August 8, 2008

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
McCain Web Ad Is Accused Of Linking Obama to Antichrist
Douglas Belkin, Stephanie Simon and Suzanne Sataline/Wall Street Journal (08/08/2008)
An Internet ad launched last week by the McCain presidential campaign has attracted more than one million hits by appearing to mock Barack Obama for presenting himself as a kind of prophetic figure. The ad has also generated criticism from Democrats and religious scholars who see a hidden message linking Sen. Obama to the apocalyptic Biblical figure of the antichrist.

Evangelical Leader Warns McCain On VP Pick
Brian Goldsmith/CBS News (08/08/2008)
Richard Land Says VP Selection Is The "Most Important" Decision Of The Campaign

DOCTRINE AND PRACTICE
Evangelicals increasingly tolerant of other paths
Yonat Shimron/News & Observer (08/08/2008)
At a meeting with Sen. Barack Obama recently, the Rev. Franklin Graham asked the presidential hopeful a burning question: Did he think Jesus was the way, or merely a way? For Graham, -- president of the Billy Graham Evangelic Association and Samaritan's Purse, both based in North Carolina -- the answer was critical. ... For many evangelicals, the exclusivity of Jesus is the linchpin of their faith.

CONGREGATIONS AND FAITH GROUPS
'Ugly' D.C. church files suit over historic preservation ruling
Religion News Service (08/08/2008: pewforum.org)
WASHINGTON - A Christian Science church that some have called the city's ugliest church has filed a federal lawsuit challenging the historic landmark designation on the windowless 37-year-old building.

OPINION
A Campaign of Persecution Against a Faith of Tolerance
Benjamin Balint/Wall Street Journal (08/01/2008)
Impressive Bahai houses of worship stand in dozens of cities, from New Delhi, India, to the American headquarters in Wilmette, Ill. But each faces the steep slope of Mount Carmel on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean, a 100-acre site that contains the Bahai archives and the Universal House of Justice, a neoclassical building that houses the faith's elected nine-member international governing body and a staff of more than 600.