Study: Nearly Half of Americans Change Their Religious Beliefs
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,332590,00.html
The U.S. religious marketplace is extremely volatile, with nearly half of American adults leaving the faith tradition of their upbringing to either switch allegiances or abandon religious affiliation altogether, a new survey finds.
The study released Monday by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life is unusual for its sheer scope, relying on interviews with more than 35,000 adults to document a diverse and dynamic U.S. religious population.
While much of the study confirms earlier findings — mainline Protestant churches are in decline, non-denominational churches are gaining and the ranks of the unaffiliated are growing — it also provides a deeper look behind those trends, and of smaller religious groups.
"The American religious economy is like a marketplace — very dynamic, very competitive," said Luis Lugo, director of the Pew Forum. "Everyone is losing, everyone is gaining. There are net winners and losers, but no one can stand still. Those groups that are losing significant numbers have to recoup them to stay vibrant."
The U.S. Religious Landscape Survey estimates the United States is 78 percent Christian and about to lose its status as a majority Protestant nation, at 51 percent and slipping.
More than one-quarter of American adults have left the faith of their childhood for another religion or no religion at all, the survey found. Factoring in moves from one stream or denomination of Protestantism to another, the number rises to 44 percent.
One in four adults ages 18 to 29 claim no affiliation with a religious institution.
"In the past, certain religions had a real holding power, where people from one generation to the next would stay," said Penn State University sociologist Roger Finke, who consulted in the survey planning. "Right now, there is a dropping confidence in organized religion, especially in the traditional religious forms."
Lugo said the 44 percent figure is "a very conservative estimate," and more research is planned to determine the causes.
"It does seem in keeping with the high tolerance among Americans for change," Lugo said. "People move a lot, people change jobs a lot. It's a very fluid society."
The religious demographic benefiting the most from this religious churn is those who claim no religious affiliation. People moving into that category outnumber those moving out of it by a three-to-one margin.
The majority of the unaffiliated — 12 percent of the overall population — describe their religion as "nothing in particular," and about half of those say faith is at least somewhat important to them. Atheists or agnostics account for 4 percent of the total population.
The Roman Catholic Church has lost more members than any faith tradition because of affiliation swapping, the survey found. While nearly one in three Americans were raised Catholic, fewer than one in four say they're Catholic today. That means roughly 10 percent of all Americans are ex-Catholics.
The share of the population that identifies as Catholic, however, has remained fairly stable in recent decades thanks to an influx of immigrant Catholics, mostly from Latin America. Nearly half of all Catholics under 30 are Hispanic, the survey found.
On the Protestant side, changes in affiliation are swelling the ranks of nondenominational churches, while Baptist and Methodist traditions are showing net losses.
Many Americans have vague denominational ties at best. People who call themselves "just a Protestant," in fact, account for nearly 10 percent of all Protestants.
Although evangelical churches strive to win new Christian believers from the "unchurched," the survey found most converts to evangelical churches were raised Protestant.
Hindus claimed the highest retention of childhood members, at 84 percent. The group with the worst retention is one of the fastest growing — Jehovah's Witnesses. Only 37 percent of those raised in the sect known for door-to-door proselytizing said they remain members.
Among other findings involving smaller religious groups, more than half of American Buddhists surveyed were white, and most Buddhists were converts.
More people in the survey pool identified themselves as Buddhist than Muslim, although both populations were small — less than 1 percent of the total population. By contrast, Jews accounted for 1.7 percent of the overall population.
The self-identified Buddhists — 0.7 percent of those surveyed — illustrate a core challenge to estimating religious affiliation: What does affiliation mean?
It's unclear whether people who called themselves Buddhists did so because they practice yoga or meditation, for instance, or claim affiliation with a Buddhist institution.
The report does not project membership figures for religious groups, in part because the survey is not as authoritative as a census and didn't count children, Lugo said. The U.S. Census does not ask questions on religion.
Christians get behind forthcoming BBC Passion drama
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/christians.get.behind.forthcoming.bbc.passion.drama/17061.htm
Representatives of the UK’s biggest denominations are encouraging Christians to engage with a forthcoming BBC drama series that re-tells the story of the cross and resurrection of Jesus.
The Passion first airs on Palm Sunday, 16 March, and will take viewers through the last week of Jesus’ life, his trial and crucifixion. The final episode, on Easter Sunday, 23 March, dramatises Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances to his disciples.
The Churches’ Media Council has published guidance for Christians saying, “There's no need to debate whether or not the Christian community should welcome this production. We celebrate the fact that the story of Jesus is being retold for an audience of millions.”
The series has been made by award-winning drama producer Nigel Stafford-Clark of Bleak House and Warriors notoriety and is expected to attract audiences in excess of 10 million.
The Chair of the Council, Rev Dr Joel Edwards, said, “From time to time opportunities arise nationally that provide significant moments for the Christian faith to engage with our culture. One such opportunity will be the forthcoming BBC series The Passion.”
Dr Edwards, who is soon to launch a new book on evangelicals as the ‘good news’ people, said he expects the BBC series to make “a huge national impact” over the Easter season.
The cast includes a number of well-known British actors, including Cold Feet star James Nesbitt as Pilate and EastEnders actor Paul Nicholls as Judas Iscariot. Jesus is played by the relatively unknown Joseph Mawle, who at 33 is the same age as Jesus was at the time he was crucified.
A group of denominational representatives and Christian organisations convened by the Churches’ Media Council has launched a website to help Christians engage with the series with the help of resources and information about the series.
The group says The Passion will provide an opportunity to contribute to a contemporary public discussion about Jesus, which the Christian community should not miss.
Guidelines on the Churches’ Media Council website encourage the Christian community to treat the series as drama first rather than theology.
Andrew Graystone, Director of the Churches’ Media Council, was profoundly moved by early versions of the series. “This is an extremely vivid piece of drama. You feel you are right there, in amongst the Passover crowds, alongside the disciples as Jesus comes out with these simple but earth-shattering messages.
“And then of course, he’s taken away and makes the ultimate sacrifice, and like the disciples, you’re left to decide what you are going to do about it.”
National Christian leaders will attend a special preview screening of the series on Thursday.
Mr Graystone added, “Christians have a tendency to be critical of the media – and sometimes with good reason. But I hope Christians will welcome this series unreservedly.
“It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to engage the whole nation in a public conversation about the Christian message.”
The website www.rejesus.co.uk will act as a one-stop-shop for anyone who sees the series and wants to explore Christian faith.
The Churches’ Media Council resource page can be accessed at www.churchesmediacouncil.org.uk/passion
Pakistan Lifts Ban on YouTube
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,332612,00.html
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan's telecoms regulator said Tuesday it has lifted restrictions on the YouTube Web site after the removal of a "blasphemous" video clip.
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority told Internet service providers to restore access to the site after the clip became inaccessible, spokeswoman Nabiha Mahmood said.
Pakistan ordered the site blocked on Friday over a clip featuring a Dutch lawmaker who has said he plans to release a movie portraying Islam as fascist and prone to inciting violence. The move accidentally knocked out access to the popular video-sharing site in many other countries for up to two hours.
College Students Face Hate Crimes Charges for Beating Outside Jewish Fraternity House
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,332509,00.html
PHILADELPHIA — Police issued arrest warrants Monday for four Temple University students charged with beating a man outside the former location of a Jewish fraternity, and categorized the attack as a hate crime.
Investigators said the students used anti-Semitic slurs during the beating Feb. 15 outside the former Alpha Epsilon Pi house. The chapter of the international Jewish fraternity moved recently to a new location.
The victim, who wasn't a Temple student, was seriously hurt, school officials said.
The four students were suspended. School officials said they were awaiting results of the police investigation before deciding whether to expel them.
"Hate crimes will not be tolerated by Temple University," school President Ann Weaver Hart said in a message sent to students and staff. "All manifestations of intolerance threaten the fabric of our institution and our society."
Officials from Temple, the prosecutor's office and police declined to release further details.
American Professor, Ousted From DePaul University, Declares Support for Hezbollah in Lebanon
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,332360,00.html
CHICAGO — An ousted American political science professor who believes some Jews have exploited the legacy of the Holocaust recently expressed his support for the terrorist organization Hezbollah.
Norman Finkelstein, who resigned from DePaul University last fall amid criticism of his opinions on the Holocaust, told Lebanese television that his view of Hezbollah is "rarely heard" in the United States.
"I have no problem saying that I do want to express solidarity with them, and I'm not going to be a coward and a hypocrite about it," Finkelstein told Future TV. "I don't care about Hezbollah as a political organization. I don't know much about their politics and anyhow, it's irrelevant."
The Jan. 20, 2008, interview was conducted in Arabic; Finkelstein replied in English.
Hezbollah, funded by Iran and Syria, engages in terror operations worldwide. President Bush and other U.S. leaders view the organization as an opposing force to peace in the Middle East, and it is listed by the U.S. State Department as a foreign terrorist organization.
Finkelstein’s support for Hezbollah would be illegal if he were helping raise funds for the organization, said Richard Miniter, a terrorism analyst with the Hudson Institute.
“If terrorists are able to use his name to fundraise in any way, that would be illegal,” said Miniter, who added that only Al Qaeda has killed more Americans than Hezbollah.
Finkelstein, who is the son of Holocaust survivors, said in the televised interview that Jews had to resist the Communists in World War II and the Lebanese people will have to make the same kind of choice about accepting or resisting Hezbollah.
"It's a choice that the Lebanese have to make — who they want to be their leaders, who they want to represent them."
Israel and the United States are resisting Hezbollah's control of the region, Finkelstein said.
"That's the problem," he said. "If Hezbollah laid down its arms and said, 'We will do whatever the Americans say,' you wouldn't have a war.
"That's true, but you would also be the slaves of the Americans. I have to respect those who refuse to be slaves."
He said Israel must suffer a defeat to lead to peace in the Middle East.
Asked to comment on this report, Finkelstein said he was only willing to speak live on air.
Alan Dershowitz, a Harvard Law School professor and supporter of Israel, said Finkelstein’s comments show that he is anti-American.
“If it’s not literal treason, it certainly is treason in spirit,” Dershowitz told FOXNews.com. “He belongs with Hezbollah."
Finkelstein is supporting an organization that brags about killing Americans, he added.
“This is a man who supports an organization that recently called for terrorist attacks against Jews and Americans all across the world,” Dershowitz said.
Finkelstein initially fought DePaul, a private Catholic university in Chicago, on its decision last September to cancel his courses and deny him tenure after six years as a faculty member.
He threatened to risk arrest by appearing on campus, but negotiations with university officials led to a peaceful exit.
Dershowitz, who weighted in on Finkelstein's tenure process, said Finkelstein’s support for Hezbollah vindicates the decision by DePaul to deny his tenure.
“To have an American citizen endorsing the views of a group of Iranian-funded Lebanese murderers, it shows you that the biggest front in the War on Terror is the propaganda war,” Miniter said. “Days like today, it looks like we’re losing.”
Huckabee visits Ocean State as he keeps longshot candidacy alive
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/2008/view.bg?articleid=1075935&srvc=rss
WARWICK, R.I. -- Republican Mike Huckabee said he was looking for support from conservative Republicans in Rhode Island to help him beat front-runner John McCain in next week’s presidential primary election.
The former Arkansas governor campaigned in Rhode Island on Monday ahead of the state’s March 4 primary. He described himself as a "conservative alternative" to the Arizona senator who has won far more of the delegates needed to clinch the Republican nomination and has secured the backing of most of the prominent Republicans in the state.
McCain’s Rhode Island supporters include Gov. Don Carcieri, House Minority Leader Robert Watson and Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian.
Rhode Island Republicans have long supported political moderates, but Huckabee said he wants to attract votes from more conservative members who oppose abortion and strongly support gun ownership.
"They should have a voice, they should have a choice, and they ought to be able to vote. There are a lot of folks obviously who don’t want to have that," Huckabee said. "They want a coronation and, you know, give John McCain the crown, the scepter and the robe. But I’m not quite ready to do that."
Huckabee drew more than 300 supporters to a rally at a Warwick hotel, playing guitar with a rock band and urging the crowd to vote.
Earlier in the day, Huckabee visited the Community Preparatory School in Providence, where he stressed to students the importance of an arts education and briefly played the guitar.
Huckabee said he had not abandoned his presidential bid because McCain has not yet won the 1,191 delegates needed to sew up the nomination, and because "anything can happen in an election."
Huckabee, however, acknowledged that it may be very difficult to pull off an upset.
"The path to winning is very complicated for me," he said. "I understand that. The path to losing is real simple: all I’ve got to do is quit."
Huckabee said he doubted that McCain, if he won the nomination, would tap him as a running mate.
"It’s not my choice, and I’m still running for president — not vice president. Nobody runs for it," he said. "It’s just not on my radar screen."
Bush Predicts GOP Will Hold White House
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/bush_governors/2008/02/25/75474.html
President Bush predicted Monday that voters will replace him with a Republican president who will "keep up the fight" in Iraq. "I'm confident we'll hold the White House in 2008," Bush told donors at the Republican Governors Association annual dinner, which raised a record $10.6 million for GOP gubernatorial candidates.
"And I don't want the next Republican president to be lonely," Bush said. "And that is why we got to take the House, retake the Senate, and make sure our states are governed by Republican governors."
The pep talk came in the midst of a presidential campaign that largely has overshadowed Bush's final year in office. Bush has promised to be an active fundraiser, and he had no trouble slipping into enthusiastic campaign mode Monday evening.
He said Republicans still offer the bedrock positions that voters embrace: strong defense, low taxes and personal freedoms.
"When I say I'm confident, I am so because I understand the mentality of the American people," Bush said. "And I understand the mentality of our candidates. And there's no question in my mind, with your help, 2008 is going to be a great year."
Democratic governors have a 28-22 edge nationally, having regained a majority in 2006 after 12 years of GOP dominance. Eleven seats are up this year.
The Republican governors still have the financial edge, with the Republican Governors Association raising $22 million last year, to $13 million for its Democratic counterpart. That includes $9 million cash on hand for the RGA, compared to $7 million for the Democratic Governors Association.
In Congress, Democrats took control of the House and Senate in 2006. Bush has sought to remain relevant through his veto power and bully pulpit.
On Iraq, he pledged Monday that he would use his remaining time in office to make whatever decisions are needed to "make sure that we succeed in Iraq." The country has long grown weary of the war, although economic concerns have overtaken Iraq as the top concern among voters.
"I believe the American people understand that success in Iraq is necessary for the long-term security of the American people," Bush said. "And we will elect somebody to the White House who will keep up the fight to make sure Iraq is secure and free."
Republican governors, as chief executives and effective fundraisers, see themselves as the key to turning around their party.
Four of the last five presidents, including the current one, were governors.
One former Republican governor, Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, remains in the presidential race, but the next president is all but certain to come from the Senate _ Republican John McCain, or Democrats Barack Obama or Hillary Rodham Clinton.
About 1,400 people attended the event at the cavernous National Building Museum, where they dined on grilled shrimp, spring rolls, gumbo and crab cakes before filtering into an adjacent room to hear Bush.
Obama Steps 'Inside' Israeli Politics
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/328469.aspx
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama shared his personal views on Israeli politics in a "closed" meeting with Jewish community leaders at a Cleveland, Ohio synagogue.
"I think there is a strain within the pro-Israel community that says unless you adopt an unwavering pro-Likud approach to Israel, that you're anti-Israel and that can't be the measure of our friendship with Israel," Obama said.
With Likud chairman and opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu leading Israeli polls as the likely successor to Ehud Olmert, Obama's remarks shed doubt on his predisposition to work with a Likud-led government, should he be elected the next US president.
Haaretz correspondent Shmuel Rosner said Obama's statement "can be seen as meddling in the internal politics of Israel."
"Imagine Benjamin Netanyahu -- the chairman of the Likud party and according to all recent polls the leading candidate to become the next Israeli prime minister -- saying something along the lines of 'There are people who claim that I need to accept a Democratic nominee as friendly toward Israel' -- but this is not necessarily true, as I think the policies of the Republican party are much wiser.' Imagine him saying this and the outrage that would follow such a statement," Rosner wrote.
Meanwhile on Sunday, Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan called Obama "the hope of the entire world."
"This young man is the hope of the entire world that America will change and be made better," Farrakahan said to some 20,000 participants at the Nation of Islam's annual Saviours' Day celebration.
"This young man is capturing audiences of black and brown and red and yellow. If you look at Barack Obama's audiences and look at the effect of his words, those people are being transformed," the Nation of Islam minister said.
Obama Photo Causes Stir
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/Obama_Photo_Causes_Stir_/2008/02/25/75348.html
A photograph circulating on the Internet of Democratic Sen. Barack Obama dressed in traditional local garments during a visit to Kenya in 2006 is causing a dustup in the presidential campaign over what constitutes a smear.
The Associated Press photograph portrays Obama wearing a white turban and a wraparound white robe presented to him by elders in Wajir, in northeastern Kenya. Obama's estranged late father was Kenyan and Obama visited the country in 2006, attracting thousands of well-wishers.
The gossip and news Web site The Drudge Report posted the photograph Monday and said it was being circulated by "Clinton staffers" and quoted an e-mail from an unidentified campaign aide.
Obama campaign manager David Plouffe immediately accused Clinton's campaign of "the most shameful, offensive fear-mongering we've seen from either party in this election."
Obama's foreign policy adviser, Susan Rice, said the circulation of the photograph was divisive and suggests "that the customs and cultures of other parts of the world are worthy of ridicule or condemnation."
The Clinton campaign did not comment on the distribution of the photo, but campaign manager Maggie Williams said the Obama campaign's reaction was inflaming passions and distracting voters.
"Enough," Williams said in a statement. "If Barack Obama's campaign wants to suggest that a photo of him wearing traditional Somali clothing is divisive, they should be ashamed. Hillary Clinton has worn the traditional clothing of countries she has visited and had those photos published widely.
"This is nothing more than an obvious and transparent attempt to distract from the serious issues confronting our country today and to attempt to create the very divisions they claim to decry."
In a teleconference with reporters, retired Air Force Gen. Scott Gration, an Obama adviser who accompanied the Illinois senator to Kenya two years ago, said the senator was there to learn how tribes were organizing themselves.
"And in the course of this, Senator Obama was given an outfit and as the guest that he was, the great guest, he took this outfit and they encouraged him to try some of it on," Gration said. "It was a thing that we all do."
In December, two Clinton Iowa volunteers resigned after forwarding a hoax e-mail that falsely said Obama is a Muslim possibly intent on destroying the United States. Obama is a member of the United Church of Christ and says he has never been a Muslim, but false rumors about Islamic ties are circulating on the Internet.
Islamic Links on Obama Web Site
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/Islamic_Links_on_Obama_We/2008/02/25/75322.html
A page for Muslim supporters of Sen. Barack Obama -- hosted on Obama's presidential campaign Web site -- promotes events sponsored by controversial Islamic groups.
Muslim Americans for Obama '08, found on Obama's main campaign site, allows users to create their own page through a "My Obama" option. The Muslim Americans for Obama page also links to a Web site that features lectures by people who have expressed radical Islamic views in the past.
A portion of the "Muslim Americans for Obama" page lists proposals to establish a Muslim American advisory group on U.S. foreign policy; provide prayer areas in public places such as malls, airports, universities and government buildings; institute a law to allow Muslim employees to take time from their work day for prayer; and institute a law against harassment of Muslim women in public areas.
The Obama campaign's press office did not respond to numerous phone calls and e-mail messages from Cybercast News Service on this matter.
Throughout the campaign, Obama has professed his Christian faith, although his father is a Muslim.
Late last year, former Nebraska Sen. Bob Kerrey, a supporter of Obama's Democratic rival New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, caused a stir in Iowa when he said, "It's probably not something that appeals to him, but I like the fact that his name is Barack Hussein Obama, and that his father was a Muslim and that his paternal grandmother is a Muslim."
"Muslim Americans for Obama '08 is a grassroots initiative to support the presidential campaign for Barack Obama 2008," the Web page says. "Our sincere intention is to serve as a resource for Muslim and non-Muslim Americans to get involved and learn more about the political process and Barack Obama as a person and presidential candidate."
Other "My Obama" pages on the campaign's Web site include "Jews for Obama," "Christians for Obama" and "Gay Christians for Obama."
But it is a link and a list of events on the Muslim Americans for Obama page that has prompted critics that consider themselves watchdogs of Islamist groups to take notice.
The list of events on the Muslim Americans for Obama page includes voter registration drives at conventions sponsored by the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), held last April and August in Rosemont, Ill., and the convention co-sponsored by the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) and the Muslim American Society (MAS).
These groups routinely inject themselves into political causes, said M. Zhudi Jasser, chairman of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy. He thinks all political candidates should stay clear of mixing religion and politics, saying the root of terror is political Islam.
"Any candidate that engaged American Islamist organizations without any ideological litmus test about their stances regarding the transnational goals of Islamism, I think that is going to be a major liability," Jasser, a Muslim, told Cybercast News Service.
"I wouldn't specifically say Obama. I would say any candidate that doesn't identify that Muslim organizations should be leading the effort against political Islam and its impact on the ends of that terrorists seek. I think it will be a liability," he said.
The MAS has faced intense scrutiny in recent years.
In the appeal of Sabri Benkhala, a man convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice last year after being acquitted of trying to help the Taliban, the U.S. attorney's office for the Eastern District of Virginia filed a brief that referenced to MAS as an "overt arm of the Muslim Brotherhood for the United States."
The Muslim Brotherhood is a militant Islamic group in Egypt. The government has not brought any charges against MAS.
"We are an American Muslim organization, and we don't take orders from anybody oversees," MAS Executive Director Mahdi Bray told Cybercast News Service. "We were established in America, and we are not an overt or covert arm of the Muslim Brotherhood."
In 2004, after the Israeli military killed Hamas spiritual leader Ahmed Yassin, the MAS Freedom Foundation announced it would push Congress to enforce provisions of the U.S. Arms Export Control Act against Israel, which forbids the use of U.S. weapons from being used against civilian targets.
Bray said other human rights organizations and the United Nations also opposed the action by Israel.
In 2006, the Minnesota chapter of MAS issued a fatwa, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, proclaiming that "Islamic jurisprudence" would prohibit Muslim taxi cab drivers from transporting anyone carrying alcohol "because it involves cooperating with sin, according to Islam."
The group tried and failed to get the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport to create a two-tier system for Muslim and non-Muslim cab drivers. In this case, Bray said, the state chapter was "out of line" and not acting on behalf of the national organization.
As for the Obama candidacy, Bray anticipates his Muslim heritage could be smeared.
"After the tragedy of 9/11, Republicans might politically exploit this for fear and smear," Bray said. "He's a Christian, but the right-wing bloggers are already talking about his name Obama Hussein.
"Can you believe we live in such a bigoted country that people would denounce him for his name? It wouldn't matter if he were a Christian or a Mormon or Jewish. It's unfair to denounce someone because of their name and connect that to their Muslim heritage," he added.
Bray stressed there is no monolithic support for any single candidate among Muslim voters.
ICNA and MAS, which co-sponsor conventions, are non-profit religious organizations and thus do not endorse any candidates, said Azeem Khan, assistant secretary general for ICNA.
"We don't have a problem with people having tables" at our conventions, Khan told Cybercast News Service. "In '04, Kerry had a table. In 2000, the ISNA convention had a table of Muslims for Bush."
Khan has his doubts about the electoral impact the Muslim community can have in the presidential race.
"Muslims are less than 2 percent of the population in the U.S. and are not a category weighed heavily," Khan said. "Muslims are naturally close to the Republican Party on issues such as abortion and gay marriage. The difference comes on foreign policy and other issues."
Khan said President George W. Bush, a Republican, won overwhelmingly among Muslim voters in 2000, but the pendulum swung to the Democratic nominee Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) in 2004.
ISNA promotes itself as a civil rights group seeking interfaith dialogue, but the group has had to weather controversy in past years.
ISNA was an unindicted co-conspirator in a case, declared a mistrial, against the Texas-based Holy Land Foundation. The government accused the Holy Land Foundation but did not convict it of raising more than $12 million for individuals and groups linked the terrorist group Hamas.
J. Michael Waller, an Annenberg professor of international communication at the Institute of World Politics, told a Senate panel in 2003 that ISNA provides training for Wahhabi-trained imams. Wahhabiism is a form of Sunni Islam that includes radical adherents.
An ISNA spokesperson could not be reached for comment for this story.
Jasser was also concerned that the Muslim Americans for Obama site contained a "Qaran (Audio) English Translation." Clicking on that brings a user to the Web site "The Sounds of Islam." At this site users can listen to numerous lectures regarding Islam, including those from people who have expressed radical views in the past.
One of the more controversial lecturers on the site is the Islamic preacher Yusuf Al Qaradawi, who has advocated suicide bombings.
"Allah Almighty is just; through his infinite wisdom he has given the weak a weapon the strong do not have and that is their ability to turn their bodies into bombs as Palestinians do," the BBC quoted him as saying.
The "Sounds of Islam" site also includes lectures by Abdul Rahman Al Sudais, the chief cleric of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, who has used inflammatory rhetoric against people of different faiths.
The BBC quoted him as saying, "The worst ... of the enemies of Islam are those ... whom he ... made monkeys and pigs, the aggressive Jews and oppressive Zionists and those that follow them: the callers of the trinity and the cross worshippers ... those influenced by the rottenness of their ideas, and the poison of their cultures the followers of secularism .... How can we talk sweetly when the Hindus and the idol worshippers indulge in their overwhelming hatred against our brothers."
Jasser said it's not a stretch to show concern about such a link on the pro-Obama site.
"That's the problem with Islamism," he said. "It's an insinuating, permeating, political ideology that utilizes this political activism to bring forth the political agenda of Islamists. Unless you deal with organizations that separate religion and politics, you're going to find yourself one or two steps away from the international Muslim Brotherhood."
Who is Charles Barkley Anyway?
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion06910.shtml
WASHINGTON -- Day Gardner, President, National Black Pro-Life Union, submits the following: It is interesting that there is so much noise about Charles Barkley's remarks about abortion and Barack Obama. Barkley made the comments last Friday in an interview with CNN's The Situation Room news show and also referred to pro-life advocates as "hypocritical."
He also stated that the word "conservative" makes him sick to his stomach. Really, Mr. Barkley? Conservative, conservative, conservative! (Just kidding).
Mr. Barkley was once a very talented basketball player, but this does not qualify him as a great thinker. If he were, he would understand that abortion is not a Republican or Democratic issue; it's a simple matter of life and death. (Has he ever seen what an aborted child looks like?)
The good news is that there ARE many pro-life Democrats! There are Democrats of strong moral fiber who will not bow to the beast. There are Democrats who stand fierce in support of saving the lives of unborn children even at the risk of loosing the support by their political party. Unfortunately, Barack Obama is not one of them!
When Wolf Blitzer asked Barkley to explain his callous anti-Christian remarks, Barkley condemned Christians for wanting to be "judge and jury." But that's just it, Mr. Barkley--women who become pregnant are judging their own innocent child by making the determination that the child growing inside is somehow not worthy of life and therefore, sentenced to a horrific, violent death by abortion.
There are two victims in abortion --one dead, the other injured. Women need not kill their children due to fear or pressure from boyfriends, husbands or parents. Young girls and women need to realize that it is not necessary to kill their children to have productive lives.
Both mother and child are precious in God's eyes! The word of God says pre-born children are people from the moment of conception, PSALM 139:13-16. The Bible also says if anyone harms a pregnant woman so that her baby dies--that person should be punished "an eye for an eye", EXODUS 21:22-25.
So, who is Charles Barkley? He's just a former basketball player, no more--no less.
Italy's Catholic Church jumps into election fray over abortion
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/italys.catholic.church.jumps.into.election.fray.over.abortion/17063.htm
Italy's Catholic Church has accused the national medical association of playing politics over abortion, joining a passionate debate in the run up to a parliamentary election in April.
While most of the outgoing centre-left coalition supports the abortion law, centre-right politicians are divided, some favouring a more restrictive approach, others an outright ban.
Avvenire, the newspaper of the Italian Bishops Conference, said a statement the association issued at a weekend congress, supporting the current abortion law, was invalid and "imaginary" because it had been approved "by acclamation" and not put to an individual vote by delegates.
Science and Life, a Catholic doctors' group, called the medical association's action a "putsch" and demanded a referendum.
The clash, which dominated Italian newspapers on Monday, appeared to thwart any attempt by political parties to keep the thorny issue of abortion in the background of the campaign.
Pope Benedict repeated the Church's opposition to abortion on Monday, saying life must be respected "from its dawn" and "in every moment of its earthly development" but did not mention the doctors' dispute.
The medical association's statement was intended as a guide for doctors on how to deal with the issue during the campaign for the April 13-14 elections.
It said doctors should "support" Italy's 30-year-old abortion law while also promoting campaigns for "responsible procreation" that would limit recourse to abortion.
The national medical association also backed the so-called "morning-after pill", which can stop ovulation within about 72 hours of sexual intercourse, and the RU-486, which blocks the action of hormones needed to keep a fertilised egg implanted in the uterus.
The medical association rejected the Church's accusations as "false and strange". Association president Amedeo Bianco said the aim was not to encourage abortion but help prevent it while applying the law.
The current law allows for abortion on demand in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy and until the 24th week if the mother's life is at risk or if the foetus is seriously malformed.
Critics, mainly on the centre right, argue the law should be made more restrictive in light of medical advances allowing the survival of some foetuses born before 24 weeks.
Giuliano Ferrara, a prominent conservative journalist and former minister in the first government of opposition leader Silvio Berlusconi, is running for parliament with his own "List for Life" party.
A former communist who argues abortion is "evil and should be eradicated", Ferrara was shown in nearly every national newspaper on Monday kissing Pope Benedict's hand during the Pontiff's weekend visit to a Rome parish.
Berlusconi, who has a clear lead in opinion polls, has said the United Nations should vote for a moratorium on abortion just as the world body has on the death penalty.
Young Men's Christian Association Library Bombed in Gaza
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion06912.shtml
Unidentified assailants bombed the library of the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) compound in the Shajaiyeh neighbourhood of Gaza City on February 16. Shortly after midnight, at least 12 gunmen entered the YMCA compound and kidnapped two guards at gunpoint after asking them why they worked for "infidels."
The men stormed the building and detonated two homemade explosive devices inside the library. All 8,000 books in the library were destroyed and the floor, walls and ceiling were damaged. The attackers also stole computers and other equipment from other YMCA offices. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack.
However, sources in Gaza reportedly believe that the perpetrators were Muslim militants acting in response to the reproduction of cartoons "ridiculing" Muhammad in a number of Danish newspapers last week.
Thank the Lord that no one was injured in the explosion. Ask Him to give Christians in Gaza wisdom as they consider the future in light of this attack. Pray that those responsible will find the healing grace of Jesus Christ and be drawn into a personal relationship with Him (John 4:16).
For more information on the persecution of Christians in Palestine, go to www.persecution.net/country/palestine.htm.
Palestinians plug Jericho into Jordan's power grid
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/palestinians.plug.jericho.into.jordans.power.grid/17055.htm
The West Bank town of Jericho was connected to the Jordanian power grid on Monday in a move a Palestinian official said was meant to reduce dependence on Israeli electricity supplies.
A Palestinian official responsible for the project said the connection cost $10 million and means the ancient town of Jericho and its surroundings no longer depend on Israeli electricity.
"The aim of this step is to reduce our consumption of Israeli electricity and hook up with the Arab network," said Omar Kittaneh, head of the Palestinian Energy Authority.
Kittaneh said the Palestinian Authority was buying 20 megawatts of power from Jordan and that the hope was to add other West Bank towns to the grid later.
He said Jordan was part of the Arab electricity grid that also included Egypt, Syria and Turkey.
The Palestinians have very limited generating capacity and buy most of their power for the West Bank and the Hamas-run Gaza Strip from Israel.
Earlier this month Israel reduced power supplies to the Gaza Strip as part of a campaign it said was aimed at curbing militant cross-border rocket attacks on its southern towns.
Israel said its goal in reducing the electricity supply was to disconnect gradually from the coastal enclave, which Hamas Islamists seized in June after routing secular Fatah forces loyal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
U.S. Expects Fast Vote on Iran Sanctions
http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/U.S._Iran_Sanctions/2008/02/25/75487.html
WASHINGTON -- The United States predicted a swift vote on new United Nations sanctions against Iran following a strategy session Monday, as Iran again denied ever trying to build nuclear weapons.
Diplomats from Britain, France, Russia, China, Germany and the U. S. met at the State Department ahead of what U.S. and European diplomats say will be a week or more of debate over the third international attempt to coerce Iran to bargain over its nuclear program. Iran has defied the U.N. Security Council's demands to roll back a nuclear program it maintains is peaceful.
The U.N. Security Council is expected to approve the new sanctions, although an unanimous vote is unlikely. A senior U.S. official said a vote is likely within a week to 10 days. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity to describe the closed-door session, said there were no changes to a draft that calls for a third round of mild sanctions.
The United States had wanted stronger penalties and much faster action to impose them, and U.S. diplomats have said the new vote is a test of the credibility of the Security Council in following through on its threats.
Permanent U.N. Security Council members Russia and China, trade partners of Iran's, have resisted stronger measures as counterproductive or a bad precedent.
The long-delayed debate was held up again recently as some nations said they wanted to first hear a report from the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, which has investigated Iran's nuclear past.
The report Friday said major issues that had raised past suspicions about Iran's nuclear work had been largely resolved, and also confirmed that Iran continued to enrich uranium in defiance of the Security Council. Enriched uranium can be used either for nuclear energy or for bombs, and Iran insists it has the right to develop its own enrichment technology.
The International Atomic Energy Agency report noted Iran had rejected documents linking it to missile and explosives experiments and other work connected to a possible nuclear weapons program, calling the information false and irrelevant.
The report called weaponization ''the one major ... unsolved issue relevant to the nature of Iran's nuclear program.''
The weaponization debate continued Monday as the IAEA presented documents in Vienna, Austria, that diplomats said indicate Iran may have focused on a nuclear weapons program after 2003. That is the year that a U.S. intelligence report concluded with ''high confidence'' that Iran had stopped such work.
Iran again denied ever trying to make such arms. Ali Ashgar Soltanieh, the chief Iranian delegate to the agency, dismissed the information showcased by the body as ''forgeries.''
Britain, France, Russia, China, Germany and the U.S. have offered Iran a package of economic and other incentives to give up the disputed nuclear work, and sanctions are supposed to either push Iran to the table or punish the major oil producing nation for its defiance.
Iraq Demands Turkish Withdrawal
http://www.newsmax.com/international/iraq_turkey/2008/02/26/75556.html
BAGHDAD -- The Iraqi government on Tuesday denounced a recent Turkish incursion and demanded an immediate withdrawal of the troops from northern Iraq.
Spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said the military action was a violation of Iraqi sovereignty, and he called on the Turkish government to engage the Iraqis in dialogue instead.
"The Iraqi Cabinet has denounced the Turkish army's incursion," al-Dabbagh said in a televised statement after the government met to discuss the issue. "The Cabinet calls on Turkey to withdraw its troops immediately and stop military interference."
Turkey launched the incursion into northern Iraq on Thursday against separatist rebels from the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK. The PKK wants autonomy for the predominantly Kurdish southeastern Turkey and rebels have carried out attacks in Turkey from bases in Kurdish Iraq. The conflict started in 1984 and has killed up to 40,000 people.
21 Major House Church Leaders Sent to Labor Camp in Shandong at the Same Time
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion06909.shtml
LINYI CITY, Shandong -- In a most massive persecution case since 1983, CAA learned 21 major house church leaders were sent to labor camp at the same time recently by Linyi City Re-education through labor Commission.
They were all detained on December 7, 2007 when they gathered together for leadership training with other 249 leaders in Hedong District, Linyi city, Shandong. After paying fines and finishing detention from a few days to a few weeks, 249 were released. The 21 most senior leaders were sentenced to 3 years to 1 year and three months. They were accused as "evil cult" members, an arbitrary charge to any non-registered house churches by the PSB. Among the 21 sentenced, 17 are men and 4 are women.
According to some family members, the Linyi PSB refused to send any notification paper regarding the labor camp decision as the Chinese law requires.
In 1983, thousands of the house church leaders were sent to labor camp when China launched its first so- called "strike hard"(Yan Da) campaign.
"CAA calls upon the Chinese authority to immediately release these innocent church leaders," said Rev. Bob Fu, "The international community will hold the Chinese government accountable for its reluctance to improve its worsening record on religious freedom before the Beijing Olympics this summer."
CAA also learned the 28 US House of Representatives from the House Committee on International Affairs have drafted a resolution condemning the worsening religious persecution and arbitrary detention situation in China. Congressman McCotter from the State of Michigan is the sponsor of this resolution. If the Chinese government is not seen as making any measurable progress on religious freedom and human rights, the resolution will be expected to the floor soon.
President of Chinese House Church Alliance Issues Open Letter to the International Community
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion06908.shtml
China Aid has learned that Zhang Mingxuan, president of the Chinese house church alliance, has issued an open letter to the international community, informing the world to the sufferings and persecutions he has endured at the hands of the CPC.
Detailed in his 3rd open letter are the many hardships and injustices pastor Zhang has had to endure throughout the years since becoming an outspoken evangelist and leader of the house church alliance. Since his conversion to Christianity in 1986, Pastor Zhang has been arrested, beaten and incarcerated 12 times. Most recently, PSB and State officials forced Zhang to close the orphanage he had been running with his two sons.
Zhang and the orphans have continued to look for places of residence, but have been refused several times by landlords who have been threatened by officials not to lease to Zhang. Currently, Zhang has been separated from his two sons, who were also forced to move by PSB officials.
In his first two open letters, Zhang appealed to President Hu Jintao, to rectify the wrongs being done by corrupt Government officials. To this date Zhang has received no response. In his latest appeal, Pastor Zhang has written to the international community encouraging them to pray for the upcoming Beijing Olympics and to press the Chinese Government to realize true freedom of religion and rule of law.
It is Zhang's hope, along with millions of other persecuted Christians, that the World's attention on the Olympic Games will bring the Chinese Government to realize the wrongs it has done and allow the house church alliance to help build a true "harmonious society."
To view the complete text of Pastor Zhang's letter, [click here]
To voice your concern over the injustices Pastor Zhang has been forced to endure please contact:
Chinese Embassy in Washington DC
Address: 2201 Wisconsin Avenue, N.W., Washington D.C. 20007
Tel: (202) 338-6688, (202)5889760
Fax: (202) 588-9760
China Says It Is Willing to Resume Rights
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/26/AR2008022600903.html?hpid=topnews
BEIJING, Feb. 26 -- China declared Tuesday it is willing to resume a long-stalled human rights dialogue with the United States, seeking to improve its image before this summer's Olympic Games in Beijing.
The announcement was made by Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi at the close of talks with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who passed through Beijing after attending Monday's inauguration of South Korean President Lee Myung-bak in Seoul.
Following discussions here with Yang, Premier Wen Jiabao and President Hu Jintao, Rice planned to move on to Tokyo for talks Wednesday with Japanese leaders that will touch on nuclear weapons programs in North Korea and Iran, human rights issues in Darfur and Burma and other topics.
Rice said she urged Chinese cooperation on those issues during her meetings in Beijing, including asking China to press North Korea to disclose its nuclear programs, so a stalled disarmament deal could move forward. But Yang, a former ambassador to Washington, veered away from those diplomatic concerns to talk about the human rights dialogue, seeming to aim his announcement at the U.S. news organizations accompanying Rice.
Reading from notes, Yang said: "We are willing to resume the human rights dialogue. We are willing to have exchanges and discussions on human rights with the United States and other countries on the basis of mutual respect, equality and non-interference."
Rice, in a later briefing, welcomed the Chinese gesture and said U.S. diplomats will seek to pin down a date for renewing the dialogue as soon as possible. "That is something we've been trying to do for some time," she added.
China suspended participation in the regular U.S.-China human rights dialogue in 2004 after the United States sponsored a resolution in the Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Commission urging condemnation of China's record. Chinese officials considered the U.S. move in Geneva as interference in Chinese affairs and a display of hostility that made further formal dialogue impossible.
Hu, the president and Communist Party leader, indicated to President Bush during a visit to Washington two years later that he would be willing in principle to resume the dialogue, according to U.S. reports. But in practice, Chinese officials eluded U.S. attempts to get the discussions started again. According to diplomatic sources, prospects for a resumption seemed to brighten last year, but then Washington gave the Dalai Lama a warm reception in October, chilling the atmosphere once again.
Even without the formal dialogue, U.S. officials have made human rights a routine topic during discussions with their Chinese counterparts. Rice brought the subject up again Tuesday, reminding Yang that human rights are "near and dear" to the United States and citing three cases of particular interest to Washington.
Yang's declaration seemed designed as a response to the growing volume of criticism from Western human rights groups that China is not a fit host for the Olympics because of rights abuses. In particular, the groups have condemned China's imprisonment of government critics who speak out on the Internet. A half-dozen such critics have been tried in recent months on the basis of their online comments.
In addition, some human rights activists and U.S. entertainment figures have urged a boycott of the Beijing Olympics unless China applies more pressure on Sudan to allow U.N. and African Union peacekeeping troops to deploy in the conflict-torn Darfur region. China has been targeted by these activists because of Beijing's extensive commercial ties to the Sudanese government, including purchase of Sudanese oil, arms sales and several infrastructure projects.
Chinese officials have dismissed the charges from both fronts, saying it is out of place to mix politics with sports. Bush said he will also follow that line during a planned visit to attend the Olympics opening ceremony. "The president has been very clear that this is a sporting event," Rice reminded reporters.
Nevertheless, Communist Party leaders have put a high priority on displaying a benign face for the Olympics, viewing the event as international endorsement of their stewardship of the country over the last three decades. They are particularly eager to avoid demonstrations that could mar televised Olympics ceremonies, including reported plans for protests this spring at stopover points of the Olympic torch.
The concern is that the congratulatory spirit the party seeks to foster among foreign visitors and television viewers could be dampened by the crescendo of human rights complaints. For instance, Steven Spielberg, the Hollywood director, created an international publicity splash two weeks ago when he withdrew as artistic adviser for the Aug. 8 opening ceremony.
Xi Jinping, a new star in the party hierarchy and Hu's most likely successor, was put in charge of Olympic preparations soon after Spielberg's announcement, which a Chinese official interpreted as a sign of concern by the party's top leaders.
Since Xi's appointment, the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games has noticeably accelerated the rhythm of news conferences and journalists' tours of showy Olympic installations to counter the negative publicity.
China Dismisses Olympic Boycott Call
http://www.newsmax.com/international/china_myanmar/2008/02/26/75562.html
BEIJING -- China urged an activist group in Myanmar that called for a boycott of this year's Olympic Games to have a "correct understanding" of Beijing's policy toward their country.
China's "good neighborly and friendly policy" toward Myanmar "serves the interest of the people in Myanmar and also in China," Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said Tuesday. China is one of Myanmar's key trading partners.
"The policy is conducive to the democratic process of reconciliation and peace in Myanmar. I hope relevant organizations could have a correct understanding of this policy," Liu said.
Pro-democracy activists in Myanmar called Monday for the world to boycott the Beijing Olympics over what they said was China's continuing support of Myanmar's military dictatorship.
The 88 Generation Students group, which was instrumental in last year's pro-democracy demonstrations in Myanmar, accused China of bankrolling and arming the junta and failing to facilitate a meaningful dialogue between it and detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy party.
The 88 Generation Students joined a growing group of critics urging an Olympic boycott over complaints ranging from Beijing's human rights record to its failure to more actively press Sudan _ where China is a major oil buyer _ to end violence in the Darfur region that has killed at least 200,000 people.
Liu said China opposes any move to link the Olympics with politics.
"Our main concern is that the Olympic Games is a great gathering event of the Chinese people and world people and they shall not be politicized or boycotted under some political excuses," Liu said.
Hollywood director Steven Spielberg quit earlier this month as an artistic adviser for the Beijing Olympics, saying China was not doing enough about Darfur.
Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962 and has not had a constitution since 1988, when the army violently suppressed pro-democracy protests and the current junta took power.
In September the junta crushed peaceful demonstrations that were triggered by rising food prices but expanded to include demands for democratic reforms. The U.N. estimates the crackdown killed at least 31 people, and thousands more were detained.
U.S. Home Foreclosures Soar in January
http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/U.S._Home_Foreclosures_So/2008/02/26/75576.html
LOS ANGELES -- The number of homes facing foreclosure jumped 57 percent in January compared to a year ago, with lenders increasingly forced to take possession of homes they couldn't unload at auctions, a mortgage research firm said Monday.
Nationwide, some 233,001 homes received at least one notice from lenders last month related to overdue payments, compared with 148,425 a year earlier, according to Irvine, Calif.-based RealtyTrac Inc. Nearly half of the total involved first-time default notices.
The worsening situation came despite ongoing efforts by lenders to help borrowers manage their payments by modifying loan terms, working out long-term repayment plans and other actions
"You have more people going into default and a higher percentage of the properties going back to the banks," said Rick Sharga, RealtyTrac's vice president of marketing.
The U.S. foreclosure rate last month was one filing for every 534 homes.
The Cape Coral-Fort Myers area in Florida posted the highest foreclosure rate of any metro area in the nation, with one of every 86 homes in some stage of foreclosure, said RealtyTrac Inc.
Stockton, Calif., was ranked second, with one of every 97 homes involved in a foreclosure filing, while the Riverside-San Bernardino metro area in Southern California had the third-highest foreclosure rate with filings for one of every 101 properties.
January's tally represented an 8 percent hike from December.
RealtyTrac follows default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions. Lenders typically consider borrowers delinquent after they fall three months behind on mortgage payments.
Attempts to help struggling home owners have fallen short.
"The loan workout modification programs aren't having a significant material effect on keeping properties from going back to the banks," Sharga said.
One dramatic trend last month was a 90 percent spike in the number of properties that were repossessed by banks, compared to January 2007.
"It suggests that there's little or no equity in a lot of these homes, because they're not even being sold to investors at auctions, and it suggests a continuing weakness in a lot of markets in terms of real estate sales," Sharga said.
Falling home values and tighter lending standards have extended the housing slump, making it tougher for homeowners unable sell their homes or refinance when they face mortgage payments they can't afford.
A wave of adjustable rate mortgage resets expected in May and June threatens to push many other homeowners into default.
During the past year, 30 states saw an increase in the number of homes that had received at least one filing.
Nevada led the nation, with 6,087 properties receiving at least one filing, up 95 percent from a year earlier but down 45 percent from December, the firm said.
That translates to a rate of about one foreclosure for every 167 households.
Rounding out the top 10 states with the highest foreclosure rates were California, Florida, Arizona, Colorado, Massachusetts, Georgia, Connecticut, Ohio and Michigan.
California had 57,158 properties reporting at least one filing, the most of any state. The total increased 120 percent from a year ago and 7 percent from December.
Florida had 30,178 homes on the foreclosure track, up about 158 percent from a year earlier and down 3 percent versus December, RealtyTrac said.
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