Beer vs Church

People Tweet about church more than beer, according to a new study. Floatingsheep.org says the numbers are different for different regions of the country. Tweets about church popped up most in the Southeast. Tweets about beer were more common in the Northeast. The survey reviewed some 10 million tweets during a week in June. Church got more than 17 thousand tweets while beer was mentioned some 14 thousand times. People living in San Francisco talked about beer the most, while Dallas was the most focused on church.

Faith drives new political movement

The Tennessean offers a look at Tea Party Evangelicals here.

Westboro: We'll Picket Andy Griffith's Funeral

The Westboro Baptist Church may have missed its chance. The group that thrives on picketing funerals had said it planned to picket the funeral of actor Andy Griffith. But Griffith was buried on North Carolina's Roanoke Island just hours after he died. The star of The Andy Griffith Show and Matlock, Griffith also won a Grammy for a Gospel album. Margie Phelps, spokesperson for Westboro, called him a "twice-divorced adulterer who taught sin.

Counseling Gays Ruling

A student who says her Christian beliefs prevented her from counseling gays has lost her lawsuit against Augusta State University. A federal judge says the school's counseling program was justified in throwing Jennifer Keeton out of the program. Keeton is represented by the Alliance Defense Fund, which has not decided whether to appeal the decision. An appeals court had already refused to block her expulsion from the program, saying her lawsuit was likely to fail and she was looking for special treatment. In a similar suit, an appeals court told Eastern Michigan University that it should not have expelled Julea Ward for referring gay clients to other counselors who did not share her Christian beliefs. The Michigan House passed a bill recently that would stop programs at public schools from taking action against students who did the same. The Michigan Senate hasn't weighted in on the legislation yet.

Cruise Divorce Filing

The wife Tom Cruise says members of the Church of Scientology are following her, since she filed for divorce from him. A lawyer for the group denies the claim. Katie Holmes is asking for sole custody of their daughter, 6-year-old Suri. There are reports she is afraid he will send her to a Scientology camp. Raised a Catholic in Ohio, Holmes has reportedly enrolled in a Catholic school in New York.

Presidential faith

CNN offers a perspective on "Why a president's faith may not matter" here.

Sentenced to read the Bible

A South Carolina women was ordered to read the Bible as part of her DUI sentence for driving the wrong way down a road and causing an accident that severely injured two men. Her blood alcohol content was more than four times the legal limit. Judge Michael Nettles gave Cassandra Belle Tolley eight years. When she gets out, Tolley has five years probation, counseling - and an order to read and write a summary of the book of Job.

Singapore church scandal

CNN offers a video report about a megachurch pastor in Singapore who is accused of misusing church funds to help his wife's singing career.

Salem Suit

A concert promoter is suing the largest Christian radio broadcasting company. LMG Concerts out of Vancouver, Washington (near Portland) claims Salem Communications has a monopoly that restricts competition in the religious media market. Salem has 4 Christian radio stations in the Portland area. Salem's Fish Concerts is a competitor of LMG. The suit says all the major Christian artists have switched from LMG to Fish Concerts.

Jesus Banned from Police Prayers in Charlotte

Charlotte police are taking the name of Jesus out of prayers that are offered during official ceremonies. A notice went out last week about the policy. Employees and chaplains are warned to only give nonsectarian prayers. WBTV has a video report below.

Pastor Accused of Gamibling Away $430k

A Texas preacher and his wife are facing charges related to gambling with church funds. Prosecutors accuse the couple of gambling away $430,000. Read the story here.

Sandusky’s pastor addresses conviction from pulpit

Read the story hereat CNN.com.

TBN Accused of Covering Up Sexual Assault

The granddaughter of the founder of TBN says she was drugged and raped by an employee of the broadcasting network when she was just 13 years old. Carra Crouch, now 19, is suing the Trinity Broadcasting Network in a Southern California court, though the alleged attack took place in Atlanta during an April 2006 telethon. In the lawsuit, she claims TBN founder Paul Crouch hushed up the crime to avoid bad publicity and Jan Crouch, her grandmother, told Carra Crouch that the attack was her own fault. Although the alleged attacker, Stephen L. Smith, was fired the next day, TBN denies the accusations, saying the organization is "stunned to learn of the allegations now being made by Ms. Carra Crouch, coming more than six years after her initial report."

Guilty Verdict for End Times Preacher

A preacher we claimed the end of the world was near has been found guilty of tax evasion. Read about it here.

Tebow Gets Award

The Professional Football Writers of America has given Tim Tebow its annual Good Guy Award for the way he has handled intense media scrutiny. The group gave its George Halas Award for overcoming adversity" to New England Patriots Chairman Robert Kraft. He played a significant role in the collective bargaining negotiations between the NFL and the NFL Players Association while his wife battled cancer.

Baptist Name Change

Southern Baptists churches can now refer to themselves as Great Commission Baptists. Leaders of the denomination voted for the change while meeting in New Orleans. Just over half of the 4800 ballots cast voted for allowing the option. The vote by ballot came after a show of hands was too close to call.

Church sign: "Ultimate Racism"

A sign outside a South Carolina church is getting a strong reaction from passersby. Read about it here.

Luter Profile

Here's a PBS profile of Fred Luter, the new president of the Southern Baptist Convention.

Watch Rev. Fred Luter Jr. on PBS. See more from Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly.

A First for Baptists

It's official: The Southern Baptist Convention voted to install its first African-American president leader today. Fred Luter Jr. was unopposed. He was selected by delegates at the denomination's annual meeting of church leaders in his hometown of New Orleans. Luter is pastor of the Franklin Avenue Baptist Church - which he turned into a megachurch.

Tebow Encourages Fathers

CBN offers a video report on Tim Tebow's Sunday talk in San Diego that brought out more than 26,000 people.