GOP Candidates & Evangelicals

Below is a short Fox News discussion about Mitt Romney and Rick Perry's relationship to the Evangelical community.

Rick Perry on "Calling"

The Governor of Texas is backing away from his comment last week that he's "getting more and more comfortable every day that this is what I've been called to do." Rick Perry told reporters today there are many ways to be "called" and he looks for "good scripture that tells me how to live my life." Perry hasn't officially declared his candidacy for the presidency.

Facebook Mockery Backlash

Exodus International is asking Seattle megachurch pastor Mark Driscoll to apologize for a Facebook comment he made that has caused an uproar in Christian social media circles. Driscoll asked, “So, what story do you have about the most effeminate anatomically male worship leader you’ve ever personally witnessed?” The comment was later removed, but Exodus says it encourages people to believe Christians are homophobic. A letter campaign asked elders at Driscoll's Mars Hill Church to reign him in. Although he didn't apologize, Driscoll posted a later comment that said in part “...a sincere thanks to all my critics who sometimes have good wisdom that helps me out.”

Petition Against Megachurch Leaders by Members

Senior members of the Crystal Cathedral have started an online petition against the megachurch's current leadership provided by the daughters of founder Robert Schuller. It proclaims to the congregation "It is time to rise up and take our church back!” The organizers are calling for a church board independent of the Schullers. The Southern California church filed for bankruptcy last year, leading the layoff of nearly 150 employees.

Pirate Station Interfering with Christian Radio in NY

The Educational Media Foundation - better known as the K-Love Contemporary Christian Music network has complained to the FCC about a pirate radio station interfering with its signal in New York. WKLV was purchased the former WCTZ from Cox Broadcasting for $15.5 million. The station is licensed to Port Chester, New York at 96.7. The pirate station is located in New Jersey and even has a Facebook page dedicated to it. It refers to the pirate station as “New Jersey’s #1 hottest Jamaican radio show on 96.7 FM.”

Radio Network Sale

An Ohio University is selling its radio network to California's Educational Media Foundation. The deal still needs FCC approval, but the 13 frequencies will switch from Cedarville University's Bible teaching format to the EMF's Contemporary Christian music format branded as K-Love.

Bachmann and Catholicism

Michele Bachmann's former church has come under fire for its belief that the papacy is the AntiChrist. The Republican presidential hopeful quit the Lutheran denomination last month, while reports continue to question whether she is anti-Catholic, despite her denials. She was a member at Salem Lutheran Church in Stillwater, Minnesota for more than a decade, but had not attended for more than two years. The church is part of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod which has 1300 congregations and about 400,000 members. During a debate a few years ago, she said, “It’s abhorrent, it’s religious bigotry. I love Catholics, I’m a Christian, and my church does not believe that the pope is the anti-Christ, that’s absolutely false. The Catholic League issued a statement saying it does not believe Bachmann is anti-Catholic, but asking her questions about the subject is entirely appropriate.

Getting to Know.. J.K. Rowling

Although brought up in a nonreligious home, in her youth, the author of the Harry Potter books would go to church by herself. J.K. Rowling still regularly attends services and her children have all been christened. Her Potter books do not mention of God or Scripture except in the last one. Harry discovers on his parents' graves a Bible verse that, Rowling says, is the theme for the entire series. It's a passage from I Corinthians in which Paul discusses Jesus' resurrection: "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death."

The Response

The Freedom from Religion Foundation has filed a lawsuit to stop Governor Rick Perry's day of prayer and fasting. The group of atheists and agnostics say it would violate the constitutional ban on the government endorsing a religion. The August 6th event is called The Response and will take place at Houston's Reliant Stadium.

NBC "Pledge" Apology - Again

NBC has issued a formal apology to Congress for editing out "under God" from its broadcast of the U.S. Open golf championship. The network's presidents says the people involved have been "reprimanded" and "the mistake will not be repeated." A letter signed by 108 members of Congress to the network complained about the omission even after NBC issued an on-air apology.

Former Bible Student Heading to Prison

A former Moody Bible Institute student is now a convicted sex offender. Aaron Dodds pleaded guilty pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated child pornography and may spend up to four years in prison. He took his computer to the Chicago school’s IT department revealed for repair where a technician found more than 500 images of child pornography.

New Kentucky Tags

An anti-pornography group in Kentucky has gotten the go ahead to raise funds through the sale of state license plates that say "In God We Trust." It took more than three years of legal maneuvering to get the effort approved by ROCK Cares, whose name will appear on the plates. The only stipulation is that at least 900 applications for the tags must be made before they go into production. A plate without the ministry's name became available in January with more than 70,000 sold.

Prez Candidate Family Under Fire

Michele Bachmann's husband, who runs a Christian counseling clinic, is coming under fire from former clients and a group that went undercover at the clinic for the clinic's therapy related to homosexuality. Here is a video report from ABC News.

Hollywood's First-ever Atheist Hero

The Philistines

Archaeologist in southern Israel are piecing together the history of the people known in the Bible as the Philistines. A report from Associated Press is here.

Evangelicals, Republicans and the Civil War

A New York Times article takes a look at the influence of Evangelicals in the foundations of the Republican Party and the Civil War. Read about it here.

School Prayer Dispute Settled

A Florida school district has hashed out an agreement over prayer and the use of religious phrases in schools. The Santa Rosa School District school board voted unanimously to approve the agreement between the district, the ACLU and Liberty Counsel. The school district has dropped its ban on teacher-led prayer and religious activities within the district. Criminal indictments had been filed against school employees. The issue came to the public view when the ACLU filed a complaint against the district, saying it was illegally sponsoring prayer and proselytizing at school events. The Liberty Counsel is holding a victory rally at Pace Assembly Ministries today.

SCOTUS to Consider Church School Case

This fall, the Supreme Court will hear arguments as to whether an elementary school operated by a Michigan unfairly fired a teacher attempting to return to work after a disability leave related to narcolepsy. The Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church where the woman worked is a part of the Missouri Synod Lutheran church. U.S. courts have generally held that federal employment discrimination statutes do not apply to church employees performing religious functions. The question is whether this applies not simply to religious leaders, but also to teachers at a religious elementary school.

Megachurch Responds to Stories about Founder

The Crystal Cathedral says it's not true. A spokesman for the megachurch says Robert H. Schuller was not voted off the board of the ministry, even though Schuller's son has said that he was voted off. Robert Anthony Schuller had said his 84-year-old father was booted off after proposing putting adding more seats to the board. But the spokesman says Schuller is now board chairman emeritus. However, the church spokesman admitted that Schuller lost his vote and now has only a non-voting position.

Schuller Out

The Crystal Cathedral board of directors have voted founder Robert Schuller off the board. Because of bankruptcy brought on by massive debts, the Southern California megachurch is in the process of selling its famous glass-spired sanctuary.