Christianity

Native Africans Find Community In Local Columbus Church

November 3, 2000

Source: The Columbus Dispatch

On November 3, 2000, The Columbus Dispatch reported that the Ebenezer United Methodist Fellowship, a church that caters to native Africans in central Ohio, is known for its sense of community. Members say they can rely on each other for support during trying times. The congregation, which formed in March, is "trying to meet both the spiritual and secular needs of African immigrants," according to David Orgen, board chairman. Last summer, the congregation moved from Orgen's home to the basement of Linden United Methodist Church...

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Jewish Activist Files Suit Against City of Burbank for First Amendment Violation

November 2, 2000

Source: Los Angeles Times

On November 2, 2000, the Los Angeles Times reported that Judge Alexander Williams III of the Los Angeles Supreme Court will preside over a case that debates 1st amendment rights. Jewish activist Irv Rubin filed suit against the city of Burbank to stop the references to Jesus Christ at Burbank's City Council meetings. Officials say "Rubin's demand is unlawful because it would force the city to censor speakers, adding that the council has no role in selecting the clerics who give the invocations." It is the Burbank Ministerial Assn....

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Southern Baptist Convention Loses Texas Support

October 31, 2000

Source: The Washington Post

On October 31, 2000, The Washington Post reported that "Texas Baptists dealt a serious blow to the Southern Baptist Convention yesterday, voting to cut off $ 5 million in funds to protest a recent fundamentalist shift in the nation's largest Protestant denomination. Leaders of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, by far the largest of the denomination's state groups, and officials of the Southern Baptist Convention both saw the vote as a moment of truth, a warning that dissatisfaction with the national leadership's attempts...

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African-American Christian Church Opens

October 30, 2000

Source: The Baltimore Sun

On October 30, 2000, The Baltimore Sun reported that "African-Americans and African nationals living in Baltimore, Washington and Virginia gathered yesterday in the auditorium of William H. Lemmel Middle School in West Baltimore to plant a new congregation in the city: the Kalafong African Methodist Episcopal Church. Kalafong is a congregation started by an expatriate South African human rights activist-turned-minister for other Africans living far from their homelands. A couple hundred gathered yesterday, United Nations Sunday -...

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Christians, Jews, and Muslims Worship Under Same Roof

October 30, 2000

Source: Los Angeles Times

October 30, 2000, the Los Angeles Times reported, "twelve years ago, the Irvine United Church of Christ opened its doors--and its arms--to a small Jewish congregation in search of a home. On Sunday, the church embraced followers of another faith--Islam--perhaps marking the first time in the United States that Christians, Jews and Muslims have worshiped under one roof. During the Sunday morning service, the Rev. Fred C. Plumer introduced his congregants to the church's newest tenants in a quest for greater understanding of what it...

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Former President Carter Leaves Southern Baptist Convention

October 28, 2000

Source: The New York Times

On October 28, 2000, The New York Times reported that "a week ago, former President Jimmy Carter made the unexpected announcement that he was severing his lifelong ties to the Southern Baptist Convention. He would remain active in his church in Plains, Ga., he said, but he would no longer consider himself a member of the denomination itself, which he said had become 'increasingly rigid' theologically under a conservative leadership. Mr. Carter made news nationwide, but another decision, to be made next week, could have a greater...

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Conservative Christian Responses to Halloween

October 27, 2000

Source: Los Angeles Times

On October 27, 2000, the Los Angeles Times published an article entitled "Aiming to Scare the Devil Out of You: Conservative Christians are Finding Alternatives to Halloween." Christian-themed haunted houses use real-life terror themes like drunken driving, gang shootings and drug overdoses, taking back "a pagan holiday and giving it back to God's Glory" according to Shawn Anthony, a 29-year-old pastor and director of Harvest Outreach, a national evangelical organization aimed at teenagers. 42 Orange County churches participated...

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Conservative Christian Responses to Halloween

October 27, 2000

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

On October 27, 2000, the San Francisco Chronicle published an article on some Christians' responses to Halloween: "To many Christians in the Bay Area, this night, when identities and inhibitions are shed and children turn into candy-crazed creatures out for a sustained sugar fix, is anything but the benignly spooky trick-or-treat ritual most relish. To them, Halloween is, well, evil. Far from being harmless, they believe, the holiday is harmful to one's faith and goes against church doctrine. They see it as a celebration of...

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Disagreement with 'Voters' Guide' Distribution in Church

October 27, 2000

Source: Star Tribune

On October 27, 2000, the Star-Tribune reported that, "the Interfaith Alliance warned Thursday that conservative Christians should not use houses of worship for partisan political purposes. The Minnesota Chapter, which represents about 800 people from several faith groups, reminded people that it expects the Christian Coalition to repeat its practice of distributing a 'voters' guide' to churches on the Sunday before Election Day. It sent a warning letter to about 2,300 congregations in the state. 'Our message is simple and to the point...

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Disagreement with 'Voters' Guide' Distribution in Church

October 25, 2000

Source: The Plain Dealer

On October 25, 2000, The Plain Dealer reported that, "just days after the Christian Coalition began a massive mailing of 70 million of its controversial voter guides, two leading church-state watchdog groups have announced their own counter-offensive aimed at key battleground states in the Nov. 7 election. The Interfaith Alliance, a broad-based coalition of moderate and liberal religious groups, will release a letter from clergy to fellow clergy in seven battleground states and nine others today urging them not to distribute the...

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High-tech Church Opens in Dallas

October 23, 2000

Source: The Denver Rocky Mountain News

On October 23, 2000, The Denver Rocky Mountain News reported that, "something big happened in Dallas on Sunday, and it wasn't a football game. Bishop T.D. Jakes and a host of other national and world religious leaders dedicated what's being called the country's most technologically innovative church facility. Imagine this: power and data terminals at 200 seats, allowing worshippers to download sermon notes and power point presentations on their laptops. Altar attendants with Palm Pilots, allowing immediate input of...

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National Council of Churches to Hold Ecumenical Meeting

October 23, 2000

Source: The New York Times

On October 23, 2000, The New York Times reported that, "the National Council of Churches, a venerable but financially straitened organization that represents 35 Protestant and Eastern Orthodox churches, plans to seek an unusual meeting next year. The meeting, which would bring Christian leaders together across historical dividing lines, might even eventually lead the council into a broader, more diverse coalition if other Christian groups agreed. The proposed meeting -- to which Roman Catholics, evangelical Protestants and...

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