January 24, 2008

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
Beliefnet Poll: Evangelicals Still Conservative, But Defy Issue Stereotypes
Dan Gilgoff/beliefnet.com (01/24/2008)
With the 2008 presidential season in full swing, evangelicals remain overwhelmingly conservative but consider the economy, cleaning up government, and other non-hot button issues more important than stopping abortion or gay marriage, according to a new poll by Beliefnet. The poll also finds that evangelicals view John McCain almost as favorably as they do Mike Huckabee and prefer Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton by a more than two-to-one margin.

Huckabee struggles to keep 'scrappy little army' in fight
CNN (01/24/2008)
Mike Huckabee is working hard to keep his 'scrappy little army' on the march, but with a disappointing second-place finish in South Carolina and in the middle of a resource-draining fight in Florida, the former Arkansas governor is having difficulties keeping his troops moving forward.

Jesus Wants Your Vote -- and He Needs a Running Mate
Matthew Streib/Religion News Service (01/24/2008: pewforum.com)
Jesus' would-be political goals are up for a vote on a new Web site launched this month, www.JesusIn2008.com. A sort of nominating convention, the site invites participants to academically infer his stances on modern politics and choose a contemporary running mate, using the results as a voting guide in November.

DOCTRINE AND PRACTICE
Baptists to Push Unity, Fresh Face in Atlanta
Adelle M. Banks/Religion News Service (01/23/2008: pewforum.com)
For decades -- centuries even -- Baptists have been known for preaching the gospel, baptizing the converted and, with their sheer numbers, shaping the face of American Christianity. But at the same time, their internal squabbles, racial and ideological splits and sometimes controversial positions have cemented the image that the thing Baptists most agree on is their penchant to be disagreeable. Now, prominent Baptists hope an upcoming (Jan. 30-Feb. 1) 'Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant' in Atlanta will help change that by focusing on what Baptists are for, not what they're against.

ARTS AND MEDIA
Pope calls on media to adopt 'info-ethics'
Reuters (01/24/2008)
VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict called on the media on Thursday to practise 'info-ethics', saying it was often used irresponsibly to spread violence and impose 'distorted models' of life. In his message for the Catholic Church's World Communications Day, Benedict said that while the media did much good, it was also often used for ideological reasons and tried to create reality rather than report it.

Christian author has problem with conservatives
Associated Press (01/24/2008: cnn.com)
ORLANDO, Florida -- Donald Miller still loves God and Jesus. Don't misunderstand him. His problem is with Christianity, at least how it's often practiced.

Dana Jacobson roasts Jesus
Manya Brachear/Chicago Tribune (01/24/2008)
ESPN has temporarily suspended sports announcer Dana Jacobson for a rant during the roast of two radio personalities, one of them a rival because he went to the University of Notre Dame and she went to the University of Michigan. But instead of roasting only her colleagues, she also reportedly went after Jesus. Did she take a good-natured sports rivalry too far?