c. 2004 Religion News Service
Watchdog Group Charges Falwell With Politicking for Bush
WASHINGTON (RNS) A church-state watchdog group has filed a complaint with the Internal Revenue Service after the Rev. Jerry Falwell told supporters to “get serious about re-electing President Bush” and solicited funds for a political action committee that supports Bush.
Falwell, in a July 1 “Falwell Confidential” e-mail, said: “For conservative people of faith, voting for principle this year means voting for the re-election of George W. Bush. The alternative, in my mind, is simply unthinkable.
“To the pro-life, pro-family, pro-traditional marriage, pro-America voters in this nation, we must determine that President Bush is the man with our interests at heart. It is that simple.”
The Washington-based Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which has tussled with Falwell before, told the IRS that Falwell’s letter violated rules that prohibit churches or nonprofit groups from endorsing candidates. It also asked for an investigation.
“Falwell is thumbing his nose at the IRS,” said the Rev. Barry Lynn, the group’s director. “He must not be permitted to use a tax-exempt ministry to engage in partisan politics. The vast majority of America’s religious institutions play by the rules. He should too.”
Earlier this year, Lynn’s office filed a similar complaint against the Roman Catholic bishop of Colorado Springs, Colo., who said Catholics could not vote for candidates who support abortion and gay marriage. Lynn charged Bishop Michael Sheridan with trying to steer votes toward Republicans.
Falwell’s e-mail was posted on his Web site, http://www.falwell.com. It also encouraged supporters to donate to the Campaign for Working Families, a political action committee founded by former Republican presidential candidate Gary Bauer.
“I believe it is the responsibility of every political conservative, every evangelical Christian, every pro-life Catholic, every traditional Jew, every Reagan Democrat, and everyone in between to get serious about re-electing President Bush,” said Falwell, who 25 years ago rallied Christian conservatives by founding the Moral Majority.
Falwell told The New York Times that the e-mail was paid for by his tax-exempt lobbying group, Liberty Alliance, which falls under the larger Jerry Falwell Ministries. The Web site makes several references to the tax-exempt Jerry Falwell Ministries but not Liberty Alliance.
He said the letter contained his personal views and did not constitute an endorsement. He said he routinely supports Bush in public when preaching at his home church, Thomas Road Baptist Church, in Lynchburg, Va.
“I support President Bush,” he told The Times. “I support him on Sunday mornings from the pulpit where it doesn’t cost the church or anybody anything. I make it very clear, just like at most African-American churches and many liberal churches, that as a tax-paying citizen I vote. And I tell people who I vote for.”
_ Kevin Eckstrom
NCC Issues `Principles’ for Evaluating Candidates
WASHINGTON (RNS) Adding its voice to the chorus of campaign commentary, the National Council of Churches USA has issued a list of 10 principles for evaluating political candidates.
The ecumenical council’s 10 “Christian Principles in an Election Year” are intended to “begin a conversation in the pews,” said the Rev. Michael Kinnamon, chair of the NCC’s Justice and Advocacy Commission.
First among the decalogue is “War is contrary to the will of God. … Christ pronounces his blessing on the peacemakers. We look for nonviolent political leaders who will make peace with justice a top priority.”
Kinnamon, a Disciples of Christ minister, said that the NCC’s position on war is “not a pacifist position, but it always says no to crusade.”
Among the other principles listed are commitments to economic justice, a cooperative foreign policy, environmental protection, “fair” immigration policies, accessible health care and educational “opportunity.”
Though most of these issues usually appear on the liberal agenda, the NCC insists that “the principles are not intended to be partisan,” said Kinnamon.
“There are other issues on which some Justice and Advocacy Commission members wanted to speak and that Roman Catholic and conservative evangelicals might add, but on which churches aren’t united _ among them, abortion and gay marriage,” Kinnamon said.
“We proclaim with a bold humility that this is where we stand right now, even as we invite others to the conversation.”
The NCC always weighs in on the proper role of religion in a political campaign, asking candidates to “refrain from using faith-based organizations and institutions for partisan gain.”
The Rev. Robert Edgar, the general secretary of the NCC, said that the council believes “people of faith need to be involved in the political process, be registered, and vote with a sense of empowerment and conscience. We hope these principles will help them.”
(Editors: The full text of the “Christian Principles in an Election Year” can be found on the NCC’s Web site at http://www.ncccusa.org.)
_ Daniel Burke
Appeals Court: Courtroom Ten Commandments Poster Unconstitutional
(RNS) An appellate court has upheld a lower court ruling that an Ohio state judge’s courtroom display of a framed poster of the Ten Commandments is unconstitutional.
In a 2-1 decision, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday (July 14) affirmed the previous decision that ordered Judge James DeWeese of Richland County to remove the poster.
After the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio filed a lawsuit in 2000, a district court judge ruled the display was unconstitutional. The appellate court agreed, saying the display violated the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause because it was religious in nature, the ACLU said in a news release.
Francis J. Manion, senior counsel of the American Center for Law and Justice, said his organization plans to appeal the case on DeWeese’s behalf.
“By displaying a poster of the Ten Commandments in his courtroom, Judge DeWeese merely exercised his constitutional rights to help educate and inform the public about the history and foundation of our legal system,” Manion said in a statement.
In a dissent, Judge Alice M. Batchelder said she did not think DeWeese’s display was unconstitutional because it shows that legal values have historically been drawn from religious teachings, the ACLJ said.
In a separate but related development, the American Center for Law and Justice also has appealed a different Ten Commandments case to the U.S. Supreme Court. That case involves another decision by the 6th Circuit, which found that a display of the Ten Commandments with other historical documents outside four Adams County, Ohio, high schools was unconstitutional.
_ Adelle M. Banks
Interdenominational Theological Center No Longer on Probation
(RNS) The Interdenominational Theological Center, a consortium of African-American seminaries, is no longer on probation, the Atlanta-based school has announced.
The school received word in late June of the reaffirmation of its accreditation from the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.
The ITC had been placed on probation in 2002 for employing two professors who had not completed their doctoral degrees.
“With this behind us, we can now move forward with new strategies for growing ITC, building upon this experience and strategically moving to the next level of what we are called to do in our uniqueness as a consortium of seminaries,” said the Rev. Michael A. Battle in a Monday (July 12) statement.
The consortium of six denominational seminaries was founded in 1958 and currently enrolls about 480 students.
_ Adelle M. Banks
Irish Bishops: Pope May Visit
LONDON (RNS) The Holy See has accepted “in principle” a formal invitation from the Irish bishops’ conference for Pope John Paul II to revisit Ireland to mark the 25th anniversary of his visit to that country in September 1979 _ but a papal visit to Ireland this year “is rather unlikely.”
“Our invitation request has been placed before the Holy Father and a reply has been received from the Vatican’s Secretariat of State indicating that the proposed visit has, in principle, been accepted,” Archbishop Sean Brady of Armagh said Friday (July 16) in a statement. `We are delighted with this response and hope that this visit will take place.”
But, Brady said, given Pope John Paul II’s commitments for the remainder of the year, “it would seem reasonable to conclude at this stage that a visit in 2004, while not ruled out, is rather unlikely.”
The pope’s 1979 visit to Ireland was one of the most successful of his foreign tours _ and was arranged at remarkably short notice. The Irish government coped by in effect closing the country down for the three days of the visit.
The political situation at the time meant the pope was not able to cross the border and visit any of the six counties of Northern Ireland, but clearly it is hoped that in the changed climate such a visit might be possible.
_ Robert Nowell
Quote of the Day: Stock Car Driver Rev. Jim Wilson
(RNS) “The thing about us pastors is, if something were to happen to one of us, we all know where we’re going.”
_ The Rev. Jim Wilson, who also drives stock cars in Pooler, Ga., on why pastor-drivers weren’t intimidated at a recent Faster Pastor 2004 race. He was quoted by the Associated Press.
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