c. 2008 Religion News Service

Family Research Council launches PAC, but no McCain endorsement

WASHINGTON (RNS) FRC Action, the legislative arm of the Family Research Council, on Friday (Sept. 12) launched a new political action committee to endorse candidates for congressional offices but, as of yet, not presidential candidates.

FRC Action President Tony Perkins said the group plans to spend $250,000 supporting about 80 candidates this election season. Most of the candidates are Republicans, but two are Democrats.

“At this point, we do not plan on endorsing a presidential candidate or ticket,” said Perkins at a news conference during his group’s annual Values Voter Summit. “We’re not a huge PAC yet and to make a dent, even, in that effort would take a lot of money.”

Asked if the lack of a presidential endorsement indicates soft support for Republican presidential nominee John McCain, Perkins said: “There are still lingering concerns over some of John McCain’s positions.”

David Nammo, executive director of FRC Action, said in an interview that McCain’s support of embryonic stem cell research remains a concern for members of his organization.

Both McCain and Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama were invited to speak at the summit but chose not to attend. Perkins said the lack of McCain’s presence did not discourage summit attendees.

One of those participants, Maureen Wiebe of Alexandria, Va., said she was not upset that McCain didn’t show.

“Of course, I’d love to hear him speak but, heavens, he’s running for president. His schedule’s a little busy,” said Wiebe, who works for a Christian school organization. “I’m pretty confident with where he stands.”

She said McCain’s choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his vice presidential nominee and his recent appearance at a forum at evangelical author Rick Warren’s California megachurch clarified his stances.

During the summit’s first session Friday, Palin’s name seemed to come up more than McCain’s and prompted repeated applause. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Palin’s critics have trouble understanding her.

“They find Gov. Palin quite horrifying because she actually believes in God, she actually believes in family, she actually has five children and she actually is a conservative,” he said. “It is as though John McCain had gone to Mars and brought back an alien.”

_ Adelle M. Banks

Pope, in Paris, affirms Europe’s Christian roots

VATICAN CITY (RNS) On the first of a four-day visit to France, Pope Benedict XVI on Friday (Sept. 12) recalled the Christian roots of European culture and affirmed the vital role of religion in modern society.

“That which founded European culture, the search for God and the willingness to listen to him, remains today the basis of every true culture,” Benedict said in a lecture to some 700 academics and intellectuals in Paris.

Earlier in the day, appearing with President Nicolas Sarkozy at the presidential Elysee Palace, Benedict called for recognition of the “irreplaceable function of religion for the formation of consciences and the contribution which it can bring to … the creation of a fundamental ethical consensus within society.”

Mixing faith and public life has long been taboo in France, where the law mandates a strict separation of church and state.

Yet in his welcoming remarks, Sarkozy repeated his past calls for a “positive secularism” and said that it would be “folly” to “deprive ourselves” of religion.

Benedict was scheduled to celebrate Mass before an expected crowd of some 200,000 at Paris’ Esplanade des Invalides on Saturday, before flying to the southwestern French town of Lourdes. The shrine to the Virgin Mary there, which annually draws more than 6 million pilgrims, celebrates its 150th anniversary this year.

_ Francis X. Rocca

Evangelical publishers score big with Palin books

(RNS) In this high season for political books, two evangelical publishers are leading the race to capitalize on fascination with Alaska governor and GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin.

Tyndale House Publishers of Carol Stream, Ill., has begun distributing a paperback edition of “Sarah: How a Hockey Mom Turned the Alaska Political Establishment Upside Down,” by Alaska freelance writer Kaylene Johnson. Best known as publishers of the bestselling “Left Behind” series, Tyndale is printing a whopping 250,000 copies of the book, which first came out in April from Epicenter Press.

Next month (Oct. 10), Zondervan of Grand Rapids, Mich., will release Joe Hilley’s “Sarah Palin: A New Kind of Leader.” According to a statement from Zondervan, the author makes a case for Palin’s leadership by touting her “maverick integrity, electrifying communication style, career agility, and perpetual education.”

Both biographies highlight Palin’s Christian faith as a formative force. “Sarah” examines her family life and the role religion played in her childhood. The Zondervan book explores how faith influences her leadership style.

Both books also mark a contrast from other political titles published by Tyndale and Zondervan earlier this year. In an effort to reach evangelicals weary of the religious right, Zondervan in March released “How to be Evangelical Without Being Conservative” by David E. Olson. Also in March, Tyndale released “We the Purple,” in which reporter Marcia Ford makes a case for politics unmediated by political parties.

“Tyndale House does not endorse political candidates or parties,” said Tyndale President Mark Taylor. “But as a distinctively Christian publisher, we believe it is vital to promote clear thinking and thoughtful conversation about the intersection of faith and the public square. In choosing to distribute this Epicenter Press book about Sarah Palin … we hope to stimulate both thought and discussion about the role of faith in politics.”

_ G. Jeffrey MacDonald

British cleric argues for teaching creationism

LONDON (RNS) A top British biologist who doubles as an Anglican minister has triggered controversy among his fellow scientists by calling for creationism to be included in school science lessons.

The Rev. Professor Michael Reiss, a leading member of the Royal Society of Scientists, suggested in an address Thursday (Sept. 11) that teachers should not describe creationism as a “misconception” but should discuss it in classrooms as a “world view.”

Creationism rejects the theory of evolution and supports a literal reading of the Bible in which God created the universe in six days about 10,000 years ago.

Reiss’s remarks to the British Association Festival of Science in Liverpool, England, drew sharp criticism from some of his colleagues. Lewis Wolpert, a biologist at University College Medical School in London, told reporters that “creationism is based on faith and has nothing to do with science.”

It “should not be taught in science classes,” he said.

John Fry, a physicist at the University of Liverpool, chimed in, saying “science lessons are not the appropriate place to discuss creationism, which is a world view in total denial of any form of scientific evidence.”

The Royal Society itself, which once included the father of evolution theory, Charles Darwin, as a member, issued a terse statement, reiterating that it “is opposed to creationism being taught as science.”

The statement added that “the society remains committed to the teaching of evolution as the best explanation for the history of life on earth.”

But Reiss, himself ordained as a Church of England minister who once trained for the priesthood, said that “just because something lacks scientific support doesn’t seem to me a sufficient reason to omit it from a science lesson.”

_ Al Webb

Quote of the Day: Congressional candidate Jay Love

(RNS) “Just because he’s a Democrat and I’m a Republican is no reason we can’t worship and serve together.”

_ State Rep. Jay Love of Montgomery, Ala., who is a Republican candidate for Congress against Montgomery Mayor Bobby Bright, a Democrat. Both are members and deacons at First Baptist Church of Montgomery. He was quoted by the Associated Press.

KRE/JM END RNS