Clipmarks | Church state Clips

Short Term Senator Earmarks funds to family

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 16:00:25 GMT

clipped by: Eaglewings
clipper's remarks: I bet you have never heard that headline anywhere have you? Well the fact of the matter is that in the short time Senator Obama actually WORKED in the Illinois state senate he personally secured over $3 million dollars in earmarks which would appear to have been used to take care of family and campaign contributors. CAN WE SAY ABUSE OF OFFICE?

Clip Source: www.gopusa.com

Blue Gargoyle: Barack Obama helped secure a $25,000 grant for Blue Gargoyle in August 2000, an organization that was headed by Capers C. Funnye, Jr., Michelle Obama's first cousin once removed. (web site)

Community of St. Sabina: Obama helped secure a $100,000 grant for the Community of St. Sabina in July 2000, a church headed by Father Michael Pfleger, a controversial and radical Catholic priest and Obama campaign contributor. Pfleger made news in March 2008, for mocking then-presidential candidate Hillary Clinton from the pulpit of Trinity United Church of Christ, formerly run by Obama's personal pastor the Reverend Jeremiah Wright. (web site)

FORUM: Run by Yesse Yehudah, Barack Obama gave a $75,000 grant to the organization in 2000. Although Yehudah ran against Obama in a 1998 election, five people from FORUM donated $1000 to Obama's campaign after receiving the grant.

the State sued Yehudah for failure to account for hundreds of thousands of dollars he received from Obama's grant.

Tags: obama

Church of the Holy Sepulchre Endangered by Battling Factions &Time

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 07:09:37 GMT

clipped by: BartendingBear
clipper's remarks: Ah, Christian brotherhood and love at it's very best. "Rival denominations often battle for access or space and the congregation at the annual Easter service sometimes resembles the terraces of a boisterous football match. The keys to the main entrance of the church have been held by a Muslim family since the 12th century because the Christians do not trust one another."

Clip Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

A long-running row over the rights to a rooftop section of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre could bring the entire structure tumbling down, destroying Christendom’s holiest site.

While renovations are needed across the church, the small Deir al-Sultan monastery on its roof has reached an “emergency state”, according to engineers who completed an evaluation this month.

The Times has learnt that in 2004 the two chapels and twenty-six tiny rooms that comprise the monastery were pronounced in dire need of reinforcement. They have since deteriorated to the point where engineers now fear that they will crash through the roof and into the church, venerated by millions of Christians as the site of the Crucifixion and burial of Jesus.

The church has been vigilantly managed by six competing and often fractious Christian denominations — Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, Coptic, Syrian Orthodox and Ethiopian — since an agreement reached under Ottoman law in 1757.

gotta love roseanne cash!

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 00:43:43 GMT

clipped by: prin1
clipper's remarks: she is hilarious! there's not enough room for all of them on here so if you feel like a laugh go read the entire thing

Clip Source: www.thenation.com

I'd like to formally submit myself to replace Sarah Palin on the GOP ticket. I feel confident that John McCain will see that the very attributes he desired in his VP choice can be met, and even exceeded in some areas, by me. For your consideration, my big, fat résumé:

1. Focus on the Family

I am the mother of five children, just like Governor Palin. I have known the demands of managing a full-time career and motherhood at the same time. I have juggled a breast pump and a BlackBerry, and I know when to put the BlackBerry down. (To be perfectly honest, I did once send a text to the baby and tried to nurse my bass player. You learn from your mistakes.)

2. Reproductive Issues

3. Church and State

4. Environment

(Okay, that is a bold-faced lie, but I've been paying really close attention to the campaign stump speeches, and I feel certain I am allowed a generous allotment of bold-faced lies.)

5. Foreign policy

6. Legal Experience

7. Higher Education

8. Ethics

9. Iraq

10. Executive Ability

Church vs. Nanny State

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 15:38:25 GMT

clipped by: keith0718

Clip Source: cosmos-liturgy-sex.com

Social justice rests on the dignity of the person, and it is the Church alone that teaches the fullness of truth about the person. To blunt the Church’s spiritual and moral authority is to blunt social justice: and this blunting effect is a common consequence of the modern political order.

Palin at times links church, state

Sun, 12 Oct 2008 03:24:42 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

Records show she used taxpayer money to promote religious causes

The camera closes in on Sarah Palin speaking to young missionaries, vowing from the pulpit to do her part to implement God's will from the governor's office.

What she didn't tell worshippers gathered at the Wasilla Assembly of God church in her hometown was that her appearance that day came courtesy of Alaskan taxpayers, who picked up the $639.50 tab for her airplane tickets and per diem fees.

An Associated Press review of the Republican vice presidential candidate's record as mayor and governor reveals her use of elected office to promote religious causes, sometimes at taxpayer expense and in ways that blur the line between church and state.

Since she took state office in late 2006, the governor and her family have spent more than $13,000 in taxpayer funds to attend at least 10 religious events and meetings with Christian pastors, including Franklin Graham, the son of evangelical preacher Billy Graham, records show.

Tags: palin, religion, church, state, taxes, government

Actively Mixing Church Activities & State Funds - Sarah Palin

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 23:43:58 GMT

clipped by: BartendingBear
clipper's remarks: Somebody please save us from this ethics-less mangled wreck of human intellect. PLEASE!!

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

The camera closes in on Sarah Palin speaking to young missionaries, vowing from the pulpit to do her part to implement God's will from the governor's office.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

This photo from the Web site of The Office of the Governor of Alaska, shows, from left, Alaska Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell, Gov. Sarah Palin, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, being prayed over by Pastor Ed Kalnins and a congregation made up of nearly 20 different churches and denominations at One Lord Sunday in the Mat-Su Valley, Alaska on June 8, 2008.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

Vote to Decide on Lethal Meds for Dying Patients

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 23:06:05 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

The emotionally charged battle over end-of-life decisions has taken to the airwaves as Washington state voters decide whether to allow doctors to prescribe lethal medication to terminally ill patients.

Recent TV and radio ads by opponents feature actor Martin Sheen, who calls the measure a "dangerous idea" that could be used by the most vulnerable in society. Supporters are on TV with an ad spotlighting a widow who says it lets those who are suffering have control over their final days.

The measure would allow physicians in Washington state to help terminally ill patients end their lives. Oregon, where voters first approved the idea in 1994, is the only state with such a law.

"It really is a matter of personal decisions and having the freedom to make your own decisions about end-of-life care," said Anne Martens, spokeswoman for Yes on I-1000.

The measure is strongly opposed by religious groups, and Catholic church officials said their opposition shouldn't surprise anyone.

Tags: suicide, death, health, terminal illness, medical, law, legal

AU Polices Politicking Churches

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 22:55:10 GMT

clipped by: AtlLiberal
clipper's remarks: The watchdog group, AU, tries to keep churches in line that recently overstepped the boundary between church and state. Here's hoping the IRS gives the offending church's books a fine looking over. If they wish to engage in partisan politics fine but not on my dime.

Clip Source: www.au.org

Americans United Urges IRS To Take Action Against Six Churches That Joined Pulpit-Politicking Scheme

Church-State Watchdog Group Criticizes Religious Right Lawyers For Luring Congregations Into Intentional Violation Of Federal Tax Law

Americans United for Separation of Church and State today filed complaints with the Internal Revenue Service about six churches whose pastors endorsed candidates from the pulpit during a mass defiance of federal tax law last Sunday.

The Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), a Religious Right legal group in Scottsdale, Ariz., urged pastors to defy federal tax law by endorsing or opposing candidates during a so-called “Pulpit Freedom Sunday” Sept. 28. Under the IRS Code, churches and other 501(c)(3) tax-exempt groups may not intervene in elections.

Bethlehem Baptist Church, Bethlehem, Ga.: According to press accounts, Pastor Jody Hice “urged his congregation to vote for Sen. John McCain and to not vote for Sen. Barack Obama.”

penpals

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 04:31:34 GMT

clipped by: briley

Clip Source: www.christian-penpals.com

Legal Aid Society Prisoner's Rights Project, 90 Church St., New York, NY 10038 Phone: 212-577-3938/3907 Categories: legal resources: federal, state, and local,

Judgement Matters

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 15:30:33 GMT

clipped by: strider72
clipper's remarks: Character matters. Judgment matters. And yes, the people with whom you choose to associate matter.

Clip Source: www.unionleader.com

Imagine if John McCain's career had been launched at the home of a right-wing terrorist such as Timothy McVeigh. Do you think the media would be shrugging their shoulders?

Imagine if John McCain were closely associated with a right-wing group that state officials say was actively committing widespread voter fraud running up to this election. Would the media ignore it?

If John McCain spent two decades in a church with a right-wing pastor who preached a version of white supremacy and routinely condemned America, would the media suggest that the tie was no reflection on McCain's own thoughts or ideology?

Barack Obama's political career was launched in the home of William Ayers, a left-wing terrorist

In a 2001 New York Times interview, Ayers said, "I don't regret setting bombs. I feel we didn't do enough."

Barack Obama taught classes for

ACORN, represented the group in a lawsuit against the state of Illinois

ACORN's Nevada offices were just raided. The state alleges extensive voter fraud

Tags: politics, barack obama, john mccain, acorn, william ayers, terrorism, fraud

No Political Sermons?

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 18:07:08 GMT

clipped by: oscarrob
clipper's remarks: The good old days when powerful politicians could stomp all over free speech.

"The debate over Jones’s bill and Johnson’s amendment reveals once again how confusing and confused church-state jurisprudence is and has always been and will always be. Both sides claim that the other is violating the separation of church and state. Barry Lynn, a minister who is executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, argues that “We just can’t have sermons converted into political advertisements for candidates,” and he warns against using “church collection plate money on an ad telling people” to vote for one candidate rather than another. "

Oh come on. Seperating church and state is one thing. Stopping the clergy from making political statements is a whole different and very dangerous ballgame. Are you going to stop the clergy from speaking on immigration? How about speaking out about the plight of the poor? Should they stop making speeches about genocide? I

Clip Source: fish.blogs.nytimes.com

Lyndon Johnson was opposed by a couple of non-profits that urged voters to reject him and his radical communist ideas.

Johnson had new language inserted into the section of the IRS code, which defines a tax exempt entity. His addendum declared that an exempt organization “does not participate in or intervene in (including the publishing or distributing of statements), any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office.”

Now, in the middle of the 2008 election, several dozen pastors are challenging the amendment by speaking out in the pulpit in favor of a candidate (usually John McCain) and by sending the IRS copies of the sermons in which they openly cross the line the law has drawn since 1954. At the same time, a bill (H.R. 2275) repealing the Johnson amendment has been introduced by Walter Jones, Republican of North Carolina. The bill has been referred to the House Ways and Means Committee where it awaits action.

Tags: politics, religion, church, free speech

Centuries old code survives in remote Albanian village

Sun, 05 Oct 2008 04:42:20 GMT

clipped by: tommy2balmy
clipper's remarks: The code covers everything from inheritances and the rights of the church to the treatment of livestock. In Theth, nobody will sell land to an outsider, or even to another villager. Brides must come from outside the valley, a tradition that follows along the lines of the Kanun's rule that marriage within the same clan is forbidden.

"The Kanun is the law. Just like the state law," explains Gjovalin Lokthi, 39, a gruff "kryeplak," or elected chief of the village.

Clip Source: www.latimes.com

Residents of Theth, a Catholic village in the remote Shala Valley, play soccer. Most residents leave during the harsh winter.

THETH, ALBANIA -- The "Accursed Mountains" tower high above the Shala Valley, snow clinging to their summits even in the summer.

For about half the year, Shala, a protected national park, is cut off by heavy snowfall that blocks access to the two rock-strewn dirt tracks snaking through the mountains. The only way in or out is a seven-hour trek by foot to the nearest road, if the snow is not too deep.

Many still live at least in part by the Kanun, a code handed down through the centuries in which "besa" -- loosely translated as word of honor or sacred promise -- is paramount. The code was adhered to by Albania's Muslim majority and Catholic and Orthodox Christian minorities.

Disobeying the Kanun could lead to harsh penalties that might include banishment or the transgressor's household being burned. A slight could lead to a blood feud that lasted for generations.

Tags: kanun code, code, albania, theth, odd

America Under Martial Law

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 03:38:42 GMT

clipped by: Maxwell_Smart
clipper's remarks: If this would have taken place 20 years ago, I never would have found out about it. Thank God for the internet and people who pass info like this around.

I don't know what to make of the added remarks about Bible Prophecy. I think you can make a lot of money speaking about it. Jesus said you won't know the day nor the hour. He told the Jews they would have signs, but I believe the church will be gone prior to that. Paul said Jesus would come for the church like a thief in the night and the people would be crying "peace and safety." Rev 17? speaks of Babylon surrounded by water - it is a desert right now. I think we we delay his coming by allowing our country to be at war and stirring up more war and letting our president turn a republic into an empire. Jesus may or may not come back in our life time. But this I know for sure - we are losing our country, the leaders are corrupt, and only an outcry from THE PEOPLE in mass is going to stop them.

Clip Source: www.youtube.com

[Video]

President Bush signed NSPD-51 (National Security Presidential Directive 51) and HSPD-20 (Homeland Security Presidential Directive 20) on May 9, 2007, allowing the president to declare a "national emergency" and take over the direction of all federal state, local, territorial and tribal governments, as well as private sector organizations, to continue functioning under the president's directives, without specifically requiring the approval of Congress.

It seems that these two directives are not enough power for President Bush. In a ceremony that received virtually no attention in the American media, the United States and Canada signed a military agreement February 14 2008 allowing the armed forces from one nation to support the armed forces of the other nation during a domestic civil emergency, even one that does not involve a cross-border crisis!

American Public Education, Material Science and Religious beliefs

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 22:03:01 GMT

clipped by: arifsali
clipper's remarks: Just wrote this blog post, recommend you read at the source to get the point.

On Pg 103 of Embracing Mind, B. Allan Wallace writes (and I find this interesting on the topic of public education in America).

Clip Source: webwanderings.wordpress.com

Due to this biased attitude, Americans remain largely ignorant of all but their own personal spiritual beliefs–and this in an age when religion and politics have become thoroughly mixed on the international stage. There seems to be a misplaced fear that if, say, a religious believer were brought into a classroom to explain why he believed in his creed and what his religion meant to him personally, this would appear to be promoting religion. The U.S.Constitution originally forbade the promotion of religion in order to avoid the creation of an official state religion such as the Church of England. Its intent was not to stifle spirituality. Forcing all the children in a classroom to recite or listen to the Lord’s Prayer each day would indeed be the promotion of an official religion, but allowing children to describe their own spiritual beliefs, or lack of belief, and to be exposed to other beliefs does not promote any particular religion.

Tags: religion, science, education, america

French Muslims Find Haven in Catholic Schools

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 04:17:17 GMT

clipped by: Efrain Alvarado

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

MARSEILLE, France — The bright cafeteria of St. Mauront Catholic School is conspicuously quiet: It is Ramadan, and 80 percent of the students are Muslim. When the lunch bell rings, girls and boys stream out past the crucifixes and the large wooden cross in the corridor, heading for Muslim midday prayer.

“It’s ironic,” he said, “but today the Catholic Church is more tolerant of — and knowledgeable about — Islam than the French state.”

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

The school deals swiftly with offensive comments, he said, but also tries to respect Islam. It takes Muslim holidays into account for parent-teacher meetings. For two years now, it has offered optional Arabic-language instruction — in part to steer students away from Koran classes in neighborhood mosques believed to preach radical Islam.

Fifteen of the top 20 high schools in France are Catholic schools, according to a recent ranking in the magazine L’Express. Catholic schools remain popular among Muslims even in cities where Muslim schools have sprung up

Tags: catholicism, islam, religion, secularism, school