Jakes Film Breaks into Top 10

The T.D. Jakes film Not Easily Broken raked in $5.6 million in just 724 theaters across the nation this past weekend. That puts it at number nine overall in its debut. The pro-marriage movie was marketed like Tyler Perry’s films and distributed by Sony. About 70% of the audience was female and 69% were over the age of 30, according to Sony’s exit polling.

Jakes is the senior pastor of 30,000-member The Potters House in Dallas.

In comparison, another church film, Fireproof, debuted at $6.8 million last September and eventually brought in $33 million.

Meanwhile, CBS is holding Jakes’ new TV talk show until this fall. The media company blames the current economic climate for the move. It’s one of many syndicated shows in the works that will have to wait to see its debut. The show was originally planned to start this Spring.

Obama Invites Gay Bishop

Barack Obama is asking the first openly gay man to be ordained a bishop in the Episcopal Church to give the opening invocation on Sunday at the Lincoln Memorial to start inauguration week. The ordination of Gene Robinson has split the Episcopal Church.

The decision comes on the heels of Obama's invitation to Evangelical pastor Rick Warren to give the invocation on Inauguration Day. That brought criticism from the gay community over Warren's view of homosexuality. Robinson said the choice of Warren was "a slap in the face".

Alamo Hearing

A hearing is scheduled in Litttle Rock, Arkansas today for 20 children taken from the Tony Alamo Christian Ministries compound by child welfare workers. The cult leader is facing federal charges relating to sex with minors.

Boston's First Deaf Priest

The Archdiocese of Boston will soon have its first deaf priest. Shawn Carey will be ordained for Boston on May 23 at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. Carey grew up in Westfield but was unable to take part in regular religious education classes at his home parish because they were not able to accommodate him. His family eventually found a Protestant tutor to help Carey prepare for his first communion. He planned to become a lawyer and studied political science and business at Providence College. It was only after graduation he decided to become a priest.

Anti-Gay Church Gets ACLU Help

The Fred Phelps’ Westboro Baptist Church is getting help from an unusual source. The Topeka-based church, known for protesting at soldiers’ funerals against gay rights, is suing the city of St. Joseph, Missouri for refusing to let members stage a protest. Now, the ACLU of Eastern Missouri is joining Westboro in its effort to get the ordinance declared unconstitutional. This past fall, an appeals court ruled the group has the right to picket at soldiers’ funerals in the state of Missouri.

Tim Tebow's Faith

Florida quarterback Tim Tebow led his team to a national championship last night by beating the Oklahoma Sooners. What many sports fans may not know is that Tim was homeschooled and has spent a lot of time in the Philippines (where he was born) with his parents doing missionary work. The family still makes annual pilgrimages to help the poor. Tebow has often spoke before gatherings of high school students about his Christian faith. Last year, he won the Heisman Trophy. But his siblings are doing big things as well: His sister, Christy, is a full-time missionary in Bangladesh and brother Robby is the area director for the Northeast Florida Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Brother Peter is an intern at the University of Florida’s Campus Crusade for Christ.

So Help Me God

The Senate Historical Office says President Washington never said So help me God during his inauguration. Historical editor Beth Hahn says she always assumed Washington said it. And even said so in a film called So Help Me God that you can watch on the website of The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. But after some research, she decided the first time was during the inauguration of Chester Arthur during 1881. However, she does admit it was often used to end oaths of office in Washington’s day.

While it may be debatable whether the first US president concluded his presidential oath with those four words, he did mention God in his speech.

Washington began with "fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the Universe.. In tendering this homage to the Great Author of every public and private good.. No People can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand, which conducts the Affairs of men more than the People of the United States."

He ended with "the benign Parent of the human race, in humble supplication..” and asked for God's "divine blessing" for the nation.

Clergy blessings have been a part of presidential inaugurations for more than two centuries without much attention.

Atheist Michael Newdow has filed a lawsuit in an attempt to prevent God from being mentioned during Barack Obama's inauguration.

2nd Trimester Abortions

The University of Wisconsin plans to give women second-trimester abortions (between 13 and 22 weeks) at the Madison Surgery Center in Madison. All that’s needed is the Center’s board of trustees to approve the move later this month.

A conservative Christian legal group is protesting the move. The Alliance Defense Fund questions the plan's legallity because a state law prohibits state or federal money from being used to pay doctors or clinics to perform abortions.

The Center says insurance and the patients will foot the bill for the abortions and not the state.

Neuhaus Dies

Richard John Neuhaus has died at the age of 72. The Catholic priest and theologian founded First Things and promoted conservative views in his writing. Neuhaus was battling cancer. TIME magazine put him on a list of America’s 25 most influential Evangelicals in 2005. More from the National Catholic Register.

Hall of Fame Inductees

These artists will be inducted into the GMA Gospel Music Hall of Fame this year:

• Michael W. Smith: won three Grammy Awards and 42 Dove Awards during his two decades of creating contemporary Christian Music
  
• Dolly Parton: a Kennedy Center Honoree as well as a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame
  
• Bobby Jones: His Bobby Jones Gospel program first aired in 1976, won Grammy and Dove Awards along with a NAACP Image Award
  
• The Dixie Hummingbirds: formed in 1928, sang with Paul Simon on Loves Me Like A Rock and Stevie Wonder’s Innervisions album .
  
• Lari Goss: has worked with The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, The Gaither Vocal Band, Glen Campbell and many others
  

Library Lawsuit Settled

The Clermont County Public Library in Batavia, Ohio has settled a lawsuit with a couple who wanted to hold a financial planning seminar. The library turned them down because they wanted to use the Bible.

The library will pay George Vandergriff and his wife $2 and $1 will go to the Institute for Principled Policy which was part of the suit. But $10,000 will go to their attorneys. The library has also changed its policy and will no longer allow outside groups to use its meeting rooms.

Atheist Bus Ad Campaign

Plagiarism by Best-selling Author

The man who wrote the best-selling series Conversations with God admits he borrowed someone else’s anecdote and presented it as his own. Neale Donald Walsch says he didn’t do it on purpose. Nevertheless, Beliefnet.com has taken down his blog on spirituality because he “failed to properly credit and attribute material from another author”. Here's the website's full statement.

Walsch told the story of his son playing in a Christmas concert where kids held up letters that spelled out Christmas Love. But one child held his m upside down changing the cards to read: Christwas Love. But this was Candy Chand’s story. She found the Walsch version through a search engine.

Inauguration Protests

The church that likes to protest against gays at military funerals plans to show up at Barack Obama’s inauguration. The US Park Service has granted a permit to the Westboro Baptist Church of Kansas for more than a dozen people. They will be located at the northeast corner of John Marshal Park.

There will be other protests as well. The Christian Defense Coalition expects several hundred to turn out at the Canadian Embassy on Pennsylvania Avenue, where the Coaltion has been granted a permit to protest against abortion.

The demonstrations will start at 7am on January 20th, Inauguration Day.

The Daily Show & the Church of Universal Love & Music

Attorneys for the Church of Universal Love and Music are asking a judge to not allow jurors see a segment of John Stewart’s Daily Show. The group claims to be a church and that the county is discriminating against it. But County officials say the organization shouldn’t get that status when it comes to zoning laws and a bit that ran on the Daily Show confirms it. During the program, Church of Universal Love and Music founder William Pritts told viewers, "God never said you can't party on." The county believes that was his real intention is not religious but promoting concerts. They denied him permits to hold his “services” featuring rock and jazz music. Pritts sued for $1 million, saying the concert ban violates his religious freedoms. Trial is set for next month.

See The Daily Show video here.

Trying to Live Like Jesus

Retired megachurch pastor tells USA Today, "If you get serious about the Bible, it will really mess you up." Ed Dobson spent 2008 trying to eat, pray, talk and even vote as Jesus would. He got the idea from A.J. Jacobs' book The Year of Living Biblically. Dobson celebrated Jewish holidays, witnessed in bars, grew his hair out, gave strangers rides, and even drank wine occasionally instead of abstaining. Making things more difficult: Dobson is battling Lou Gehrig's disease.

Religion Waning in US?

Most Americans believe religion is losing significance when it comes to how they live. Here's the results from a recent survey and how it compares to other years.

2008, all Americans:
Religion can answer all or most of today's problems – 53%
(an all-time low)
Religion is largely old-fashioned and out of date – 28%


Do you think religious influence is waning?

2008, All Americans:
Falling- 67%
Rising – 27%

2008, Weekly church attenders:
Falling – 74%
Rising – 24%

1957:
Falling – 14%
Rising – 69%

2001:
Falling – 24%
Rising – 71%

Source: Gallup Poll

Robertson's Predictions

Pat Robertson is predicting America will move toward socialism during Barack Obama’s term in office.

“What the Lord was saying, the people are willing to accept socialism to alleviate their pain. Nothing will stand in the way of a plan by Obama to restructure the economy in the same fashion as the New Deal in the ‘30s.”

As for the economy, Robertson told 700 Club viewers:

“Cast off the gloom and the doom because things are getting ready to turn around. I’m flying in the face of all of the experts or most of the experts who say, ‘Oh no, no, no, it’s going to get worse,’ but I don’t think so.”

Inauguration Week Sermons

The Library of Congress is asking churches to video tape sermons during inauguration week. The library's American Folklife Center wants to save them for posterity. The goal is to provide historians with a sense of how Americans reacted to Obama’s historical January 20th inauguration.

Arrest For Nun's Murder

A Brazilian man has been arrested for ordering the murder of an American nun. Regivaldo Pereira Galvao is accused of having 73-year-old Dorothy Stang killed in an effort to get people in the area to give him their property rights. The area is under dispute in the Amazon. She had defended the rights of landless farmers in a land distribution project called the Project for Sustainable Development (PDS). The Brazilian government says 100’s of people have been able to earn a living because of its success.

A film called They Killed Sister Dorothy with narration by actor Martin Sheen, tells her story and has won international praise. Some interviews in the documentary will be used against some of the suspects including Galvao who maintains his innocence.

More Focus vs Beck

More in this article from The Christian Post on the Focus on the Family's decision to take down an article from its website on talk show host Glenn Beck.

Obama Leans to the Religious Left

Barack Obama’s top aides has met with more than a dozen religions groups since the presidential election. Among the groups that have had numerous meetings with the transition team include The Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism and The Public Policy arm of the United Methodist Church. Most of them are left-leaning and focus on global warming, economic relief for the poor, support for organized labor, and healthcare. Some want more sex education and the government to increase its services for pregnant women.

The Southern Baptists and James Dobson’s Family Research Council along with other conservative groups say they have not received invitations at all.

Obama's version of Bush’s faith-based initiative office is called the Council for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. Instead of looking for ways the government can work with religious groups, the Council has discussed how to further separate church and state.

Man Accused in Major NYC Church Swindle

New York prosecutors say Bryant Rodriguez stole more than $600,000 from Upper Manhattan church-goers in a Ponzi scheme. A judge released Rodriguez on $2 million bail this week despite claims he is a flight risk. They say he sent most of the money from El Camino Church, a small evangelical congregation, to banks in the Dominican Republic. Prosecutors say he did the same thing to other churches. But pastors and members of those churches packed out the courtroom to show they still support Rodriguez.

Fired for Getting Married

Marquis LaFortune lost her job at Central Catholic High School in San Antonio because she was about to cause a “scandal”. She was planning to get married. The 25-year-old has filed a complaint with the EEOC and may file a law suit. The problem for the school was that her husband-to-be was divorced.

Will Rick Warren Mention Jesus During Inauguaration

Controversy has swirled around the selection of Rick Warren to give the prayer at Barack Obama’s inaugural. Another one is brewing over whether the megachurch pastor will offer the prayer in the name of Jesus may draw another.

Here’s what Warren says about it:

"I'm a Christian pastor so I will pray the only kind of prayer I know how to pray. Prayers are not to be sermons, speeches, position statements nor political posturing. They are humble, personal appeals to God.”

While Billy Graham never used the name of Jesus during his presidential inaugurations, the evangelist made references to Christ. At the 1969 swearing-in, Graham prayed "in the Name of the Prince of Peace who shed His blood on the Cross that men might have eternal life."

Kirbyjon Caldwell and Franklin Graham did so in 2001. That lead to a lawsuit that went nowhere. Methodist minister Joseph Lowery will offer the benediction at the January 20th ceremony and says, "whatever religion the person represents, I think he has a right to be true to his religion."

Fire Damages Reginal HQs

A fire over the weekend damaged the regional headquarters of the Seventh-day Adventist Church west of Spokane. The office serves 30 Seventh-day Adventist schools and 117 churches. The cause of the blaze is still under investigation.

Atheist Groups File Lawsuit

Several atheist and humanist organizations have filed suit to stop any references to God and religion during President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration ceremony. Their goal is the removal of the phrase "so help me God" from the oath of office and block the invocation prayer from Pastor Rick Warren. Michael Newdow, the man who went to court in an attempt to get "under God" removed from the Pledge of Allegiance at public schools, is leading the effort. He tried but failed to do the same thing when President Bush was swore into office.

DMN: Third Day Tops

The Dallas Morning News has picked Third Day's Revelation as the Best CD of 2008. Music critic Mario Tarradell calls it:

The most passionate melodic rock record of the year.. Atlanta's veteran outfit delivered riffs and righteousness for all audiences.

Married Man to Become Priest

A married man will be ordained as a Roman Catholic next month. According to the San Angelo, Texas local paper, the San Angelo Standard-Times, Knick Knickerbocker will be ordained at Sacred Hearth Cathedral Church. The former Episcopalian minister was once on the faculty of the Memphis Theological Seminary, a Presbyterian school in Tennessee. Knickerbocker also worked for Catholic Charities.

His ordination falls under the 1981 Pastoral Provision order issued by the Vatican to make an exception to the general rule calling only non-married men to priesthood. It applies when bishops request special permission to ordain married former Anglican or Episcopalian ministers to the Roman Catholic Church.

The 70-year-old Knickerbocker will not be designated the pastor of a church but his duties will be sacramental in nature.

Fundamentalist Christian Oppression

A soldier from Kansas with help from the Military Religions Freedom Foundation is suing the US military for an alleged bias toward evangelical Christianity. Specialist Dustin Chalker first filed his lawsuit back in September and now has expanded it to include what is described as the widespread “practice of fundamentalist Christian oppression" within armed forces. That supposedly includes efforts to convert Muslims in Iraq and Afghanistan. But the US Defense Department says there have been less than 50 complaints about alleged violations of religious freedoms during the past three years.

Billy Graham Changes Churches

Evangelist Billy Graham has moved his church membership. The 90-year-old preacher first joined the church in 1953 during his first crusade in the city when W.A. Criswell pastored the church. But he’s now moving his membership closer to his North Carolina home: The First Baptist Church of Spartanburg, South Carolina.

The Green Bible

The recently published Green Bible carries the endorsement of the Sierra Club and the Humane Society. But many conservative groups object to it and it does y Christian environmental groups like the Heartland Institute. The Bible has a foreword written by Archbishop Desmond Tutu. There is an environmental topic index with entries like pollution and water. So far, more than 37,000 copies have been printed.

Dobson's Group Removes Glenn Beck Article

Focus on the Family has taken down an article about Glenn Beck’s new book from its website CitizenLink because he’s a Mormon. Some supporters complained that The Christmas Sweater did not mention Beck’s religious views. Beck has been a CNN host and will move to FOX news next year.

DC Radio Boost

A Washington DC Christian radio station has become one of the most listened to stations in the city, thanks to a new method of determining who’s listening. WGTS-FM is a noncommercial contemporary Christian music station. It showed up at #6 in Arbitron’s ratings last month. That puts it ahead of Washington's biggest rock, country, conservative talk and oldies stations.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church runs the station out of its Columbia Union College with just eight employees. The school nearly sold the station recently but complaints from listeners changed the minds of trustees.

Lowe's Cashier Fired for Pen

A former Lowe's cashier employee says she was fired for wearing a pin that read: It's called Christmas, for Christ's sake.

Kristie Sutton worked for the home improvement store near Knoxville, Tennessee. She said the button was a gift from a customer. But another customer complained and she was asked to remove it and later fired.
Lowe's says it’s workers can offer a Merry Christmas to customers but not wear religious pins. The store released this statement:

Personnel matters are confidential, so we're unable to share any
information; however, Lowe's follows all federal, state and local laws governing
employment including laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of religion.

Long John Silver's Apology

Long John Silver’s has issued an apology to a Muslim family in Minnesota for not providing an alternative to a toy that came with a kid’s meal for their three-year-old child. The family received a Build with Jesus notepad featuring a Bible verse. When the family asked for an alternative, nothing was provided. A Muslim civil rights group complained and now the owner has apologized.

The Lincoln Bible

The burgundy velvet Bible used at Abraham Lincoln’s inauguration will be used to swear in Barack Obama on January 20th. The Bible is owned by the Library of Congress and Obama will be the first president to use it since Lincoln. Obama also plans to take the same train route that Lincoln took and holding a welcome event at the Lincoln Memorial.

The Bible will be on display at the Library of Congress from February to May and then visit five US cities: Sacramento, Chicago, Indianapolis, Atlanta, and Omaha. February 12th will be the bicentennial of Lincoln's birth in 1809.

Projection: English Church to Collapse

New research suggests the number of people attending Church of England services will fall by 90% by 2050. The figures come from Christian Research, the statistical arm of England's Bible Society. Right now about a million people attend now. Christian Research says the number will plummet to 88,000 in about 40 years. The Church of England scoffs at the claim, saying the research is flawed and doesn’t take into account changes underway in its use of contemporary services.

A License for Faith Healers

Russia’s Federal Health Service is handing out licenses to faith healers and anyone else that proscribes traditional medicine to patients. That includes herbal treatments claims of paranormal powers, cleansing of auras and even those who say they can read minds or cast spells. In the last two years, more than 130 have gone through the government’s voluntary testing program that claims to determine if someone has an ability to cure – by whatever mean they choose.

Objections to Warren's Selection

The first openly gay member of Congress is adding his voice to a chorus of leaders in the gay community who object to Barack Obama’s invitation to pastor Rick Warren. Obama picked the megachurch pastor to deliver the invocation at his inauguration. Congressman Barney Frank says he is deeply offended. Warren has said that he has nothing personally against gays but does not support same-sex marriage. Obama is defending his decision.

Will Smith Gives to James Robinson & Scientology

The charitable foundation of actor Will Smith gave James Robinson’s ministry $250,000. It’s part of the variety of donations revealed in his tax returns. In all, the movie star handed out $1.3 million to charities and nonprofit groups. An LA ministry called Living Waters got $200,000 of it and $122,500 went to The Church of Scientology.

Tragedy at Christmas Program

An actor has died in the hospital after falling Wednesday night during the opening performance of a megachurch Christmas pageant. The 23-year-old graduate student from Xavier University was playing the role of a wise man in the Awaited Christmas show when she fell at Crossroads Community Church in Cincinnati Keri Shryock was suspended by a cable some 25 feet above the ground. Crossroads has cancelled all the other performances. The church has issed this statement.

Weyrich Dies

The man who came up with the phrase moral majority has died. Conservative activist Paul Weyrich died at the age of 66 in Virginia. Weyrich helped to found the Heritage Foundation, the Free Congress Foundation, the Moral Majority with Jerry Falwell and the Christian Coalition.

Obama defends choice of Warren

Barack Obama is defending his decision to let Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at his inauguration. Obama said this morning:

"I am a fierce advocate of equality for gay and lesbian Americans. It is something that I have been consistent on and something that I intend to continue to be consistent on in my presidency. What I've also said is that it is important for American to come together even though we may have disagreements on certain social issues."

The editor of the Washington Blade calls it "Obama's first big mistake."

Purpose Driven Protest

Barack Obama is being criticized for picking Rick Warren give the invocation at his inauguration. Many liberal groups object to having someone who opposes gay marriage and abortion rights taking part in the ceremony. Here's a sample:

The head of People for the American Way says she is "deeply disappointed" and Warren’s “ideas are radical."

The president of the Human Rights campaign says he feels a "deep level of disrespect" over selection.

A pro-gay online magazine says it is a “slap in the face” of the gay and lesbian community.

Haggard to Promote Documentary

Ted Haggard will take part in a press tour to promote a film about his life following the sex scandal that led to his dismissal from a Colorado megachurch and resignation as president of the National Association of Evangelicals. The Trials of Ted Haggard is the product of Alexandra Pelosi, the daughter of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. It will air first on HBO on January 29. Haggard now says he was sexually abused as a second-grader.

Warren at Obama Inauguration

Rick Warren will take part in Barack Obama’s swearing-in ceremony. The megachurch pastor will deliver the ceremony's invocation. Obama and McCain appeared together at his Saddleback church this summer for a discussion of faith-related issues. Warren did not endorse either presidential candidate. The ceremony takes place January 20th on the steps of the Capitol. As many as four million people may turn out to watch the new president take the noontime oath from Chief Justice John Roberts.

CompassionArt

Several major Christian artists are giving away some new music for free over the internet. A donation is requested for organizations that help the poor. Their entire effort will hit stores shelves on January 27th under the title CompassionArt: Creating Freedom from Poverty. There are 14 songs in all from such artists as project, including Steven Curtis Chapman, Amy Grant, CeCe Winans, Martin Smith, Kirk Franklin and tobyMac. The effort started in Scotland when they met for a retreat last January. A companion book will be released when the full project comes out in January.

Accelerant Used on Palin Church

ATF agents say an arsonist who started a fire at Sarah Palin’s church poured an accelerant around the sanctuary. It may have been gasoline. Several people, including children, were inside working when the fire started at the main entrance to Wasilla Bible Church in Anchorage. The blaze caused a million dollars in damage but no one was injured.

Times's Top Religion Stories of 08

1. The Economy Trumps Religion
2. Never Count the Mormons Out
3. The Pope Wows the States
4. The Canterbury non-Tale
5. America's Unfaithful Faith
6. Tibet's Monks Rebel
7. The Birth of the New Evangelicalism
8. The Challenge of Recession
9. When Kosher Wasn't Kosher
10. Extraterrestrials May Already be Saved

more info

Top Religion Stories of 08

1. The fiery sermons of Jeremiah Wright
2. Democrats look to peel away faith-based voters from the Republican camp by courting evangelicals
3. Sarah Palin selected as McCain's running mate
4. Proposition 8 in California
5. Pope Benedict XVI stops in Washington and New York
6. Disillusioned Anglicans (Episcopalians in the United States) move to create an Anglican Church for North America
7. In Mumbai, India, fanatical religion fuels a terrorist attack that kills almost 200
8. China takes a whack at Buddhists who preach freedom for Tibet
9. The fluttering U.S. economy claims victims, including those who benefit from the donations of believers
10. The battle between Shiite and Sunni Muslims continues in Iraq

Source: Religion Newswriters Association

Obama Plans to change Faith-Based Program

Barack Obama says he’ll change the rules for organizations participating in President Bush's faith-based initiative. He wants to impose laws on them banning discrimination on the basis of religion, race or gender. That would mean groups could no longer hire just Christian employees and still participate in the faith-based program. Many Christian groups are likely to balk at the new rules and no longer take support from the federal program.

Playboy Apologizes

Playboy Magazine is apologizing for a cover issue in Mexico referring to the Virgin Mary. A barely clad model, Maria Florencia Onori, is shown with the headline Te adoramos, Maria. That means We love you Mary.

Palin's Church Meets At School

Sarah Palin's church held services at a middle school because their sanctuary was badly damaged by fire over the weekend. About 1,200 people came to the Wasilla Bible Church yesterday, though Palin was not among them. She remained in Juneau. Her spokesman says Palin was preparing a state budget proposal.

Fire authorities are blaming the fire on arson. It left about a million dollars in damage. The blaze started Friday night at the main entrance of the church at the same time a group was working inside. No one was injured. (more on the story below)

Atlanta Megachurch Pastor Resigns

The pastor of an Atlanta megachurch has resigned. Founding pastor Jim Bolin stepped down from Trinity Chapel in Powder Springs as a result of ‘inappropriate sexual behavior’. Bolin will enter what church leaders are calling a “restoration process” for the next couple of years. Trinity Chapel is associated with the Church of God.

Fire Destroys Sarah Palin's Church

An arsonist severely damaged Sarah Palin’s Anchorage, Alaska church Friday night. The former Republican vice presidential candidate says she's sorry if the fire was connected to "undeserved negative attention" to her campaign. While they believe the fire was deliberately set, investigators are not yet sure whether it was politically motivated. Damage to the Wasilla Bible Church was estimated at more than a million dollars. No one was injured.

Schuller Resigns

Robert A Schuller is no longer senior pastor post at Southern California’s Crystal Cathedral, the church started by his father. Robert H Schuller had already dismissed him from the Hour of Power television show. The younger Schuller says he plans to start a new ministry.

Layoffs at Thomas Nelson

Thomas Nelson is cutting 55 jobs. The Christian book publisher blames falling book sales. There’s been a 9% drop in religious books says so far this year. The company already let about 60 workers go this past spring. It has also slashed the number of book titles it publishes in half. Thomas Nelson is the world's largest publisher of English-language Bibles.

Cizik Resigns

The National Association of Evangelicals says Richard Cizik has resigned as the group’s DC representative. He’s been with the organization for 28 years. But Cizik has battled other Christian leaders over the issue of global warming and more recently same-sex marriage. He made public that he voted for Obama in the primaries. The NAE board was particularly unhappy with his December interview on National Public Radio, saying his responses did not reflect NAE views. Cizik said his views on gay marriage are "shifting". He later apologized but apparently that was no enough to satisfy the group’s leadership. The NAE represents tens of thousands of churches and religious organizations.

State Told to Stop Making I Believe Tags

A judge is ordering the state of South Carolina to quit making personalized license plates with a cross and the words I Believe while a lawsuit challenging the plates moves forward. The temporary injunction came after a court hearing today involving the Americans United for Separation of Church and State. None of those who have placed orders for the plates have received them yet.

The Religious Case for Gay Marriage

Newsweek’s cover story this week entitled The Religious Case for Gay Marriage has lead to an organized campaign encouraging readers to cancel their subscriptions . Chief Executive Tom Ascheim had to open a new email account to handle all the angry email from readers.

Company executives said today the magazine will cut staff as part of a makeover that will turn it into a smaller publication driven by opinion rather than news. The magazine, owned and operated by the Washington Post, has been losing money, cutting more than 100 positions this past spring. Mediaweek reports that Newsweek's ad pages have dropped by about 21% this year.

More on Bush's Surprising Interview about the Bible

CNN reports on President Bush's recent controversial interview about the Bible and evolution.

Top Religion Stories of the Year

1. The Evangelical Role in Election 2008
2. California’s Same-sex Marriage Ban
3. Christians Killed in India
4. Episcopalian and Anglican Schisms
5. Christians Flee Iraq and Gaza
6. The Pastors of Presidential Candidates
7. Global Economic Woes
8. Muslim and Christian Dialogues
9. Charismatic Divisions over Todd Bentley’s Florida Revival
10. Issues Raised by Raids at Texas Polygamist Compound

Source: Christianity Today

Santa Claus Will Take You to Hell

The battle over what to display at the Washington State capitol has taken another strange twist. Now the controversial gay-funeral-protesting Westboro Baptist Church of Kansas wants permission to put up a display that will say “Santa Claus Will Take You to Hell.”

Meanwhile, the KC Free Thinkers is requesting approval to put up a display celebrating a deity named The Flying Spaghetti Monster. An Olympia man has already asked to stick up a celebratory pole in honor of the holiday Festivus. The made up holiday was a joke started on the Seinfeld TV show.

A nun wants to add a sign that would read “To the Atheist Community, May all be blessed with Joy and Happiness. We share with you our Peace and Love and Kindness. The Christian Community.”

Besides a nativity scene and Christmas display, the capital building already has a sign put up by an atheist declaring there are no gods, devils or angels.

Rich Warren on Fundamentalism

"Of course, we need creeds. We don't need to change what we believe. We need to change how we behave. It's not creeds or deeds. I didn't say that. It's creeds and deeds. You say you believe. Show me your beliefs by what you do.

What I am not is a fundamentalist. You become a fundamentalist when you stop listening. There are all kinds of fundamentalists. I don't happen to agree with any of them. We'll work with anybody who wants to stop AIDS. (That) really makes the fundamentalists mad. But when people say Saddleback is not a evangelistic church, there's a spiritual term for that. It's when you cross an abalone with a crocodile. It's a crock of baloney."

Rich Warren in an interview with USA Today

Festivus Display

Washington State officials are being besieged by requests to place additional seasonal displays at the state Capitol where a Christmas tree and a nativity scene are on display.. along with an anti-religion placard. A pro-religion sign was added last week.

One of the requests is that a Festivus display be included. That’s a made up holiday popularized by the Seinfeld TV show in the 90’s.

Newsweek on the Bible & Gay Marriage

Lisa Miller of Newsweek argues in a new essay titled Gay Marriage: Our Mutual Joy that we should not look to the Bible for guidance on same sex marriage. Miller suggests that the Bible’s lessons on marriage are ambiguous and lack moral clarity. She writes, “The Bible was written for a world so unlike our own, it’s impossible to apply its rules, at face value, to ours.”

Here’s some of the reaction coming from religious conservatives:

Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention:
"It doesn't surprise me. Newsweek has been so far in the tank on the homosexual issue, for so long, they need scuba gear and breathing apparatus. I don’t think it’s going to change the minds of anyone who takes biblical teachings seriously.”

Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council:
"(It is) yet another attack on orthodox Christianity. “I hardly think that Newsweek is a credible venue for theological discussion. I mean, I thought it was just full of holes.”

Here’s the comments of Newsweek editor Jon Meacham:“Religious conservatives will say that the liberal media are once again seeking to impose their values (or their ‘agenda,’ a favorite term to describe the views of those who disagree with you) on a God-fearing nation. Let the letters and emails come. History and demographics are on the side of those who favor inclusion over exclusion.”

Bush Says Bible Not Literally True

President Bush told ABC News Nightline in an interview last night that the Bible is "probably not" literally true.

MCFADDEN: Is it literally true, the Bible?

BUSH: You know. Probably not ... No, I'm not a literalist, but I think you can learn a lot from it, but I do think that the New Testament, for example is ... has got ... You know, the important lesson is "God sent a son."

MCFADDEN: So, you can read the Bible...

BUSH: That God in the flesh, that mankind can understand there is a God who is full of grace and that nothing you can do to earn his love. His love is a gift and that in order to draw closer to God and in order to express your appreciation for that love is why you change your behavior.

MCFADDEN: So, you can read the Bible and not take it literally. I mean you can -- it's not inconsistent to love the Bible and believe in evolution, say.

BUSH: Yeah, I mean, I do. I mean, evolution is an interesting subject. I happen to believe that evolution doesn't fully explain the mystery of life and ...

MCFADDEN: But do you believe in it?

BUSH: That God created the world, I do, yeah.

MCFADDEN: But what about ...

BUSH: Well, I think you can have both. I think evolution can -- you're getting me way out of my lane here. I'm just a simple president. But it's, I think that God created the Earth, created the world; I think the creation of the world is so mysterious it requires something as large as an almighty, and I don't think it's incompatible with the scientific proof that there is evolution.

Theif Chased by Priest

A priest in Washington DC ran out of St. Peter's church Sunday morning, chasing a thief. The man had taken money from the church safe that was intended for the poor. Bill Hegedusich is a marathon runner and didn’t think twice about going after the criminal and the two bags of money. He kept his distance in case the man was armed. After a couple of blocks, the man dropped one of the bags and kept on running. Hegedusich collected the single bag containing about $60. Mass started a few minutes late. Police are still searching for the thief.

A Study of Prayer

Hospital chaplains at Johns Hopkins University have placed blank prayers book in the lobby every two months since the 1990s. Hundreds of visitors have written in the books. A sociology professor from Brandeis University reviewed 683 of the handwritten petitions and here’s what was found. The prayers broke down this way:
28% were requests of God
28% were prayers of thanks and asking for help
28% were just to thank God
80% began with a familiar greeting, like "Dear Lord" or "Hello Jesus."

I am Second

A Texas church has started a new promotional campaign called I am Second. Created by Tony Evan’s Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship, the effort includes billboards that read, I am Second. Joe Gibbs and Darrell Waltrip are among the celebrities taking part.

Jessica Simpson & Religion

"I've been contemplating taking a college course in religion. I love religion. I remember whenever the book 'The Da Vinci Code' came out, the Discovery Channel did this three-night piece on it that I Tivoed and then watched eight times." Jessica Simpson in Marie Claire magazine

Michael W Smith

Christian muscian Michael W. Smith visits Buckner Center for Humanitarian Aid in Dallas. The Dallas Morning News has the story.

Copeland Loses Tax Status of Jet

Kenneth Copeland plans to protest a decision that could cut into the finances of his Texas mega-ministry. Auditors have denied him the tax-exempt status he had on a $3.6 million jet. The reason: The refusal of Copeland's ministry to reveal director’s salaries. In all, Kenneth Copeland Ministries owns five aircraft, including a $17.5 million Citation X.

Copeland has resisted efforts in the last year by Senator Charles Grassley to find out information about the ministry as part of an investigation into televangelists.

Who Supported Prop 8

Who voted in favor of the same-sex marriage (proposition 8) in California which passed in November:

Evangelicals – 85%
Protestants - 66%
Those making less than $40,000 a year – 63%
Roman Catholics - 60%
Nonwhite voters - 57%
Over age 55 - 56%

Source: Public Policy Institute of California

Gift Certificates for Abortion

The Indiana branch of Planned Parenthood is offering gift certificates on its website for services – including abortion. The organization says only 5% women come into their clinics come for abortion. But the Office for Pro-Life Ministry for the Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis is outraged. The director says "It's offensive because Christmas is about the celebration of human life."

Biggest Evangelical Charities

Here is a list of the biggest Evangelical charities according to Forbes magazine. The first number is the organization's assets in millions and the second number is the donor efficiency.

1. Salvation Army 10,853 - 92%

2. Trinity Broadcasting Network 919 - 88%

3. American Bible Society 529 - 79%

4. Billy Graham Evangelistic Association 301 - 96%

5. Young Life 221 - 94%

6. Christian Broadcasting Network 209 - 81%

7. MAP International 169 - 99%

8. Samaritan's Purse 167 - 93%

9. Catholic Relief Services 165 - 85%

10. World Vision 151 - 88%

11. Christian & Missionary Alliance 128 - 93%

12. Campus Crusade for Christ 108 - 93%

13. Wycliffe Bible Translators 104 - 94%

14. Compassion International 94 - 91%

15. CRISTA Ministries 83 - 95%

Source: Forbes

Will Smith on Scientology and Religion

Actor Will Smith in an interview with Newsweek:

"For me I'm certain about my relationship with the model of perfection of human life that's laid out with the life of Jesus Christ. So I'm at home and not fearful when I sit in a mosque or a synagogue or a Buddhist temple, the same way that I'm home in the Church of Scientology.

I like anywhere people are searching for the truth, and I respect their path and I'm intrigued by their path. I think when you are certain in and of what you believe in, you can open your mind to seeing the ways of others. I'm not bothered when someone says "Allah" because they're talking about God—we are talking about the same person. I was in India recently and my hotel was near the Taj Mahal. Five times a day there would be a call for prayer, and it was the most beautiful thing. I was lying in my bed thinking, no matter what your religion is, it would be great to have that reminder five times a day to remember your Lord and savior.

(So you a not a Scientologist?) No, but when people are afraid of religion they have to go back and get in touch with the Good Book. Fear of other religions means you're questioning your own understanding, and that's just not where I am.

(You were raised Baptist, right?) Yes, but I grew up in a neighborhood with all religions, and so I'm very used to studying and being around different faiths. So whatever religion does that— Jewish, Muslim, Scientology—it's cool because the end result is the same."

Bible Used in Robbery

Police in Tacoma, Washington are looking for a man that robbed a bank this morning using a Bible. He handed the Bible to the teller and told her to open to a specific page. That’s where he had written a note demanding money or he threatened to shoot her. He told her that he would pay her back later and left.

The Princess Diana Bible

A pro-gay "translation" of Scripture called The Princess Diana Bible is coming out soon. It’s being put together by New Mexico filmmaker Max Mitchell, who runs Revision Studios. His last film, Horror In The Wind, told the story of a scientific formula that turned the world gay. The regular Bible gets replaced with a Princess Diana Bible. Mitchell liked the idea so much, he decided to create a real Princess Diana Bible. He named it after Diana for her “good deeds”. The company’s press release claims the “gay Bible is divinely inspired.” It says Adam and Eve were both women and that homosexual relationships were commonplace during Biblical times but heterosexuality was considered sinful.

Column on Gay Rights Leads to Firing

A college administrator at Ohio’s University of Toledo is suing the school because she fired over a column she wrote in the local newspaper about gay rights. Crystal Dixon says the administration has no right to try to control her expression of personal opinions outside the school. Dixon argued in the piece for the Toledo Free Press that gay marriage could not be compared to the civil rights movement because homosexuality is a choice. She wrote, “I take great umbrage at the notion that those choosing the homosexual lifestyle are 'civil rights victims. I cannot wake up tomorrow and not be a black woman.. There are consequences for each of our choices, including those who violate God's divine order." Dixon held the position of associate vice president for human resources. Dixon is being represented by the Thomas More Law Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan, a Christian law firm.

Atheists to Sue Homeland Security

A group called American Atheists plans to file a lawsuit this morning against the Kentucky Office of Homeland Security. That’s because state law requires the agency to stress "dependence on Almighty God as being vital to the security of the Commonwealth." Ten non-religious Kentuckians have joined the suit. State Representative Tom Riner added a requirement to credit God for Kentucky's protection in the 2006 homeland security legislation. Riner is a Southern Baptist minister.

Atheist Placard

There is a holiday tree on display at Washington’s state Capitol in Olympia along with a Nativity scene. And now there is a atheist placard. It was put there by the Freedom From Religion Foundation and says: ""At this season of the Winter Solstice may reason prevail. There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds." A metal plaque will be added to the display when it comes in.

100's of Thousands Stolen from Baptists

The Southern Baptist Convention had decided not to press charges against a man who allegedly stole hundreds of thousands of dollars intended for earthquake relief - and now has done it again. According to the Mobile Press-Register, The SBC’s International Mission Board won a judgment of more than $359,000 against Benton Gray Harvey for criminal embezzlement in 2005. Harvey was a financial accountant for a Baptist outpost in Istanbul. Police say Harvey and a partner scammed hundreds of thousands more by selling fake insurance policies to people in Alabama for homes that most insurance companies don't want to cover because they are susceptible to damage by hurricanes. He was working for the Starfish Insurance Agency in Gulf Shores, Alabama but has apparently fled the country.

Lutheran Cutbacks

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is making cutbacks at its publishing arm. Augsburg Fortress will shutting down nine bookstores by April and eliminating more than 50 jobs.

What if Starbucks Marketed like the Church?

Richard Reising is a former marketing exec-turned church consultant. He's created this video for a blog called Beyond Relevance. It considers what would happen if Starbucks was like a Protestant church.

High School Ethics

A survey of the ethics among high schoolers:

Have you stolen something in the last year?
From a store: 30%
From a parent or relative: 23%
From a friend: 20%

Have you cheated on a test in the last year?
Once: 64% (60% in 2006)
Twice or more: 38% (35% in 2006)

Have you used the Internet to plagiarize an assignment?
Yes: 36% (33% in 2004)

Have you sometimes lied to save money?
Yes: 42%

Are you satisfied with your own personal ethics and character?
Yes: 93%

Would you agree with the statement: "when it comes to doing what is right, I am better than most people I know."
Yes: 77%

Source: The Josephson Institute

Pledge Pastor Dies

The man who’s sermon led to Under God being added to the Pledge of Allegiance has died. George M. Docherty was pastor of the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in 1954 when President Eisenhower visited. Docherty urged that the pledge to the flag be amended to add the two words used by Lincoln in the Gettysburg Address. He died of a heart ailment at his Pennsylvania home at the age of 97.

Prayer Lawsuit Ends

A lawsuit against a mayor’s involvement in National Day of Prayer has been dropped. Patrick Greene filed the suit in an effort to stop San Antonio Mayor Phil Hardberger from taking part in the event on the front steps of City Hall. Hardberger has annually reads a declaration in support of the event. Greene says he dropped the effort because the Mayor now says he didn’t know the sponsoring organization excluded other faiths.

Christians and Pornography

A documentary on pornography addiction among Christians premieres tomorrow on the ION Television Network. The network used to be known as PAX TV. The film is called Somebody's Daughter: A Journey to Freedom from Pornography. Three men and a couple talk about their struggle with pornography. Somebody's Daughter will later air on on INSP, the Daystar Television Network and Faith TV.

Henry Brandt Dies

The man considered by some to be the father of Biblical counseling has died. Henry Brandt died Wednesday from complications related to Parkinson's disease. He was 92 years old. A conference speaker and author, he’s best-known for his book Heart of the Problem. Brandt has a new book coming out called Soul Prescription.

New Warren Book Cracks Top 5

The Purpose of Christmas has nudged into the New York Times’ top 5 bestselling Hardcover Advice books. The new Rick Warren book is #25 USA Today’s weekly top 150 best sellers. It’s based on a Christmas message Warren gave at his California Saddleback Church two years ago. The 125-page gift book comes on the heels of his mega-bestseller The Purpose Driven Life which has sold 52 million copies. Profits for the new book go toward the church’s global initiative called the PEACE Plan.

Foster Kids

Some 1500 people showed up this past weekend at New Life Church in Colorado Springs for a gathering on adoption and foster children in the state. Colorado officials say it was the first-of-its-kind. The gathering included state and local governments, churches, ministries and adoption agencies. They hope Wait No More: Finding Families for Colorado's Waiting Kids will serve as a template for other states with similar problems.

Inside Bob Dylan's Jesus Years

Joel Gilbert's documentary called Inside Bob Dylan's Jesus Years: Busy Being Born.. Again! delves into the years when the Dylan became a born-again Christian. Born Robert Zimmerman, he left his Jewish roots and temporarily converted to Christianity in 1979. The singer was reeling from his recent divorce and hooked on heroin. He went on to record two albums wth Christian lyrics. But after two and a half years, Dylan came to believe that his Christian advisors were exploiting him and he joined Chabad-Lubavitch, a Hasidic movement within Orthodox Judaism. Inside Bob Dylan's Jesus Years is unauthorized and contains few frames of the man himself. Bill Dwyer of Los Angeles's Vineyard Christian Fellowship gets a lot of attention. He was the one Dylan called in 1978 seeking counseling.

A Dying Boy's Wish

Hundreds respond to a dying 11-year-old boy's wish to help the homeless. KOMO-TV has more.

(Brenden Foster died over the weekend)

Church Fire

An Indianapolis church vows to continue its ministry despite a devestating fire. WISH-TV has the story:

Search for Church Gunman

A gunman is on the loose after shooting two people at a New Jersey church this morning.

Turkey Giveaway

A Syracuse church gave away hundreds of turkeys yesterday. WSYR-TV has the story.

Terror Texts

A Christian College in Iowa is staging an unusual musical based on the Bible. Terror Texts presents six Old Testament stories taken verbatim from the King James version of the Old Testament with themes like cannibalism and rape. The actors at Northwestern College dress in Goth and are supported by a rock band and mosh pit. The show first ran in February and was brought back this fall. A line in the opening song, “Our story here begins with blood and ends with even more."

Janet Paschall

Christian singer Janet Paschal tells her story of battling breast cancer in the book Treasures of the Snow. She has a new album to accompany the book called Treasures. It’s filled with songs she has re-recorded.