctness where everything is OK except Christianity.”

Baehr added that Chicago officials would not show similar intolerance to minority groups or homosexual groups.--30--

Copyright © 2001 - 2006 Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Press

City's Nativity scene has no Jesus, Mary or Joseph

W.Va. city's Xmas scene has no Jesus

By TOM BREENASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

ST. ALBANS, W.Va. -- Christ is missing from Christmas in this small town. The community's holiday display has a manger with shepherds, a guiding star, camels and a palm tree, but no baby Jesus, Mary or Joseph.

The parks superintendent said Jesus was left out because of concerns about the separation of church and state. But Mayor Dick Callaway said it was done for purely technical reasons: "It's not easy to put a light-up representation of a baby in a small manger scene, you know."

In recent years, some communities around the country have dropped nativity scenes after the displays were challenged as unconstitutional. Some communities have tried to head off legal problems by incorporating nonreligious symbols, or symbols of more than one faith, to avoid the appearance of endorsing one religion over another.

David Cunningham, parks superintendent in this town of 11,000, initially insisted St. Albans' display was not even technically a manger scene because he was concerned about possible lawsuits. But the mayor said such anxieties were unwarranted.

"We have a manger scene," the mayor said.

Around the country, only a few skirmishes in what some conservatives have called the "War on Christmas" have been reported this year so far.

Some retailers, including Wal-Mart, have returned to greeting customers with "Merry Christmas" after coming under attack last year for saying "Happy Holidays."

Two weeks ago, the Marine Reserves Toys for Tots program in Los Angeles overcame concerns about accepting a donation of 4,000 talking Jesus dolls that quote Bible verses by promising to make sure the dolls reach Christian children.

Some people are still scratching their heads over what happened in Chicago, where the movie studio behind "The Nativity Story" was dropped as a sponsor of a Christmas festival for fear of offending non-Christians.

In Wheeling, baby Jesus is represented in a manger scene at Olgebay Park's Winter Festival of Lights, which draws visitors from across the country.

"If anything, we get criticized for not having more examples of that type of thing," said J.C. Douglas Dalby, president of the Wheeling Park Commission.

©1996-2006 Seattle Post-Intelligencer

6 Imams Kicked Off Plane Gave Crew Several Reasons to Be Suspicious

6 Imams Kicked Off Plane Gave Crew Several Reasons to Be Suspicious

Saturday, December 02, 2006
By Cassie Carothers
Fox News

Six imams were kicked off a US Airways flight last week in Minneapolis for committing several acts of suspicious behavior, not just because they said their evening prayers before boarding the plane, a police report shows, contradicting earlier media reports.

US Airways manager Robby Taylor Davis told police three of the six imams had one-way only tickets and only one passenger checked luggage. He also said in the police report that most of the six requested seat-belt extensions typically used by obese people despite being thin.

Also, a passenger on the plane who speaks Arabic heard the group mention Saddam Hussein and criticize the United States' involvement in Iraq. The passenger, whose named was redacted from the police report, said he saw two of the men take seats in the front of the plane, two take seats in the middle, and two more in the back.

• Click here to read the full police report.

Minneapolis police, along with U.S. Federal Air Marshals, decided the collective behavior of the group was suspicious enough to detain the men and question them.

Earlier reports only said the group had been seen praying loudly before the flight, and the group was removed after a passenger passed a note to a flight attendant bringing attention to the group, and did not include details on the other suspicious behavior of the imams.

The imams, who were returning from a religious conference, were detained and questioned before being released shortly thereafter.

"Pauline," a passenger on the flight who didn't want to give her real name for fear of her safety, said she thought the it was a stunt to garner media attention.

"They were so poised and ready to go to the press. By the time I arrived home from the airport ... they were already announcing on the news that they were being discriminated against," Pauline said on FOX News' Hannity and Colmes.

• Click here to watch the full interview

In the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, four airlines accused of breaking federal anti-discrimination laws settled with the government. Transportation Department investigations found the airlines had unlawfully removed passengers because of perceived ethnic or religious backgrounds.

The Transportation Department received a complaint about the US Airways incident on Monday from the Muslim Public Affairs Council, said spokesman Brian Turmail.

"We're going to now look into the matter," Turmail said.

The Homeland Security Department's Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties said last week that it was investigating the incident.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Muslims Seek Prayer Room at Airport

Muslims Seek Prayer Room at Airport

Dec 01 6:53 PM US/Eastern
By PATRICK CONDONA
ssociated Press Writer

MINNEAPOLIS

Airport officials said Friday they will consider setting aside a private area for prayer and meditation at the request of imams concerned about the removal of six Muslim clerics from a US Airways flight last week.

Steve Wareham, director of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, said other airports have "meditation rooms" used for prayers or by passengers who simply need quiet time.

A group of Somali clerics met with airport officials Friday and said they would attract less attention if they had a private area for prayer. Devout Muslims pray five times daily, facing the holy city of Mecca.

"When we pray, we don't want a problem. We don't want what happened last week," said Abdulrehman Hersi, an imam at Darul-Quba mosque in Minneapolis, referring to six clerics who were barred from a US Airways flight in Minneapolis after drawing the concern of some passengers.

Airports in Nashville, Tenn.; Columbus, Ohio; and Fort Lauderdale, Fla., all advertise meditation rooms. Fort Lauderdale's is billed as "For travelers seeking a quiet time." All note they are nonsectarian.

The imams at the airport Friday drew a few stares as they laid down their prayer rugs and knelt on the hard rubber floor at the airport.

The clerics requested a meeting after both the US Airways incident and a recent flap over Muslim cabdrivers who didn't want to pick up passengers carrying alcohol.

"We are users of the airport, too, and we don't want to get into a situation where Muslims feel we are being marginalized at the airport," said Omar Jamal, executive director of the Somali Justice Advocacy Center in St. Paul and the meeting's organizer.

Airport officials will accept the group's invitation to visit a mosque, airport spokesman Pat Hogan said.

"I think there's a mutual recognition that it would be helpful for there to be a solid understanding," Hogan said.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

A new movement against radical Islam?

A new movement against radical Islam?
Modeled after anti-Communist efforts, activists plot strategy

Posted: December 2, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern
© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com

WASHINGTON – Two conservative activists deeply involved in the anti-communism movement of the past are planning a broad strategy of re-creating those efforts in a new mass movement to fight radical Islam.

Jack Wheeler, a strategist credited with formulating "the Reagan Doctrine" that helped bring down the Soviet Empire, and Steve Baldwin, a former California legislator and the executive director of the Council for National Policy, have teamed up for what they describe as the creation of an "Anti-Islamofascism Movement."

"One cannot write the history of the Cold War without acknowledging the key role played by the American Anti-Communist Movement," they write in a memo to conservative leaders. "It was a broad movement involving many different organizations that, for decades, kept its focus on the defeat of the Soviet Empire. And it succeeded."

Wheeler and Baldwin say anti-communism was "the defining issue that brought hundreds of thousands of people into the conservative movement in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. There was a sense that this movement had to be successful if not only America but Western Civilization itself were to survive."

They say the current war of global conquest being waged by Islamofascists will be an even tougher fight than the battle that focused on the Soviet Union.

"But we don't seem to be prepared for this war," they write. "Unlike the movement created during the Cold War, there doesn't seem to be much of an infrastructure to combat Islamofascism."

The agenda for such a movement should include the following activities and efforts, they say:

investigate radical mosques

support anti-Islamofascist freedom fighters

thwart attempts to impose Sharia law

form an anti-Islamofascist publishing network

create an anti-Islamofascist portal on the Internet

establish an anti-Islamofascist speakers bureau

wage an ideological assault on Islamofascism

support efforts to evangelize Muslims in Europe and the Middle East

create a global anti-Islamofascist coalition

reframe the illegal immigration issue as one of national security

end dependence on foreign oil that's funding the Islamofascists.

Planning meetings through regular teleconferencing are already underway. There is a new secure Internet forum where ideas are being exchanged. There is also an e-mail address where those interested in the "movement" can make their intention known – 910-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. Those wishing to participate in the forum are asked to provide some information about their own background, interests and skills so they can be directed to specific project areas. Additional information is available at the 910blog.

"This needs to be done in order to preserve both America and Western Civilization," Wheeler and Baldwin say. "Without the anti-Communist movement, it's likely we would still be in the midst of the Cold War today. Wise men and women rose up to the challenge and created a movement that was very much opposed by the existing political and media establishment. But we won. Then we all went to sleep."

Woman must be informed of unborn child's pain?

Woman must be informed of unborn child's pain?
House to vote on bill that requires giving facts before allowing abortion

Posted: December 2, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern
© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com


The Christian Medical Association is urging passage of a federal bill to inform women considering an abortion of potential pain their babies can experience after 20 weeks of development.

"One thing both sides of this issue should be able to agree upon is that women should be fully informed about the medical science concerning their developing babies," said Dr. David Stevens, CEO of the 17,000-member association.

The House is expected to vote on the Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act, H.R. 6099, next week.

Stevens said the scientific findings in the measure are "clear and compelling."

"Women deserve to know exactly what an abortion involves for their baby," he said. "Imagine the heartbreak a woman would experience after being led to believe that her 22-week developing baby is simply a 'blob of tissue' only to learn after an abortion that her baby likely experienced excruciating pain. This bill sets the record straight and makes sure women are provided with the facts."

The bill's findings – reflecting testimony by scientific experts, including Drs. Kanwdfbet S. Anand and Jeanne Wright – note that at least by 20 weeks after fertilization, an unborn child has the physical structures necessary to experience pain.

"There is substantial evidence that by 20 weeks after fertilization, unborn children draw away from certain stimuli in a manner which in an infant or an adult would be interpreted as a response to pain," a draft of the bill states.

Anesthesia, the experts point out, routinely is administered to unborn children who have developed 20 weeks or more after fertilization and undergo prenatal surgery.

"There is substantial evidence that the abortion methods most commonly used 20 weeks or more after fertilization cause substantial pain to an unborn child, whether by dismemberment, poisoning, penetrating or crushing the skull, or other methods," the bill states.

Dr. Gene Rudd, an obstetrician with the CMA, noted the bill cites laws protecting animals from inhumane treatment, while a developing human has no such protections.

"What does this say about our blindness to the humanity of our developing babies?" he asked.

Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., issued a statement yesterday in support of the bill, saying he intends to "seek unanimous consent that the Senate take up and pass this critical piece of legislation."

Brownback is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and chairman of the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Property Rights.

Child-care center warned over 'loving Jesus' songs

Child-care center warned over 'loving Jesus' songs

Overzealous bureaucrat threatens loss of funding
to moms, tots unless group becomes 'gay'-inclusive

Posted: December 2, 2006
6:25 a.m. Eastern
© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com

A North London mother and toddlers' group is breathing easier– but still upset – after the local government council rebuked a bureaucrat who threatened to withhold funding unless songs about loving Jesus were dropped from daily activities and the organization changed its constitution to reflect greater inclusiveness towards gay families.

Gosia Shannon, a Polish emigree, was alerted by a letter sent this week, that the Polish and Eastern European Christian Family Center in Wood Green, North London, that she started earlier this year, would no longer be eligible for government funding unless it agreed to it remaining 'non-religious' in the future, the London Daily Mail reported.

The drop-in center serves 250 families, mostly Polish immigrant women and their young children, offering the opportunity for newcomers to the UK to make friends and learn about nurseries and schools. In its short time in existence, the program has become so popular that regular attenders must take turns each week since Shannon's facility will only hold 40 people.

Children play with toys and participate in "circle time" where they sing nursery rhymes as well as traditional Polish Christian songs like "Our Jesus, We Love You." Many of the songs are provided by parents who bring in CDs of music their familes sing at home.

"We sing Christian and non-Christian songs," said Shannon.

"We are simply reflecting the culture of the people who attend. We want our children to be brought up in the Christian faith and to go to Catholic schools where they will sing Christian songs every day. We have Christian songs at home and families want their children to learn them. This is part of our inheritance and we want to be able to reflect our culture."

The center operates with approximately $14,000 in annual funding from the UK's Sure Start program – similar to Head Start in the U.S. – and is designed to support pre-school children and their families in deprived areas. The funding is distributed through the Haringey Council.
Enter Debbie Biss, area manager for Haringey Sure Start program's Noel Park Children's Center.

In a letter, dated Dec. 1, Biss wrote to the group to complain about their singing Christian songs.

"We expect all our services to be inclusive and without religious content, so I was concerned to learn that Gosia [Shannon] leads the singing of a song about loving Jesus in every session," she wrote. "I asked Gosia to leave this song out in future, but Gosia has refused to do so."

Biss warned the center's committee that she would recommend funding be terminated at the end of the month unless it agreed that all future activities would be "strictly of a non-religious nature."

Further, the committee was told it must amend its constitution to reflect a greater inclusion of 'gay' families and that it should consider dropping "Christian" from the name of the group. It "implies that your activities are religious in nature" – an implication, Biss said, that could affect future funding.

An angry Shannon vowed to fight the imposition of secularism on her group, most of whom are Catholic.

"It's ridiculous and it's unacceptable. I don't understand this political correctness," she said.

"They're trying to impose their own policies on a community that has its own values. It's saying 'we can support the community without their values.' If we don't have the funds, I would have to stop running the group and people would have nowhere to go. But I am determined not to give up and will fight on."

Further, Shannon noted, she had welcomed the one lesbian couple who visited the center.
"We don't promote homosexuality but we welcome homosexuals. They are trying to impose their own culture on us, not the culture the community wants. Christianity is part of who we are," she told the London Times.

A day after Biss sent her letter, Shannon got a reprieve. The Haringey Council announced that the letter from Biss had been withdrawn.

"It was not appropriate for this officer to be writing such a letter linking funding with the issues mentioned in the letter," a spokesman said. "We have contacted this group asking them to disregard the letter and invited them to meet a senior officer to discuss the funding of their group."

Shannon's experience may be only the tip of the iceberg as new legislation outlawing discrimination goes into effect in 2007. Beginning in April, it will be illegal for religious groups to discriminate against homosexuals or transsexuals when providing goods and services.

Catholic and Anglican agencies have indicated they may be forced to close their adoption agencies, youth clubs and hospice, and Christian bed-and-breakfast owners say they would shut down before allowing homosexual couples to sleep together in their houses.

Conservative black church groups have had the strongest reaction, taking out a full page advertisement in the London Times in protest.

Alfred Williams, one of the pentecostal leaders behind the ad, said: "People think it is better to die than to sin against their God. There will be a spontaneous reaction. There will be civil disobedience."

Backlash Causes Airline to 'Back Peddle' on Decision re: Employee's Wearing of Cross

Backlash Causes Airline to 'Back Peddle' on Decision re: Employee's Wearing of Cross

By Pat Centner

(AgapePress) - British Airways (BA) recently announced that it would again review its dress code policy after initially ruling that one of its employees could not wear a cross to work because it violated the dress code.

Back in October, Nadia Eweida, a check-in worker, was told that she would have to either remove her cross or hide it beneath a scarf. Eweida, a Coptic Christian, refused and was ultimately sent home. She was also placed on unpaid leave.

In comments to The Daily Mail, Eweida maintained that BA only discriminates against Christians in the wearing of religious items. "British Airways permits Muslims to wear a headscarf, Sikhs to wear a turban, and other faiths religious apparel," she said. "I will not hide my faith in the Lord Jesus Christ."

Eweida filed an appeal with the airline, but lost. She was once again told that she could not wear a cross that was fully visible to others. Eweida's plight soon became public, and British Airlines experienced a backlash of gigantic proportions. Statements and articles declaring religious discrimination were lodged by Christians and clergy worldwide. According to VirtueOnline, even the British Parliament became involved as close to 100 members protested on behalf of Eweida.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, responded to the airline's decision by reiterating a statement he had made early in the Eweida controversy that it is "absolutely basic that people of any faith should have the right to display the signs of their faith commitment in public." He elaborated further, said Christian Today, by expressing confusion at the airline's decision, saying he couldn't discern whether they were simply talking about "regulations," or whether they were claiming that the cross itself is a source of offense.

"Now if BA is really saying or implying that the wearing of a cross in public is a source of offense," the archbishop said, "then I regard that as deeply offensive .... If they're saying that it's to do with matters of health and safety, ... I would ask them to look very seriously at this, given the enormous reaction of dismay that's been caused in the Christian community."

This controversy has sparked great interest by Christians worldwide, who are encountering ever-increasing religious persecution. Faith McDonnell of the Institute on Religion and Democracy was right on target when she expressed the importance that wearing a cross holds, in particular for Christians living in non-Western countries who are willing to be publicly identified as followers of Christ in spite of persecution and death.

The symbolism of wearing the cross, said McDonnell, "is not a fashion statement; it is a faith statement."

Pat Centner, an occasional contributor to AgapePress, is a former staff writer for AFA Journal, a publication of the American Family Association.

© 2006 AgapePress all rights reserved.